84090
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1 @c -*-texinfo-*-
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2 @c This is part of the GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual.
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3 @c Copyright (C) 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004,
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4 @c 2005, 2006, 2007 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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5 @c See the file elisp.texi for copying conditions.
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6 @setfilename ../info/characters
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7 @node Non-ASCII Characters, Searching and Matching, Text, Top
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8 @chapter Non-@acronym{ASCII} Characters
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9 @cindex multibyte characters
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10 @cindex characters, multi-byte
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11 @cindex non-@acronym{ASCII} characters
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12
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13 This chapter covers the special issues relating to non-@acronym{ASCII}
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14 characters and how they are stored in strings and buffers.
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15
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16 @menu
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17 * Text Representations:: Unibyte and multibyte representations
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18 * Converting Representations:: Converting unibyte to multibyte and vice versa.
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19 * Selecting a Representation:: Treating a byte sequence as unibyte or multi.
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20 * Character Codes:: How unibyte and multibyte relate to
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21 codes of individual characters.
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22 * Character Sets:: The space of possible character codes
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23 is divided into various character sets.
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24 * Chars and Bytes:: More information about multibyte encodings.
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25 * Splitting Characters:: Converting a character to its byte sequence.
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26 * Scanning Charsets:: Which character sets are used in a buffer?
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27 * Translation of Characters:: Translation tables are used for conversion.
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28 * Coding Systems:: Coding systems are conversions for saving files.
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29 * Input Methods:: Input methods allow users to enter various
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30 non-ASCII characters without special keyboards.
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31 * Locales:: Interacting with the POSIX locale.
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32 @end menu
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33
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34 @node Text Representations
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35 @section Text Representations
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36 @cindex text representations
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37
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38 Emacs has two @dfn{text representations}---two ways to represent text
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39 in a string or buffer. These are called @dfn{unibyte} and
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40 @dfn{multibyte}. Each string, and each buffer, uses one of these two
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41 representations. For most purposes, you can ignore the issue of
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42 representations, because Emacs converts text between them as
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43 appropriate. Occasionally in Lisp programming you will need to pay
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44 attention to the difference.
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45
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46 @cindex unibyte text
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47 In unibyte representation, each character occupies one byte and
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48 therefore the possible character codes range from 0 to 255. Codes 0
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49 through 127 are @acronym{ASCII} characters; the codes from 128 through 255
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50 are used for one non-@acronym{ASCII} character set (you can choose which
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51 character set by setting the variable @code{nonascii-insert-offset}).
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52
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53 @cindex leading code
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54 @cindex multibyte text
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55 @cindex trailing codes
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56 In multibyte representation, a character may occupy more than one
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57 byte, and as a result, the full range of Emacs character codes can be
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58 stored. The first byte of a multibyte character is always in the range
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59 128 through 159 (octal 0200 through 0237). These values are called
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60 @dfn{leading codes}. The second and subsequent bytes of a multibyte
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61 character are always in the range 160 through 255 (octal 0240 through
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62 0377); these values are @dfn{trailing codes}.
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63
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64 Some sequences of bytes are not valid in multibyte text: for example,
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65 a single isolated byte in the range 128 through 159 is not allowed. But
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66 character codes 128 through 159 can appear in multibyte text,
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67 represented as two-byte sequences. All the character codes 128 through
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68 255 are possible (though slightly abnormal) in multibyte text; they
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69 appear in multibyte buffers and strings when you do explicit encoding
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70 and decoding (@pxref{Explicit Encoding}).
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71
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72 In a buffer, the buffer-local value of the variable
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73 @code{enable-multibyte-characters} specifies the representation used.
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74 The representation for a string is determined and recorded in the string
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75 when the string is constructed.
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76
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77 @defvar enable-multibyte-characters
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78 This variable specifies the current buffer's text representation.
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79 If it is non-@code{nil}, the buffer contains multibyte text; otherwise,
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80 it contains unibyte text.
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81
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82 You cannot set this variable directly; instead, use the function
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83 @code{set-buffer-multibyte} to change a buffer's representation.
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84 @end defvar
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85
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86 @defvar default-enable-multibyte-characters
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87 This variable's value is entirely equivalent to @code{(default-value
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88 'enable-multibyte-characters)}, and setting this variable changes that
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89 default value. Setting the local binding of
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90 @code{enable-multibyte-characters} in a specific buffer is not allowed,
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91 but changing the default value is supported, and it is a reasonable
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92 thing to do, because it has no effect on existing buffers.
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93
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94 The @samp{--unibyte} command line option does its job by setting the
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95 default value to @code{nil} early in startup.
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96 @end defvar
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97
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98 @defun position-bytes position
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99 Return the byte-position corresponding to buffer position
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100 @var{position} in the current buffer. This is 1 at the start of the
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101 buffer, and counts upward in bytes. If @var{position} is out of
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102 range, the value is @code{nil}.
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103 @end defun
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104
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105 @defun byte-to-position byte-position
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106 Return the buffer position corresponding to byte-position
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107 @var{byte-position} in the current buffer. If @var{byte-position} is
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108 out of range, the value is @code{nil}.
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109 @end defun
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110
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111 @defun multibyte-string-p string
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112 Return @code{t} if @var{string} is a multibyte string.
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113 @end defun
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114
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115 @defun string-bytes string
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116 @cindex string, number of bytes
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117 This function returns the number of bytes in @var{string}.
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118 If @var{string} is a multibyte string, this can be greater than
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119 @code{(length @var{string})}.
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120 @end defun
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121
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122 @node Converting Representations
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123 @section Converting Text Representations
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124
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125 Emacs can convert unibyte text to multibyte; it can also convert
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126 multibyte text to unibyte, though this conversion loses information. In
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127 general these conversions happen when inserting text into a buffer, or
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128 when putting text from several strings together in one string. You can
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129 also explicitly convert a string's contents to either representation.
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130
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131 Emacs chooses the representation for a string based on the text that
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132 it is constructed from. The general rule is to convert unibyte text to
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133 multibyte text when combining it with other multibyte text, because the
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134 multibyte representation is more general and can hold whatever
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135 characters the unibyte text has.
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136
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137 When inserting text into a buffer, Emacs converts the text to the
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138 buffer's representation, as specified by
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139 @code{enable-multibyte-characters} in that buffer. In particular, when
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140 you insert multibyte text into a unibyte buffer, Emacs converts the text
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141 to unibyte, even though this conversion cannot in general preserve all
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142 the characters that might be in the multibyte text. The other natural
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143 alternative, to convert the buffer contents to multibyte, is not
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144 acceptable because the buffer's representation is a choice made by the
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145 user that cannot be overridden automatically.
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146
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147 Converting unibyte text to multibyte text leaves @acronym{ASCII} characters
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148 unchanged, and likewise character codes 128 through 159. It converts
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149 the non-@acronym{ASCII} codes 160 through 255 by adding the value
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150 @code{nonascii-insert-offset} to each character code. By setting this
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151 variable, you specify which character set the unibyte characters
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152 correspond to (@pxref{Character Sets}). For example, if
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153 @code{nonascii-insert-offset} is 2048, which is @code{(- (make-char
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154 'latin-iso8859-1) 128)}, then the unibyte non-@acronym{ASCII} characters
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155 correspond to Latin 1. If it is 2688, which is @code{(- (make-char
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156 'greek-iso8859-7) 128)}, then they correspond to Greek letters.
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157
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158 Converting multibyte text to unibyte is simpler: it discards all but
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159 the low 8 bits of each character code. If @code{nonascii-insert-offset}
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160 has a reasonable value, corresponding to the beginning of some character
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161 set, this conversion is the inverse of the other: converting unibyte
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162 text to multibyte and back to unibyte reproduces the original unibyte
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163 text.
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164
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165 @defvar nonascii-insert-offset
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166 This variable specifies the amount to add to a non-@acronym{ASCII} character
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167 when converting unibyte text to multibyte. It also applies when
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168 @code{self-insert-command} inserts a character in the unibyte
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169 non-@acronym{ASCII} range, 128 through 255. However, the functions
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170 @code{insert} and @code{insert-char} do not perform this conversion.
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171
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172 The right value to use to select character set @var{cs} is @code{(-
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173 (make-char @var{cs}) 128)}. If the value of
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174 @code{nonascii-insert-offset} is zero, then conversion actually uses the
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175 value for the Latin 1 character set, rather than zero.
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176 @end defvar
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177
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178 @defvar nonascii-translation-table
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179 This variable provides a more general alternative to
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180 @code{nonascii-insert-offset}. You can use it to specify independently
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181 how to translate each code in the range of 128 through 255 into a
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182 multibyte character. The value should be a char-table, or @code{nil}.
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183 If this is non-@code{nil}, it overrides @code{nonascii-insert-offset}.
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184 @end defvar
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185
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186 The next three functions either return the argument @var{string}, or a
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187 newly created string with no text properties.
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188
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189 @defun string-make-unibyte string
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190 This function converts the text of @var{string} to unibyte
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191 representation, if it isn't already, and returns the result. If
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192 @var{string} is a unibyte string, it is returned unchanged. Multibyte
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193 character codes are converted to unibyte according to
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194 @code{nonascii-translation-table} or, if that is @code{nil}, using
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195 @code{nonascii-insert-offset}. If the lookup in the translation table
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196 fails, this function takes just the low 8 bits of each character.
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197 @end defun
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198
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199 @defun string-make-multibyte string
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200 This function converts the text of @var{string} to multibyte
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201 representation, if it isn't already, and returns the result. If
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202 @var{string} is a multibyte string or consists entirely of
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203 @acronym{ASCII} characters, it is returned unchanged. In particular,
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204 if @var{string} is unibyte and entirely @acronym{ASCII}, the returned
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205 string is unibyte. (When the characters are all @acronym{ASCII},
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206 Emacs primitives will treat the string the same way whether it is
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207 unibyte or multibyte.) If @var{string} is unibyte and contains
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208 non-@acronym{ASCII} characters, the function
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209 @code{unibyte-char-to-multibyte} is used to convert each unibyte
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210 character to a multibyte character.
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211 @end defun
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212
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213 @defun string-to-multibyte string
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214 This function returns a multibyte string containing the same sequence
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215 of character codes as @var{string}. Unlike
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216 @code{string-make-multibyte}, this function unconditionally returns a
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217 multibyte string. If @var{string} is a multibyte string, it is
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218 returned unchanged.
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219 @end defun
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220
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221 @defun multibyte-char-to-unibyte char
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222 This convert the multibyte character @var{char} to a unibyte
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223 character, based on @code{nonascii-translation-table} and
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224 @code{nonascii-insert-offset}.
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225 @end defun
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226
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227 @defun unibyte-char-to-multibyte char
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228 This convert the unibyte character @var{char} to a multibyte
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229 character, based on @code{nonascii-translation-table} and
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230 @code{nonascii-insert-offset}.
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231 @end defun
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232
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233 @node Selecting a Representation
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234 @section Selecting a Representation
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235
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236 Sometimes it is useful to examine an existing buffer or string as
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237 multibyte when it was unibyte, or vice versa.
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238
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239 @defun set-buffer-multibyte multibyte
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240 Set the representation type of the current buffer. If @var{multibyte}
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241 is non-@code{nil}, the buffer becomes multibyte. If @var{multibyte}
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242 is @code{nil}, the buffer becomes unibyte.
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243
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244 This function leaves the buffer contents unchanged when viewed as a
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245 sequence of bytes. As a consequence, it can change the contents viewed
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246 as characters; a sequence of two bytes which is treated as one character
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247 in multibyte representation will count as two characters in unibyte
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248 representation. Character codes 128 through 159 are an exception. They
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249 are represented by one byte in a unibyte buffer, but when the buffer is
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250 set to multibyte, they are converted to two-byte sequences, and vice
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251 versa.
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252
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253 This function sets @code{enable-multibyte-characters} to record which
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254 representation is in use. It also adjusts various data in the buffer
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255 (including overlays, text properties and markers) so that they cover the
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256 same text as they did before.
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257
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258 You cannot use @code{set-buffer-multibyte} on an indirect buffer,
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259 because indirect buffers always inherit the representation of the
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260 base buffer.
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261 @end defun
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262
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263 @defun string-as-unibyte string
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264 This function returns a string with the same bytes as @var{string} but
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265 treating each byte as a character. This means that the value may have
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266 more characters than @var{string} has.
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267
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268 If @var{string} is already a unibyte string, then the value is
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269 @var{string} itself. Otherwise it is a newly created string, with no
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270 text properties. If @var{string} is multibyte, any characters it
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271 contains of charset @code{eight-bit-control} or @code{eight-bit-graphic}
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272 are converted to the corresponding single byte.
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273 @end defun
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274
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275 @defun string-as-multibyte string
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276 This function returns a string with the same bytes as @var{string} but
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277 treating each multibyte sequence as one character. This means that the
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278 value may have fewer characters than @var{string} has.
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279
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280 If @var{string} is already a multibyte string, then the value is
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281 @var{string} itself. Otherwise it is a newly created string, with no
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282 text properties. If @var{string} is unibyte and contains any individual
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283 8-bit bytes (i.e.@: not part of a multibyte form), they are converted to
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284 the corresponding multibyte character of charset @code{eight-bit-control}
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285 or @code{eight-bit-graphic}.
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286 @end defun
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287
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288 @node Character Codes
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289 @section Character Codes
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290 @cindex character codes
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291
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292 The unibyte and multibyte text representations use different character
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293 codes. The valid character codes for unibyte representation range from
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294 0 to 255---the values that can fit in one byte. The valid character
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295 codes for multibyte representation range from 0 to 524287, but not all
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296 values in that range are valid. The values 128 through 255 are not
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297 entirely proper in multibyte text, but they can occur if you do explicit
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298 encoding and decoding (@pxref{Explicit Encoding}). Some other character
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299 codes cannot occur at all in multibyte text. Only the @acronym{ASCII} codes
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300 0 through 127 are completely legitimate in both representations.
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301
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302 @defun char-valid-p charcode &optional genericp
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303 This returns @code{t} if @var{charcode} is valid (either for unibyte
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304 text or for multibyte text).
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305
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306 @example
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307 (char-valid-p 65)
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308 @result{} t
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309 (char-valid-p 256)
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310 @result{} nil
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311 (char-valid-p 2248)
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312 @result{} t
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313 @end example
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314
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315 If the optional argument @var{genericp} is non-@code{nil}, this
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316 function also returns @code{t} if @var{charcode} is a generic
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317 character (@pxref{Splitting Characters}).
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318 @end defun
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319
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320 @node Character Sets
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321 @section Character Sets
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322 @cindex character sets
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323
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324 Emacs classifies characters into various @dfn{character sets}, each of
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325 which has a name which is a symbol. Each character belongs to one and
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326 only one character set.
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327
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328 In general, there is one character set for each distinct script. For
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329 example, @code{latin-iso8859-1} is one character set,
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330 @code{greek-iso8859-7} is another, and @code{ascii} is another. An
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331 Emacs character set can hold at most 9025 characters; therefore, in some
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332 cases, characters that would logically be grouped together are split
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333 into several character sets. For example, one set of Chinese
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334 characters, generally known as Big 5, is divided into two Emacs
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335 character sets, @code{chinese-big5-1} and @code{chinese-big5-2}.
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336
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337 @acronym{ASCII} characters are in character set @code{ascii}. The
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338 non-@acronym{ASCII} characters 128 through 159 are in character set
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339 @code{eight-bit-control}, and codes 160 through 255 are in character set
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340 @code{eight-bit-graphic}.
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341
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342 @defun charsetp object
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343 Returns @code{t} if @var{object} is a symbol that names a character set,
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344 @code{nil} otherwise.
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345 @end defun
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346
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347 @defvar charset-list
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348 The value is a list of all defined character set names.
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349 @end defvar
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350
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351 @defun charset-list
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352 This function returns the value of @code{charset-list}. It is only
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353 provided for backward compatibility.
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354 @end defun
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355
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356 @defun char-charset character
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357 This function returns the name of the character set that @var{character}
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358 belongs to, or the symbol @code{unknown} if @var{character} is not a
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359 valid character.
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360 @end defun
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361
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362 @defun charset-plist charset
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363 This function returns the charset property list of the character set
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364 @var{charset}. Although @var{charset} is a symbol, this is not the same
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365 as the property list of that symbol. Charset properties are used for
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366 special purposes within Emacs.
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367 @end defun
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368
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369 @deffn Command list-charset-chars charset
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370 This command displays a list of characters in the character set
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371 @var{charset}.
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372 @end deffn
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373
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374 @node Chars and Bytes
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375 @section Characters and Bytes
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376 @cindex bytes and characters
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377
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378 @cindex introduction sequence (of character)
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379 @cindex dimension (of character set)
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380 In multibyte representation, each character occupies one or more
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381 bytes. Each character set has an @dfn{introduction sequence}, which is
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382 normally one or two bytes long. (Exception: the @code{ascii} character
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383 set and the @code{eight-bit-graphic} character set have a zero-length
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384 introduction sequence.) The introduction sequence is the beginning of
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385 the byte sequence for any character in the character set. The rest of
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386 the character's bytes distinguish it from the other characters in the
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387 same character set. Depending on the character set, there are either
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388 one or two distinguishing bytes; the number of such bytes is called the
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389 @dfn{dimension} of the character set.
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390
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391 @defun charset-dimension charset
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392 This function returns the dimension of @var{charset}; at present, the
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393 dimension is always 1 or 2.
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394 @end defun
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395
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396 @defun charset-bytes charset
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397 This function returns the number of bytes used to represent a character
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398 in character set @var{charset}.
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399 @end defun
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400
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401 This is the simplest way to determine the byte length of a character
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402 set's introduction sequence:
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403
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404 @example
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405 (- (charset-bytes @var{charset})
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406 (charset-dimension @var{charset}))
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407 @end example
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408
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409 @node Splitting Characters
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410 @section Splitting Characters
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411 @cindex character as bytes
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412
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413 The functions in this section convert between characters and the byte
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414 values used to represent them. For most purposes, there is no need to
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415 be concerned with the sequence of bytes used to represent a character,
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416 because Emacs translates automatically when necessary.
|
|
417
|
|
418 @defun split-char character
|
|
419 Return a list containing the name of the character set of
|
|
420 @var{character}, followed by one or two byte values (integers) which
|
|
421 identify @var{character} within that character set. The number of byte
|
|
422 values is the character set's dimension.
|
|
423
|
|
424 If @var{character} is invalid as a character code, @code{split-char}
|
|
425 returns a list consisting of the symbol @code{unknown} and @var{character}.
|
|
426
|
|
427 @example
|
|
428 (split-char 2248)
|
|
429 @result{} (latin-iso8859-1 72)
|
|
430 (split-char 65)
|
|
431 @result{} (ascii 65)
|
|
432 (split-char 128)
|
|
433 @result{} (eight-bit-control 128)
|
|
434 @end example
|
|
435 @end defun
|
|
436
|
|
437 @cindex generate characters in charsets
|
|
438 @defun make-char charset &optional code1 code2
|
|
439 This function returns the character in character set @var{charset} whose
|
|
440 position codes are @var{code1} and @var{code2}. This is roughly the
|
|
441 inverse of @code{split-char}. Normally, you should specify either one
|
|
442 or both of @var{code1} and @var{code2} according to the dimension of
|
|
443 @var{charset}. For example,
|
|
444
|
|
445 @example
|
|
446 (make-char 'latin-iso8859-1 72)
|
|
447 @result{} 2248
|
|
448 @end example
|
|
449
|
|
450 Actually, the eighth bit of both @var{code1} and @var{code2} is zeroed
|
|
451 before they are used to index @var{charset}. Thus you may use, for
|
|
452 instance, an ISO 8859 character code rather than subtracting 128, as
|
|
453 is necessary to index the corresponding Emacs charset.
|
|
454 @end defun
|
|
455
|
|
456 @cindex generic characters
|
|
457 If you call @code{make-char} with no @var{byte-values}, the result is
|
|
458 a @dfn{generic character} which stands for @var{charset}. A generic
|
|
459 character is an integer, but it is @emph{not} valid for insertion in the
|
|
460 buffer as a character. It can be used in @code{char-table-range} to
|
|
461 refer to the whole character set (@pxref{Char-Tables}).
|
|
462 @code{char-valid-p} returns @code{nil} for generic characters.
|
|
463 For example:
|
|
464
|
|
465 @example
|
|
466 (make-char 'latin-iso8859-1)
|
|
467 @result{} 2176
|
|
468 (char-valid-p 2176)
|
|
469 @result{} nil
|
|
470 (char-valid-p 2176 t)
|
|
471 @result{} t
|
|
472 (split-char 2176)
|
|
473 @result{} (latin-iso8859-1 0)
|
|
474 @end example
|
|
475
|
|
476 The character sets @code{ascii}, @code{eight-bit-control}, and
|
|
477 @code{eight-bit-graphic} don't have corresponding generic characters. If
|
|
478 @var{charset} is one of them and you don't supply @var{code1},
|
|
479 @code{make-char} returns the character code corresponding to the
|
|
480 smallest code in @var{charset}.
|
|
481
|
|
482 @node Scanning Charsets
|
|
483 @section Scanning for Character Sets
|
|
484
|
|
485 Sometimes it is useful to find out which character sets appear in a
|
|
486 part of a buffer or a string. One use for this is in determining which
|
|
487 coding systems (@pxref{Coding Systems}) are capable of representing all
|
|
488 of the text in question.
|
|
489
|
|
490 @defun charset-after &optional pos
|
|
491 This function return the charset of a character in the current buffer
|
|
492 at position @var{pos}. If @var{pos} is omitted or @code{nil}, it
|
|
493 defaults to the current value of point. If @var{pos} is out of range,
|
|
494 the value is @code{nil}.
|
|
495 @end defun
|
|
496
|
|
497 @defun find-charset-region beg end &optional translation
|
|
498 This function returns a list of the character sets that appear in the
|
|
499 current buffer between positions @var{beg} and @var{end}.
|
|
500
|
|
501 The optional argument @var{translation} specifies a translation table to
|
|
502 be used in scanning the text (@pxref{Translation of Characters}). If it
|
|
503 is non-@code{nil}, then each character in the region is translated
|
|
504 through this table, and the value returned describes the translated
|
|
505 characters instead of the characters actually in the buffer.
|
|
506 @end defun
|
|
507
|
|
508 @defun find-charset-string string &optional translation
|
|
509 This function returns a list of the character sets that appear in the
|
|
510 string @var{string}. It is just like @code{find-charset-region}, except
|
|
511 that it applies to the contents of @var{string} instead of part of the
|
|
512 current buffer.
|
|
513 @end defun
|
|
514
|
|
515 @node Translation of Characters
|
|
516 @section Translation of Characters
|
|
517 @cindex character translation tables
|
|
518 @cindex translation tables
|
|
519
|
|
520 A @dfn{translation table} is a char-table that specifies a mapping
|
|
521 of characters into characters. These tables are used in encoding and
|
|
522 decoding, and for other purposes. Some coding systems specify their
|
|
523 own particular translation tables; there are also default translation
|
|
524 tables which apply to all other coding systems.
|
|
525
|
|
526 For instance, the coding-system @code{utf-8} has a translation table
|
|
527 that maps characters of various charsets (e.g.,
|
|
528 @code{latin-iso8859-@var{x}}) into Unicode character sets. This way,
|
|
529 it can encode Latin-2 characters into UTF-8. Meanwhile,
|
|
530 @code{unify-8859-on-decoding-mode} operates by specifying
|
|
531 @code{standard-translation-table-for-decode} to translate
|
|
532 Latin-@var{x} characters into corresponding Unicode characters.
|
|
533
|
|
534 @defun make-translation-table &rest translations
|
|
535 This function returns a translation table based on the argument
|
|
536 @var{translations}. Each element of @var{translations} should be a
|
|
537 list of elements of the form @code{(@var{from} . @var{to})}; this says
|
|
538 to translate the character @var{from} into @var{to}.
|
|
539
|
|
540 The arguments and the forms in each argument are processed in order,
|
|
541 and if a previous form already translates @var{to} to some other
|
|
542 character, say @var{to-alt}, @var{from} is also translated to
|
|
543 @var{to-alt}.
|
|
544
|
|
545 You can also map one whole character set into another character set with
|
|
546 the same dimension. To do this, you specify a generic character (which
|
|
547 designates a character set) for @var{from} (@pxref{Splitting Characters}).
|
|
548 In this case, if @var{to} is also a generic character, its character
|
|
549 set should have the same dimension as @var{from}'s. Then the
|
|
550 translation table translates each character of @var{from}'s character
|
|
551 set into the corresponding character of @var{to}'s character set. If
|
|
552 @var{from} is a generic character and @var{to} is an ordinary
|
|
553 character, then the translation table translates every character of
|
|
554 @var{from}'s character set into @var{to}.
|
|
555 @end defun
|
|
556
|
|
557 In decoding, the translation table's translations are applied to the
|
|
558 characters that result from ordinary decoding. If a coding system has
|
|
559 property @code{translation-table-for-decode}, that specifies the
|
|
560 translation table to use. (This is a property of the coding system,
|
|
561 as returned by @code{coding-system-get}, not a property of the symbol
|
|
562 that is the coding system's name. @xref{Coding System Basics,, Basic
|
|
563 Concepts of Coding Systems}.) Otherwise, if
|
|
564 @code{standard-translation-table-for-decode} is non-@code{nil},
|
|
565 decoding uses that table.
|
|
566
|
|
567 In encoding, the translation table's translations are applied to the
|
|
568 characters in the buffer, and the result of translation is actually
|
|
569 encoded. If a coding system has property
|
|
570 @code{translation-table-for-encode}, that specifies the translation
|
|
571 table to use. Otherwise the variable
|
|
572 @code{standard-translation-table-for-encode} specifies the translation
|
|
573 table.
|
|
574
|
|
575 @defvar standard-translation-table-for-decode
|
|
576 This is the default translation table for decoding, for
|
|
577 coding systems that don't specify any other translation table.
|
|
578 @end defvar
|
|
579
|
|
580 @defvar standard-translation-table-for-encode
|
|
581 This is the default translation table for encoding, for
|
|
582 coding systems that don't specify any other translation table.
|
|
583 @end defvar
|
|
584
|
|
585 @defvar translation-table-for-input
|
|
586 Self-inserting characters are translated through this translation
|
|
587 table before they are inserted. Search commands also translate their
|
|
588 input through this table, so they can compare more reliably with
|
|
589 what's in the buffer.
|
|
590
|
|
591 @code{set-buffer-file-coding-system} sets this variable so that your
|
|
592 keyboard input gets translated into the character sets that the buffer
|
|
593 is likely to contain. This variable automatically becomes
|
|
594 buffer-local when set.
|
|
595 @end defvar
|
|
596
|
|
597 @node Coding Systems
|
|
598 @section Coding Systems
|
|
599
|
|
600 @cindex coding system
|
|
601 When Emacs reads or writes a file, and when Emacs sends text to a
|
|
602 subprocess or receives text from a subprocess, it normally performs
|
|
603 character code conversion and end-of-line conversion as specified
|
|
604 by a particular @dfn{coding system}.
|
|
605
|
|
606 How to define a coding system is an arcane matter, and is not
|
|
607 documented here.
|
|
608
|
|
609 @menu
|
|
610 * Coding System Basics:: Basic concepts.
|
|
611 * Encoding and I/O:: How file I/O functions handle coding systems.
|
|
612 * Lisp and Coding Systems:: Functions to operate on coding system names.
|
|
613 * User-Chosen Coding Systems:: Asking the user to choose a coding system.
|
|
614 * Default Coding Systems:: Controlling the default choices.
|
|
615 * Specifying Coding Systems:: Requesting a particular coding system
|
|
616 for a single file operation.
|
|
617 * Explicit Encoding:: Encoding or decoding text without doing I/O.
|
|
618 * Terminal I/O Encoding:: Use of encoding for terminal I/O.
|
|
619 * MS-DOS File Types:: How DOS "text" and "binary" files
|
|
620 relate to coding systems.
|
|
621 @end menu
|
|
622
|
|
623 @node Coding System Basics
|
|
624 @subsection Basic Concepts of Coding Systems
|
|
625
|
|
626 @cindex character code conversion
|
|
627 @dfn{Character code conversion} involves conversion between the encoding
|
|
628 used inside Emacs and some other encoding. Emacs supports many
|
|
629 different encodings, in that it can convert to and from them. For
|
|
630 example, it can convert text to or from encodings such as Latin 1, Latin
|
|
631 2, Latin 3, Latin 4, Latin 5, and several variants of ISO 2022. In some
|
|
632 cases, Emacs supports several alternative encodings for the same
|
|
633 characters; for example, there are three coding systems for the Cyrillic
|
|
634 (Russian) alphabet: ISO, Alternativnyj, and KOI8.
|
|
635
|
|
636 Most coding systems specify a particular character code for
|
|
637 conversion, but some of them leave the choice unspecified---to be chosen
|
|
638 heuristically for each file, based on the data.
|
|
639
|
|
640 In general, a coding system doesn't guarantee roundtrip identity:
|
|
641 decoding a byte sequence using coding system, then encoding the
|
|
642 resulting text in the same coding system, can produce a different byte
|
|
643 sequence. However, the following coding systems do guarantee that the
|
|
644 byte sequence will be the same as what you originally decoded:
|
|
645
|
|
646 @quotation
|
|
647 chinese-big5 chinese-iso-8bit cyrillic-iso-8bit emacs-mule
|
|
648 greek-iso-8bit hebrew-iso-8bit iso-latin-1 iso-latin-2 iso-latin-3
|
|
649 iso-latin-4 iso-latin-5 iso-latin-8 iso-latin-9 iso-safe
|
|
650 japanese-iso-8bit japanese-shift-jis korean-iso-8bit raw-text
|
|
651 @end quotation
|
|
652
|
|
653 Encoding buffer text and then decoding the result can also fail to
|
|
654 reproduce the original text. For instance, if you encode Latin-2
|
|
655 characters with @code{utf-8} and decode the result using the same
|
|
656 coding system, you'll get Unicode characters (of charset
|
|
657 @code{mule-unicode-0100-24ff}). If you encode Unicode characters with
|
|
658 @code{iso-latin-2} and decode the result with the same coding system,
|
|
659 you'll get Latin-2 characters.
|
|
660
|
|
661 @cindex EOL conversion
|
|
662 @cindex end-of-line conversion
|
|
663 @cindex line end conversion
|
|
664 @dfn{End of line conversion} handles three different conventions used
|
|
665 on various systems for representing end of line in files. The Unix
|
|
666 convention is to use the linefeed character (also called newline). The
|
|
667 DOS convention is to use a carriage-return and a linefeed at the end of
|
|
668 a line. The Mac convention is to use just carriage-return.
|
|
669
|
|
670 @cindex base coding system
|
|
671 @cindex variant coding system
|
|
672 @dfn{Base coding systems} such as @code{latin-1} leave the end-of-line
|
|
673 conversion unspecified, to be chosen based on the data. @dfn{Variant
|
|
674 coding systems} such as @code{latin-1-unix}, @code{latin-1-dos} and
|
|
675 @code{latin-1-mac} specify the end-of-line conversion explicitly as
|
|
676 well. Most base coding systems have three corresponding variants whose
|
|
677 names are formed by adding @samp{-unix}, @samp{-dos} and @samp{-mac}.
|
|
678
|
|
679 The coding system @code{raw-text} is special in that it prevents
|
|
680 character code conversion, and causes the buffer visited with that
|
|
681 coding system to be a unibyte buffer. It does not specify the
|
|
682 end-of-line conversion, allowing that to be determined as usual by the
|
|
683 data, and has the usual three variants which specify the end-of-line
|
|
684 conversion. @code{no-conversion} is equivalent to @code{raw-text-unix}:
|
|
685 it specifies no conversion of either character codes or end-of-line.
|
|
686
|
|
687 The coding system @code{emacs-mule} specifies that the data is
|
|
688 represented in the internal Emacs encoding. This is like
|
|
689 @code{raw-text} in that no code conversion happens, but different in
|
|
690 that the result is multibyte data.
|
|
691
|
|
692 @defun coding-system-get coding-system property
|
|
693 This function returns the specified property of the coding system
|
|
694 @var{coding-system}. Most coding system properties exist for internal
|
|
695 purposes, but one that you might find useful is @code{mime-charset}.
|
|
696 That property's value is the name used in MIME for the character coding
|
|
697 which this coding system can read and write. Examples:
|
|
698
|
|
699 @example
|
|
700 (coding-system-get 'iso-latin-1 'mime-charset)
|
|
701 @result{} iso-8859-1
|
|
702 (coding-system-get 'iso-2022-cn 'mime-charset)
|
|
703 @result{} iso-2022-cn
|
|
704 (coding-system-get 'cyrillic-koi8 'mime-charset)
|
|
705 @result{} koi8-r
|
|
706 @end example
|
|
707
|
|
708 The value of the @code{mime-charset} property is also defined
|
|
709 as an alias for the coding system.
|
|
710 @end defun
|
|
711
|
|
712 @node Encoding and I/O
|
|
713 @subsection Encoding and I/O
|
|
714
|
|
715 The principal purpose of coding systems is for use in reading and
|
|
716 writing files. The function @code{insert-file-contents} uses
|
|
717 a coding system for decoding the file data, and @code{write-region}
|
|
718 uses one to encode the buffer contents.
|
|
719
|
|
720 You can specify the coding system to use either explicitly
|
|
721 (@pxref{Specifying Coding Systems}), or implicitly using a default
|
|
722 mechanism (@pxref{Default Coding Systems}). But these methods may not
|
|
723 completely specify what to do. For example, they may choose a coding
|
|
724 system such as @code{undefined} which leaves the character code
|
|
725 conversion to be determined from the data. In these cases, the I/O
|
|
726 operation finishes the job of choosing a coding system. Very often
|
|
727 you will want to find out afterwards which coding system was chosen.
|
|
728
|
|
729 @defvar buffer-file-coding-system
|
|
730 This buffer-local variable records the coding system that was used to visit
|
|
731 the current buffer. It is used for saving the buffer, and for writing part
|
|
732 of the buffer with @code{write-region}. If the text to be written
|
|
733 cannot be safely encoded using the coding system specified by this
|
|
734 variable, these operations select an alternative encoding by calling
|
|
735 the function @code{select-safe-coding-system} (@pxref{User-Chosen
|
|
736 Coding Systems}). If selecting a different encoding requires to ask
|
|
737 the user to specify a coding system, @code{buffer-file-coding-system}
|
|
738 is updated to the newly selected coding system.
|
|
739
|
|
740 @code{buffer-file-coding-system} does @emph{not} affect sending text
|
|
741 to a subprocess.
|
|
742 @end defvar
|
|
743
|
|
744 @defvar save-buffer-coding-system
|
|
745 This variable specifies the coding system for saving the buffer (by
|
|
746 overriding @code{buffer-file-coding-system}). Note that it is not used
|
|
747 for @code{write-region}.
|
|
748
|
|
749 When a command to save the buffer starts out to use
|
|
750 @code{buffer-file-coding-system} (or @code{save-buffer-coding-system}),
|
|
751 and that coding system cannot handle
|
|
752 the actual text in the buffer, the command asks the user to choose
|
|
753 another coding system (by calling @code{select-safe-coding-system}).
|
|
754 After that happens, the command also updates
|
|
755 @code{buffer-file-coding-system} to represent the coding system that
|
|
756 the user specified.
|
|
757 @end defvar
|
|
758
|
|
759 @defvar last-coding-system-used
|
|
760 I/O operations for files and subprocesses set this variable to the
|
|
761 coding system name that was used. The explicit encoding and decoding
|
|
762 functions (@pxref{Explicit Encoding}) set it too.
|
|
763
|
|
764 @strong{Warning:} Since receiving subprocess output sets this variable,
|
|
765 it can change whenever Emacs waits; therefore, you should copy the
|
|
766 value shortly after the function call that stores the value you are
|
|
767 interested in.
|
|
768 @end defvar
|
|
769
|
|
770 The variable @code{selection-coding-system} specifies how to encode
|
|
771 selections for the window system. @xref{Window System Selections}.
|
|
772
|
|
773 @defvar file-name-coding-system
|
|
774 The variable @code{file-name-coding-system} specifies the coding
|
|
775 system to use for encoding file names. Emacs encodes file names using
|
|
776 that coding system for all file operations. If
|
|
777 @code{file-name-coding-system} is @code{nil}, Emacs uses a default
|
|
778 coding system determined by the selected language environment. In the
|
|
779 default language environment, any non-@acronym{ASCII} characters in
|
|
780 file names are not encoded specially; they appear in the file system
|
|
781 using the internal Emacs representation.
|
|
782 @end defvar
|
|
783
|
|
784 @strong{Warning:} if you change @code{file-name-coding-system} (or
|
|
785 the language environment) in the middle of an Emacs session, problems
|
|
786 can result if you have already visited files whose names were encoded
|
|
787 using the earlier coding system and are handled differently under the
|
|
788 new coding system. If you try to save one of these buffers under the
|
|
789 visited file name, saving may use the wrong file name, or it may get
|
|
790 an error. If such a problem happens, use @kbd{C-x C-w} to specify a
|
|
791 new file name for that buffer.
|
|
792
|
|
793 @node Lisp and Coding Systems
|
|
794 @subsection Coding Systems in Lisp
|
|
795
|
|
796 Here are the Lisp facilities for working with coding systems:
|
|
797
|
|
798 @defun coding-system-list &optional base-only
|
|
799 This function returns a list of all coding system names (symbols). If
|
|
800 @var{base-only} is non-@code{nil}, the value includes only the
|
|
801 base coding systems. Otherwise, it includes alias and variant coding
|
|
802 systems as well.
|
|
803 @end defun
|
|
804
|
|
805 @defun coding-system-p object
|
|
806 This function returns @code{t} if @var{object} is a coding system
|
|
807 name or @code{nil}.
|
|
808 @end defun
|
|
809
|
|
810 @defun check-coding-system coding-system
|
|
811 This function checks the validity of @var{coding-system}.
|
|
812 If that is valid, it returns @var{coding-system}.
|
|
813 Otherwise it signals an error with condition @code{coding-system-error}.
|
|
814 @end defun
|
|
815
|
|
816 @defun coding-system-eol-type coding-system
|
|
817 This function returns the type of end-of-line (a.k.a.@: @dfn{eol})
|
|
818 conversion used by @var{coding-system}. If @var{coding-system}
|
|
819 specifies a certain eol conversion, the return value is an integer 0,
|
|
820 1, or 2, standing for @code{unix}, @code{dos}, and @code{mac},
|
|
821 respectively. If @var{coding-system} doesn't specify eol conversion
|
|
822 explicitly, the return value is a vector of coding systems, each one
|
|
823 with one of the possible eol conversion types, like this:
|
|
824
|
|
825 @lisp
|
|
826 (coding-system-eol-type 'latin-1)
|
|
827 @result{} [latin-1-unix latin-1-dos latin-1-mac]
|
|
828 @end lisp
|
|
829
|
|
830 @noindent
|
|
831 If this function returns a vector, Emacs will decide, as part of the
|
|
832 text encoding or decoding process, what eol conversion to use. For
|
|
833 decoding, the end-of-line format of the text is auto-detected, and the
|
|
834 eol conversion is set to match it (e.g., DOS-style CRLF format will
|
|
835 imply @code{dos} eol conversion). For encoding, the eol conversion is
|
|
836 taken from the appropriate default coding system (e.g.,
|
|
837 @code{default-buffer-file-coding-system} for
|
|
838 @code{buffer-file-coding-system}), or from the default eol conversion
|
|
839 appropriate for the underlying platform.
|
|
840 @end defun
|
|
841
|
|
842 @defun coding-system-change-eol-conversion coding-system eol-type
|
|
843 This function returns a coding system which is like @var{coding-system}
|
|
844 except for its eol conversion, which is specified by @code{eol-type}.
|
|
845 @var{eol-type} should be @code{unix}, @code{dos}, @code{mac}, or
|
|
846 @code{nil}. If it is @code{nil}, the returned coding system determines
|
|
847 the end-of-line conversion from the data.
|
|
848
|
|
849 @var{eol-type} may also be 0, 1 or 2, standing for @code{unix},
|
|
850 @code{dos} and @code{mac}, respectively.
|
|
851 @end defun
|
|
852
|
|
853 @defun coding-system-change-text-conversion eol-coding text-coding
|
|
854 This function returns a coding system which uses the end-of-line
|
|
855 conversion of @var{eol-coding}, and the text conversion of
|
|
856 @var{text-coding}. If @var{text-coding} is @code{nil}, it returns
|
|
857 @code{undecided}, or one of its variants according to @var{eol-coding}.
|
|
858 @end defun
|
|
859
|
|
860 @defun find-coding-systems-region from to
|
|
861 This function returns a list of coding systems that could be used to
|
|
862 encode a text between @var{from} and @var{to}. All coding systems in
|
|
863 the list can safely encode any multibyte characters in that portion of
|
|
864 the text.
|
|
865
|
|
866 If the text contains no multibyte characters, the function returns the
|
|
867 list @code{(undecided)}.
|
|
868 @end defun
|
|
869
|
|
870 @defun find-coding-systems-string string
|
|
871 This function returns a list of coding systems that could be used to
|
|
872 encode the text of @var{string}. All coding systems in the list can
|
|
873 safely encode any multibyte characters in @var{string}. If the text
|
|
874 contains no multibyte characters, this returns the list
|
|
875 @code{(undecided)}.
|
|
876 @end defun
|
|
877
|
|
878 @defun find-coding-systems-for-charsets charsets
|
|
879 This function returns a list of coding systems that could be used to
|
|
880 encode all the character sets in the list @var{charsets}.
|
|
881 @end defun
|
|
882
|
|
883 @defun detect-coding-region start end &optional highest
|
|
884 This function chooses a plausible coding system for decoding the text
|
|
885 from @var{start} to @var{end}. This text should be a byte sequence
|
|
886 (@pxref{Explicit Encoding}).
|
|
887
|
|
888 Normally this function returns a list of coding systems that could
|
|
889 handle decoding the text that was scanned. They are listed in order of
|
|
890 decreasing priority. But if @var{highest} is non-@code{nil}, then the
|
|
891 return value is just one coding system, the one that is highest in
|
|
892 priority.
|
|
893
|
|
894 If the region contains only @acronym{ASCII} characters except for such
|
|
895 ISO-2022 control characters ISO-2022 as @code{ESC}, the value is
|
|
896 @code{undecided} or @code{(undecided)}, or a variant specifying
|
|
897 end-of-line conversion, if that can be deduced from the text.
|
|
898 @end defun
|
|
899
|
|
900 @defun detect-coding-string string &optional highest
|
|
901 This function is like @code{detect-coding-region} except that it
|
|
902 operates on the contents of @var{string} instead of bytes in the buffer.
|
|
903 @end defun
|
|
904
|
|
905 @xref{Coding systems for a subprocess,, Process Information}, in
|
|
906 particular the description of the functions
|
|
907 @code{process-coding-system} and @code{set-process-coding-system}, for
|
|
908 how to examine or set the coding systems used for I/O to a subprocess.
|
|
909
|
|
910 @node User-Chosen Coding Systems
|
|
911 @subsection User-Chosen Coding Systems
|
|
912
|
|
913 @cindex select safe coding system
|
|
914 @defun select-safe-coding-system from to &optional default-coding-system accept-default-p file
|
|
915 This function selects a coding system for encoding specified text,
|
|
916 asking the user to choose if necessary. Normally the specified text
|
|
917 is the text in the current buffer between @var{from} and @var{to}. If
|
|
918 @var{from} is a string, the string specifies the text to encode, and
|
|
919 @var{to} is ignored.
|
|
920
|
|
921 If @var{default-coding-system} is non-@code{nil}, that is the first
|
|
922 coding system to try; if that can handle the text,
|
|
923 @code{select-safe-coding-system} returns that coding system. It can
|
|
924 also be a list of coding systems; then the function tries each of them
|
|
925 one by one. After trying all of them, it next tries the current
|
|
926 buffer's value of @code{buffer-file-coding-system} (if it is not
|
|
927 @code{undecided}), then the value of
|
|
928 @code{default-buffer-file-coding-system} and finally the user's most
|
|
929 preferred coding system, which the user can set using the command
|
|
930 @code{prefer-coding-system} (@pxref{Recognize Coding,, Recognizing
|
|
931 Coding Systems, emacs, The GNU Emacs Manual}).
|
|
932
|
|
933 If one of those coding systems can safely encode all the specified
|
|
934 text, @code{select-safe-coding-system} chooses it and returns it.
|
|
935 Otherwise, it asks the user to choose from a list of coding systems
|
|
936 which can encode all the text, and returns the user's choice.
|
|
937
|
|
938 @var{default-coding-system} can also be a list whose first element is
|
|
939 t and whose other elements are coding systems. Then, if no coding
|
|
940 system in the list can handle the text, @code{select-safe-coding-system}
|
|
941 queries the user immediately, without trying any of the three
|
|
942 alternatives described above.
|
|
943
|
|
944 The optional argument @var{accept-default-p}, if non-@code{nil},
|
|
945 should be a function to determine whether a coding system selected
|
|
946 without user interaction is acceptable. @code{select-safe-coding-system}
|
|
947 calls this function with one argument, the base coding system of the
|
|
948 selected coding system. If @var{accept-default-p} returns @code{nil},
|
|
949 @code{select-safe-coding-system} rejects the silently selected coding
|
|
950 system, and asks the user to select a coding system from a list of
|
|
951 possible candidates.
|
|
952
|
|
953 @vindex select-safe-coding-system-accept-default-p
|
|
954 If the variable @code{select-safe-coding-system-accept-default-p} is
|
|
955 non-@code{nil}, its value overrides the value of
|
|
956 @var{accept-default-p}.
|
|
957
|
|
958 As a final step, before returning the chosen coding system,
|
|
959 @code{select-safe-coding-system} checks whether that coding system is
|
|
960 consistent with what would be selected if the contents of the region
|
|
961 were read from a file. (If not, this could lead to data corruption in
|
|
962 a file subsequently re-visited and edited.) Normally,
|
|
963 @code{select-safe-coding-system} uses @code{buffer-file-name} as the
|
|
964 file for this purpose, but if @var{file} is non-@code{nil}, it uses
|
|
965 that file instead (this can be relevant for @code{write-region} and
|
|
966 similar functions). If it detects an apparent inconsistency,
|
|
967 @code{select-safe-coding-system} queries the user before selecting the
|
|
968 coding system.
|
|
969 @end defun
|
|
970
|
|
971 Here are two functions you can use to let the user specify a coding
|
|
972 system, with completion. @xref{Completion}.
|
|
973
|
|
974 @defun read-coding-system prompt &optional default
|
|
975 This function reads a coding system using the minibuffer, prompting with
|
|
976 string @var{prompt}, and returns the coding system name as a symbol. If
|
|
977 the user enters null input, @var{default} specifies which coding system
|
|
978 to return. It should be a symbol or a string.
|
|
979 @end defun
|
|
980
|
|
981 @defun read-non-nil-coding-system prompt
|
|
982 This function reads a coding system using the minibuffer, prompting with
|
|
983 string @var{prompt}, and returns the coding system name as a symbol. If
|
|
984 the user tries to enter null input, it asks the user to try again.
|
|
985 @xref{Coding Systems}.
|
|
986 @end defun
|
|
987
|
|
988 @node Default Coding Systems
|
|
989 @subsection Default Coding Systems
|
|
990
|
|
991 This section describes variables that specify the default coding
|
|
992 system for certain files or when running certain subprograms, and the
|
|
993 function that I/O operations use to access them.
|
|
994
|
|
995 The idea of these variables is that you set them once and for all to the
|
|
996 defaults you want, and then do not change them again. To specify a
|
|
997 particular coding system for a particular operation in a Lisp program,
|
|
998 don't change these variables; instead, override them using
|
|
999 @code{coding-system-for-read} and @code{coding-system-for-write}
|
|
1000 (@pxref{Specifying Coding Systems}).
|
|
1001
|
|
1002 @defvar auto-coding-regexp-alist
|
|
1003 This variable is an alist of text patterns and corresponding coding
|
|
1004 systems. Each element has the form @code{(@var{regexp}
|
|
1005 . @var{coding-system})}; a file whose first few kilobytes match
|
|
1006 @var{regexp} is decoded with @var{coding-system} when its contents are
|
|
1007 read into a buffer. The settings in this alist take priority over
|
|
1008 @code{coding:} tags in the files and the contents of
|
|
1009 @code{file-coding-system-alist} (see below). The default value is set
|
|
1010 so that Emacs automatically recognizes mail files in Babyl format and
|
|
1011 reads them with no code conversions.
|
|
1012 @end defvar
|
|
1013
|
|
1014 @defvar file-coding-system-alist
|
|
1015 This variable is an alist that specifies the coding systems to use for
|
|
1016 reading and writing particular files. Each element has the form
|
|
1017 @code{(@var{pattern} . @var{coding})}, where @var{pattern} is a regular
|
|
1018 expression that matches certain file names. The element applies to file
|
|
1019 names that match @var{pattern}.
|
|
1020
|
|
1021 The @sc{cdr} of the element, @var{coding}, should be either a coding
|
|
1022 system, a cons cell containing two coding systems, or a function name (a
|
|
1023 symbol with a function definition). If @var{coding} is a coding system,
|
|
1024 that coding system is used for both reading the file and writing it. If
|
|
1025 @var{coding} is a cons cell containing two coding systems, its @sc{car}
|
|
1026 specifies the coding system for decoding, and its @sc{cdr} specifies the
|
|
1027 coding system for encoding.
|
|
1028
|
|
1029 If @var{coding} is a function name, the function should take one
|
|
1030 argument, a list of all arguments passed to
|
|
1031 @code{find-operation-coding-system}. It must return a coding system
|
|
1032 or a cons cell containing two coding systems. This value has the same
|
|
1033 meaning as described above.
|
|
1034
|
|
1035 If @var{coding} (or what returned by the above function) is
|
|
1036 @code{undecided}, the normal code-detection is performed.
|
|
1037 @end defvar
|
|
1038
|
|
1039 @defvar process-coding-system-alist
|
|
1040 This variable is an alist specifying which coding systems to use for a
|
|
1041 subprocess, depending on which program is running in the subprocess. It
|
|
1042 works like @code{file-coding-system-alist}, except that @var{pattern} is
|
|
1043 matched against the program name used to start the subprocess. The coding
|
|
1044 system or systems specified in this alist are used to initialize the
|
|
1045 coding systems used for I/O to the subprocess, but you can specify
|
|
1046 other coding systems later using @code{set-process-coding-system}.
|
|
1047 @end defvar
|
|
1048
|
|
1049 @strong{Warning:} Coding systems such as @code{undecided}, which
|
|
1050 determine the coding system from the data, do not work entirely reliably
|
|
1051 with asynchronous subprocess output. This is because Emacs handles
|
|
1052 asynchronous subprocess output in batches, as it arrives. If the coding
|
|
1053 system leaves the character code conversion unspecified, or leaves the
|
|
1054 end-of-line conversion unspecified, Emacs must try to detect the proper
|
|
1055 conversion from one batch at a time, and this does not always work.
|
|
1056
|
|
1057 Therefore, with an asynchronous subprocess, if at all possible, use a
|
|
1058 coding system which determines both the character code conversion and
|
|
1059 the end of line conversion---that is, one like @code{latin-1-unix},
|
|
1060 rather than @code{undecided} or @code{latin-1}.
|
|
1061
|
|
1062 @defvar network-coding-system-alist
|
|
1063 This variable is an alist that specifies the coding system to use for
|
|
1064 network streams. It works much like @code{file-coding-system-alist},
|
|
1065 with the difference that the @var{pattern} in an element may be either a
|
|
1066 port number or a regular expression. If it is a regular expression, it
|
|
1067 is matched against the network service name used to open the network
|
|
1068 stream.
|
|
1069 @end defvar
|
|
1070
|
|
1071 @defvar default-process-coding-system
|
|
1072 This variable specifies the coding systems to use for subprocess (and
|
|
1073 network stream) input and output, when nothing else specifies what to
|
|
1074 do.
|
|
1075
|
|
1076 The value should be a cons cell of the form @code{(@var{input-coding}
|
|
1077 . @var{output-coding})}. Here @var{input-coding} applies to input from
|
|
1078 the subprocess, and @var{output-coding} applies to output to it.
|
|
1079 @end defvar
|
|
1080
|
|
1081 @defvar auto-coding-functions
|
|
1082 This variable holds a list of functions that try to determine a
|
|
1083 coding system for a file based on its undecoded contents.
|
|
1084
|
|
1085 Each function in this list should be written to look at text in the
|
|
1086 current buffer, but should not modify it in any way. The buffer will
|
|
1087 contain undecoded text of parts of the file. Each function should
|
|
1088 take one argument, @var{size}, which tells it how many characters to
|
|
1089 look at, starting from point. If the function succeeds in determining
|
|
1090 a coding system for the file, it should return that coding system.
|
|
1091 Otherwise, it should return @code{nil}.
|
|
1092
|
|
1093 If a file has a @samp{coding:} tag, that takes precedence, so these
|
|
1094 functions won't be called.
|
|
1095 @end defvar
|
|
1096
|
|
1097 @defun find-operation-coding-system operation &rest arguments
|
|
1098 This function returns the coding system to use (by default) for
|
|
1099 performing @var{operation} with @var{arguments}. The value has this
|
|
1100 form:
|
|
1101
|
|
1102 @example
|
|
1103 (@var{decoding-system} . @var{encoding-system})
|
|
1104 @end example
|
|
1105
|
|
1106 The first element, @var{decoding-system}, is the coding system to use
|
|
1107 for decoding (in case @var{operation} does decoding), and
|
|
1108 @var{encoding-system} is the coding system for encoding (in case
|
|
1109 @var{operation} does encoding).
|
|
1110
|
|
1111 The argument @var{operation} is a symbol, one of @code{write-region},
|
|
1112 @code{start-process}, @code{call-process}, @code{call-process-region},
|
|
1113 @code{insert-file-contents}, or @code{open-network-stream}. These are
|
|
1114 the names of the Emacs I/O primitives that can do character code and
|
|
1115 eol conversion.
|
|
1116
|
|
1117 The remaining arguments should be the same arguments that might be given
|
|
1118 to the corresponding I/O primitive. Depending on the primitive, one
|
|
1119 of those arguments is selected as the @dfn{target}. For example, if
|
|
1120 @var{operation} does file I/O, whichever argument specifies the file
|
|
1121 name is the target. For subprocess primitives, the process name is the
|
|
1122 target. For @code{open-network-stream}, the target is the service name
|
|
1123 or port number.
|
|
1124
|
|
1125 Depending on @var{operation}, this function looks up the target in
|
|
1126 @code{file-coding-system-alist}, @code{process-coding-system-alist},
|
|
1127 or @code{network-coding-system-alist}. If the target is found in the
|
|
1128 alist, @code{find-operation-coding-system} returns its association in
|
|
1129 the alist; otherwise it returns @code{nil}.
|
|
1130
|
|
1131 If @var{operation} is @code{insert-file-contents}, the argument
|
|
1132 corresponding to the target may be a cons cell of the form
|
|
1133 @code{(@var{filename} . @var{buffer})}). In that case, @var{filename}
|
|
1134 is a file name to look up in @code{file-coding-system-alist}, and
|
|
1135 @var{buffer} is a buffer that contains the file's contents (not yet
|
|
1136 decoded). If @code{file-coding-system-alist} specifies a function to
|
|
1137 call for this file, and that function needs to examine the file's
|
|
1138 contents (as it usually does), it should examine the contents of
|
|
1139 @var{buffer} instead of reading the file.
|
|
1140 @end defun
|
|
1141
|
|
1142 @node Specifying Coding Systems
|
|
1143 @subsection Specifying a Coding System for One Operation
|
|
1144
|
|
1145 You can specify the coding system for a specific operation by binding
|
|
1146 the variables @code{coding-system-for-read} and/or
|
|
1147 @code{coding-system-for-write}.
|
|
1148
|
|
1149 @defvar coding-system-for-read
|
|
1150 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it specifies the coding system to
|
|
1151 use for reading a file, or for input from a synchronous subprocess.
|
|
1152
|
|
1153 It also applies to any asynchronous subprocess or network stream, but in
|
|
1154 a different way: the value of @code{coding-system-for-read} when you
|
|
1155 start the subprocess or open the network stream specifies the input
|
|
1156 decoding method for that subprocess or network stream. It remains in
|
|
1157 use for that subprocess or network stream unless and until overridden.
|
|
1158
|
|
1159 The right way to use this variable is to bind it with @code{let} for a
|
|
1160 specific I/O operation. Its global value is normally @code{nil}, and
|
|
1161 you should not globally set it to any other value. Here is an example
|
|
1162 of the right way to use the variable:
|
|
1163
|
|
1164 @example
|
|
1165 ;; @r{Read the file with no character code conversion.}
|
|
1166 ;; @r{Assume @acronym{crlf} represents end-of-line.}
|
|
1167 (let ((coding-system-for-read 'emacs-mule-dos))
|
|
1168 (insert-file-contents filename))
|
|
1169 @end example
|
|
1170
|
|
1171 When its value is non-@code{nil}, this variable takes precedence over
|
|
1172 all other methods of specifying a coding system to use for input,
|
|
1173 including @code{file-coding-system-alist},
|
|
1174 @code{process-coding-system-alist} and
|
|
1175 @code{network-coding-system-alist}.
|
|
1176 @end defvar
|
|
1177
|
|
1178 @defvar coding-system-for-write
|
|
1179 This works much like @code{coding-system-for-read}, except that it
|
|
1180 applies to output rather than input. It affects writing to files,
|
|
1181 as well as sending output to subprocesses and net connections.
|
|
1182
|
|
1183 When a single operation does both input and output, as do
|
|
1184 @code{call-process-region} and @code{start-process}, both
|
|
1185 @code{coding-system-for-read} and @code{coding-system-for-write}
|
|
1186 affect it.
|
|
1187 @end defvar
|
|
1188
|
|
1189 @defvar inhibit-eol-conversion
|
|
1190 When this variable is non-@code{nil}, no end-of-line conversion is done,
|
|
1191 no matter which coding system is specified. This applies to all the
|
|
1192 Emacs I/O and subprocess primitives, and to the explicit encoding and
|
|
1193 decoding functions (@pxref{Explicit Encoding}).
|
|
1194 @end defvar
|
|
1195
|
|
1196 @node Explicit Encoding
|
|
1197 @subsection Explicit Encoding and Decoding
|
|
1198 @cindex encoding in coding systems
|
|
1199 @cindex decoding in coding systems
|
|
1200
|
|
1201 All the operations that transfer text in and out of Emacs have the
|
|
1202 ability to use a coding system to encode or decode the text.
|
|
1203 You can also explicitly encode and decode text using the functions
|
|
1204 in this section.
|
|
1205
|
|
1206 The result of encoding, and the input to decoding, are not ordinary
|
|
1207 text. They logically consist of a series of byte values; that is, a
|
|
1208 series of characters whose codes are in the range 0 through 255. In a
|
|
1209 multibyte buffer or string, character codes 128 through 159 are
|
|
1210 represented by multibyte sequences, but this is invisible to Lisp
|
|
1211 programs.
|
|
1212
|
|
1213 The usual way to read a file into a buffer as a sequence of bytes, so
|
|
1214 you can decode the contents explicitly, is with
|
|
1215 @code{insert-file-contents-literally} (@pxref{Reading from Files});
|
|
1216 alternatively, specify a non-@code{nil} @var{rawfile} argument when
|
|
1217 visiting a file with @code{find-file-noselect}. These methods result in
|
|
1218 a unibyte buffer.
|
|
1219
|
|
1220 The usual way to use the byte sequence that results from explicitly
|
|
1221 encoding text is to copy it to a file or process---for example, to write
|
|
1222 it with @code{write-region} (@pxref{Writing to Files}), and suppress
|
|
1223 encoding by binding @code{coding-system-for-write} to
|
|
1224 @code{no-conversion}.
|
|
1225
|
|
1226 Here are the functions to perform explicit encoding or decoding. The
|
|
1227 encoding functions produce sequences of bytes; the decoding functions
|
|
1228 are meant to operate on sequences of bytes. All of these functions
|
|
1229 discard text properties.
|
|
1230
|
|
1231 @deffn Command encode-coding-region start end coding-system
|
|
1232 This command encodes the text from @var{start} to @var{end} according
|
|
1233 to coding system @var{coding-system}. The encoded text replaces the
|
|
1234 original text in the buffer. The result of encoding is logically a
|
|
1235 sequence of bytes, but the buffer remains multibyte if it was multibyte
|
|
1236 before.
|
|
1237
|
|
1238 This command returns the length of the encoded text.
|
|
1239 @end deffn
|
|
1240
|
|
1241 @defun encode-coding-string string coding-system &optional nocopy
|
|
1242 This function encodes the text in @var{string} according to coding
|
|
1243 system @var{coding-system}. It returns a new string containing the
|
|
1244 encoded text, except when @var{nocopy} is non-@code{nil}, in which
|
|
1245 case the function may return @var{string} itself if the encoding
|
|
1246 operation is trivial. The result of encoding is a unibyte string.
|
|
1247 @end defun
|
|
1248
|
|
1249 @deffn Command decode-coding-region start end coding-system
|
|
1250 This command decodes the text from @var{start} to @var{end} according
|
|
1251 to coding system @var{coding-system}. The decoded text replaces the
|
|
1252 original text in the buffer. To make explicit decoding useful, the text
|
|
1253 before decoding ought to be a sequence of byte values, but both
|
|
1254 multibyte and unibyte buffers are acceptable.
|
|
1255
|
|
1256 This command returns the length of the decoded text.
|
|
1257 @end deffn
|
|
1258
|
|
1259 @defun decode-coding-string string coding-system &optional nocopy
|
|
1260 This function decodes the text in @var{string} according to coding
|
|
1261 system @var{coding-system}. It returns a new string containing the
|
|
1262 decoded text, except when @var{nocopy} is non-@code{nil}, in which
|
|
1263 case the function may return @var{string} itself if the decoding
|
|
1264 operation is trivial. To make explicit decoding useful, the contents
|
|
1265 of @var{string} ought to be a sequence of byte values, but a multibyte
|
|
1266 string is acceptable.
|
|
1267 @end defun
|
|
1268
|
|
1269 @defun decode-coding-inserted-region from to filename &optional visit beg end replace
|
|
1270 This function decodes the text from @var{from} to @var{to} as if
|
|
1271 it were being read from file @var{filename} using @code{insert-file-contents}
|
|
1272 using the rest of the arguments provided.
|
|
1273
|
|
1274 The normal way to use this function is after reading text from a file
|
|
1275 without decoding, if you decide you would rather have decoded it.
|
|
1276 Instead of deleting the text and reading it again, this time with
|
|
1277 decoding, you can call this function.
|
|
1278 @end defun
|
|
1279
|
|
1280 @node Terminal I/O Encoding
|
|
1281 @subsection Terminal I/O Encoding
|
|
1282
|
|
1283 Emacs can decode keyboard input using a coding system, and encode
|
|
1284 terminal output. This is useful for terminals that transmit or display
|
|
1285 text using a particular encoding such as Latin-1. Emacs does not set
|
|
1286 @code{last-coding-system-used} for encoding or decoding for the
|
|
1287 terminal.
|
|
1288
|
|
1289 @defun keyboard-coding-system
|
|
1290 This function returns the coding system that is in use for decoding
|
|
1291 keyboard input---or @code{nil} if no coding system is to be used.
|
|
1292 @end defun
|
|
1293
|
|
1294 @deffn Command set-keyboard-coding-system coding-system
|
|
1295 This command specifies @var{coding-system} as the coding system to
|
|
1296 use for decoding keyboard input. If @var{coding-system} is @code{nil},
|
|
1297 that means do not decode keyboard input.
|
|
1298 @end deffn
|
|
1299
|
|
1300 @defun terminal-coding-system
|
|
1301 This function returns the coding system that is in use for encoding
|
|
1302 terminal output---or @code{nil} for no encoding.
|
|
1303 @end defun
|
|
1304
|
|
1305 @deffn Command set-terminal-coding-system coding-system
|
|
1306 This command specifies @var{coding-system} as the coding system to use
|
|
1307 for encoding terminal output. If @var{coding-system} is @code{nil},
|
|
1308 that means do not encode terminal output.
|
|
1309 @end deffn
|
|
1310
|
|
1311 @node MS-DOS File Types
|
|
1312 @subsection MS-DOS File Types
|
|
1313 @cindex DOS file types
|
|
1314 @cindex MS-DOS file types
|
|
1315 @cindex Windows file types
|
|
1316 @cindex file types on MS-DOS and Windows
|
|
1317 @cindex text files and binary files
|
|
1318 @cindex binary files and text files
|
|
1319
|
|
1320 On MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows, Emacs guesses the appropriate
|
|
1321 end-of-line conversion for a file by looking at the file's name. This
|
|
1322 feature classifies files as @dfn{text files} and @dfn{binary files}. By
|
|
1323 ``binary file'' we mean a file of literal byte values that are not
|
|
1324 necessarily meant to be characters; Emacs does no end-of-line conversion
|
|
1325 and no character code conversion for them. On the other hand, the bytes
|
|
1326 in a text file are intended to represent characters; when you create a
|
|
1327 new file whose name implies that it is a text file, Emacs uses DOS
|
|
1328 end-of-line conversion.
|
|
1329
|
|
1330 @defvar buffer-file-type
|
|
1331 This variable, automatically buffer-local in each buffer, records the
|
|
1332 file type of the buffer's visited file. When a buffer does not specify
|
|
1333 a coding system with @code{buffer-file-coding-system}, this variable is
|
|
1334 used to determine which coding system to use when writing the contents
|
|
1335 of the buffer. It should be @code{nil} for text, @code{t} for binary.
|
|
1336 If it is @code{t}, the coding system is @code{no-conversion}.
|
|
1337 Otherwise, @code{undecided-dos} is used.
|
|
1338
|
|
1339 Normally this variable is set by visiting a file; it is set to
|
|
1340 @code{nil} if the file was visited without any actual conversion.
|
|
1341 @end defvar
|
|
1342
|
|
1343 @defopt file-name-buffer-file-type-alist
|
|
1344 This variable holds an alist for recognizing text and binary files.
|
|
1345 Each element has the form (@var{regexp} . @var{type}), where
|
|
1346 @var{regexp} is matched against the file name, and @var{type} may be
|
|
1347 @code{nil} for text, @code{t} for binary, or a function to call to
|
|
1348 compute which. If it is a function, then it is called with a single
|
|
1349 argument (the file name) and should return @code{t} or @code{nil}.
|
|
1350
|
|
1351 When running on MS-DOS or MS-Windows, Emacs checks this alist to decide
|
|
1352 which coding system to use when reading a file. For a text file,
|
|
1353 @code{undecided-dos} is used. For a binary file, @code{no-conversion}
|
|
1354 is used.
|
|
1355
|
|
1356 If no element in this alist matches a given file name, then
|
|
1357 @code{default-buffer-file-type} says how to treat the file.
|
|
1358 @end defopt
|
|
1359
|
|
1360 @defopt default-buffer-file-type
|
|
1361 This variable says how to handle files for which
|
|
1362 @code{file-name-buffer-file-type-alist} says nothing about the type.
|
|
1363
|
|
1364 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, then these files are treated as
|
|
1365 binary: the coding system @code{no-conversion} is used. Otherwise,
|
|
1366 nothing special is done for them---the coding system is deduced solely
|
|
1367 from the file contents, in the usual Emacs fashion.
|
|
1368 @end defopt
|
|
1369
|
|
1370 @node Input Methods
|
|
1371 @section Input Methods
|
|
1372 @cindex input methods
|
|
1373
|
|
1374 @dfn{Input methods} provide convenient ways of entering non-@acronym{ASCII}
|
|
1375 characters from the keyboard. Unlike coding systems, which translate
|
|
1376 non-@acronym{ASCII} characters to and from encodings meant to be read by
|
|
1377 programs, input methods provide human-friendly commands. (@xref{Input
|
|
1378 Methods,,, emacs, The GNU Emacs Manual}, for information on how users
|
|
1379 use input methods to enter text.) How to define input methods is not
|
|
1380 yet documented in this manual, but here we describe how to use them.
|
|
1381
|
|
1382 Each input method has a name, which is currently a string;
|
|
1383 in the future, symbols may also be usable as input method names.
|
|
1384
|
|
1385 @defvar current-input-method
|
|
1386 This variable holds the name of the input method now active in the
|
|
1387 current buffer. (It automatically becomes local in each buffer when set
|
|
1388 in any fashion.) It is @code{nil} if no input method is active in the
|
|
1389 buffer now.
|
|
1390 @end defvar
|
|
1391
|
|
1392 @defopt default-input-method
|
|
1393 This variable holds the default input method for commands that choose an
|
|
1394 input method. Unlike @code{current-input-method}, this variable is
|
|
1395 normally global.
|
|
1396 @end defopt
|
|
1397
|
|
1398 @deffn Command set-input-method input-method
|
|
1399 This command activates input method @var{input-method} for the current
|
|
1400 buffer. It also sets @code{default-input-method} to @var{input-method}.
|
|
1401 If @var{input-method} is @code{nil}, this command deactivates any input
|
|
1402 method for the current buffer.
|
|
1403 @end deffn
|
|
1404
|
|
1405 @defun read-input-method-name prompt &optional default inhibit-null
|
|
1406 This function reads an input method name with the minibuffer, prompting
|
|
1407 with @var{prompt}. If @var{default} is non-@code{nil}, that is returned
|
|
1408 by default, if the user enters empty input. However, if
|
|
1409 @var{inhibit-null} is non-@code{nil}, empty input signals an error.
|
|
1410
|
|
1411 The returned value is a string.
|
|
1412 @end defun
|
|
1413
|
|
1414 @defvar input-method-alist
|
|
1415 This variable defines all the supported input methods.
|
|
1416 Each element defines one input method, and should have the form:
|
|
1417
|
|
1418 @example
|
|
1419 (@var{input-method} @var{language-env} @var{activate-func}
|
|
1420 @var{title} @var{description} @var{args}...)
|
|
1421 @end example
|
|
1422
|
|
1423 Here @var{input-method} is the input method name, a string;
|
|
1424 @var{language-env} is another string, the name of the language
|
|
1425 environment this input method is recommended for. (That serves only for
|
|
1426 documentation purposes.)
|
|
1427
|
|
1428 @var{activate-func} is a function to call to activate this method. The
|
|
1429 @var{args}, if any, are passed as arguments to @var{activate-func}. All
|
|
1430 told, the arguments to @var{activate-func} are @var{input-method} and
|
|
1431 the @var{args}.
|
|
1432
|
|
1433 @var{title} is a string to display in the mode line while this method is
|
|
1434 active. @var{description} is a string describing this method and what
|
|
1435 it is good for.
|
|
1436 @end defvar
|
|
1437
|
|
1438 The fundamental interface to input methods is through the
|
|
1439 variable @code{input-method-function}. @xref{Reading One Event},
|
|
1440 and @ref{Invoking the Input Method}.
|
|
1441
|
|
1442 @node Locales
|
|
1443 @section Locales
|
|
1444 @cindex locale
|
|
1445
|
|
1446 POSIX defines a concept of ``locales'' which control which language
|
|
1447 to use in language-related features. These Emacs variables control
|
|
1448 how Emacs interacts with these features.
|
|
1449
|
|
1450 @defvar locale-coding-system
|
|
1451 @cindex keyboard input decoding on X
|
|
1452 This variable specifies the coding system to use for decoding system
|
|
1453 error messages and---on X Window system only---keyboard input, for
|
|
1454 encoding the format argument to @code{format-time-string}, and for
|
|
1455 decoding the return value of @code{format-time-string}.
|
|
1456 @end defvar
|
|
1457
|
|
1458 @defvar system-messages-locale
|
|
1459 This variable specifies the locale to use for generating system error
|
|
1460 messages. Changing the locale can cause messages to come out in a
|
|
1461 different language or in a different orthography. If the variable is
|
|
1462 @code{nil}, the locale is specified by environment variables in the
|
|
1463 usual POSIX fashion.
|
|
1464 @end defvar
|
|
1465
|
|
1466 @defvar system-time-locale
|
|
1467 This variable specifies the locale to use for formatting time values.
|
|
1468 Changing the locale can cause messages to appear according to the
|
|
1469 conventions of a different language. If the variable is @code{nil}, the
|
|
1470 locale is specified by environment variables in the usual POSIX fashion.
|
|
1471 @end defvar
|
|
1472
|
|
1473 @defun locale-info item
|
|
1474 This function returns locale data @var{item} for the current POSIX
|
|
1475 locale, if available. @var{item} should be one of these symbols:
|
|
1476
|
|
1477 @table @code
|
|
1478 @item codeset
|
|
1479 Return the character set as a string (locale item @code{CODESET}).
|
|
1480
|
|
1481 @item days
|
|
1482 Return a 7-element vector of day names (locale items
|
|
1483 @code{DAY_1} through @code{DAY_7});
|
|
1484
|
|
1485 @item months
|
|
1486 Return a 12-element vector of month names (locale items @code{MON_1}
|
|
1487 through @code{MON_12}).
|
|
1488
|
|
1489 @item paper
|
|
1490 Return a list @code{(@var{width} @var{height})} for the default paper
|
|
1491 size measured in millimeters (locale items @code{PAPER_WIDTH} and
|
|
1492 @code{PAPER_HEIGHT}).
|
|
1493 @end table
|
|
1494
|
|
1495 If the system can't provide the requested information, or if
|
|
1496 @var{item} is not one of those symbols, the value is @code{nil}. All
|
|
1497 strings in the return value are decoded using
|
|
1498 @code{locale-coding-system}. @xref{Locales,,, libc, The GNU Libc Manual},
|
|
1499 for more information about locales and locale items.
|
|
1500 @end defun
|
|
1501
|
|
1502 @ignore
|
|
1503 arch-tag: be705bf8-941b-4c35-84fc-ad7d20ddb7cb
|
|
1504 @end ignore
|