1 This is ../info/xemacs-faq.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.0 from
4 INFO-DIR-SECTION XEmacs Editor
6 * FAQ: (xemacs-faq). XEmacs FAQ.
10 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.3, Next: Q5.1.4, Prev: Q5.1.2, Up: Miscellaneous
12 Q5.1.3: Could you explain `read-kbd-macro' in more detail?
13 ----------------------------------------------------------
15 The `read-kbd-macro' function returns the internal Emacs
16 representation of a human-readable string (which is its argument).
19 (read-kbd-macro "C-c C-a")
20 => [(control ?c) (control ?a)]
22 (read-kbd-macro "C-c C-. <up>")
23 => [(control ?c) (control ?.) up]
25 In GNU Emacs the same forms will be evaluated to what GNU Emacs
26 understands internally--the sequences `"\C-x\C-c"' and `[3 67108910
29 The exact "human-readable" syntax is defined in the docstring of
30 `edmacro-mode'. I'll repeat it here, for completeness.
32 Format of keyboard macros during editing:
34 Text is divided into "words" separated by whitespace. Except for
35 the words described below, the characters of each word go directly
36 as characters of the macro. The whitespace that separates words is
37 ignored. Whitespace in the macro must be written explicitly, as in
38 `foo <SPC> bar <RET>'.
40 * The special words `RET', `SPC', `TAB', `DEL', `LFD', `ESC',
41 and `NUL' represent special control characters. The words
42 must be written in uppercase.
44 * A word in angle brackets, e.g., `<return>', `<down>', or
45 `<f1>', represents a function key. (Note that in the standard
46 configuration, the function key `<return>' and the control key
47 <RET> are synonymous.) You can use angle brackets on the
48 words <RET>, <SPC>, etc., but they are not required there.
50 * Keys can be written by their ASCII code, using a backslash
51 followed by up to six octal digits. This is the only way to
52 represent keys with codes above \377.
54 * One or more prefixes `M-' (meta), `C-' (control), `S-'
55 (shift), `A-' (alt), `H-' (hyper), and `s-' (super) may
56 precede a character or key notation. For function keys, the
57 prefixes may go inside or outside of the brackets: `C-<down>'
58 == `<C-down>'. The prefixes may be written in any order:
61 Prefixes are not allowed on multi-key words, e.g., `C-abc',
62 except that the Meta prefix is allowed on a sequence of
63 digits and optional minus sign: `M--123' == `M-- M-1 M-2 M-3'.
65 * The `^' notation for control characters also works: `^M' ==
68 * Double angle brackets enclose command names: `<<next-line>>'
69 is shorthand for `M-x next-line <RET>'.
71 * Finally, `REM' or `;;' causes the rest of the line to be
74 Any word may be prefixed by a multiplier in the form of a decimal
75 number and `*': `3*<right>' == `<right> <right> <right>', and
76 `10*foo' == `foofoofoofoofoofoofoofoofoofoo'.
78 Multiple text keys can normally be strung together to form a word,
79 but you may need to add whitespace if the word would look like one
80 of the above notations: `; ; ;' is a keyboard macro with three
81 semicolons, but `;;;' is a comment. Likewise, `\ 1 2 3' is four
82 keys but `\123' is a single key written in octal, and `< right >'
83 is seven keys but `<right>' is a single function key. When in
84 doubt, use whitespace.
87 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.4, Next: Q5.1.5, Prev: Q5.1.3, Up: Miscellaneous
89 Q5.1.4: What is the performance hit of `let'?
90 ---------------------------------------------
92 In most cases, not noticeable. Besides, there's no avoiding
93 `let'--you have to bind your local variables, after all. Some pose a
94 question whether to nest `let's, or use one `let' per function. I
95 think because of clarity and maintenance (and possible future
96 implementation), `let'-s should be used (nested) in a way to provide
100 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.5, Next: Q5.1.6, Prev: Q5.1.4, Up: Miscellaneous
102 Q5.1.5: What is the recommended use of `setq'?
103 ----------------------------------------------
107 You will typically `defvar' your global variable to a default
108 value, and use `setq' to set it later.
110 It is never a good practice to `setq' user variables (like
111 `case-fold-search', etc.), as it ignores the user's choice
112 unconditionally. Note that `defvar' doesn't change the value of a
113 variable if it was bound previously. If you wish to change a
114 user-variable temporarily, use `let':
116 (let ((case-fold-search nil))
117 ... ; code with searches that must be case-sensitive
120 You will notice the user-variables by their docstrings beginning
121 with an asterisk (a convention).
125 Bind them with `let', which will unbind them (or restore their
126 previous value, if they were bound) after exiting from the `let'
127 form. Change the value of local variables with `setq' or whatever
128 you like (e.g. `incf', `setf' and such). The `let' form can even
129 return one of its local variables.
133 ;; iterate through the elements of the list returned by
134 ;; `hairy-function-that-returns-list'
135 (let ((l (hairy-function-that-returns-list)))
137 ... do something with (car l) ...
140 Another typical usage includes building a value simply to work
143 ;; Build the mode keymap out of the key-translation-alist
144 (let ((inbox (file-truename (expand-file-name box)))
146 ... code dealing with inbox ...
149 This piece of code uses the local variable `inbox', which becomes
150 unbound (or regains old value) after exiting the form. The form
151 also returns the value of `inbox', which can be reused, for
154 (setq foo-processed-inbox
158 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.6, Next: Q5.1.7, Prev: Q5.1.5, Up: Miscellaneous
160 Q5.1.6: What is the typical misuse of `setq' ?
161 ----------------------------------------------
163 A typical misuse is probably `setq'ing a variable that was meant to
164 be local. Such a variable will remain bound forever, never to be
165 garbage-collected. For example, the code doing:
167 (defun my-function (whatever)
169 ... build a large list ...
172 does a bad thing, as `a' will keep consuming memory, never to be
173 unbound. The correct thing is to do it like this:
175 (defun my-function (whatever)
176 (let (a) ; default initialization is to nil
177 ... build a large list ...
178 ... and exit, unbinding `a' in the process ...)
180 Not only is this prettier syntactically, but it makes it possible for
181 Emacs to garbage-collect the objects which `a' used to reference.
183 Note that even global variables should not be `setq'ed without
184 `defvar'ing them first, because the byte-compiler issues warnings. The
185 reason for the warning is the following:
187 (defun flurgoze nil) ; ok, global internal variable
190 (setq flurghoze t) ; ops! a typo, but semantically correct.
191 ; however, the byte-compiler warns.
193 While compiling toplevel forms:
194 ** assignment to free variable flurghoze
197 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.7, Next: Q5.1.8, Prev: Q5.1.6, Up: Miscellaneous
199 Q5.1.7: I like the the `do' form of cl, does it slow things down?
200 -----------------------------------------------------------------
202 It shouldn't. Here is what Dave Gillespie has to say about cl.el
205 Many of the advanced features of this package, such as `defun*',
206 `loop', and `setf', are implemented as Lisp macros. In
207 byte-compiled code, these complex notations will be expanded into
208 equivalent Lisp code which is simple and efficient. For example,
214 are expanded at compile-time to the Lisp forms
217 (setcar p (cons x (car p)))
219 which are the most efficient ways of doing these respective
220 operations in Lisp. Thus, there is no performance penalty for
221 using the more readable `incf' and `push' forms in your compiled
224 _Interpreted_ code, on the other hand, must expand these macros
225 every time they are executed. For this reason it is strongly
226 recommended that code making heavy use of macros be compiled. (The
227 features labelled "Special Form" instead of "Function" in this
228 manual are macros.) A loop using `incf' a hundred times will
229 execute considerably faster if compiled, and will also
230 garbage-collect less because the macro expansion will not have to
231 be generated, used, and thrown away a hundred times.
233 You can find out how a macro expands by using the `cl-prettyexpand'
237 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.8, Next: Q5.1.9, Prev: Q5.1.7, Up: Miscellaneous
239 Q5.1.8: I like recursion, does it slow things down?
240 ---------------------------------------------------
242 Yes. Emacs byte-compiler cannot do much to optimize recursion. But
243 think well whether this is a real concern in Emacs. Much of the Emacs
244 slowness comes from internal mechanisms such as redisplay, or from the
245 fact that it is an interpreter.
247 Please try not to make your code much uglier to gain a very small
248 speed gain. It's not usually worth it.
251 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.9, Next: Q5.1.10, Prev: Q5.1.8, Up: Miscellaneous
253 Q5.1.9: How do I put a glyph as annotation in a buffer?
254 -------------------------------------------------------
256 Here is a solution that will insert the glyph annotation at the
259 (make-annotation (make-glyph '([FORMAT :file FILE]
260 [string :data "fallback-text"]))
265 Replace `FORMAT' with an unquoted symbol representing the format of
266 the image (e.g. `xpm', `xbm', `gif', `jpeg', etc.) Instead of `FILE',
267 use the image file name (e.g.
268 `/usr/local/lib/xemacs-20.2/etc/recycle.xpm').
270 You can turn this to a function (that optionally prompts you for a
271 file name), and inserts the glyph at `(point)' instead of `(point-min)'.
274 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.10, Next: Q5.1.11, Prev: Q5.1.9, Up: Miscellaneous
276 Q5.1.10: `map-extents' won't traverse all of my extents!
277 --------------------------------------------------------
279 I tried to use `map-extents' to do an operation on all the extents
280 in a region. However, it seems to quit after processing a random number
281 of extents. Is it buggy?
283 No. The documentation of `map-extents' states that it will iterate
284 across the extents as long as FUNCTION returns `nil'. Unexperienced
285 programmers often forget to return `nil' explicitly, which results in
286 buggy code. For instance, the following code is supposed to delete all
287 the extents in a buffer, and issue as many `fubar!' messages.
289 (map-extents (lambda (ext ignore)
293 Instead, it will delete only the first extent, and stop right there -
294 because `message' will return a non-nil value. The correct code is:
296 (map-extents (lambda (ext ignore)
302 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.1.11, Next: Q5.2.1, Prev: Q5.1.10, Up: Miscellaneous
304 Q5.1.11: My elisp program is horribly slow. Is there
305 -----------------------------------------------------
307 an easy way to find out where it spends time?
309 zHrvoje Niksic <hniksic@xemacs.org> writes:
310 Under XEmacs 20.4 and later you can use `M-x
311 profile-key-sequence', press a key (say <RET> in the Gnus Group
312 buffer), and get the results using `M-x profile-results'. It
313 should give you an idea of where the time is being spent.
316 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.2.1, Next: Q5.2.2, Prev: Q5.1.11, Up: Miscellaneous
318 Q5.2.1: How do I turn off the sound?
319 ------------------------------------
321 Add the following line to your `.emacs':
324 (setq sound-alist nil)
326 That will make your XEmacs totally silent--even the default ding
327 sound (TTY beep on TTY-s) will be gone.
329 Starting with XEmacs-20.2 you can also change these with Customize.
330 Select from the `Options' menu
331 `Customize->Emacs->Environment->Sound->Sound...' or type `M-x customize
335 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.2.2, Next: Q5.2.3, Prev: Q5.2.1, Up: Miscellaneous
337 Q5.2.2: How do I get funky sounds instead of a boring beep?
338 -----------------------------------------------------------
340 Make sure your XEmacs was compiled with sound support, and then put
341 this in your `.emacs':
343 (load-default-sounds)
345 The sound support in XEmacs 19.14 was greatly improved over previous
349 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.2.3, Next: Q5.2.4, Prev: Q5.2.2, Up: Miscellaneous
351 Q5.2.3: What's NAS, how do I get it?
352 ------------------------------------
354 *Note Q2.0.3::, for an explanation of the "Network Audio System".
357 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.2.4, Next: Q5.3.1, Prev: Q5.2.3, Up: Miscellaneous
359 Q5.2.4: Sunsite sounds don't play.
360 ----------------------------------
362 I'm having some trouble with sounds I've downloaded from sunsite.
363 They play when I run them through `showaudio' or cat them directly to
364 `/dev/audio', but XEmacs refuses to play them.
366 Markus Gutschke <gutschk@uni-muenster.de> writes:
368 [Many of] These files have an (erroneous) 24byte header that tells
369 about the format that they have been recorded in. If you cat them
370 to `/dev/audio', the header will be ignored and the default
371 behavior for /dev/audio will be used. This happens to be 8kHz
372 uLaw. It is probably possible to fix the header by piping through
373 `sox' and passing explicit parameters for specifying the sampling
374 format; you then need to perform a 'null' conversion from SunAudio
378 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.1, Next: Q5.3.2, Prev: Q5.2.4, Up: Miscellaneous
383 Q5.3.1: How do you make XEmacs indent CL if-clauses correctly?
384 --------------------------------------------------------------
386 I'd like XEmacs to indent all the clauses of a Common Lisp `if' the
387 same amount instead of indenting the 3rd clause differently from the
390 One way is to add, to `.emacs':
392 (put 'if 'lisp-indent-function nil)
394 However, note that the package `cl-indent' that comes with XEmacs
395 sets up this kind of indentation by default. `cl-indent' also knows
396 about many other CL-specific forms. To use `cl-indent', one can do
400 (setq lisp-indent-function (function common-lisp-indent-function))
402 One can also customize `cl-indent.el' so it mimics the default `if'
403 indentation `then' indented more than the `else'. Here's how:
405 (put 'if 'common-lisp-indent-function '(nil nil &body))
407 Also, a new version (1.2) of `cl-indent.el' was posted to
408 comp.emacs.xemacs on 12/9/94. This version includes more documentation
409 than previous versions. This may prove useful if you need to customize
410 any indent-functions.
413 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.2, Next: Q5.3.3, Prev: Q5.3.1, Up: Miscellaneous
415 Q5.3.2: Fontifying hang when editing a postscript file.
416 -------------------------------------------------------
418 When I try to edit a postscript file it gets stuck saying:
419 `fontifying 'filename' (regexps....)' and it just sits there. If I
420 press `C-c' in the window where XEmacs was started, it suddenly becomes
423 This was caused by a bug in the Postscript font-lock regular
424 expressions. It was fixed in 19.13. For earlier versions of XEmacs,
425 have a look at your `.emacs' file. You will probably have a line like:
427 (add-hook 'postscript-mode-hook 'turn-on-font-lock)
429 Take it out, restart XEmacs, and it won't try to fontify your
430 postscript files anymore.
433 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.3, Next: Q5.3.4, Prev: Q5.3.2, Up: Miscellaneous
435 Q5.3.3: How can I print WYSIWYG a font-locked buffer?
436 -----------------------------------------------------
438 Font-lock looks nice. How can I print (WYSIWYG) the highlighted
441 The package `ps-print', which is now included with XEmacs, provides
442 the ability to do this. The source code contains complete instructions
443 on its use, in `<xemacs_src_root>/lisp/packages/ps-print.el'.
446 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.4, Next: Q5.3.5, Prev: Q5.3.3, Up: Miscellaneous
448 Q5.3.4: Getting `M-x lpr' to work with postscript printer.
449 ----------------------------------------------------------
451 My printer is a Postscript printer and `lpr' only works for
452 Postscript files, so how do I get `M-x lpr-region' and `M-x lpr-buffer'
455 Put something like this in your `.emacs':
457 (setq lpr-command "a2ps")
458 (setq lpr-switches '("-p" "-1"))
460 If you don't use a2ps to convert ASCII to postscript (why not, it's
461 free?), replace with the command you do use. Note also that some
462 versions of a2ps require a `-Pprinter' to ensure spooling.
465 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.5, Next: Q5.3.6, Prev: Q5.3.4, Up: Miscellaneous
467 Q5.3.5: How do I specify the paths that XEmacs uses for finding files?
468 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
470 You can specify what paths to use by using a number of different
471 flags when running configure. See the section MAKE VARIABLES in the
472 top-level file INSTALL in the XEmacs distribution for a listing of
475 Most of the time, however, the simplest fix is: *do not* specify
476 paths as you might for GNU Emacs. XEmacs can generally determine the
477 necessary paths dynamically at run time. The only path that generally
478 needs to be specified is the root directory to install into. That can
479 be specified by passing the `--prefix' flag to configure. For a
480 description of the XEmacs install tree, please consult the `NEWS' file.
483 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.6, Next: Q5.3.7, Prev: Q5.3.5, Up: Miscellaneous
485 Q5.3.6: [This question intentionally left blank]
486 ------------------------------------------------
488 Obsolete question, left blank to avoid renumbering.
491 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.7, Next: Q5.3.8, Prev: Q5.3.6, Up: Miscellaneous
493 Q5.3.7: Can I have the end of the buffer delimited in some way?
494 ---------------------------------------------------------------
500 (let ((ext (make-extent (point-min) (point-max))))
501 (set-extent-property ext 'start-closed t)
502 (set-extent-property ext 'end-closed t)
503 (set-extent-property ext 'detachable nil)
504 (set-extent-end-glyph ext (make-glyph [string :data "[END]"])))
506 Since this is XEmacs, you can specify an icon to be shown on
507 window-system devices. To do so, change the `make-glyph' call to
510 (make-glyph '([xpm :file "~/something.xpm"]
511 [string :data "[END]"]))
513 You can inline the XPM definition yourself by specifying `:data'
514 instead of `:file'. Here is such a full-featured version that works on
515 both X and TTY devices:
517 (let ((ext (make-extent (point-min) (point-max))))
518 (set-extent-property ext 'start-closed t)
519 (set-extent-property ext 'end-closed t)
520 (set-extent-property ext 'detachable nil)
521 (set-extent-end-glyph ext (make-glyph '([xpm :data "\
532 \"___________`_`_`___b_b_b_b_________`____\",
533 \"_________`_`_`___b_c_c_c_b_b____________\",
534 \"_____`_`_`_e___b_b_c_c_c___b___b_______`\",
535 \"___`_`_e_a___b_b_d___b___b___b___b______\",
536 \"_`_`_e_a_e___b_b_d_b___b___b___b___b____\",
537 \"_`_`_a_e_a___b_b_d___b___b___b___b___b__\",
538 \"_`_`_e_a_e___b_b_d_b___b___b___b___b_b__\",
539 \"___`_`_e_a___b_b_b_d_c___b___b___d_b____\",
540 \"_____`_`_e_e___b_b_b_d_c___b_b_d_b______\",
541 \"_`_____`_`_`_`___b_b_b_d_d_d_d_b________\",
542 \"___`_____`_`_`_`___b_b_b_b_b_b__________\",
544 [string :data "[END]"]))))
546 Note that you might want to make this a function, and put it to a
547 hook. We leave that as an exercise for the reader.
550 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.8, Next: Q5.3.9, Prev: Q5.3.7, Up: Miscellaneous
552 Q5.3.8: How do I insert today's date into a buffer?
553 ---------------------------------------------------
557 (insert (current-time-string))
560 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.9, Next: Q5.3.10, Prev: Q5.3.8, Up: Miscellaneous
562 Q5.3.9: Are only certain syntactic character classes available for abbrevs?
563 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
565 Markus Gutschke <gutschk@uni-muenster.de> writes:
567 Yes, abbrevs only expands word-syntax strings. While XEmacs does
568 not prevent you from defining (e.g. with `C-x a g' or `C-x a l')
569 abbrevs that contain special characters, it will refuse to expand
570 them. So you need to ensure, that the abbreviation contains
571 letters and digits only. This means that `xd', `d5', and `5d' are
572 valid abbrevs, but `&d', and `x d' are not.
574 If this sounds confusing to you, (re-)read the online
575 documentation for abbrevs (`C-h i m XEmacs <RET> m Abbrevs
576 <RET>'), and then come back and read this question/answer again.
578 Starting with XEmacs 20.3 this restriction has been lifted.
581 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.10, Next: Q5.3.11, Prev: Q5.3.9, Up: Miscellaneous
583 Q5.3.10: How can I get those oh-so-neat X-Face lines?
584 -----------------------------------------------------
586 Firstly there is an ftp site which describes X-faces and has the
587 associated tools mentioned below, at
588 `ftp://ftp.cs.indiana.edu:/pub/faces/'.
592 1. Create 48x48x1 bitmap with your favorite tool
594 2. Convert to "icon" format using one of xbm2ikon, pbmtoicon, etc.,
595 and then compile the face.
597 3. cat file.xbm | xbm2ikon |compface > file.face
599 4. Then be sure to quote things that are necessary for emacs strings:
601 cat ./file.face | sed 's/\\/\\\\/g'
602 | sed 's/\"/\\\"/g' > ./file.face.quoted
604 5. Then set up emacs to include the file as a mail header - there
605 were a couple of suggestions here--either something like:
607 (setq mail-default-headers
608 "X-Face: <Ugly looking text string here>")
610 Or, alternatively, as:
612 (defun mail-insert-x-face ()
614 (goto-char (point-min))
615 (search-forward mail-header-separator)
618 (insert-file-contents "~/.face")))
620 (add-hook 'mail-setup-hook 'mail-insert-x-face)
622 However, 2 things might be wrong:
624 Some versions of pbmtoicon produces some header lines that is not
625 expected by the version of compface that I grabbed. So I found I had to
626 include a `tail +3' in the pipeline like this:
628 cat file.xbm | xbm2ikon | tail +3 |compface > file.face
630 Some people have also found that if one uses the `(insert-file)'
631 method, one should NOT quote the face string using the sed script .
633 It might also be helpful to use Stig's <stig@hackvan.com> script
634 (included in the compface distribution at XEmacs.org) to do the
637 Contributors for this item:
639 Paul Emsley, Ricardo Marek, Amir J. Katz, Glen McCort, Heinz Uphoff,
640 Peter Arius, Paul Harrison, and Vegard Vesterheim
643 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.11, Next: Q5.3.12, Prev: Q5.3.10, Up: Miscellaneous
645 Q5.3.11: How do I add new Info directories?
646 -------------------------------------------
648 You use something like:
650 (setq Info-directory-list (cons
651 (expand-file-name "~/info")
652 Info-default-directory-list))
654 David Masterson <davidm@prism.kla.com> writes:
656 Emacs Info and XEmacs Info do many things differently. If you're
657 trying to support a number of versions of Emacs, here are some
660 1. Emacs Info scans `Info-directory-list' from right-to-left
661 while XEmacs Info reads it from left-to-right, so append to
662 the _correct_ end of the list.
664 2. Use `Info-default-directory-list' to initialize
665 `Info-directory-list' _if_ it is available at startup, but not
666 all Emacsen define it.
668 3. Emacs Info looks for a standard `dir' file in each of the
669 directories scanned from #1 and magically concatenates them
672 4. XEmacs Info looks for a `localdir' file (which consists of
673 just the menu entries from a `dir' file) in each of the
674 directories scanned from #1 (except the first), does a simple
675 concatenation of them, and magically attaches the resulting
676 list to the end of the menu in the `dir' file in the first
679 Another alternative is to convert the documentation to HTML with
680 texi2html and read it from a web browser like Lynx or W3.
683 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q5.3.12, Prev: Q5.3.11, Up: Miscellaneous
685 Q5.3.12: What do I need to change to make printing work?
686 --------------------------------------------------------
688 For regular printing there are two variables that can be customized.
691 This should be set to a command that takes standard input and sends
692 it to a printer. Something like:
694 (setq lpr-command "lp")
697 This should be set to a list that contains whatever the print
698 command requires to do its job. Something like:
700 (setq lpr-switches '("-depson"))
702 For postscript printing there are three analogous variables to
706 This should be set to a command that takes postscript on standard
707 input and directs it to a postscript printer.
710 This should be set to a list of switches required for
711 `ps-lpr-command' to do its job.
714 This boolean variable should be set `t' if printing will be done in
715 color, otherwise it should be set to `nil'.
717 NOTE: It is an undocumented limitation in XEmacs that postscript
718 printing (the `Pretty Print Buffer' menu item) *requires* a window
719 system environment. It cannot be used outside of X11.
722 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: MS Windows, Next: Current Events, Prev: Miscellaneous, Up: Top
724 6 XEmacs on MS Windows
725 **********************
727 This is part 6 of the XEmacs Frequently Asked Questions list,
728 written by Hrvoje Niksic and others. This section is devoted to the MS
729 Windows port of XEmacs.
735 * Q6.0.1:: What is the status of the XEmacs port to Windows?
736 * Q6.0.2:: What flavors of MS Windows are supported?
737 * Q6.0.3:: Where are the XEmacs on MS Windows binaries?
738 * Q6.0.4:: Does XEmacs on MS Windows require an X server to run?
740 Building XEmacs on MS Windows
741 * Q6.1.1:: I decided to run with X. Where do I get an X server?
742 * Q6.1.2:: What compiler do I need to compile XEmacs?
743 * Q6.1.3:: How do I compile for the native port?
744 * Q6.1.4:: How do I compile for the X port?
745 * Q6.1.5:: How do I compile for Cygnus' Cygwin?
746 * Q6.1.6:: What do I need for Cygwin?
748 Customization and User Interface
749 * Q6.2.1:: How will the port cope with differences in the Windows user interface?
750 * Q6.2.2:: How do I change fonts in XEmacs on MS Windows?
751 * Q6.2.3:: Where do I put my `.emacs' file?
754 * Q6.3.1:: Will XEmacs rename all the win32-* symbols to w32-*?
755 * Q6.3.2:: What are the differences between the various MS Windows emacsen?
756 * Q6.3.3:: What is the porting team doing at the moment?
759 * Q6.4.1:: XEmacs won't start on Windows. (NEW)
762 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.0.1, Next: Q6.0.2, Prev: MS Windows, Up: MS Windows
767 Q6.0.1: What is the status of the XEmacs port to Windows?
768 ---------------------------------------------------------
770 Is XEmacs really getting ported to MS Windows? What is the status
773 Yes, a group of volunteers actively works on making XEmacs code base
774 cleanly compile and run on MS Windows operating systems. The mailing
775 list at <xemacs-nt@xemacs.org> is dedicated to that effort (please use
776 the -request address to subscribe).
778 At this time, XEmacs on MS Windows is usable, but lacks some of the
779 features of XEmacs on UNIX and UNIX-like systems. Notably,
780 internationalization does not work.
783 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.0.2, Next: Q6.0.3, Prev: Q6.0.1, Up: MS Windows
785 Q6.0.2: What flavors of MS Windows are supported? The list name implies NT only.
786 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
788 The list name is misleading, as XEmacs will support both Windows 95,
789 Windows 98 and Windows NT. The MS Windows-specific code is based on
790 Microsoft Win32 API, and will not work on MS Windows 3.x or on MS-DOS.
793 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.0.3, Next: Q6.0.4, Prev: Q6.0.2, Up: MS Windows
795 Q6.0.3: Are binary kits available?
796 ----------------------------------
798 Binary kits are available at
799 `ftp://ftp.xemacs.org/pub/xemacs/binary-kits/win32/' for the "plain" MS
803 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.0.4, Next: Q6.1.1, Prev: Q6.0.3, Up: MS Windows
805 Q6.0.4: Does XEmacs on MS Windows require an X server to run?
806 -------------------------------------------------------------
810 Long answer: XEmacs can be built in several ways in the MS Windows
811 environment, some of them requiring an X server and some not.
813 One is what we call the "X" port--it requires X libraries to build
814 and an X server to run. Internally it uses the Xt event loop and makes
815 use of X toolkits. Its look is quite un-Windowsy, but it works
816 reliably and supports all of the graphical features of Unix XEmacs.
818 The other is what we call the "native" port. It uses the Win32 API
819 and does not require X libraries to build, nor does it require an X to
820 run. In fact, it has no connection with X whatsoever. At this time,
821 the native port obsoletes the X port, providing almost all of its
822 features, including support for menus, scrollbars, toolbars, embedded
823 images and background pixmaps, frame pointers, etc. Most of the future
824 work will be based on the native port.
826 There is also a third special case, the Cygwin port. It takes
827 advantage of Cygnus emulation library under Win32, which enables it to
828 reuse much of the Unix XEmacs code base, such as processes and network
829 support, or internal select() mechanisms.
831 Cygwin port supports all display types--TTY, X & MS gui, and can be
832 built with support for all three. If you build with ms gui support
833 then the Cygwin version uses the majority of the msw code, which is
834 mostly related to display. If you want to build with X support you
835 need X libraries. If you want to build with tty support you need
836 ncurses. MS gui requires no additional libraries.
838 Some of the advantages of the Cygwin version are that it:
840 * integrates well with Cygwin environment for existing Cygwin users;
842 * uses configure so building with different features is very easy;
844 * has process support in X & tty.
847 The disadvantage is that it requires several Unix utilities and the
848 whole Cygwin environment, whereas the native port requires only a
849 suitable MS Windows compiler. Also, it follows the Unix filesystem and
850 process model very closely (some will undoubtedly view this as an
854 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.1.1, Next: Q6.1.2, Prev: Q6.0.4, Up: MS Windows
856 6.1: Building XEmacs on MS Windows
857 ==================================
859 Q6.1.1: I decided to run with X. Where do I get an X server?
860 -------------------------------------------------------------
862 Pointers to X servers can be found at
863 `http://dao.gsfc.nasa.gov/software/grads/win32/X11R6.3/';
865 look for "Where to get an X server". Also note that, although the
866 above page talks about Cygnus gnu-win32 (Cygwin), the information on X
867 servers is Cygwin-independent. You don't have to be running/using
868 Cygwin to use these X servers, and you don't have to compile XEmacs
869 under Cygwin to use XEmacs with these X servers. An "X port" XEmacs
870 compiled under Visual C++ will work with these X servers (as will
871 XEmacs running on a Unix box, redirected to the server running on your
875 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.1.2, Next: Q6.1.3, Prev: Q6.1.1, Up: MS Windows
877 Q6.1.2: What compiler do I need to compile XEmacs?
878 --------------------------------------------------
880 You need Visual C++ 4.2 or 5.0, with the exception of the Cygwin
881 port, which uses Gcc.
884 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.1.3, Next: Q6.1.4, Prev: Q6.1.2, Up: MS Windows
886 Q6.1.3: How do I compile for the native port?
887 ---------------------------------------------
889 Please read the file `nt/README' in the XEmacs distribution, which
890 contains the full description.
893 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.1.4, Next: Q6.1.5, Prev: Q6.1.3, Up: MS Windows
895 Q6.1.4: How do I compile for the X port?
896 ----------------------------------------
898 Again, it is described in `nt/README' in some detail. Basically, you
899 need to get X11 libraries from ftp.x.org, and compile them. If the
900 precompiled versions are available somewhere, I don't know of it.
903 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.1.5, Next: Q6.1.6, Prev: Q6.1.4, Up: MS Windows
905 Q6.1.5: How do I compile for Cygnus' Cygwin?
906 --------------------------------------------
908 Similar as on Unix; use the usual `configure' and `make' process.
909 Some problems to watch out for:
911 * make sure HOME is set. This controls where you `.emacs' file comes
914 * CYGWIN32 needs to be set to tty for process support work. e.g.
917 * picking up some other grep or other unix like tools can kill
920 * static heap too small, adjust src/sheap-adjust.h to a more positive
923 * The Cygwin version doesn't understand `//machine/path' type paths
924 so you will need to manually mount a directory of this form under
925 a unix style directory for a build to work on the directory.
929 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.1.6, Next: Q6.2.1, Prev: Q6.1.5, Up: MS Windows
931 Q6.1.6: What do I need for Cygwin?
932 ----------------------------------
934 You can find the Cygwin tools and compiler at:
936 `http://sourceware.cygnus.com/cygwin/'
938 You will need version b19 or later.
940 You will also need the X libraries. There are libraries at
941 `http://dao.gsfc.nasa.gov/software/grads/win32/X11R6.3/', but these are
942 not b19 compatible. You can get b19 X11R6.3 binaries, as well as
943 pre-built ncurses and graphic libraries, from:
945 `ftp://ftp.parallax.co.uk/pub/andyp/'.
948 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.2.1, Next: Q6.2.2, Prev: Q6.1.6, Up: MS Windows
950 6.2: Customization and User Interface
951 =====================================
953 Q6.2.1: How will the port cope with differences in the Windows user interface?
954 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
956 XEmacs (and Emacs in general) UI is pretty different from what is
957 expected of a typical MS Windows program. How will the MS Windows port
960 Fortunately, Emacs is also one of the most configurable editor beasts
961 in the world. The MS Windows "look and feel" (mark via shift-arrow,
962 self-inserting deletes region, etc.) can be easily configured via
963 various packages distributed with XEmacs. The `pending-delete' package
964 is an example of such a utility.
966 In future versions, some of these packages might be turned on by
967 default in the MS Windows environment.
970 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.2.2, Next: Q6.2.3, Prev: Q6.2.1, Up: MS Windows
972 Q6.2.2: How do I change fonts in XEmacs on MS Windows?
973 ------------------------------------------------------
975 In 21.2.*, use the font menu. In 21.1.*, you can change font
976 manually. For example:
978 (set-face-font 'default "Lucida Console:Regular:10")
979 (set-face-font 'modeline "MS Sans Serif:Regular:10")
982 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.2.3, Next: Q6.3.1, Prev: Q6.2.2, Up: MS Windows
984 Q6.2.3: Where do I put my `.emacs' file?
985 ----------------------------------------
987 If the HOME environment variable is set, `.emacs' will be looked for
988 there. Else the directory defaults to `c:\'.
991 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.3.1, Next: Q6.3.2, Prev: Q6.2.3, Up: MS Windows
996 Q6.3.1: Will XEmacs rename all the win32-* symbols to w32-*?
997 ------------------------------------------------------------
999 In his flavor of Emacs 20, Richard Stallman has renamed all the
1000 win32-* symbols to w32-*. Will XEmacs do the same?
1002 We consider such a move counter-productive, thus we will not use the
1003 `w32' prefix. However, we do recognize that Win32 name is little more
1004 than a marketing buzzword (will it be Win64 in the next release?), so
1005 we decided not to use it. Using `windows-' would be wrong because the
1006 term is too generic, which is why we settled on a compromise
1009 Thus all the XEmacs variables and functions directly related to Win32
1010 are prefixed `mswindows-'. The user-variables shared with NT Emacs
1011 will be provided as compatibility aliases.
1013 Architectural note: We believe that there should be a very small
1014 number of window-systems-specific variables, and will try to provide
1015 generic interfaces whenever possible.
1018 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.3.2, Next: Q6.3.3, Prev: Q6.3.1, Up: MS Windows
1020 Q6.3.2: What are the differences between the various MS Windows emacsen?
1021 ------------------------------------------------------------------------
1023 XEmacs, Win-Emacs, DOS Emacs, NT Emacs, this is all very confusing.
1024 Could you briefly explain the differences between them?
1026 Here is a recount of various Emacs versions running on MS Windows:
1030 - Win-Emacs is a port of Lucid Emacs 19.6 to MS Windows using X
1031 compatibility libraries. Win-Emacs has been written by Ben
1032 Wing. The MS Windows code has not made it back to Lucid
1033 Emacs, which left Win-Emacs pretty much dead for our
1034 purposes. Win-Emacs used to be available at Pearlsoft, but
1035 not anymore, since Pearlsoft went out of business.
1039 - GNU Emacs features support for MS-DOS and DJGPP (D.J.
1040 Delorie's DOS port of Gcc). Such an Emacs is heavily
1041 underfeatured, because it does not supports long file names,
1042 lacks proper subprocesses support, and is far too big
1043 compared to typical DOS editors.
1045 * GNU Emacs compiled with Win32
1047 - Starting with version 19.30, it has been possible to compile
1048 GNU Emacs under MS Windows using the DJGPP compiler and X
1049 libraries. The result is is very similar to GNU Emacs
1050 compiled under MS DOS, only it supports longer file names,
1051 etc. This "port" is similar to the "X" flavor of XEmacs on
1056 - NT Emacs is a version of GNU Emacs modified to compile and
1057 run under MS MS Windows 95 and NT using the native Win32 API.
1058 As such, it is close in spirit to the XEmacs "native" port.
1060 - NT Emacs has been written by Geoff Voelker, and more
1061 information can be found at
1062 `http://www.cs.washington.edu/homes/voelker/ntemacs.html'.
1067 - Beginning with XEmacs 19.12, XEmacs' architecture has been
1068 redesigned in such a way to allow clean support of multiple
1069 window systems. At this time the TTY support was added,
1070 making X and TTY the first two "window systems" XEmacs
1071 supported. The 19.12 design is the basis for the current
1072 native MS Windows code.
1074 - Some time during 1997, David Hobley (soon joined by Marc
1075 Paquette) imported some of the NT-specific portions of GNU
1076 Emacs, making XEmacs with X support compile under Windows NT,
1077 and creating the "X" port.
1079 - Several months later, Jonathan Harris sent out initial
1080 patches to use the Win32 API, thus creating the native port.
1081 Since then, various people have contributed, including Kirill
1082 M. Katsnelson (contributed support for menubars, subprocesses
1083 and network, as well as loads of other code), Andy Piper
1084 (ported XEmacs to Cygwin environment, contributed Windows
1085 unexec, Windows-specific glyphs and toolbars code, and more),
1086 Jeff Sparkes (contributed scrollbars support) and many others.
1091 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.3.3, Next: Q6.4.1, Prev: Q6.3.2, Up: MS Windows
1093 Q6.3.3: What is the porting team doing at the moment?
1094 -----------------------------------------------------
1096 The porting team is continuing work on the MS Windows-specific code.
1099 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q6.4.1, Prev: Q6.3.3, Up: MS Windows
1101 6.3: Troubleshooting
1102 ====================
1104 Q6.4.1 XEmacs won't start on Windows. (NEW)
1105 -------------------------------------------
1107 XEmacs relies on a process called "dumping" to generate a working
1108 executable. Under MS-Windows this process effectively fixes the memory
1109 addresses of information in the executable. When XEmacs starts up it
1110 tries to reserve these memory addresses so that the dumping process can
1111 be reversed - putting the information back at the correct addresses.
1112 Unfortunately some .dlls (For instance the soundblaster driver) occupy
1113 memory addresses that can conflict with those needed by the dumped
1114 XEmacs executable. In this instance XEmacs will fail to start without
1115 any explanation. Note that this is extremely machine specific.
1117 Work is being done on fixes for 21.1.* that will make more
1118 intelligent guesses about which memory addresses will be free and so
1119 this should cure the problem for most people.
1121 21.2 implements "portable dumping" which will eliminate the problem
1125 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Current Events, Prev: MS Windows, Up: Top
1127 7 What the Future Holds
1128 ***********************
1130 This is part 7 of the XEmacs Frequently Asked Questions list. This
1131 section will change monthly, and contains any interesting items that
1132 have transpired over the previous month. If you are reading this from
1133 the XEmacs distribution, please see the version on the Web or archived
1134 at the various FAQ FTP sites, as this file is surely out of date.
1138 * Q7.0.1:: What is new in 20.2?
1139 * Q7.0.2:: What is new in 20.3?
1140 * Q7.0.3:: What is new in 20.4?
1141 * Q7.0.4:: Procedural changes in XEmacs development.
1144 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q7.0.1, Next: Q7.0.2, Prev: Current Events, Up: Current Events
1149 Q7.0.1: What is new in 20.2?
1150 ----------------------------
1152 The biggest changes in 20.2 include integration of EFS (the next
1153 generation of ange-ftp) and AUC Tex (the Emacs subsystem that includes a
1154 major mode for editing Tex and LaTeX, and a lot of other stuff). Many
1155 bugs from 20.0 have been fixed for this release. 20.2 also contains a
1156 new system for customizing XEmacs options, invoked via `M-x customize'.
1158 XEmacs 20.2 is the development release (20.0 was beta), and is no
1159 longer considered unstable.
1162 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q7.0.2, Next: Q7.0.3, Prev: Q7.0.1, Up: Current Events
1164 Q7.0.2: What is new in 20.3?
1165 ----------------------------
1167 XEmacs 20.3 was released in November 1997. It contains many bugfixes,
1168 and a number of new features, including Autoconf 2 based configuration,
1169 additional support for Mule (Multi-language extensions to Emacs), many
1170 more customizations, multiple frames on TTY-s, support for multiple info
1171 directories, an enhanced gnuclient, improvements to regexp matching,
1172 increased MIME support, and many, many synches with GNU Emacs 20.
1174 The XEmacs/Mule support has been only seriously tested in a Japanese
1175 locale, and no doubt many problems still remain. The support for
1176 ISO-Latin-1 and Japanese is fairly strong. MULE support comes at a
1177 price--about a 30% slowdown from 19.16. We're making progress on
1178 improving performance and XEmacs 20.3 compiled without Mule (which is
1179 the default) is definitely faster than XEmacs 19.16.
1181 XEmacs 20.3 is the first non-beta v20 release, and will be the basis
1182 for all further development.
1185 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q7.0.3, Next: Q7.0.4, Prev: Q7.0.2, Up: Current Events
1187 Q7.0.3: What's new in XEmacs 20.4?
1188 ----------------------------------
1190 XEmacs 20.4 is a bugfix release with no user-visible changes.
1193 File: xemacs-faq.info, Node: Q7.0.4, Prev: Q7.0.3, Up: Current Events
1195 Q7.0.4: Procedural changes in XEmacs development.
1196 -------------------------------------------------
1198 1. Discussion about the development of XEmacs occurs on the
1199 xemacs-beta mailing list. Subscriptions to this list will now be
1200 fully automated instead of being handled by hand. Send a mail
1201 message to <xemacs-beta-request@xemacs.org> with `subscribe' as the
1202 BODY of the message to join the list. Please note this is a
1203 developers mailing list for people who have an active interest in
1204 the development process.
1206 The discussion of NT XEmacs development is taking place on a
1207 separate mailing list. Send mail to
1208 <xemacs-nt-request@xemacs.org> to subscribe.
1210 2. Due to the long development cycle in between releases, it has been
1211 decided that intermediate versions will be made available in
1212 source only form for the truly interested.
1214 XEmacs 19.16 was the last 19 release, basically consisting of
1215 19.15 plus the collected bugfixes.
1217 3. As of December 1996, Steve Baur <steve@xemacs.org> has become the
1218 lead maintainer of XEmacs.