GNU Emacs Manual - Top

The Emacs Editor

Emacs is the extensible, customizable, self-documenting real-time display editor. This Info file describes how to edit with Emacs and some of how to customize it, but not how to extend it. It corresponds to GNU Emacs version 19.29.

Distrib	How to get the latest Emacs distribution.
Copying	The GNU General Public License gives you permission to redistribute GNU Emacs on certain terms; it also explains that there is no warranty.
Intro	An introduction to Emacs concepts.
Glossary	The glossary.
Antinews	Information about Emacs version 19.28.
MS-DOS	Using Emacs on MS-DOS (otherwise known as "MS-DOG").
Manifesto	What's GNU? Gnu's Not Unix!
Acknowledgments	Major contributors to GNU Emacs.
Indexes, nodes containing large menus
Key Index	An item for each standard Emacs key sequence.
Command Index	An item for each command name.
Variable Index	An item for each documented variable.
Concept Index	An item for each concept.
Important General Concepts
Screen	How to interpret what you see on the screen.
User Input	Kinds of input events (characters, buttons, function keys).
Keys	Key sequences: what you type to request one editing action.
Commands	Named functions run by key sequences to do editing.
Text Characters	Character set for text (the contents of buffers and strings).
Entering Emacs	Starting Emacs from the shell.
Exiting	Stopping or killing Emacs.
Command Arguments	Hairy startup options.
Fundamental Editing Commands
Basic	The most basic editing commands.
Minibuffer	Entering arguments that are prompted for.
M-x	Invoking commands by their names.
Help	Commands for asking Emacs about its commands.
Important Text-Changing Commands
Mark	The mark: how to delimit a ``region'' of text.
Killing	Killing text.
Yanking	Recovering killed text. Moving text.
Accumulating Text	Other ways of copying text.
Rectangles	Operating on the text inside a rectangle on the screen.
Registers	Saving a text string or a location in the buffer.
Display	Controlling what text is displayed.
Search	Finding or replacing occurrences of a string.
Fixit	Commands especially useful for fixing typos.
Larger Units of Text
Files	All about handling files.
Buffers	Multiple buffers; editing several files at once.
Windows	Viewing two pieces of text at once.
Frames	Running the same Emacs session in multiple X windows.
Advanced Features
Major Modes	Text mode vs. Lisp mode vs. C mode ...
Indentation	Editing the white space at the beginnings of lines.
Text	Commands and modes for editing English.
Programs	Commands and modes for editing programs.
Building	Compiling, running and debugging programs.
Abbrevs	How to define text abbreviations to reduce the number of characters you must type.
Picture	Editing pictures made up of characters using the quarter-plane screen model.
Sending Mail	Sending mail in Emacs.
Rmail	Reading mail in Emacs.
Dired	You can ``edit'' a directory to manage files in it.
Calendar/Diary	The calendar and diary facilities.
GNUS	How to read netnews with Emacs.
Shell	Executing shell commands from Emacs.
Emacs Server	Using Emacs as an editing server for mail , etc.
Hardcopy	Printing buffers or regions.
Postscript	Printing buffers or regions as Postscript.
Sorting	Sorting lines, paragraphs or pages within Emacs.
Narrowing	Restricting display and editing to a portion of the buffer.
Two-Column	Splitting apart columns to edit them in side-by-side windows.
Editing Binary Files	Using Hexl mode to edit binary files.
Saving Emacs Sessions	Saving Emacs state from one session to the next.
Recursive Edit	A command can allow you to do editing "within the command". This is called a `recursive editing level'.
Emulation	Emulating some other editors with Emacs.
Dissociated Press	Dissociating text for fun.
Amusements	Various games and hacks.
Customization	Modifying the behavior of Emacs.
Recovery from Problems.
Quitting	Quitting and aborting.
Lossage	What to do if Emacs is hung or malfunctioning.
Bugs	How and when to report a bug.
Service	How to get help for your own Emacs needs.
Here are some other nodes which are really inferiors of the ones already listed, mentioned here so you can get to them in one step:
--- The Detailed Node Listing ---
The Organization of the Screen
Point	The place in the text where editing commands operate.
Echo Area	Short messages appear at the bottom of the screen.
Mode Line	Interpreting the mode line.
Basic Editing Commands
Inserting Text	Inserting text by simply typing it.
Moving Point	How to move the cursor to the place where you want to change something.
Erasing	Deleting and killing text.
Undo	Undoing recently made changes in the text.
Files	Visiting, creating, and saving files.
Help	Asking what a character does.
Blank Lines	Commands to make or delete blank lines.
Continuation Lines	Lines too wide for the screen.
Position Info	What page, line, row, or column is point on?
Arguments	Numeric arguments for repeating a command.
The Minibuffer
Minibuffer File	Entering file names with the minibuffer.
Minibuffer Edit	How to edit in the minibuffer.
Completion	An abbreviation facility for minibuffer input.
Minibuffer History	Reusing recent minibuffer arguments.
Repetition	Re-executing commands that used the minibuffer.
Help
Help Summary	Brief list of all Help commands.
Key Help	Asking what a key does in Emacs.
Name Help	Asking about a command, variable or function name.
Apropos	Asking what pertains to a given topic.
Library Keywords	Finding Lisp libraries by keywords (topics).
Misc Help	Other help commands.
The Mark and the Region
Setting Mark	Commands to set the mark.
Transient Mark	How to make Emacs highlight the region-- when there is one.
Using Region	Summary of ways to operate on contents of the region.
Marking Objects	Commands to put region around textual units.
Mark Ring	Previous mark positions saved so you can go back there.
Global Mark Ring	Previous mark positions in various buffers.
Deletion and Killing
Deletion	Commands for deleting small amounts of text and blank areas.
Killing by Lines	How to kill entire lines of text at one time.
Other Kill Commands	Commands to kill large regions of text and syntactic units such as words and sentences.
Yanking
Kill Ring	Where killed text is stored. Basic yanking.
Appending Kills	Several kills in a row all yank together.
Earlier Kills	Yanking something killed some time ago.
Registers
RegPos	Saving positions in registers.
RegText	Saving text in registers.
RegRect	Saving rectangles in registers.
RegConfig	Saving window configurations in registers.
RegFiles	File names in registers.
Bookmarks	Bookmarks are like registers, but persistent.
Controlling the Display
Scrolling	Moving text up and down in a window.
Horizontal Scrolling	Moving text left and right in a window.
Selective Display	Hiding lines with lots of indentation.
Optional Mode Line	Optional mode line features.
European Display	Displaying (and entering) European characters.
Display Vars	Information on variables for customizing display.
Searching and Replacement
Incremental Search	Search happens as you type the string.
Nonincremental Search	Specify entire string and then search.
Word Search	Search for sequence of words.
Regexp Search	Search for match for a regexp.
Regexps	Syntax of regular expressions.
Search Case	To ignore case while searching, or not.
Replace	Search, and replace some or all matches.
Other Repeating Search	Operating on all matches for some regexp.
Replacement Commands
Unconditional Replace	Replacing all matches for a string.
Regexp Replace	Replacing all matches for a regexp.
Replacement and Case	How replacements preserve case of letters.
Query Replace	How to use querying.
Commands for Fixing Typos
Kill Errors	Commands to kill a batch of recently entered text.
Transpose	Exchanging two characters, words, lines, lists...
Fixing Case	Correcting case of last word entered.
Spelling	Apply spelling checker to a word, or a whole file.
File Handling
File Names	How to type and edit file name arguments.
Visiting	Visiting a file prepares Emacs to edit the file.
Saving	Saving makes your changes permanent.
Reverting	Reverting cancels all the changes not saved.
Auto Save	Auto Save periodically protects against loss of data.
File Aliases	Handling multiple names for one file.
Version Control	Version control systems (RCS and SCCS).
Directories	Listing the contents of a file directory.
Comparing Files	Finding where two files differ.
Misc File Ops	Other things you can do on files.
Saving Files
Backup	How Emacs saves the old version of your file.
Interlocking	How Emacs protects against simultaneous editing of one file by two users.
Version Control
Version Systems	Supported version control back end systems.
VC Concepts	Basic version control information; checking files in and out.
Editing with VC	Commands for editing a file maintained with version control.
Log Entries	Logging your changes.
Change Logs and VC	Generating a change log file from log entries.
Old Versions	Examining and comparing old versions.
Branches	Selecting a branch to put your changes in, and creating a new branch.
Status in VC	Commands to view the VC status of files and look at log entries.
Renaming and VC	A command to rename both the source and master file correctly.
Snapshots	How to make and use snapshots, a set of file versions that can be treated as a unit.
Version Headers	Inserting version control headers into working files.
Customizing VC	Variables to change VC's behavior.
Using Multiple Buffers
Select Buffer	Creating a new buffer or reselecting an old one.
List Buffers	Getting a list of buffers that exist.
Misc Buffer	Renaming; changing read-onliness; copying text.
Kill Buffer	Killing buffers you no longer need.
Several Buffers	How to go through the list of all buffers and operate variously on several of them.
Indirect Buffers	An indirect buffer shares the text of another buffer.
Multiple Windows
Basic Window	Introduction to Emacs windows.
Split Window	New windows are made by splitting existing windows.
Other Window	Moving to another window or doing something to it.
Pop Up Window	Finding a file or buffer in another window.
Change Window	Deleting windows and changing their sizes.
Frames and X Windows
Mouse Commands	Moving, cutting, and pasting, with the mouse.
Secondary Selection	Cutting without altering point and mark.
Mouse References	Using the mouse to select an item from a list.
Mode Line Mouse	Mouse clicks on the mode line.
Creating Frames	Creating additional Emacs frames with various contents.
Special Buffer Frames	You can make certain buffers have their own frames.
Frame Parameters	Changing the colors and other modes of frames.
Scroll Bars	How to enable and disable scroll bars; how to use them.
Menu Bars	Enabling and disabling the menu bar.
Faces	How to change the display style using faces.
Modifying Faces	How to change what a particular face looks like.
Misc X	Iconifying and deleting frames. Region highlighting.
Major Modes
Choosing Modes	How major modes are specified or chosen.
Indentation
Indentation Commands	Various commands and techniques for indentation.
Tab Stops	You can set arbitrary "tab stops" and then indent to the next tab stop when you want to.
Just Spaces	You can request indentation using just spaces.
Commands for Human Languages
Words	Moving over and killing words.
Sentences	Moving over and killing sentences.
Paragraphs	Moving over paragraphs.
Pages	Moving over pages.
Filling	Filling or justifying text.
Case	Changing the case of text.
Text Mode	The major modes for editing text files.
Outline Mode	The major mode for editing outlines.
TeX Mode	The major modes for editing input to the formatter TeX.
Nroff Mode	The major mode for editing input to the formatter nroff.
Formatted Text	Editing formatted text directly in WYSIWYG fashion.
Filling Text
Auto Fill	Auto Fill mode breaks long lines automatically.
Fill Commands	Commands to refill paragraphs and center lines.
Fill Prefix	Filling when every line is indented or in a comment, etc.
Editing Programs
Program Modes	Major modes for editing programs.
Lists	Expressions with balanced parentheses.
List Commands	The commands for working with list and sexps.
Defuns	Each program is made up of separate functions. There are editing commands to operate on them.
Program Indent	Adjusting indentation to show the nesting.
Matching	Insertion of a close-delimiter flashes matching open.
Comments	Inserting, killing, and aligning comments.
Balanced Editing	Inserting two matching parentheses at once, etc.
Symbol Completion	Completion on symbol names of your program or language.
Documentation	Getting documentation of functions you plan to call.
Change Log	Maintaining a change history for your program.
Tags	Go direct to any function in your program in one command. Tags remembers which file it is in.
Emerge	A convenient way of merging two versions of a program.
C Mode	Special commands of C mode (and C++ mode).
Fortran	Fortran mode and its special features.
Asm Mode	Asm mode and its special features.
Indentation for Programs
Basic Indent	Indenting a single line.
Multi-line Indent	Commands to reindent many lines at once.
Lisp Indent	Specifying how each Lisp function should be indented.
C Indent	Choosing an indentation style for C code.
Tags Tables
Tag Syntax	Tag syntax for various types of code and text files.
Create Tags Table	Creating a tags table with etags .
Select Tags Table	How to visit a tags table.
Find Tag	Commands to find the definition of a specific tag.
Tags Search	Using a tags table for searching and replacing.
Tags Stepping	Visiting files in a tags table, one by one.
List Tags	Listing and finding tags defined in a file.
Merging Files with Emerge
Overview of Emerge	How to start Emerge. Basic concepts.
Submodes of Emerge	Fast mode vs. Edit mode. Skip Prefers mode and Auto Advance mode.
State of Difference	You do the merge by specifying state A or B for each difference.
Merge Commands	Commands for selecting a difference, changing states of differences, etc.
Exiting Emerge	What to do when you've finished the merge.
Combining in Emerge	How to keep both alternatives for a difference.
Fine Points of Emerge	Misc.
Compiling and Testing Programs
Compilation	Compiling programs in languages other than Lisp (C, Pascal, etc.)
Debuggers	Running symbolic debuggers for non-Lisp programs.
Executing Lisp	Various modes for editing Lisp programs, with different facilities for running the Lisp programs.
Libraries	Creating Lisp programs to run in Emacs.
Interaction	Executing Lisp in an Emacs buffer.
Eval	Executing a single Lisp expression in Emacs.
External Lisp	Communicating through Emacs with a separate Lisp.
Running Debuggers Under Emacs
Starting GUD	How to start a debugger subprocess.
Debugger Operation	Connection between the debugger and source buffers.
Commands of GUD	Key bindings for common commands.
GUD Customization	Defining your own commands for GUD.
Abbrevs
Abbrev Concepts	Fundamentals of defined abbrevs.
Defining Abbrevs	Defining an abbrev, so it will expand when typed.
Expanding Abbrevs	Controlling expansion: prefixes, canceling expansion.
Editing Abbrevs	Viewing or editing the entire list of defined abbrevs.
Saving Abbrevs	Saving the entire list of abbrevs for another session.
Dynamic Abbrevs	Abbreviations for words already in the buffer.
Editing Pictures
Basic Picture	Basic concepts and simple commands of Picture Mode.
Insert in Picture	Controlling direction of cursor motion after "self-inserting" characters.
Tabs in Picture	Various features for tab stops and indentation.
Rectangles in Picture	Clearing and superimposing rectangles.
Sending Mail
Mail Format	Format of the mail being composed.
Mail Headers	Details of permitted mail header fields.
Mail Aliases	Abbreviating and grouping mail addresses.
Mail Mode	Special commands for editing mail being composed.
Distracting NSA	How to distract the NSA's attention.
Reading Mail with Rmail
Rmail Basics	Basic concepts of Rmail, and simple use.
Rmail Scrolling	Scrolling through a message.
Rmail Motion	Moving to another message.
Rmail Deletion	Deleting and expunging messages.
Rmail Inbox	How mail gets into the Rmail file.
Rmail Files	Using multiple Rmail files.
Rmail Output	Copying message out to files.
Rmail Labels	Classifying messages by labeling them.
Rmail Reply	Sending replies to messages you are viewing.
Rmail Summary	Summaries show brief info on many messages.
Rmail Sorting	Sorting messages in Rmail.
Rmail Display	How Rmail displays a message; customization.
Rmail Editing	Editing message text and headers in Rmail.
Rmail Digest	Extracting the messages from a digest message.
Out of Rmail	Converting an Rmail file to mailbox format.
Rmail Rot13	Reading messages encoded in the rot13 code.
Dired, the Directory Editor
Dired Enter	How to invoke Dired.
Dired Commands	Commands in the Dired buffer.
Dired Deletion	Deleting files with Dired.
Flagging Many Files	Flagging files based on their names.
Dired Visiting	Other file operations through Dired.
Marks vs Flags	Flagging for deletion vs marking.
Operating on Files	How to copy, rename, print, compress, etc. either one file or several files.
Shell Commands in Dired	Running a shell command on the marked files.
Transforming File Names	Using patterns to rename multiple files.
Comparison in Dired	Running `diff' by way of Dired.
Subdirectories in Dired	Adding subdirectories to the Dired buffer.
Subdirectory Motion	Moving across subdirectories, and up and down.
Hiding Subdirectories	Making subdirectories visible or invisible.
Dired Updating	Discarding lines for files of no interest.
Dired and Find	Using `find' to choose the files for Dired.
The Calendar and the Diary
Calendar Motion	Moving through the calendar; selecting a date.
Scroll Calendar	Bringing earlier or later months onto the screen.
Counting Days	How many days are there between two dates?
General Calendar	Exiting or recomputing the calendar.
Holidays	Displaying dates of holidays.
Sunrise/Sunset	Displaying local times of sunrise and sunset.
Lunar Phases	Displaying phases of the moon.
Other Calendars	Converting dates to other calendar systems.
Diary	Displaying events from your diary.
Appointments	Reminders when it's time to do something.
Daylight Savings	How to specify when daylight savings time is active.
Movement in the Calendar
Calendar Unit Motion	Moving by days, weeks, months, and years.
Move to Beginning or End	Moving to start/end of weeks, months, and years.
Specified Dates	Moving to the current date or another specific date.
Conversion To and From Other Calendars
Calendar Systems	The calendars Emacs understands (aside from Gregorian).
To Other Calendar	Converting the selected date to various calendars.
From Other Calendar	Moving to a date specified in another calendar.
Mayan Calendar	Moving to a date specified in a Mayan calendar.
The Diary
Diary Commands	Viewing diary entries and associated calendar dates.
Format of Diary File	Entering events in your diary.
Date Formats	Various ways you can specify dates.
Adding to Diary	Commands to create diary entries.
Special Diary Entries	Anniversaries, blocks of dates, cyclic entries, etc.
GNUS
Buffers of GNUS	The Newsgroups, Summary and Article buffers.
GNUS Startup	What you should know about starting GNUS.
Summary of GNUS	A short description of the basic GNUS commands.
Running Shell Commands from Emacs
Single Shell	How to run one shell command and return.
Interactive Shell	Permanent shell taking input via Emacs.
Shell Mode	Special Emacs commands used with permanent shell.
Shell History	Repeating previous commands in a shell buffer.
Shell Options	Options for customizing Shell mode.
Remote Host	Connecting to another computer.
Customization
Minor Modes	Each minor mode is one feature you can turn on independently of any others.
Variables	Many Emacs commands examine Emacs variables to decide what to do; by setting variables, you can control their functioning.
Keyboard Macros	A keyboard macro records a sequence of keystrokes to be replayed with a single command.
Key Bindings	The keymaps say what command each key runs. By changing them, you can "redefine keys".
Keyboard Translations	If your keyboard passes an undesired code for a key, you can tell Emacs to substitute another code.
Syntax	The syntax table controls how words and expressions are parsed.
Init File	How to write common customizations in the `.emacs' file.
Variables
Examining	Examining or setting one variable's value.
Edit Options	Examining or editing list of all variables' values.
Hooks	Hook variables let you specify programs for parts of Emacs to run on particular occasions.
Locals	Per-buffer values of variables.
File Variables	How files can specify variable values.
Keyboard Macros
Basic Kbd Macro	Defining and running keyboard macros.
Save Kbd Macro	Giving keyboard macros names; saving them in files.
Kbd Macro Query	Keyboard macros that do different things each use.
Customizing Key Bindings
Keymaps	Generalities. The global keymap.
Prefix Keymaps	Keymaps for prefix keys.
Local Keymaps	Major and minor modes have their own keymaps.
Minibuffer Maps	The minibuffer uses its own local keymaps.
Rebinding	How to redefine one key's meaning conveniently.
Init Rebinding	Rebinding keys with your init file, `.emacs'.
Function Keys	Rebinding terminal function keys.
Named ASCII Chars	Distinguishing TAB from C-i, and so on.
Mouse Buttons	Rebinding mouse buttons in Emacs.
Disabling	Disabling a command means confirmation is required before it can be executed. This is done to protect beginners from surprises.
The Init File, `~/.emacs'
Init Syntax	Syntax of constants in Emacs Lisp.
Init Examples	How to do some things with an init file.
Terminal Init	Each terminal type can have an init file.
Find Init	How Emacs finds the init file.
Dealing with Emacs Trouble
DEL Gets Help	What to do if DEL doesn't delete.
Stuck Recursive	`[...]' in mode line around the parentheses.
Screen Garbled	Garbage on the screen.
Text Garbled	Garbage in the text.
Unasked-for Search	Spontaneous entry to incremental search.
Memory Full	How to cope when you run out of memory.
Emergency Escape	Emergency escape--- What to do if Emacs stops responding.
Total Frustration	When you are at your wits' end.
Reporting Bugs
Criteria	Have you really found a bug?
Understanding Bug Reporting	How to report a bug effectively.
Checklist	Steps to follow for a good bug report.
Sending Patches	How to send a patch for GNU Emacs.
Command Line Options and Arguments
Action Arguments	Arguments to visit files, load libraries, and call functions.
Initial Options	Arguments that take effect while starting Emacs.
Command Example	Examples of using command line arguments.
Resume Arguments	Specifying arguments when you resume a running Emacs.
Environment	Environment variables that Emacs uses.
Display X	Changing the default display and using remote login.
Font X	Choosing a font for text, under X.
Colors X	Choosing colors, under X.
Window Size X	Start-up window size, under X.
Borders X	Internal and external borders, under X.
Icons X	Choosing what sort of icon to use, under X.
Resources X	Advanced use of classes and resources, under X.
Lucid Resources	X resources for Lucid menus.
Motif Resources	X resources for Motif menus.
Environment Variables
General Variables	Environment variables that all versions of Emacs use.
Misc Variables	Certain system specific variables.