annotate etc/emacs.1 @ 36150:46e59561af4c

Display Vars node renamed Display Custom. Include info there about customizing cursor appearance. Clean up aggressive scrolling. Clarify horizontal scrolling discussion. Fix index entries for line number mode.

.TH EMACS 1 "1995 December 7"
.UC 4
.SH NAME
emacs \- GNU project Emacs
.SH SYNOPSIS
.B emacs
[
.I command-line switches
] [
.I files ...
]
.br
.SH DESCRIPTION
.I GNU Emacs
is a version of 
.I Emacs,
written by the author of the original (PDP-10) 
.I Emacs,
Richard Stallman.
.br
The primary documentation of GNU Emacs is in the GNU Emacs Manual,
which you can read on line using Info, a subsystem of Emacs.  Please
look there for complete and up-to-date documentation.  This man page
is updated only when someone volunteers to do so; the Emacs
maintainers' priority goal is to minimize the amount of time this man
page takes away from other more useful projects.
.br
The user functionality of GNU Emacs encompasses
everything other 
.I Emacs 
editors do, and it is easily extensible since its
editing commands are written in Lisp.
.PP
.I Emacs
has an extensive interactive help facility,
but the facility assumes that you know how to manipulate
.I Emacs
windows and buffers.
CTRL-h (backspace
or CTRL-h) enters the Help facility.  Help Tutorial (CTRL-h t)
requests an interactive tutorial which can teach beginners the fundamentals
of 
.I Emacs 
in a few minutes.
Help Apropos (CTRL-h a) helps you
find a command given its functionality, Help Character (CTRL-h c)
describes a given character's effect, and Help Function (CTRL-h f)
describes a given Lisp function specified by name.
.PP
.I Emacs's
Undo can undo several steps of modification to your buffers, so it is
easy to recover from editing mistakes.
.PP
.I GNU Emacs's
many special packages handle mail reading (RMail) and sending (Mail),
outline editing (Outline), compiling (Compile), running subshells
within
.I Emacs
windows (Shell), running a Lisp read-eval-print loop
(Lisp-Interaction-Mode), and automated psychotherapy (Doctor).
.PP
There is an extensive reference manual, but
users of other Emacses
should have little trouble adapting even
without a copy.  Users new to
.I Emacs
will be able
to use basic features fairly rapidly by studying the tutorial and
using the self-documentation features.
.PP
.SM Emacs Options
.PP
The following options are of general interest:
.TP 8
.I file
Edit
.I file.
.TP
.BI \+ number
Go to the line specified by
.I number
(do not insert a space between the "+" sign and
the number).
.TP
.B \-q
Do not load an init file.
.TP
.BI \-u " user"
Load
.I user's
init file.
.TP
.BI \-t " file"
Use specified
.I file
as the terminal instead of using stdin/stdout.
This must be the first argument specified in the command line.
.PP
The following options are lisp-oriented
(these options are processed in the order encountered):
.TP 8
.BI \-f " function"
Execute the lisp function
.I function.
.TP
.BI \-l " file"
Load the lisp code in the file
.I file.
.PP
The following options are useful when running
.I Emacs
as a batch editor:
.TP 8
.BI \-batch
Edit in batch mode.  The editor will send messages to stderr.  This
option must be the first in the argument list.  You must use -l and -f
options to specify files to execute and functions to call.
.TP
.B \-kill
Exit 
.I Emacs 
while in batch mode.
.\" START DELETING HERE IF YOU'RE NOT USING X
.PP
.SM Using Emacs with X
.PP
.I Emacs
has been tailored to work well with the X window system.
If you run
.I Emacs
from under X windows, it will create its own X window to
display in.  You will probably want to start the editor
as a background process
so that you can continue using your original window.
.PP
.I Emacs
can be started with the following X switches:
.TP 8
.BI \-name " name"
Specifies the name which should be assigned to the initial
.I Emacs
window.  This controls looking up X resources as well as the window title.
.TP 8
.BI \-title " name"
Specifies the title for the initial X window.
.TP 8
.B \-r
Display the
.I Emacs
window in reverse video.
.TP
.B \-i
Use the "kitchen sink" bitmap icon when iconifying the
.I Emacs
window.
.TP
.BI \-font " font, " \-fn " font"
Set the
.I Emacs
window's font to that specified by
.I font.
You will find the various
.I X
fonts in the
.I /usr/lib/X11/fonts
directory.
Note that
.I Emacs
will only accept fixed width fonts.
Under the X11 Release 4 font-naming conventions, any font with the
value "m" or "c" in the eleventh field of the font name is a fixed
width font.  Furthermore, fonts whose name are of the form
.IR width x height
are generally fixed width, as is the font
.IR fixed .
See
.IR xlsfonts (1)
for more information.

When you specify a font, be sure to put a space between the
switch and the font name.
.TP
.BI \-bw " pixels"
Set the
.I Emacs
window's border width to the number of pixels specified by
.I pixels.
Defaults to one pixel on each side of the window.
.TP
.BI \-ib " pixels"
Set the window's internal border width to the number of pixels specified
by 
.I pixels.
Defaults to one pixel of padding on each side of the window.
.PP
.TP 8
.BI \-geometry " geometry"
Set the
.I Emacs
window's width, height, and position as specified.  The geometry
specification is in the standard X format; see
.IR X (1)
for more information.
The width and height are specified in characters; the default is 80 by
24.
.PP
.TP 8
.BI \-fg " color"
On color displays, sets the color of the text.

See the file
.I /usr/lib/X11/rgb.txt
for a list of valid
color names.
.TP
.BI \-bg " color"
On color displays,
sets the color of the window's background.
.TP
.BI \-bd " color"
On color displays,
sets the color of the window's border.
.TP
.BI \-cr " color"
On color displays,
sets the color of the window's text cursor.
.TP
.BI \-ms " color"
On color displays,
sets the color of the window's mouse cursor.
.TP
.BI \-d " displayname, " \-display " displayname"
Create the
.I Emacs
window on the display specified by
.IR displayname .
Must be the first option specified in the command line.
.TP
.B \-nw
Tells
.I Emacs
not to use its special interface to X.  If you use this
switch when invoking
.I Emacs
from an
.IR xterm (1)
window, display is done in that window.
This must be the first option specified in the command line.
.PP
You can set
.I X
default values for your
.I Emacs
windows in your
.I \.Xresources
file (see
.IR xrdb (1)).
Use the following format:
.IP
emacs.keyword:value
.PP
where
.I value
specifies the default value of
.I keyword.
.I Emacs
lets you set default values for the following keywords:
.TP 8
.B font (\fPclass\fB Font)
Sets the window's text font.
.TP
.B reverseVideo (\fPclass\fB ReverseVideo)
If
.I reverseVideo's
value is set to
.I on,
the window will be displayed in reverse video.
.TP
.B bitmapIcon (\fPclass\fB BitmapIcon)
If
.I bitmapIcon's
value is set to
.I on,
the window will iconify into the "kitchen sink."
.TP
.B borderWidth (\fPclass\fB BorderWidth)
Sets the window's border width in pixels.
.TP
.B internalBorder (\fPclass\fB BorderWidth)
Sets the window's internal border width in pixels.
.TP
.B foreground (\fPclass\fB Foreground)
For color displays,
sets the window's text color.
.TP
.B background (\fPclass\fB Background)
For color displays,
sets the window's background color.
.TP
.B borderColor (\fPclass\fB BorderColor)
For color displays,
sets the color of the window's border.
.TP
.B cursorColor (\fPclass\fB Foreground)
For color displays,
sets the color of the window's text cursor.
.TP
.B pointerColor (\fPclass\fB Foreground)
For color displays,
sets the color of the window's mouse cursor.
.TP
.B geometry (\fPclass\fB Geometry)
Sets the geometry of the
.I Emacs
window (as described above).
.TP
.B title (\fPclass\fB Title)
Sets the title of the
.I Emacs
window.
.TP
.B iconName (\fPclass\fB Title)
Sets the icon name for the
.I Emacs
window icon.
.PP
If you try to set color values while using a black and white display,
the window's characteristics will default as follows:
the foreground color will be set to black,
the background color will be set to white,
the border color will be set to grey,
and the text and mouse cursors will be set to black.
.PP
.SM Using the Mouse 
.PP
The following lists the mouse button bindings for the
.I Emacs
window under X11.

.in +\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
.ta \w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
MOUSE BUTTON	FUNCTION
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
left	Set point.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
middle	Paste text.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
right	Cut text into X cut buffer.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
SHIFT-middle	Cut text into X cut buffer.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
SHIFT-right	Paste text.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
CTRL-middle	Cut text into X cut buffer and kill it.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
CTRL-right	Select this window, then split it into 
two windows.  Same as typing CTRL-x 2.
.\" START DELETING HERE IF YOU'RE NOT USING X MENUS
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
CTRL-SHIFT-left	X buffer menu--hold the buttons and keys
down, wait for menu to appear, select 
buffer, and release.  Move mouse out of
menu and release to cancel.
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
CTRL-SHIFT-middle	X help menu--pop up index card menu for
Emacs help.
.\" STOP DELETING HERE IF YOU'RE NOT USING X MENUS
.br
.ti -\w'CTRL-SHIFT-middle'u+4n
CTRL-SHIFT-right	Select window with mouse, and delete all
other windows.  Same as typing CTRL-x 1.
.\" STOP DELETING HERE IF YOU'RE NOT USING X
.PP
.SH MANUALS
You can order printed copies of the GNU Emacs Manual from the Free
Software Foundation, which develops GNU software.  See the file ORDERS
for ordering information.
.br
Your local Emacs maintainer might also have copies available.  As
with all software and publications from FSF, everyone is permitted to
make and distribute copies of the Emacs manual.  The TeX source to the
manual is also included in the Emacs source distribution.
.PP
.SH FILES
/usr/local/info - files for the Info documentation browser
(a subsystem of Emacs) to refer to.  Currently not much of Unix
is documented here, but the complete text of the Emacs reference
manual is included in a convenient tree structured form.

/usr/local/share/emacs/$VERSION/src - C source files and object files

/usr/local/share/emacs/$VERSION/lisp - Lisp source files and compiled files
that define most editing commands.  Some are preloaded;
others are autoloaded from this directory when used.
  
/usr/local/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc - various programs that are used with
GNU Emacs, and some files of information.

/usr/local/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc/DOC.* - contains the documentation
strings for the Lisp primitives and preloaded Lisp functions
of GNU Emacs.  They are stored here to reduce the size of
Emacs proper.

/usr/local/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc/OTHER.EMACSES discusses GNU Emacs
vs. other versions of Emacs.
.br
/usr/local/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc/SERVICE lists people offering
various services to assist users of GNU Emacs, including education,
troubleshooting, porting and customization.
.br
These files also have information useful to anyone wishing to write
programs in the Emacs Lisp extension language, which has not yet been fully
documented.

/usr/local/com/emacs/lock - holds lock files that are made for all
files being modified in Emacs, to prevent simultaneous modification
of one file by two users.

.\" START DELETING HERE IF YOU'RE NOT USING X
/usr/lib/X11/rgb.txt - list of valid X color names.
.\" STOP DELETING HERE IF YOU'RE NOT USING X
.PP
.SH BUGS
There is a mailing list, [e-mail] on the internet
(ucbvax!prep.ai.mit.edu!bug-gnu-emacs on UUCPnet), for reporting Emacs
bugs and fixes.  But before reporting something as a bug, please try
to be sure that it really is a bug, not a misunderstanding or a
deliberate feature.  We ask you to read the section ``Reporting Emacs
Bugs'' near the end of the reference manual (or Info system) for hints
on how and when to report bugs.  Also, include the version number of
the Emacs you are running in \fIevery\fR bug report that you send in.

Do not expect a personal answer to a bug report.  The purpose of reporting
bugs is to get them fixed for everyone in the next release, if possible.
For personal assistance, look in the SERVICE file (see above) for
a list of people who offer it.

Please do not send anything but bug reports to this mailing list.
Send requests to be added to mailing lists to the special list
[e-mail] (or the corresponding UUCP
address).  For more information about Emacs mailing lists, see the
file /usr/local/emacs/etc/MAILINGLISTS.  Bugs tend actually to be
fixed if they can be isolated, so it is in your interest to report
them in such a way that they can be easily reproduced.
.PP
Bugs that I know about are: shell will not work with programs
running in Raw mode on some Unix versions.
.SH UNRESTRICTIONS
.PP
.I Emacs 
is free; anyone may redistribute copies of 
.I Emacs 
to
anyone under the terms stated in the 
.I Emacs 
General Public License,
a copy of which accompanies each copy of 
.I Emacs 
and which also
appears in the reference manual.
.PP
Copies of
.I Emacs
may sometimes be received packaged with distributions of Unix systems,
but it is never included in the scope of any license covering those
systems.  Such inclusion violates the terms on which distribution
is permitted.  In fact, the primary purpose of the General Public
License is to prohibit anyone from attaching any other restrictions
to redistribution of 
.I Emacs.
.PP
Richard Stallman encourages you to improve and extend 
.I Emacs, 
and urges that
you contribute your extensions to the GNU library.  Eventually GNU
(Gnu's Not Unix) will be a complete replacement for Berkeley
Unix.
Everyone will be free to use, copy, study and change the GNU system.
.SH SEE ALSO
X(1), xlsfonts(1), xterm(1), xrdb(1)
.SH AUTHORS
.PP
.I Emacs
was written by Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation.
Joachim Martillo and Robert Krawitz added the X features.