annotate man/info.texi @ 37355:981fa38deecf

(Help-Small-Screen): Mention Backspace. (Help-^L): Explain what does "Backspace or DEL" stand for.

\input texinfo    @c -*-texinfo-*-
@comment %**start of header
@setfilename info.info
@settitle Info
@syncodeindex fn cp
@syncodeindex vr cp
@syncodeindex ky cp
@comment %**end of header
@comment $Id: info.texi,v 1.9 2001/04/14 11:52:21 eliz Exp $

@dircategory Texinfo documentation system
@direntry
* Info: (info).                 Documentation browsing system.
@end direntry

@ifinfo
This file describes how to use Info, the on-line, menu-driven GNU
documentation system.

Copyright (C) 1989, 92, 96, 97, 98, 99, 2000, 2001
Free Software Foundation, Inc.


Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below.  A copy of the
license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
License'' in the Emacs manual.

(a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
this GNU Manual, like GNU software.  Copies published by the Free
Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''

This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
Documentation License.  If you want to distribute this document
separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
@end ifinfo

@titlepage
@title Info
@subtitle The online, hyper-text GNU documentation system
@author Brian Fox
@author and the GNU Texinfo community
@page
@vskip 0pt plus 1filll
Copyright @copyright{} 1989, 92, 93, 96, 97, 98, 99, 2000, 2001
Free Software Foundation, Inc.
@sp 2
Published by the Free Software Foundation @*
59 Temple Place - Suite 330 @*
Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below.  A copy of the
license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
License'' in the Emacs manual.

(a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
this GNU Manual, like GNU software.  Copies published by the Free
Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''

This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
Documentation License.  If you want to distribute this document
separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
@end titlepage

@ifnottex
@node Top
@top Info: An Introduction

Info is a program for reading documentation, which you are using now.

@ifinfo
If you are new to Info and want to learn how to use it, type the
command @kbd{h} now.  It brings you to a programmed instruction
sequence.

To learn advanced Info commands, type @kbd{n} twice.  This brings you to
@cite{Info for Experts}, skipping over the `Getting Started' chapter.
@end ifinfo
@end ifnottex

@menu
* Getting Started::             Getting started using an Info reader.
* Advanced Info::               Advanced commands within Info.
* Creating an Info File::       How to make your own Info file.
* Index::                       An Index of topics, commands, and variables.
@end menu

@node Getting Started, Advanced Info, Top, Top
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@chapter Getting Started

This first part of the Info manual describes how to get around inside
of Info.  The second part of the manual describes various advanced
Info commands, and how to write an Info as distinct from a Texinfo
file.  The third part briefly explains how to generate Info files from
Texinfo files.

@ifnotinfo
This manual is primarily designed for browsing with an Info reader
program on a computer, so that you can try Info commands while reading
about them.  Reading it on paper or with an HTML browser is less
effective, since you must take it on faith that the commands described
really do what the manual says.  By all means go through this manual
now that you have it; but please try going through the on-line version
as well.

@cindex Info reader, how to invoke
@cindex entering Info
There are two ways of looking at the online version of this manual:

@enumerate
@item
Type @code{info} at your shell's command line.  This approach uses a
small stand-alone program designed just to read Info files.

@item
Type @code{emacs} at the command line; then type @kbd{C-h i} (Control
@kbd{h}, followed by @kbd{i}).  This approach uses the Info mode of the
Emacs program, an editor with many other capabilities.
@end enumerate

In either case, then type @kbd{mInfo} (just the letters), followed by
@key{RET}---the ``Return'' or ``Enter'' key.  At this point, you should
be ready to follow the instructions in this manual as you read them on
the screen.
@c FIXME! ([e-mail], 14 dec 1992)
@c Is it worth worrying about what-if the beginner goes to somebody
@c else's Emacs session, which already has an Info running in the middle
@c of something---in which case these simple instructions won't work?
@end ifnotinfo

@menu
* Help-Small-Screen::   Starting Info on a Small Screen
* Help::                How to use Info
* Help-P::              Returning to the Previous node
* Help-^L::             The Space, Rubout, B and ^L commands.
* Help-M::              Menus
* Help-Adv::            Some advanced Info commands
* Help-Q::              Quitting Info
@end menu

@node Help-Small-Screen
@section Starting Info on a Small Screen

@ifnotinfo
(In Info, you only see this section if your terminal has a small
number of lines; most readers pass by it without seeing it.)
@end ifnotinfo

@cindex small screen, moving around
Since your terminal has a relatively small number of lines on its
screen, it is necessary to give you special advice at the beginning.

If you see the text @samp{--All----} near the bottom right corner
of the screen, it means the entire text you are looking at fits on the
screen.  If you see @samp{--Top----} instead, it means that there is
more text below that does not fit.  To move forward through the text
and see another screen full, press @key{SPC}, the Space bar.  To move
back up, press the key labeled @samp{Backspace} or @samp{DEL} (on some
keyboards, this key might be labeled @samp{Delete}).

@ifinfo
Here are 40 lines of junk, so you can try Spaces and DEL and
see what they do.  At the end are instructions of what you should do
next.

@format
This is line 20
This is line 21
This is line 22
This is line 23
This is line 24
This is line 25
This is line 26
This is line 27
This is line 28
This is line 29
This is line 30
This is line 31
This is line 32
This is line 33
This is line 34
This is line 35
This is line 36
This is line 37
This is line 38
This is line 39
This is line 40
This is line 41
This is line 42
This is line 43
This is line 44
This is line 45
This is line 46
This is line 47
This is line 48
This is line 49
This is line 50
This is line 51
This is line 52
This is line 53
This is line 54
This is line 55
This is line 56
This is line 57
This is line 58
This is line 59
@end format

If you have managed to get here, go back to the beginning with
@kbd{DEL} (or Backspace), and come back here again, then you
understand Space and DEL.  So now type an @kbd{n} ---just one
character; don't type the quotes and don't type the Return key
afterward--- to get to the normal start of the course.
@end ifinfo

@node Help, Help-P, Help-Small-Screen, Getting Started
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section How to use Info

You are talking to the program Info, for reading documentation.

@cindex node, in Info documents
  Right now you are looking at one @dfn{Node} of Information.
A node contains text describing a specific topic at a specific
level of detail.  This node's topic is ``how to use Info''.  The mode
line says that this is node @samp{Help} in the file @file{info}.

@cindex header of Info node
  The top line of a node is its @dfn{header}.  This node's header (look at
it now) says that the @samp{Next} node after this one is the node
called @samp{Help-P}.  An advanced Info command lets you go to any node
whose name you know.  In the stand-alone Info reader program, the
header line shows the names of this node and the info file as well.
In Emacs, the header line is displayed in a special typeface, and it
doesn't scroll off the screen when you scroll the display.  The names
of this node and of its Info file are omitted by Emacs from the header
line.

  Besides a @samp{Next}, a node can have a @samp{Previous} or an
@samp{Up} links, or both.  As you can see, this node has all of these
links.

@kindex n @r{(Info mode)}
  Now it is time to move on to the @samp{Next} node, named @samp{Help-P}.

@format
>> Type @kbd{n} to move there.  Type just one character;
   do not type the quotes and do not type a @key{RET} afterward.
@end format

@noindent
@samp{>>} in the margin means it is really time to try a command.

@format
>> If you have a mouse, and if you already practiced typing @kbd{n}
   to get to the next node, click now with the right mouse button on
   the @samp{Next} link to do the same ``the mouse way''.
@end format

@node Help-P, Help-^L, Help, Getting Started
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Returning to the Previous node

@kindex p @r{(Info mode)}
This node is called @samp{Help-P}.  The @samp{Previous} node, as you see,
is @samp{Help}, which is the one you just came from using the @kbd{n}
command.  Another @kbd{n} command now would take you to the next
node, @samp{Help-^L}.  In Emacs, @kbd{n} runs the Emacs command
@code{Info-next}, and @kbd{p} runs @code{Info-prev}.

@format
>> But do not do that yet.  First, try the @kbd{p} command, or click
   the mouse on the @samp{Prev} link, which takes you to the
   @samp{Previous} node.  When you get there, you can do an @kbd{n}
   again to return here.
@end format

  This all probably seems insultingly simple so far, but @emph{do not} be
led into skimming.  Things will get more complicated soon.  Also,
do not try a new command until you are told it is time to.  Otherwise,
you may make Info skip past an important warning that was coming up.

@format
>> Now do an @kbd{n}, or click the mouse on the @samp{Next} link, to
   get to the node @samp{Help-^L} and learn more.
@end format

@node Help-^L, Help-M, Help-P, Getting Started
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section The Space, DEL, B and ^L commands.

  This node's mode line tells you that you are now at node @samp{Help-^L},
and the header line tells you that @kbd{p} would get you back to
@samp{Help-P}.  The node's title is underlined; it says what the node
is about (most nodes have titles).

  This is a big node and it does not all fit on your display screen.
You can tell that there is more that is not visible because you
can see the string @samp{--Top-----} rather than @samp{--All----} near
the bottom right corner of the screen.

@kindex SPC @r{(Info mode)}
@kindex DEL @r{(Info mode)}
@kindex BACKSPACE @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-scroll-up
@findex Info-scroll-down
  The Space, Backspace (or DEL)@footnote{The key which we call
``Backspace or DEL'' in this manual is labeled differently on
different keyboards.  Look for a key which is a little ways above the
@key{ENTER} or @key{RET} key and which you normally use outside Emacs
to erase the character before the cursor, i.e.@: the character you
typed last.  It might be labeled @samp{Backspace} or @samp{<-} or
@samp{DEL}, or sometimes @samp{Delete}.} and @kbd{b} commands exist to
allow you to ``move around'' in a node that does not all fit on the
screen at once.  Space moves forward, to show what was below the
bottom of the screen.  DEL or Backspace moves backward, to show what
was above the top of the screen (there is not anything above the top
until you have typed some spaces).  In Emacs, Space runs the command
@code{Info-scroll-up}, while Backspace runs @code{Info-scroll-down}.

@format
>> Now try typing a Space (afterward, type a Backspace to return here).
@end format

  When you type the Space, the two lines that were at the bottom of
the screen appear at the top, followed by more lines.  DEL or
Backspace takes the two lines from the top and moves them to the
bottom, @emph{usually}, but if there are not a full screen's worth of
lines above them they may not make it all the way to the bottom.

  If you are reading this in Emacs, note that the header line is
always visible, never scrolling off the display.  That way, you can
always see the @samp{Next}, @samp{Prev}, and @samp{Up} links, and you
can conveniently go to one of these links from anywhere in the node by
clicking the mouse on one of these links.

@cindex reading Info documents top to bottom
@cindex Info documents as tutorials
  Space and DEL not only move forward and backward through the current
node.  When these keys hit the beginning or the end of the current
node, they move to preceding or subsequent nodes.  Specifically, they
scroll through all the nodes in an Info file as a single logical
sequence.  In this sequence, a node's subnodes appear following their
parent.  If a node has a menu, Space takes you into the subnodes
listed in the menu, one by one.  Once you reach the end of a node, and
have seen all of its subnodes, Space takes you to the next node or to
the parent's next node.  This is so you could read the entire manual
top to bottom by just typing Space.

@kindex PAGEUP @r{(Info mode)}
@kindex PAGEDOWN @r{(Info mode)}
  Many keyboards nowadays have two scroll keys labeled @samp{PageUp}
and @samp{PageDown} (or maybe @samp{Prior} and @samp{Next}).  If your
keyboard has these keys, you can use them to move forward and backward
through the text, like with Space and Backspace.  However, unlike
Space and Backspace, PageUp and PageDown keys will never scroll beyond
the beginning or the end of the current node.

@kindex C-l @r{(Info mode)}
  If your screen is ever garbaged, you can tell Info to print it out
again by typing @kbd{C-l} (@kbd{Control-L}, that is---hold down
``Control'' and type an @key{L} or @kbd{l}).

@format
>> Type @kbd{C-l} now.
@end format

@kindex b @r{(Info mode)}
  To move back to the beginning of the node you are on, you can type
a lot of Backspaces.  You can also type simply @kbd{b} for beginning.

@format
>> Try that now.  (We have put in enough verbiage to push this past
   the first screenful, but screens are so big nowadays that perhaps it
   isn't enough.  You may need to shrink your Emacs or Info window.)
   Then come back, with Spaces.
@end format

  If your screen is very tall, all of this node might fit at once.
In that case, @kbd{b} won't do anything.  Sorry; what can we do?

@kindex ? @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-summary
  You have just learned a considerable number of commands.  If you
want to use one but have trouble remembering which, you should type
a @key{?} (in Emacs it runs the @code{Info-summary} command) which
prints out a brief list of commands.  When you are finished looking at
the list, make it go away by typing a Space repeatedly.

@format
>> Type a @key{?} now.  Press @key{SPC} to see consecutive screenfuls of
   the list until finished.  Then type @key{SPC} several times, until
   it goes away.
@end format

  (If you are using the stand-alone Info reader, type @kbd{C-x 0} to
return here, that is---press and hold ``Control'', type an @kbd{x},
then release ``Control'' and @kbd{x}, and press @kbd{0}---a zero, not
the letter ``o''.)

  From now on, you will encounter large nodes without warning, and
will be expected to know how to use Space and Backspace to move
around in them without being told.  Since not all terminals have
the same size screen, it would be impossible to warn you anyway.

@format
>> Now type @kbd{n}, or click the mouse on the @samp{Next} link, to
   see the description of the @kbd{m} command.
@end format

@node Help-M, Help-Adv, Help-^L, Getting Started
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Menus and the @kbd{m} command

@cindex menus in an Info document
@cindex Info menus
  With only the @kbd{n} (next) and @kbd{p} (previous) commands for
moving between nodes, nodes are restricted to a linear sequence.
Menus allow a branching structure.  A menu is a list of other nodes
you can move to.  It is actually just part of the text of the node
formatted specially so that Info can interpret it.  The beginning of a
menu is always identified by a line which starts with @samp{* Menu:}.
A node contains a menu if and only if it has a line in it which starts
that way.  The only menu you can use at any moment is the one in the
node you are in.  To use a menu in any other node, you must move to
that node first.

  After the start of the menu, each line that starts with a @samp{*}
identifies one subtopic.  The line usually contains a brief name
for the subtopic (followed by a @samp{:}), the name of the node that talks
about that subtopic, and optionally some further description of the
subtopic.  Lines in the menu that do not start with a @samp{*} have no
special meaning---they are only for the human reader's benefit and do
not define additional subtopics.  Here is an example:

@example
* Foo:  Node about FOO      This tells about FOO
@end example

The subtopic name is Foo, and the node describing it is @samp{Node
about FOO}.  The rest of the line is just for the reader's
Information.  [[ But this line is not a real menu item, simply because
there is no line above it which starts with @samp{* Menu:}.]]

  When you use a menu to go to another node (in a way that will be
described soon), what you specify is the subtopic name, the first
thing in the menu line.  Info uses it to find the menu line, extracts
the node name from it, and goes to that node.  The reason that there
is both a subtopic name and a node name is that the node name must be
meaningful to the computer and may therefore have to be ugly looking.
The subtopic name can be chosen just to be convenient for the user to
specify.  Often the node name is convenient for the user to specify
and so both it and the subtopic name are the same.  There is an
abbreviation for this:

@example
* Foo::   This tells about FOO
@end example

@noindent
This means that the subtopic name and node name are the same; they are
both @samp{Foo}.

@format
>> Now use Spaces to find the menu in this node, then come back to
   the front with a @kbd{b} and some Spaces.  As you see, a menu is
   actually visible in its node.  If you cannot find a menu in a node
   by looking at it, then the node does not have a menu and the
   @kbd{m} command is not available.
@end format

@kindex m @r{(Info mode)}
  The command to go to one of the subnodes is @kbd{m}---but @emph{do
not do it yet!}  Before you use @kbd{m}, you need to learn about
commands which prompt you for more input.  So far, you have learned
several commands that do not need additional input; when you typed
one, Info processed it and was instantly ready for another command.
The @kbd{m} command is different: it is incomplete without the
@dfn{name of the subtopic}.  Once you have typed @kbd{m}, Info tries
to read the subtopic name.

  Now look for the line containing many dashes near the bottom of the
screen.  There is one more line beneath that one, but usually it is
blank.  If it is empty, Info is ready for a command, such as @kbd{n}
or @kbd{b} or Space or @kbd{m}.  If that line contains text ending
in a colon, it means Info is trying to read more input for the last
command.  At such times, commands do not work, because Info tries to
use them as the input it needs.  You must either type your response and
finish the command you started, or type @kbd{Control-g} to cancel the
command.  When you have done one of those things, the line becomes
blank again.

@findex Info-menu
  The command to go to a subnode via a menu is @kbd{m}.  After you type
the @kbd{m}, the line at the bottom of the screen says @samp{Menu item: }.
You must then type the name of the subtopic you want, and end it with
a @key{RET}.  In Emacs, @kbd{m} runs the command @code{Info-menu}.

@cindex abbreviating Info subnodes
  You can abbreviate the subtopic name.  If the abbreviation is not
unique, the first matching subtopic is chosen.  Some menus put
the shortest possible abbreviation for each subtopic name in capital
letters, so you can see how much you need to type.  It does not
matter whether you use upper case or lower case when you type the
subtopic.  You should not put any spaces at the end, or inside of the
item name, except for one space where a space appears in the item in
the menu.

@cindex completion of Info node names
  You can also use the @dfn{completion} feature to help enter the subtopic
name.  If you type the Tab key after entering part of a name, it will
magically fill in more of the name---as much as follows uniquely from
what you have entered.

  If you move the cursor to one of the menu subtopic lines, then you do
not need to type the argument: you just type a @key{RET}, and it
stands for the subtopic of the line you are on.

Here is a menu to give you a chance to practice.  This menu gives you
three ways of going to one place, Help-FOO:

@menu
* Foo:  Help-FOO.       A node you can visit for fun.
* Bar:  Help-FOO.       Strange!  two ways to get to the same place.
* Help-FOO::            And yet another!
@end menu

@format
>>  Now type just an @kbd{m} and see what happens:
@end format

  Now you are ``inside'' an @kbd{m} command.  Commands cannot be used
now; the next thing you will type must be the name of a subtopic.

  You can change your mind about doing the @kbd{m} by typing
@kbd{Control-g}.

@format
>> Try that now;  notice the bottom line clear.
@end format

@format
>> Then type another @kbd{m}.
@end format

@format
>> Now type @kbd{BAR}, the item name.  Do not type @key{RET} yet.
@end format

  While you are typing the item name, you can use the @key{DEL} (or
Backspace) key to cancel one character at a time if you make a
mistake.

@format
>> Press @key{DEL} to cancel the @samp{R}.  You could type another @kbd{R}
   to replace it.  But you do not have to, since @samp{BA} is a valid
   abbreviation.
@end format

@format
>> Now you are ready to go.  Type a @key{RET}.
@end format

  After visiting @samp{Help-FOO}, you should return here.

  Another way to move to the menu subtopic lines and between them is
to type @key{TAB}.  Each time you type a @key{TAB}, you move to the
next subtopic line.  To move to a previous subtopic line, type
@kbd{M-@key{TAB}}---that is, press and hold the Meta key and then
press @key{TAB}.  (On some keyboards, the Meta key might be known as
``Alt''.)

  Once you move cursor to a subtopic line, press @key{RET} to go to
that subtopic's node.

@cindex mouse support in Info mode
@kindex Mouse-2 @r{(Info mode)}
  If your terminal supports a mouse, you have yet another way of going
to a subtopic.  Move your mouse pointer to the subtopic line,
somewhere between the beginning @samp{*} and the colon @samp{:} which
ends the subtopic's brief name.  You will see the subtopic's name
change its appearance (usually, its background color will change), and
the shape of the mouse pointer will change if your platform supports
that.  After a while, if you leave the mouse on that spot, a tooltip
will pop up saying ``Mouse-2: go to that node''.  (If the tooltips are
turned off or unavailable, this message is printed in the @dfn{echo
area}, the last screen line where you typed the menu subtopics in
response to the prompt.)  @kbd{Mouse-2} is the second button of your
mouse---normally the rightmost button.  So pressing @kbd{Mouse-2}
while the mouse pointer is on a menu subtopic goes to that subtopic.

@findex Info-mouse-follow-nearest-node
  More generally, @kbd{Mouse-2} in an Info buffer runs the Emacs
command @code{Info-mouse-follow-nearest-node}, which finds the nearest
link to another node and goes there.  For example, near a cross
reference it acts like @kbd{f}, in a menu it acts like @kbd{m}, on the
node's header line it acts like @kbd{n}, @kbd{p}, or @kbd{u}, etc.  At
end of the node's text @kbd{Mouse-2} moves to the next node, or up if
there's no next node.

  Here is another way to get to Help-FOO, a menu.  You can ignore this
if you want, or else try it by typing @key{TAB} and then @key{RET}, or
clicking @kbd{Mouse-2} on it (but then please come back to here).

@menu
* Help-FOO::
@end menu

@format
>> Type @kbd{n} to see more commands.
@end format

@node Help-FOO,  ,  , Help-M
@subsection The @kbd{u} command

  Congratulations!  This is the node @samp{Help-FOO}.  It has an @samp{Up}
pointer @samp{Help-M}, the node you just came from via the @kbd{m}
command.  This is the usual convention---the nodes you reach from a menu
have @samp{Up} nodes that lead back to the menu.  Menus move Down in the
tree, and @samp{Up} moves Up.  @samp{Previous}, on the other hand, is
usually used to ``stay on the same level but go backwards''.

@kindex u @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-up
  You can go back to the node @samp{Help-M} by typing the command
@kbd{u} for ``Up'' (the Emacs command ruin by @kbd{u} is
@code{Info-up}).  That puts you at the @emph{front} of the node---to
get back to where you were reading you have to type some @key{SPC}s.
(Some Info readers, such as the one built into Emacs, put you at the
same place where you were reading in @samp{Help-M}.)

  Another way to go Up is to click on the @samp{Up} pointer shown in
the header line (provided that you have a mouse).

@format
>> Now type @kbd{u} to move back up to @samp{Help-M}.
@end format

@node Help-Adv, Help-Q, Help-M, Getting Started
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Some advanced Info commands

  The course is almost over, so please stick with it to the end.

@kindex l @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-last
@cindex going back in Info mode
  If you have been moving around to different nodes and wish to
retrace your steps, the @kbd{l} command (@kbd{l} for @dfn{last}) will
do that, one node-step at a time.  As you move from node to node, Info
records the nodes where you have been in a special history list.  The
@kbd{l} command revisits nodes in the history list; each successive
@kbd{l} command moves one step back through the history.

  If you have been following directions, ad @kbd{l} command now will get
you back to @samp{Help-M}.  Another @kbd{l} command would undo the
@kbd{u} and get you back to @samp{Help-FOO}.  Another @kbd{l} would undo
the @kbd{m} and get you back to @samp{Help-M}.

  In Emacs, @kbd{l} runs the command @code{Info-last}.

@format
>> Try typing three @kbd{l}'s, pausing in between to see what each
   @kbd{l} does.  Then follow directions again and you will end up
   back here.
@end format

  Note the difference between @kbd{l} and @kbd{p}: @kbd{l} moves to
where @emph{you} last were, whereas @kbd{p} always moves to the node
which the header says is the @samp{Previous} node (from this node, the
@samp{Prev} link leads to @samp{Help-M}).

@kindex d @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-directory
@cindex go to Directory node
  The @kbd{d} command (@code{Info-directory} in Emacs) gets you
instantly to the Directory node.  This node, which is the first one
you saw when you entered Info, has a menu which leads (directly, or
indirectly through other menus), to all the nodes that exist.  The
Directory node lists all the manuals and other Info documents that
are, or could be, installed on your system.

@format
>> Try doing a @kbd{d}, then do an @kbd{l} to return here (yes,
   @emph{do} return).
@end format

@kindex t @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-top-node
@cindex go to Top node
  The @kbd{t} command moves to the @samp{Top} node of the manual.
This is useful if you want to browse the manual's main menu, or select
some specific top-level menu item.  The Emacs command run by @kbd{t}
is @code{Info-top-node}.

  Sometimes, in Info documentation, you will see a cross reference.
Cross references look like this: @xref{Help-Cross, Cross}.  That is a
real, live cross reference which is named @samp{Cross} and points at
the node named @samp{Help-Cross}.

@kindex f @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-follow-reference
@cindex cross references in Info documents
  If you wish to follow a cross reference, you must use the @kbd{f}
command.  The @kbd{f} must be followed by the cross reference name
(in this case, @samp{Cross}).  If the cursor is on or near the cross
reference, Info suggests the name if the nearest reference in
parentheses; typing @key{RET} will follow that reference.  You can
also type a different name, if the default is not what you want.
While you enter the name, you can use the DEL (or Backspace) key to
edit your input.  If you change your mind about following any
reference, you can use @kbd{Control-g} to cancel the command.

  Completion is available in the @kbd{f} command; you can complete among
all the cross reference names in the current node by typing a Tab.

  @kbd{f} runs @code{Info-follow-reference} in Emacs.

@format
>> Type @kbd{f}, followed by @kbd{Cross}, and a @key{RET}.
@end format

  To get a list of all the cross references in the current node, you can
type @kbd{?} after an @kbd{f}.  The @kbd{f} continues to await a
cross reference name even after printing the list, so if you don't
actually want to follow a reference, you should type a @kbd{Control-g}
to cancel the @kbd{f}.

@format
>> Type @kbd{f?} to get a list of the cross references in this node.  Then
   type a @kbd{Control-g} and see how the @samp{f} gives up.
@end format

  The @key{TAB} and @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} key, which move between
subtopics in a menu can move between cross references as well.  Once
the cursor is on a cross reference, you can press @key{RET} to follow
that reference, just like you do in a menu.

  Clicking @kbd{Mouse-2} on or near a cross reference also follows the
reference.  You can see that the cross reference is mouse-sensitive by
moving the mouse pointer to the reference and watching how the
underlying text and the mouse pointer change in response.

@format
>> Now type @kbd{n} to see the last node of the course.
@end format

@c If a menu appears at the end of this node, remove it.
@c It is an accident of the menu updating command.

@node Help-Cross,  ,  , Help-Adv
@subsection The node reached by the cross reference in Info

  This is the node reached by the cross reference named @samp{Cross}.

  While this node is specifically intended to be reached by a cross
reference, most cross references lead to nodes that ``belong''
someplace else far away in the structure of an Info document.  So you
cannot expect this node to have a @samp{Next}, @samp{Previous} or
@samp{Up} links pointing back to where you came from.  In general, the
@kbd{l} (el) command is the only way to get back there.

@format
>> Type @kbd{l} to return to the node where the cross reference was.
@end format

@node Help-Q,  , Help-Adv, Getting Started
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Quitting Info

@kindex q @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-exit
@cindex quitting Info mode
  To get out of Info, back to what you were doing before, type @kbd{q}
for @dfn{Quit}.  This runs @code{Info-exit} in Emacs.

  This is the end of the basic course on using Info.  You have learned
how to move in an Info document, and how to follow menus and cross
references.  This makes you ready for reading manuals top to bottom,
as new users should do when they learn a new package.

  Another set of Info commands is useful when you need to find
something quickly in a manual---that is, when you need to use a manual
as a reference rather than as a tutorial.  We urge you to make learn
these search commands as well.  If you want to do that now, follow this
cross reference to @ref{Info Search}.

Yet another set of commands are meant for experienced users; you can
find them by looking in the Directory node for documentation on Info.
Finding them will be a good exercise in using Info in the usual
manner.

@format
>> Type @kbd{d} to go to the Info directory node; then type
   @kbd{mInfo} and Return, to get to the node about Info and
   see what other help is available.
@end format


@node Advanced Info
@chapter Info for Experts

  This chapter describes various advanced Info commands.  (If you are
using a stand-alone Info reader, there are additional commands
specific to it, which are documented in several chapters of @ref{Top,,
GNU Info, info-stnd, GNU Info}.)

  This chapter also explains how to write an Info as distinct from a
Texinfo file.  (However, in most cases, writing a Texinfo file is
better, since you can use it @emph{both} to generate an Info file and
to make a printed manual.  @xref{Top,, Overview of Texinfo, texinfo,
Texinfo: The GNU Documentation Format}.)

@menu
* Expert::               Advanced Info commands: g, s, e, and 1 - 5.
* Info Search::          How to search Info documents for specific subjects.
* Add::                  Describes how to add new nodes to the hierarchy.
                           Also tells what nodes look like.
* Menus::                How to add to or create menus in Info nodes.
* Cross-refs::           How to add cross-references to Info nodes.
* Tags::                 How to make tags tables for Info files.
* Checking::             Checking an Info File
* Emacs Info Variables:: Variables modifying the behavior of Emacs Info.
@end menu

@node Expert, Info Search,  , Advanced Info
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Advanced Info Commands

Here are some more Info commands that make it easier to move around.

@unnumberedsubsec @kbd{g} goes to a node by name

@kindex g @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-goto-node
@cindex go to a node by name
  If you know a node's name, you can go there by typing @kbd{g}, the
name, and @key{RET}.  Thus, @kbd{gTop@key{RET}} would go to the node
called @samp{Top} in this file.  (This is equivalent to @kbd{t}, see
@ref{Help-Adv}.)  @kbd{gExpert@key{RET}} would come back here.
@kbd{g} in Emacs runs the command @code{Info-goto-node}.

  Unlike @kbd{m}, @kbd{g} does not allow the use of abbreviations.
But it does allow completion, so you can type @key{TAB} to complete a
partial node name.

@cindex go to another Info file
  To go to a node in another file, you can include the file name in the
node name by putting it at the front, in parentheses.  Thus,
@kbd{g(dir)Top@key{RET}} would go to the Info Directory node, which is
the node @samp{Top} in the Info file @file{dir}.  Likewise,
@kbd{g(emacs)Top@key{RET}} goes to the top node of the Emacs manual.

  The node name @samp{*} specifies the whole file.  So you can look at
all of the current file by typing @kbd{g*@key{RET}} or all of any
other file with @kbd{g(@var{filename})@key{RET}}.

@unnumberedsubsec @kbd{1} -- @kbd{9} choose a menu subtopic by its number

@kindex 1 @r{through} 9 @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-nth-menu-item
@cindex select @var{n}'th menu item
  If you begrudge each character of type-in which your system requires,
you might like to use the commands @kbd{1}, @kbd{2}, @kbd{3}, @kbd{4},
@dots{}, @kbd{9}.  They are short for the @kbd{m} command together
with a name of a menu subtopic.  @kbd{1} goes through the first item
in the current node's menu; @kbd{2} goes through the second item, etc.
In the stand-alone reader, @kbd{0} goes through the last menu item;
this is so you need not count how many entries are there.  In Emacs,
the digit keys run the command @code{Info-nth-menu-item}.

  If your display supports multiple fonts, and you are using Emacs'
Info mode to read Info files, the @samp{*} for the fifth menu item
stands out, either in color or in some other attribute, such as
underline, and so is the @samp{*} for the ninth item; this makes it
easy to see at a glance which number to use for an item.

  Some terminals don't support colors or underlining.  If you need to
actually count items, it is better to use @kbd{m} instead, and specify
the name, or use @key{TAB} to quickly move between menu items.

@unnumberedsubsec @kbd{e} makes Info document editable

@kindex e @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-edit
@cindex edit Info document
  The Info command @kbd{e} changes from Info mode to an ordinary
Emacs editing mode, so that you can edit the text of the current node.
Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to switch back to Info.  The @kbd{e} command is allowed
only if the variable @code{Info-enable-edit} is non-@code{nil}.

  The @kbd{e} command only works in Emacs, where it runs the command
@code{Info-edit}.  The stand-alone Info reader doesn't allow you to
edit the Info file, so typing @kbd{e} there goes to the end of the
current node.

@node Info Search, Add, Expert, Advanced Info
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section How to search Info documents for specific subjects

@cindex searching Info documents
@cindex Info document as a reference
  The commands which move between and inside nodes allow you to read
the entire manual or its large portions.  But what if you need to find
some information in the manual as fast as you can, and you don't know
or don't remember in what node to look for it?  This need arises when
you use a manual as a @dfn{reference}, or when it is impractical to
read the entire manual before you start using the programs it
describes.

  Info has powerful searching facilities that let you find things
quickly.  You can search either the manual indices or its text.

@kindex i @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-index
  Since most subjects related to what the manual describes should be
indexed, you should try the index search first.  The @kbd{i} command
prompts you for a subject and then looks up that subject in the
indices.  If it finds an index entry with the subject you typed, it
goes to the node to which that index entry points.  You should browse
through that node to see whether the issue you are looking for is
described there.  If it isn't, type @kbd{,} one or more times to go
through additional index entries which match your subject.

  The @kbd{i} command finds all index entries which include the string
you typed @emph{as a substring}.  For each match, Info shows in the
echo area the full index entry it found.  Often, the text of the full
index entry already gives you enough information to decide whether it
is relevant to what you are looking for, so we recommend that you read
what Emacs shows in the echo are before looking at the node it
displays.

  Since @kbd{i} looks for a substring, you can search for subjects even
if you are not sure how they are spelled in the index.  For example,
suppose you want to find something that is pertinent to commands which
complete partial input (e.g., when you type @key{TAB}).  If you want
to catch index entries that refer to ``complete'', ``completion'', and
``completing'', you could type @kbd{icomplet@key{RET}}.

  Info documents which describe programs should index the commands,
options, and key sequences that the program provides.  If you are
looking for a description of a command, an option, or a key, just type
their names when @kbd{i} prompts you for a topic.  For example, if you
want to read the description of what the @kbd{C-f} key does, type
@kbd{iC-f@key{RET}}.  Here @kbd{C-f} are 3 literal characters
@samp{C}, @samp{-}, and @samp{f}, not the ``Control-f'' command key
you type inside Emacs to run the command bound to @kbd{C-f}.

  In Emacs, @kbd{i} runs the command @code{Info-index}.

@kindex s @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-search
  The @kbd{s} command allows you to search a whole file for a string.
It switches to the next node if and when that is necessary.  You
type @kbd{s} followed by the string to search for, terminated by
@key{RET}.  To search for the same string again, just @kbd{s} followed
by @key{RET} will do.  The file's nodes are scanned in the order
they are in in the file, which has no necessary relationship to the
order that they may be in the tree structure of menus and @samp{next}
pointers.  But normally the two orders are not very different.  In any
case, you can always do a @kbd{b} to find out what node you have
reached, if the header is not visible (this can happen, because @kbd{s}
puts your cursor at the occurrence of the string, not at the beginning
of the node).

@kindex M-s @r{(Info mode)}
  In Emacs, @kbd{Meta-s} is equivalent to @kbd{s}.  That is for
compatibility with other GNU packages that use @kbd{M-s} for a similar
kind of search command.  Both @kbd{s} and @kbd{M-s} run in Emacs the
command @code{Info-search}.


@node Add, Menus, Info Search, Advanced Info
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Adding a new node to Info

To add a new topic to the list in the Info directory, you must:

@enumerate
@item
Create some nodes, in some file, to document that topic.
@item
Put that topic in the menu in the directory.  @xref{Menus, Menu}.
@end enumerate

  Usually, the way to create the nodes is with Texinfo (@pxref{Top,,
Overview of Texinfo, texinfo, Texinfo: The GNU Documentation Format});
this has the advantage that you can also make a printed manual from
them.  However, if you want to edit an Info file, here is how.

@cindex node delimiters
  The new node can live in an existing documentation file, or in a new
one.  It must have a @key{^_} character before it (invisible to the
user; this node has one but you cannot see it), and it ends with either
a @key{^_}, a @key{^L}, or the end of file.@footnote{If you put in a
@key{^L} to end a new node, be sure that there is a @key{^_} after it
to start the next one, since @key{^L} cannot @emph{start} a node.
Also, a nicer way to make a node boundary be a page boundary as well
is to put a @key{^L} @emph{right after} the @key{^_}.}

  The @key{^_} starting a node must be followed by a newline or a
@key{^L} newline, after which comes the node's header line.  The header
line must give the node's name (by which Info finds it), and state the
names of the @samp{Next}, @samp{Previous}, and @samp{Up} nodes (if there
are any).  As you can see, this node's @samp{Up} node is the node
@samp{Top}, which points at all the documentation for Info.  The
@samp{Next} node is @samp{Menus}.

@cindex node header line format
@cindex format of node headers
  The keywords @dfn{Node}, @dfn{Next}, @dfn{Previous}, and @dfn{Up}
may appear in any order, anywhere in the header line, but the
recommended order is the one in this sentence.  Each keyword must be
followed by a colon, spaces and tabs, and then the appropriate name.
The name may be terminated with a tab, a comma, or a newline.  A space
does not end it; node names may contain spaces.  The case of letters
in the names is insignificant.

@cindex node name format
@cindex Directory node
  A node name has two forms.  A node in the current file is named by
what appears after the @samp{Node: } in that node's first line.  For
example, this node's name is @samp{Add}.  A node in another file is
named by @samp{(@var{filename})@var{node-within-file}}, as in
@samp{(info)Add} for this node.  If the file name starts with ``./'',
then it is relative to the current directory; otherwise, it is
relative starting from the standard directory for Info files of your
site.  The name @samp{(@var{filename})Top} can be abbreviated to just
@samp{(@var{filename})}.  By convention, the name @samp{Top} is used
for the ``highest'' node in any single file---the node whose @samp{Up}
points out of the file.  The @samp{Directory} node is @file{(dir)}, it
points to a file @file{dir} which holds a large menu listing all the
Info documents installed on your site.  The @samp{Top} node of a
document file listed in the @samp{Directory} should have an @samp{Up:
(dir)} in it.

@cindex unstructured documents
  The node name @kbd{*} is special: it refers to the entire file.
Thus, @kbd{g*} shows you the whole current file.  The use of the
node @kbd{*} is to make it possible to make old-fashioned,
unstructured files into nodes of the tree.

  The @samp{Node:} name, in which a node states its own name, must not
contain a file name, since when Info searches for a node, it does not
expect a file name to be there.  The @samp{Next}, @samp{Previous} and
@samp{Up} names may contain them.  In this node, since the @samp{Up}
node is in the same file, it was not necessary to use one.

  Note that the nodes in this file have a file name in the header
line.  The file names are ignored by Info, but they serve as comments
to help identify the node for the user.

@node Menus, Cross-refs, Add, Advanced Info
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section How to Create Menus

  Any node in the Info hierarchy may have a @dfn{menu}---a list of subnodes.
The @kbd{m} command searches the current node's menu for the topic which it
reads from the terminal.

@cindex menu and menu entry format
  A menu begins with a line starting with @samp{* Menu:}.  The rest of the
line is a comment.  After the starting line, every line that begins
with a @samp{* } lists a single topic.  The name of the topic--what
the user must type at the @kbd{m}'s command prompt to select this
topic---comes right after the star and space, and is followed by a
colon, spaces and tabs, and the name of the node which discusses that
topic.  The node name, like node names following @samp{Next}, @samp{Previous}
and @samp{Up}, may be terminated with a tab, comma, or newline; it may also
be terminated with a period.

  If the node name and topic name are the same, then rather than
giving the name twice, the abbreviation @samp{* @var{name}::} may be
used (and should be used, whenever possible, as it reduces the visual
clutter in the menu).

  It is considerate to choose the topic names so that they differ
from each other very near the beginning---this allows the user to type
short abbreviations.  In a long menu, it is a good idea to capitalize
the beginning of each item name which is the minimum acceptable
abbreviation for it (a long menu is more than 5 or so entries).

  The nodes listed in a node's menu are called its ``subnodes'', and it
is their ``superior''.  They should each have an @samp{Up:} pointing at
the superior.  It is often useful to arrange all or most of the subnodes
in a sequence of @samp{Next} and @samp{Previous} pointers so that
someone who wants to see them all need not keep revisiting the Menu.

  The Info Directory is simply the menu of the node @samp{(dir)Top}---that
is, node @samp{Top} in file @file{.../info/dir}.  You can put new entries
in that menu just like any other menu.  The Info Directory is @emph{not} the
same as the file directory called @file{info}.  It happens that many of
Info's files live in that file directory, but they do not have to; and
files in that directory are not automatically listed in the Info
Directory node.

  Also, although the Info node graph is claimed to be a ``hierarchy'',
in fact it can be @emph{any} directed graph.  Shared structures and
pointer cycles are perfectly possible, and can be used if they are
appropriate to the meaning to be expressed.  There is no need for all
the nodes in a file to form a connected structure.  In fact, this file
has two connected components.  You are in one of them, which is under
the node @samp{Top}; the other contains the node @samp{Help} which the
@kbd{h} command goes to.  In fact, since there is no garbage
collector, nothing terrible happens if a substructure is not pointed
to, but such a substructure is rather useless since nobody can
ever find out that it exists.

@node Cross-refs, Tags, Menus, Advanced Info
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Creating Cross References

@cindex cross reference format
  A cross reference can be placed anywhere in the text, unlike a menu
item which must go at the front of a line.  A cross reference looks
like a menu item except that it has @samp{*note} instead of @samp{*}.
It @emph{cannot} be terminated by a @samp{)}, because @samp{)}'s are
so often part of node names.  If you wish to enclose a cross reference
in parentheses, terminate it with a period first.  Here are two
examples of cross references pointers:

@example
*Note details: commands.  (See *note 3: Full Proof.)
@end example

@noindent
@emph{These are just examples.}  The places they ``lead to'' do not
really exist!

@node Tags, Checking, Cross-refs, Advanced Info
@comment  node-name,  next,  previous,  up
@section Tags Tables for Info Files

@cindex tags tables in info files
  You can speed up the access to nodes of a large Info file by giving
it a tags table.  Unlike the tags table for a program, the tags table for
an Info file lives inside the file itself and is used
automatically whenever Info reads in the file.

@findex Info-tagify
  To make a tags table, go to a node in the file using Emacs Info mode and type
@kbd{M-x Info-tagify}.  Then you must use @kbd{C-x C-s} to save the
file.  Info files produced by the @code{makeinfo} command that is part
of the Texinfo package always have tags tables to begin with.

@cindex stale tags tables
@cindex update Info tags table
  Once the Info file has a tags table, you must make certain it is up
to date.  If you edit an Info file directly (as opposed to editing its
Texinfo source), and, as a result of deletion of text, any node moves back
more than a thousand characters in the file from the position
recorded in the tags table, Info will no longer be able to find that
node.  To update the tags table, use the @code{Info-tagify} command
again.

  An Info file tags table appears at the end of the file and looks like
this:

@example
^_^L
Tag Table:
File: info, Node: Cross-refs^?21419
File: info,  Node: Tags^?22145
^_
End Tag Table
@end example

@noindent
Note that it contains one line per node, and this line contains
the beginning of the node's header (ending just after the node name),
a DEL character, and the character position in the file of the
beginning of the node.


@node Checking, Emacs Info Variables, Tags, Advanced Info
@section Checking an Info File

When creating an Info file, it is easy to forget the name of a node when
you are making a pointer to it from another node.  If you put in the
wrong name for a node, this is not detected until someone tries to go
through the pointer using Info.  Verification of the Info file is an
automatic process which checks all pointers to nodes and reports any
pointers which are invalid.  Every @samp{Next}, @samp{Previous}, and
@samp{Up} is checked, as is every menu item and every cross reference.  In
addition, any @samp{Next} which does not have a @samp{Previous} pointing
back is reported.  Only pointers within the file are checked, because
checking pointers to other files would be terribly slow.  But those are
usually few.

@findex Info-validate
To check an Info file, do @kbd{M-x Info-validate} while looking at any
node of the file with Emacs Info mode.

@node Emacs Info Variables, , Checking, Advanced Info
@section Emacs Info-mode Variables

The following variables may modify the behavior of Info-mode in Emacs;
you may wish to set one or several of these variables interactively, or
in your @file{~/.emacs} init file.  @xref{Examining, Examining and Setting
Variables, Examining and Setting Variables, emacs, The GNU Emacs
Manual}.  The stand-alone Info reader program has its own set of
variables, described in @ref{Variables,, Manipulating Variables,
info-stnd, GNU Info}.

@vtable @code
@item Info-directory-list
The list of directories to search for Info files.  Each element is a
string (directory name) or @code{nil} (try default directory).  If not
initialized Info uses the environment variable @env{INFOPATH} to
initialize it, or @code{Info-default-directory-list} if there is no
@env{INFOPATH} variable in the environment.

@item Info-additional-directory-list
A list of additional directories to search for Info documentation files.
These directories are not searched for merging the @file{dir} file.

@item Info-fontify
When set to a non-@code{nil} value, enables highlighting of Info
files.  The default is @code{t}.  You can change how the highlighting
looks by customizing the faces @code{info-node}, @code{info-menu-5},
@code{info-xref}, @code{info-header-xref}, @code{info-header-node},
@code{info-title-@var{n}-face} (where @var{n} is the level of the
section, a number between 1 and 4), and @code{info-menu-header}.  To
customize a face, type @kbd{M-x customize-face @key{RET} @var{face}
@key{RET}}, where @var{face} is one of the face names listed here.

@item Info-use-header-line
If non-@code{nil}, Emacs puts in the Info buffer a header line showing
the @samp{Next}, @samp{Prev}, and @samp{Up} links.  A header line does
not scroll with the rest of the buffer, making these links always
visible.

@item Info-scroll-prefer-subnodes
If set to a non-@code{nil} value, Space and Backspace (or DEL) keys in
a menu visit subnodes of the current node before scrolling to its end
or beginning, respectively.  For example, if the node's menu appears
on the screen, the next Space moves to a subnode indicated by the
following menu item.  Setting this option to @code{nil} results in
behavior similar to the stand-alone Info reader program, which visits
the first subnode from the menu only when you hit the end of the
current node.  The default is @code{t}.

@item Info-enable-active-nodes
When set to a non-@code{nil} value, allows Info to execute Lisp code
associated with nodes.  The Lisp code is executed when the node is
selected.  The Lisp code to be executed should follow the node
delimiter (the DEL character) and an @samp{execute: } tag, like this:

@example
^_execute: (message "This is an active node!")
@end example

@item Info-enable-edit
Set to @code{nil}, disables the @samp{e} (@code{Info-edit}) command.  A
non-@code{nil} value enables it.  @xref{Add, Edit}.
@end vtable


@node Creating an Info File
@chapter Creating an Info File from a Texinfo File

@code{makeinfo} is a utility that converts a Texinfo file into an Info
file; @code{texinfo-format-region} and @code{texinfo-format-buffer} are
GNU Emacs functions that do the same.

@xref{Top,, Overview of Texinfo, texinfo, Texinfo: The GNU
Documentation Format}, to learn how to write a Texinfo file.

@xref{Creating an Info File,,, texinfo, Texinfo: The GNU Documentation
Format}, to learn how to create an Info file from a Texinfo file.

@xref{Installing an Info File,,, texinfo, Texinfo: The GNU
Documentation Format}, to learn how to install an Info file after you
have created one.

@node Index
@unnumbered Index

This is an alphabetical listing of all the commands, variables, and
topics discussed in this document.

@printindex cp

@bye