1 This is ../info/xemacs.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.0 from
4 INFO-DIR-SECTION XEmacs Editor
6 * XEmacs: (xemacs). XEmacs Editor.
9 This file documents the XEmacs editor.
11 Copyright (C) 1985, 1986, 1988 Richard M. Stallman. Copyright (C)
12 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 Lucid, Inc. Copyright (C) 1993, 1994 Sun
13 Microsystems, Inc. Copyright (C) 1995 Amdahl Corporation.
15 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
16 manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are
17 preserved on all copies.
19 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of
20 this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also
21 that the sections entitled "The GNU Manifesto", "Distribution" and "GNU
22 General Public License" are included exactly as in the original, and
23 provided that the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the
24 terms of a permission notice identical to this one.
26 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this
27 manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified
28 versions, except that the sections entitled "The GNU Manifesto",
29 "Distribution" and "GNU General Public License" may be included in a
30 translation approved by the author instead of in the original English.
33 File: xemacs.info, Node: Screen Garbled, Next: Text Garbled, Prev: Stuck Recursive, Up: Lossage
38 If the data on the screen looks wrong, the first thing to do is see
39 whether the text is actually wrong. Type `C-l', to redisplay the
40 entire screen. If the text appears correct after this, the problem was
41 entirely in the previous screen update.
43 Display updating problems often result from an incorrect termcap
44 entry for the terminal you are using. The file `etc/TERMS' in the Emacs
45 distribution gives the fixes for known problems of this sort.
46 `INSTALL' contains general advice for these problems in one of its
47 sections. Very likely there is simply insufficient padding for certain
48 display operations. To investigate the possibility that you have this
49 sort of problem, try Emacs on another terminal made by a different
50 manufacturer. If problems happen frequently on one kind of terminal but
51 not another kind, the real problem is likely to be a bad termcap entry,
52 though it could also be due to a bug in Emacs that appears for terminals
53 that have or lack specific features.
56 File: xemacs.info, Node: Text Garbled, Next: Unasked-for Search, Prev: Screen Garbled, Up: Lossage
61 If `C-l' shows that the text is wrong, try undoing the changes to it
62 using `C-x u' until it gets back to a state you consider correct. Also
63 try `C-h l' to find out what command you typed to produce the observed
66 If a large portion of text appears to be missing at the beginning or
67 end of the buffer, check for the word `Narrow' in the mode line. If it
68 appears, the text is still present, but marked off-limits. To make it
69 visible again, type `C-x n w'. *Note Narrowing::.
72 File: xemacs.info, Node: Unasked-for Search, Next: Emergency Escape, Prev: Text Garbled, Up: Lossage
74 Spontaneous Entry to Incremental Search
75 ---------------------------------------
77 If Emacs spontaneously displays `I-search:' at the bottom of the
78 screen, it means that the terminal is sending `C-s' and `C-q' according
79 to the poorly designed xon/xoff "flow control" protocol. You should
80 try to prevent this by putting the terminal in a mode where it will not
81 use flow control, or by giving it enough padding that it will never
82 send a `C-s'. If that cannot be done, you must tell Emacs to expect
83 flow control to be used, until you can get a properly designed terminal.
85 Information on how to do these things can be found in the file
86 `INSTALL' in the Emacs distribution.
89 File: xemacs.info, Node: Emergency Escape, Next: Total Frustration, Prev: Unasked-for Search, Up: Lossage
94 Because at times there have been bugs causing Emacs to loop without
95 checking `quit-flag', a special feature causes Emacs to be suspended
96 immediately if you type a second `C-g' while the flag is already set,
97 so you can always get out of XEmacs. Normally Emacs recognizes and
98 clears `quit-flag' (and quits!) quickly enough to prevent this from
101 When you resume Emacs after a suspension caused by multiple `C-g', it
102 asks two questions before going back to what it had been doing:
105 Abort (and dump core)? (y or n)
107 Answer each one with `y' or `n' followed by <RET>.
109 Saying `y' to `Auto-save?' causes immediate auto-saving of all
110 modified buffers in which auto-saving is enabled.
112 Saying `y' to `Abort (and dump core)?' causes an illegal instruction
113 to be executed, dumping core. This is to enable a wizard to figure out
114 why Emacs was failing to quit in the first place. Execution does not
115 continue after a core dump. If you answer `n', execution does
116 continue. With luck, Emacs will ultimately check `quit-flag' and quit
117 normally. If not, and you type another `C-g', it is suspended again.
119 If Emacs is not really hung, but is just being slow, you may invoke
120 the double `C-g' feature without really meaning to. In that case,
121 simply resume and answer `n' to both questions, and you will arrive at
122 your former state. Presumably the quit you requested will happen soon.
124 The double-`C-g' feature may be turned off when Emacs is running
125 under a window system, since the window system always enables you to
126 kill Emacs or to create another window and run another program.
129 File: xemacs.info, Node: Total Frustration, Prev: Emergency Escape, Up: Lossage
131 Help for Total Frustration
132 --------------------------
134 If using Emacs (or something else) becomes terribly frustrating and
135 none of the techniques described above solve the problem, Emacs can
138 First, if the Emacs you are using is not responding to commands, type
139 `C-g C-g' to get out of it and then start a new one.
141 Second, type `M-x doctor <RET>'.
143 The doctor will make you feel better. Each time you say something to
144 the doctor, you must end it by typing <RET> <RET>. This lets the
145 doctor know you are finished.
148 File: xemacs.info, Node: Bugs, Prev: Lossage, Up: Top
153 Sometimes you will encounter a bug in Emacs. Although we cannot
154 promise we can or will fix the bug, and we might not even agree that it
155 is a bug, we want to hear about bugs you encounter in case we do want
158 To make it possible for us to fix a bug, you must report it. In
159 order to do so effectively, you must know when and how to do it.
164 If Emacs executes an illegal instruction, or dies with an operating
165 system error message that indicates a problem in the program (as
166 opposed to something like "disk full"), then it is certainly a bug.
168 If Emacs updates the display in a way that does not correspond to
169 what is in the buffer, then it is certainly a bug. If a command seems
170 to do the wrong thing but the problem corrects itself if you type
171 `C-l', it is a case of incorrect display updating.
173 Taking forever to complete a command can be a bug, but you must make
174 certain that it was really Emacs's fault. Some commands simply take a
175 long time. Type `C-g' and then `C-h l' to see whether the input Emacs
176 received was what you intended to type; if the input was such that you
177 KNOW it should have been processed quickly, report a bug. If you don't
178 know whether the command should take a long time, find out by looking
179 in the manual or by asking for assistance.
181 If a command you are familiar with causes an Emacs error message in a
182 case where its usual definition ought to be reasonable, it is probably a
185 If a command does the wrong thing, that is a bug. But be sure you
186 know for certain what it ought to have done. If you aren't familiar
187 with the command, or don't know for certain how the command is supposed
188 to work, then it might actually be working right. Rather than jumping
189 to conclusions, show the problem to someone who knows for certain.
191 Finally, a command's intended definition may not be best for editing
192 with. This is a very important sort of problem, but it is also a
193 matter of judgment. Also, it is easy to come to such a conclusion out
194 of ignorance of some of the existing features. It is probably best not
195 to complain about such a problem until you have checked the
196 documentation in the usual ways, feel confident that you understand it,
197 and know for certain that what you want is not available. If you are
198 not sure what the command is supposed to do after a careful reading of
199 the manual, check the index and glossary for any terms that may be
200 unclear. If you still do not understand, this indicates a bug in the
201 manual. The manual's job is to make everything clear. It is just as
202 important to report documentation bugs as program bugs.
204 If the online documentation string of a function or variable
205 disagrees with the manual, one of them must be wrong, so report the bug.
210 When you decide that there is a bug, it is important to report it
211 and to report it in a way which is useful. What is most useful is an
212 exact description of what commands you type, starting with the shell
213 command to run Emacs, until the problem happens. Always include the
214 version number of Emacs that you are using; type `M-x emacs-version' to
217 The most important principle in reporting a bug is to report FACTS,
218 not hypotheses or categorizations. It is always easier to report the
219 facts, but people seem to prefer to strain to posit explanations and
220 report them instead. If the explanations are based on guesses about
221 how Emacs is implemented, they will be useless; we will have to try to
222 figure out what the facts must have been to lead to such speculations.
223 Sometimes this is impossible. But in any case, it is unnecessary work
226 For example, suppose that you type `C-x C-f /glorp/baz.ugh <RET>',
227 visiting a file which (you know) happens to be rather large, and Emacs
228 prints out `I feel pretty today'. The best way to report the bug is
229 with a sentence like the preceding one, because it gives all the facts
230 and nothing but the facts.
232 Do not assume that the problem is due to the size of the file and
233 say, "When I visit a large file, Emacs prints out `I feel pretty
234 today'." This is what we mean by "guessing explanations". The problem
235 is just as likely to be due to the fact that there is a `z' in the file
236 name. If this is so, then when we got your report, we would try out
237 the problem with some "large file", probably with no `z' in its name,
238 and not find anything wrong. There is no way in the world that we
239 could guess that we should try visiting a file with a `z' in its name.
241 Alternatively, the problem might be due to the fact that the file
242 starts with exactly 25 spaces. For this reason, you should make sure
243 that you inform us of the exact contents of any file that is needed to
244 reproduce the bug. What if the problem only occurs when you have typed
245 the `C-x a l' command previously? This is why we ask you to give the
246 exact sequence of characters you typed since starting to use Emacs.
248 You should not even say "visit a file" instead of `C-x C-f' unless
249 you know that it makes no difference which visiting command is used.
250 Similarly, rather than saying "if I have three characters on the line,"
251 say "after I type `<RET> A B C <RET> C-p'," if that is the way you
254 If you are not in Fundamental mode when the problem occurs, you
255 should say what mode you are in.
257 If the manifestation of the bug is an Emacs error message, it is
258 important to report not just the text of the error message but a
259 backtrace showing how the Lisp program in Emacs arrived at the error.
260 To make the backtrace, you must execute the Lisp expression `(setq
261 debug-on-error t)' before the error happens (that is to say, you must
262 execute that expression and then make the bug happen). This causes the
263 Lisp debugger to run (*note Lisp Debug::). The debugger's backtrace
264 can be copied as text into the bug report. This use of the debugger is
265 possible only if you know how to make the bug happen again. Do note
266 the error message the first time the bug happens, so if you can't make
267 it happen again, you can report at least that.
269 Check whether any programs you have loaded into the Lisp world,
270 including your init file, set any variables that may affect the
271 functioning of Emacs. *Note Init File::. Also, see whether the
272 problem happens in a freshly started Emacs without loading your init
273 file (start Emacs with the `-q' switch to prevent loading the init
274 file). If the problem does NOT occur then, it is essential that we
275 know the contents of any programs that you must load into the Lisp
276 world in order to cause the problem to occur.
278 If the problem does depend on an init file or other Lisp programs
279 that are not part of the standard Emacs system, then you should make
280 sure it is not a bug in those programs by complaining to their
281 maintainers first. After they verify that they are using Emacs in a
282 way that is supposed to work, they should report the bug.
284 If you can tell us a way to cause the problem without visiting any
285 files, please do so. This makes it much easier to debug. If you do
286 need files, make sure you arrange for us to see their exact contents.
287 For example, it can often matter whether there are spaces at the ends
288 of lines, or a newline after the last line in the buffer (nothing ought
289 to care whether the last line is terminated, but tell that to the bugs).
291 The easy way to record the input to Emacs precisely is to write a
292 dribble file; execute the Lisp expression:
294 (open-dribble-file "~/dribble")
296 using `Meta-<ESC>' or from the `*scratch*' buffer just after starting
297 Emacs. From then on, all Emacs input will be written in the specified
298 dribble file until the Emacs process is killed.
300 For possible display bugs, it is important to report the terminal
301 type (the value of environment variable `TERM'), the complete termcap
302 entry for the terminal from `/etc/termcap' (since that file is not
303 identical on all machines), and the output that Emacs actually sent to
304 the terminal. The way to collect this output is to execute the Lisp
307 (open-termscript "~/termscript")
309 using `Meta-<ESC>' or from the `*scratch*' buffer just after starting
310 Emacs. From then on, all output from Emacs to the terminal will be
311 written in the specified termscript file as well, until the Emacs
312 process is killed. If the problem happens when Emacs starts up, put
313 this expression into your init file so that the termscript file will be
314 open when Emacs displays the screen for the first time. *Note Init
315 File::. Be warned: it is often difficult, and sometimes impossible, to
316 fix a terminal-dependent bug without access to a terminal of the type
317 that stimulates the bug.
319 The newsgroup `comp.emacs.xemacs' may be used for bug reports, other
320 discussions and requests for assistance.
322 If you don't have access to this newgroup, you can subscribe to the
323 mailing list version: the newsgroup is bidirectionally gatewayed into
324 the mailing list `xemacs@xemacs.org'.
326 To be added or removed from this mailing list, send mail to
327 `xemacs-request@xemacs.org'. Do not send requests for addition to the
330 The mailing lists and newsgroups are archived on our anonymous FTP
331 server, `ftp.xemacs.org', and at various other archive sites around the
332 net. You should also check the `FAQ' in `/pub/xemacs' on our anonymous
333 FTP server. It provides some introductory information and help for
334 initial configuration problems.
337 File: xemacs.info, Node: Glossary, Next: Manifesto, Prev: Intro, Up: Top
343 An abbrev is a text string which expands into a different text
344 string when present in the buffer. For example, you might define
345 a short word as an abbrev for a long phrase that you want to insert
346 frequently. *Note Abbrevs::.
349 Aborting means getting out of a recursive edit (q.v.). You can use
350 the commands `C-]' and `M-x top-level' for this. *Note Quitting::.
353 Auto Fill mode is a minor mode in which text you insert is
354 automatically broken into lines of fixed width. *Note Filling::.
357 Auto saving means that Emacs automatically stores the contents of
358 an Emacs buffer in a specially-named file so the information will
359 not be lost if the buffer is lost due to a system error or user
360 error. *Note Auto Save::.
363 A backup file records the contents that a file had before the
364 current editing session. Emacs creates backup files automatically
365 to help you track down or cancel changes you later regret. *Note
369 Emacs can balance parentheses manually or automatically. Manual
370 balancing is done by the commands to move over balanced expressions
371 (*note Lists::). Automatic balancing is done by blinking the
372 parenthesis that matches one just inserted (*note Matching Parens:
376 To bind a key is to change its binding (q.v.). *Note Rebinding::.
379 A key gets its meaning in Emacs by having a binding which is a
380 command (q.v.), a Lisp function that is run when the key is typed.
381 *Note Binding: Commands. Customization often involves rebinding a
382 character to a different command function. The bindings of all
383 keys are recorded in the keymaps (q.v.). *Note Keymaps::.
386 Blank lines are lines that contain only whitespace. Emacs has
387 several commands for operating on the blank lines in a buffer.
390 The buffer is the basic editing unit; one buffer corresponds to one
391 piece of text being edited. You can have several buffers, but at
392 any time you are editing only one, the `selected' buffer, though
393 several buffers can be visible when you are using multiple
394 windows. *Note Buffers::.
396 Buffer Selection History
397 Emacs keeps a buffer selection history which records how recently
398 each Emacs buffer was selected. Emacs uses this list when
399 choosing a buffer to select. *Note Buffers::.
402 `C' in the name of a character is an abbreviation for Control.
403 *Note C-: Keystrokes.
406 `C-M-' in the name of a character is an abbreviation for
407 Control-Meta. *Note C-M-: Keystrokes.
410 Case conversion means changing text from upper case to lower case
411 or vice versa. *Note Case::, for the commands for case conversion.
414 Characters form the contents of an Emacs buffer; also, Emacs
415 commands are invoked by keys (q.v.), which are sequences of one or
416 more characters. *Note Keystrokes::.
419 A command is a Lisp function specially defined to be able to serve
420 as a key binding in Emacs. When you type a key (q.v.), Emacs
421 looks up its binding (q.v.) in the relevant keymaps (q.v.) to find
422 the command to run. *Note Commands::.
425 A command name is the name of a Lisp symbol which is a command
426 (*note Commands::). You can invoke any command by its name using
430 A comment is text in a program which is intended only for the
431 people reading the program, and is marked specially so that it
432 will be ignored when the program is loaded or compiled. Emacs
433 offers special commands for creating, aligning, and killing
434 comments. *Note Comments::.
437 Compilation is the process of creating an executable program from
438 source code. Emacs has commands for compiling files of Emacs Lisp
439 code (*note Lisp Libraries::) and programs in C and other languages
440 (*note Compilation::).
443 A complete key is a character or sequence of characters which,
444 when typed by the user, fully specifies one action to be performed
445 by Emacs. For example, `X' and `Control-f' and `Control-x m' are
446 keys. Keys derive their meanings from being bound (q.v.) to
447 commands (q.v.). Thus, `X' is conventionally bound to a command
448 to insert `X' in the buffer; `C-x m' is conventionally bound to a
449 command to begin composing a mail message. *Note Keystrokes::.
452 When Emacs automatically fills an abbreviation for a name into the
453 entire name, that process is called completion. Completion is
454 done for minibuffer (q.v.) arguments when the set of possible
455 valid inputs is known; for example, on command names, buffer
456 names, and file names. Completion occurs when you type <TAB>,
457 <SPC>, or <RET>. *Note Completion::.
460 When a line of text is longer than the width of the frame, it
461 takes up more than one screen line when displayed. We say that the
462 text line is continued, and all screen lines used for it after the
463 first are called continuation lines. *Note Continuation: Basic.
466 ASCII characters with octal codes 0 through 037, and also code
467 0177, do not have graphic images assigned to them. These are the
468 control characters. Any control character can be typed by holding
469 down the <CTRL> key and typing some other character; some have
470 special keys on the keyboard. <RET>, <TAB>, <ESC>, <LFD>, and
471 <DEL> are all control characters. *Note Keystrokes::.
474 A copyleft is a notice giving the public legal permission to
475 redistribute a program or other work of art. Copylefts are used
476 by leftists to enrich the public just as copyrights are used by
477 rightists to gain power over the public.
480 The current buffer in Emacs is the Emacs buffer on which most
481 editing commands operate. You can select any Emacs buffer as the
482 current one. *Note Buffers::.
485 The line point is on (*note Point::).
488 The paragraph that point is in. If point is between paragraphs,
489 the current paragraph is the one that follows point. *Note
493 The defun (q.v.) that point is in. If point is between defuns, the
494 current defun is the one that follows point. *Note Defuns::.
497 The cursor is the rectangle on the screen which indicates the
498 position called point (q.v.) at which insertion and deletion takes
499 place. The cursor is on or under the character that follows
500 point. Often people speak of `the cursor' when, strictly
501 speaking, they mean `point'. *Note Cursor: Basic.
504 Customization is making minor changes in the way Emacs works. It
505 is often done by setting variables (*note Variables::) or by
506 rebinding keys (*note Keymaps::).
509 The default for an argument is the value that is used if you do not
510 specify one. When Emacs prompts you in the minibuffer for an
511 argument, the default argument is used if you just type <RET>.
515 When you specify a file name that does not start with `/' or `~',
516 it is interpreted relative to the current buffer's default
517 directory. *Note Default Directory: Minibuffer File.
520 A defun is a list at the top level of parenthesis or bracket
521 structure in a program. It is so named because most such lists in
522 Lisp programs are calls to the Lisp function `defun'. *Note
526 The <DEL> character runs the command that deletes one character of
527 text. *Note DEL: Basic.
530 Deleting text means erasing it without saving it. Emacs deletes
531 text only when it is expected not to be worth saving (all
532 whitespace, or only one character). The alternative is killing
533 (q.v.). *Note Deletion: Killing.
536 Deleting a file means removing it from the file system. *Note
540 Deleting a message means flagging it to be eliminated from your
541 mail file. Until the mail file is expunged, you can undo this by
542 undeleting the message.
545 When working under the multi-frame X-based version of XEmacs, you
546 can delete individual frames using the Close menu item from the
550 When you delete a subwindow of an Emacs frame, you eliminate it
551 from the frame. Other windows expand to use up the space. The
552 deleted window can never come back, but no actual text is lost.
556 Files in the Unix file system are grouped into file directories.
557 *Note Directories: ListDir.
560 Dired is the Emacs facility that displays the contents of a file
561 directory and allows you to "edit the directory", performing
562 operations on the files in the directory. *Note Dired::.
565 A disabled command is one that you may not run without special
566 confirmation. Commands are usually disabled because they are
567 confusing for beginning users. *Note Disabling::.
570 A file into which Emacs writes all the characters that the user
571 types on the keyboard. Dribble files are used to make a record for
572 debugging Emacs bugs. Emacs does not make a dribble file unless
573 you tell it to. *Note Bugs::.
576 The area at the bottom of the Emacs frame which is used for
577 echoing the arguments to commands, for asking questions, and for
578 printing brief messages (including error messages). *Note Echo
582 Echoing refers to acknowledging the receipt of commands by
583 displaying them (in the echo area). Emacs never echoes
584 single-character keys; longer keys echo only if you pause while
588 An error occurs when an Emacs command cannot execute in the current
589 circumstances. When an error occurs, execution of the command
590 stops (unless the command has been programmed to do otherwise) and
591 Emacs reports the error by printing an error message (q.v.).
592 Type-ahead is discarded. Then Emacs is ready to read another
596 Error messages are single lines of output printed by Emacs when the
597 user asks for something impossible to do (such as killing text
598 forward when point is at the end of the buffer). They appear in
599 the echo area, accompanied by a beep.
602 <ESC> is a character used as a prefix for typing Meta characters on
603 keyboards lacking a <META> key. Unlike the <META> key (which,
604 like the <SHIFT> key, is held down while another character is
605 typed), the <ESC> key is pressed and released, and applies to the
606 next character typed.
609 The fill prefix is a string that Emacs enters at the beginning of
610 each line when it performs filling. It is not regarded as part of
611 the text to be filled. *Note Filling::.
614 Filling text means moving text from line to line so that all the
615 lines are approximately the same length. *Note Filling::.
618 When running Emacs on a TTY terminal, "frame" means the terminal's
619 screen. When running Emacs under X, you can have multiple frames,
620 each corresponding to a top-level X window and each looking like
621 the screen on a TTY. Each frame contains one or more
622 non-overlapping Emacs windows (possibly with associated
623 scrollbars, under X), an echo area, and (under X) possibly a
624 menubar, toolbar, and/or gutter.
627 Global means `independent of the current environment; in effect
628 throughout Emacs'. It is the opposite of local (q.v.). Examples
629 of the use of `global' appear below.
632 A global definition of an abbrev (q.v.) is effective in all major
633 modes that do not have local (q.v.) definitions for the same
634 abbrev. *Note Abbrevs::.
637 The global keymap (q.v.) contains key bindings that are in effect
638 unless local key bindings in a major mode's local keymap (q.v.)
639 override them.*Note Keymaps::.
642 Global substitution means replacing each occurrence of one string
643 by another string through a large amount of text. *Note Replace::.
646 The global value of a variable (q.v.) takes effect in all buffers
647 that do not have their own local (q.v.) values for the variable.
651 Graphic characters are those assigned pictorial images rather than
652 just names. All the non-Meta (q.v.) characters except for the
653 Control (q.v.) character are graphic characters. These include
654 letters, digits, punctuation, and spaces; they do not include
655 <RET> or <ESC>. In Emacs, typing a graphic character inserts that
656 character (in ordinary editing modes). *Note Basic Editing: Basic.
659 Grinding means adjusting the indentation in a program to fit the
660 nesting structure. *Note Grinding: Indentation.
663 Hardcopy means printed output. Emacs has commands for making
664 printed listings of text in Emacs buffers. *Note Hardcopy::.
667 You can type <HELP> at any time to ask what options you have, or
668 to ask what any command does. <HELP> is really `Control-h'.
672 An inbox is a file in which mail is delivered by the operating
673 system. Some mail handlers transfers mail from inboxes to mail
674 files (q.v.) in which the mail is then stored permanently or until
678 Indentation means blank space at the beginning of a line. Most
679 programming languages have conventions for using indentation to
680 illuminate the structure of the program, and Emacs has special
681 features to help you set up the correct indentation. *Note
685 Insertion means copying text into the buffer, either from the
686 keyboard or from some other place in Emacs.
689 Justification means adding extra spaces to lines of text to make
690 them come exactly to a specified width. *Note Justification:
694 Keyboard macros are a way of defining new Emacs commands from
695 sequences of existing ones, with no need to write a Lisp program.
696 *Note Keyboard Macros::.
699 A key is a sequence of characters that, when input to Emacs,
700 specify or begin to specify a single action for Emacs to perform.
701 That is, the sequence is considered a single unit. If the key is
702 enough to specify one action, it is a complete key (q.v.); if it
703 is less than enough, it is a prefix key (q.v.). *Note
707 The keymap is the data structure that records the bindings (q.v.)
708 of keys to the commands that they run. For example, the keymap
709 binds the character `C-n' to the command function `next-line'.
713 The kill ring is the place where all text you have killed recently
714 is saved. You can re-insert any of the killed text still in the
715 ring; this is called yanking (q.v.). *Note Yanking::.
718 Killing means erasing text and saving it on the kill ring so it
719 can be yanked (q.v.) later. Some other systems call this
720 "cutting." Most Emacs commands to erase text do killing, as
721 opposed to deletion (q.v.). *Note Killing::.
724 Killing a job (such as, an invocation of Emacs) means making it
725 cease to exist. Any data within it, if not saved in a file, is
726 lost. *Note Exiting::.
729 A list is, approximately, a text string beginning with an open
730 parenthesis and ending with the matching close parenthesis. In C
731 mode and other non-Lisp modes, groupings surrounded by other kinds
732 of matched delimiters appropriate to the language, such as braces,
733 are also considered lists. Emacs has special commands for many
734 operations on lists. *Note Lists::.
737 Local means `in effect only in a particular context'; the relevant
738 kind of context is a particular function execution, a particular
739 buffer, or a particular major mode. Local is the opposite of
740 `global' (q.v.). Specific uses of `local' in Emacs terminology
744 A local abbrev definition is effective only if a particular major
745 mode is selected. In that major mode, it overrides any global
746 definition for the same abbrev. *Note Abbrevs::.
749 A local keymap is used in a particular major mode; the key bindings
750 (q.v.) in the current local keymap override global bindings of the
751 same keys. *Note Keymaps::.
754 A local value of a variable (q.v.) applies to only one buffer.
758 `M-' in the name of a character is an abbreviation for <META>, one
759 of the modifier keys that can accompany any character. *Note
763 `M-C-' in the name of a character is an abbreviation for
764 Control-Meta; it means the same thing as `C-M-'. If your terminal
765 lacks a real <META> key, you type a Control-Meta character by
766 typing <ESC> and then typing the corresponding Control character.
767 *Note C-M-: Keystrokes.
770 `M-x' is the key which is used to call an Emacs command by name.
771 You use it to call commands that are not bound to keys. *Note
775 Mail means messages sent from one user to another through the
776 computer system, to be read at the recipient's convenience. Emacs
777 has commands for composing and sending mail, and for reading and
778 editing the mail you have received. *Note Sending Mail::.
781 The major modes are a mutually exclusive set of options each of
782 which configures Emacs for editing a certain sort of text.
783 Ideally, each programming language has its own major mode. *Note
787 The mark points to a position in the text. It specifies one end
788 of the region (q.v.), point being the other end. Many commands
789 operate on the whole region, that is, all the text from point to
790 the mark. *Note Mark::.
793 The mark ring is used to hold several recent previous locations of
794 the mark, just in case you want to move back to them. *Note Mark
801 Meta is the name of a modifier bit which a command character may
802 have. It is present in a character if the character is typed with
803 the <META> key held down. Such characters are given names that
804 start with `Meta-'. For example, `Meta-<' is typed by holding down
805 <META> and at the same time typing `<' (which itself is done, on
806 most terminals, by holding down <SHIFT> and typing `,'). *Note
810 A Meta character is one whose character code includes the Meta bit.
813 The minibuffer is the window that Emacs displays inside the echo
814 area (q.v.) when it prompts you for arguments to commands. *Note
818 A minor mode is an optional feature of Emacs which can be switched
819 on or off independent of the major mode. Each minor mode has a
820 command to turn it on or off. *Note Minor Modes::.
823 The mode line is the line at the bottom of each text window (q.v.),
824 which gives status information on the buffer displayed in that
825 window. *Note Mode Line::.
828 A buffer (q.v.) is modified if its text has been changed since the
829 last time the buffer was saved (or since it was created, if it has
830 never been saved). *Note Saving::.
833 Moving text means erasing it from one place and inserting it in
834 another. This is done by killing (q.v.) and then yanking (q.v.).
838 A named mark is a register (q.v.) in its role of recording a
839 location in text so that you can move point to that location.
843 Narrowing means creating a restriction (q.v.) that limits editing
844 in the current buffer to only a part of the text in the buffer.
845 Text outside that part is inaccessible to the user until the
846 boundaries are widened again, but it is still there, and saving
847 the file saves the invisible text. *Note Narrowing::.
850 <LFD> characters in the buffer terminate lines of text and are
851 called newlines. *Note Newline: Keystrokes.
854 A numeric argument is a number, specified before a command, to
855 change the effect of the command. Often the numeric argument
856 serves as a repeat count. *Note Arguments::.
859 An option is a variable (q.v.) that allows you to customize Emacs
860 by giving it a new value. *Note Variables::.
863 Overwrite mode is a minor mode. When it is enabled, ordinary text
864 characters replace the existing text after point rather than
865 pushing it to the right. *Note Minor Modes::.
868 A page is a unit of text, delimited by formfeed characters (ASCII
869 Control-L, code 014) coming at the beginning of a line. Some Emacs
870 commands are provided for moving over and operating on pages.
874 Paragraphs are the medium-size unit of English text. There are
875 special Emacs commands for moving over and operating on paragraphs.
879 We say that Emacs parses words or expressions in the text being
880 edited. Really, all it knows how to do is find the other end of a
881 word or expression. *Note Syntax::.
884 Point is the place in the buffer at which insertion and deletion
885 occur. Point is considered to be between two characters, not at
886 one character. The terminal's cursor (q.v.) indicates the
887 location of point. *Note Point: Basic.
890 A prefix key is a key (q.v.) whose sole function is to introduce a
891 set of multi-character keys. `Control-x' is an example of a prefix
892 key; any two-character sequence starting with `C-x' is also a
893 legitimate key. *Note Keystrokes::.
896 A prompt is text printed to ask the user for input. Printing a
897 prompt is called prompting. Emacs prompts always appear in the
898 echo area (q.v.). One kind of prompting happens when the
899 minibuffer is used to read an argument (*note Minibuffer::); the
900 echoing which happens when you pause in the middle of typing a
901 multi-character key is also a kind of prompting (*note Echo
905 Quitting means cancelling a partially typed command or a running
906 command, using `C-g'. *Note Quitting::.
909 Quoting means depriving a character of its usual special
910 significance. In Emacs this is usually done with `Control-q'.
911 What constitutes special significance depends on the context and
912 on convention. For example, an "ordinary" character as an Emacs
913 command inserts itself; so in this context, a special character is
914 any character that does not normally insert itself (such as <DEL>,
915 for example), and quoting it makes it insert itself as if it were
916 not special. Not all contexts allow quoting. *Note Quoting:
920 A read-only buffer is one whose text you are not allowed to change.
921 Normally Emacs makes buffers read-only when they contain text which
922 has a special significance to Emacs, such as Dired buffers.
923 Visiting a file that is write-protected also makes a read-only
924 buffer. *Note Buffers::.
926 Recursive Editing Level
927 A recursive editing level is a state in which part of the
928 execution of a command involves asking the user to edit some text.
929 This text may or may not be the same as the text to which the
930 command was applied. The mode line indicates recursive editing
931 levels with square brackets (`[' and `]'). *Note Recursive Edit::.
934 Redisplay is the process of correcting the image on the screen to
935 correspond to changes that have been made in the text being edited.
936 *Note Redisplay: Frame.
939 See `regular expression'.
942 The region is the text between point (q.v.) and the mark (q.v.).
943 Many commands operate on the text of the region. *Note Region:
947 Registers are named slots in which text or buffer positions or
948 rectangles can be saved for later use. *Note Registers::.
951 A regular expression is a pattern that can match various text
952 strings; for example, `l[0-9]+' matches `l' followed by one or more
953 digits. *Note Regexps::.
956 See `global substitution'.
959 A buffer's restriction is the amount of text, at the beginning or
960 the end of the buffer, that is temporarily invisible and
961 inaccessible. Giving a buffer a nonzero amount of restriction is
962 called narrowing (q.v.). *Note Narrowing::.
965 <RET> is the character than runs the command to insert a newline
966 into the text. It is also used to terminate most arguments read
967 in the minibuffer (q.v.). *Note Return: Keystrokes.
970 Saving a buffer means copying its text into the file that was
971 visited (q.v.) in that buffer. To actually change a file you have
972 edited in Emacs, you have to save it. *Note Saving::.
975 Scrolling means shifting the text in the Emacs window to make a
976 different part of the buffer visible. *Note Scrolling: Display.
979 Searching means moving point to the next occurrence of a specified
980 string. *Note Search::.
983 Selecting a buffer means making it the current (q.v.) buffer.
984 *Note Selecting: Buffers.
987 Self-documentation is the feature of Emacs which can tell you what
988 any command does, or can give you a list of all commands related
989 to a topic you specify. You ask for self-documentation with the
990 help character, `C-h'. *Note Help::.
993 Emacs has commands for moving by or killing by sentences. *Note
997 An sexp (short for `s-expression,' itself short for `symbolic
998 expression') is the basic syntactic unit of Lisp in its textual
999 form: either a list, or Lisp atom. Many Emacs commands operate on
1000 sexps. The term `sexp' is generalized to languages other than
1001 Lisp to mean a syntactically recognizable expression. *Note
1004 Simultaneous Editing
1005 Simultaneous editing means two users modifying the same file at
1006 once. If simultaneous editing is not detected, you may lose your
1007 work. Emacs detects all cases of simultaneous editing and warns
1008 the user to investigate them. *Note Simultaneous Editing:
1012 A string is a kind of Lisp data object which contains a sequence of
1013 characters. Many Emacs variables are intended to have strings as
1014 values. The Lisp syntax for a string consists of the characters in
1015 the string with a `"' before and another `"' after. Write a `"'
1016 that is part of the string as `\"' and a `\' that is part of the
1017 string as `\\'. You can include all other characters, including
1018 newline, just by writing them inside the string. You can also
1019 include escape sequences as in C, such as `\n' for newline or
1020 `\241' using an octal character code.
1023 See `global substitution'.
1026 The syntax table tells Emacs which characters are part of a word,
1027 which characters balance each other like parentheses, etc. *Note
1031 A tag table is a file that serves as an index to the function
1032 definitions in one or more other files. *Note Tags::.
1035 A termscript file contains a record of all characters Emacs sent to
1036 the terminal. It is used for tracking down bugs in Emacs
1037 redisplay. Emacs does not make a termscript file unless
1038 explicitly instructed to do so. *Note Bugs::.
1041 Text has two meanings (*note Text::):
1043 * Data consisting of a sequence of characters, as opposed to
1044 binary numbers, images, graphics commands, executable
1045 programs, and the like. The contents of an Emacs buffer are
1046 always text in this sense.
1048 * Data consisting of written human language, as opposed to
1049 programs, or something that follows the stylistic conventions
1053 Top level is the normal state of Emacs, in which you are editing
1054 the text of the file you have visited. You are at top level
1055 whenever you are not in a recursive editing level (q.v.) or the
1056 minibuffer (q.v.), and not in the middle of a command. You can
1057 get back to top level by aborting (q.v.) and quitting (q.v.).
1061 Transposing two units of text means putting each one into the place
1062 formerly occupied by the other. There are Emacs commands to
1063 transpose two adjacent characters, words, sexps (q.v.), or lines
1064 (*note Transpose::).
1067 Truncating text lines in the display means leaving out any text on
1068 a line that does not fit within the right margin of the window
1069 displaying it. See also `continuation line'. *Note Truncation:
1073 Undoing means making your previous editing go in reverse, bringing
1074 back the text that existed earlier in the editing session. *Note
1078 A variable is Lisp object that can store an arbitrary value.
1079 Emacs uses some variables for internal purposes, and has others
1080 (known as `options' (q.v.)) you can set to control the behavior of
1081 Emacs. The variables used in Emacs that you are likely to be
1082 interested in are listed in the Variables Index of this manual.
1083 *Note Variables::, for information on variables.
1086 Visiting a file means loading its contents into a buffer (q.v.)
1087 where they can be edited. *Note Visiting::.
1090 Whitespace is any run of consecutive formatting characters (spaces,
1091 tabs, newlines, and backspaces).
1094 Widening is removing any restriction (q.v.) on the current buffer;
1095 it is the opposite of narrowing (q.v.). *Note Narrowing::.
1098 Emacs divides the frame into one or more windows, each of which can
1099 display the contents of one buffer (q.v.) at any time. *Note
1100 Frame::, for basic information on how Emacs uses the frame. *Note
1101 Windows::, for commands to control the use of windows. Note that if
1102 you are running Emacs under X, terminology can be confusing: Each
1103 Emacs frame occupies a separate X window and can, in turn, be
1104 divided into different subwindows.
1107 Synonymous with `abbrev'.
1110 Word search is searching for a sequence of words, considering the
1111 punctuation between them as insignificant. *Note Word Search::.
1114 Yanking means reinserting text previously killed. It can be used
1115 to undo a mistaken kill, or for copying or moving text. Some other
1116 systems call this "pasting". *Note Yanking::.
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