Mercurial > emacs
annotate man/commands.texi @ 68990:fb6995da6459 mh-e-7_92
Mention that 7.92 is the third 8.0 beta release.
author | Bill Wohler <wohler@newt.com> |
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date | Sat, 18 Feb 2006 22:47:54 +0000 |
parents | 2ecdb9895483 |
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25829 | 1 @c This is part of the Emacs manual. |
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2 @c Copyright (C) 1985, 1986, 1987, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2003, |
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3 @c 2004, 2005, 2006 Free Software Foundation, Inc. |
25829 | 4 @c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions. |
5 @iftex | |
6 @chapter Characters, Keys and Commands | |
7 | |
8 This chapter explains the character sets used by Emacs for input | |
9 commands and for the contents of files, and also explains the concepts | |
10 of @dfn{keys} and @dfn{commands}, which are fundamental for understanding | |
11 how Emacs interprets your keyboard and mouse input. | |
12 @end iftex | |
13 | |
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14 @ifnottex |
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15 @raisesections |
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16 @end ifnottex |
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17 |
25829 | 18 @node User Input, Keys, Screen, Top |
19 @section Kinds of User Input | |
20 @cindex input with the keyboard | |
21 @cindex keyboard input | |
22 @cindex character set (keyboard) | |
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23 @cindex @acronym{ASCII} |
25829 | 24 @cindex C- |
25 @cindex Control | |
26 @cindex control characters | |
27 | |
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28 GNU Emacs uses an extension of the @acronym{ASCII} character set for keyboard |
25829 | 29 input; it also accepts non-character input events including function |
30 keys and mouse button actions. | |
31 | |
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32 @acronym{ASCII} consists of 128 character codes. Some of these codes are |
25829 | 33 assigned graphic symbols such as @samp{a} and @samp{=}; the rest are |
34 control characters, such as @kbd{Control-a} (usually written @kbd{C-a} | |
35 for short). @kbd{C-a} gets its name from the fact that you type it by | |
36 holding down the @key{CTRL} key while pressing @kbd{a}. | |
37 | |
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38 Some @acronym{ASCII} control characters have special names, and most terminals |
25829 | 39 have special keys you can type them with: for example, @key{RET}, |
40 @key{TAB}, @key{DEL} and @key{ESC}. The space character is usually | |
41 referred to below as @key{SPC}, even though strictly speaking it is a | |
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42 graphic character whose graphic happens to be blank. |
25829 | 43 |
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44 Emacs extends the @acronym{ASCII} character set with thousands more printing |
25829 | 45 characters (@pxref{International}), additional control characters, and a |
46 few more modifiers that can be combined with any character. | |
47 | |
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48 On @acronym{ASCII} terminals, there are only 32 possible control characters. |
25829 | 49 These are the control variants of letters and @samp{@@[]\^_}. In |
50 addition, the shift key is meaningless with control characters: | |
51 @kbd{C-a} and @kbd{C-A} are the same character, and Emacs cannot | |
52 distinguish them. | |
53 | |
54 But the Emacs character set has room for control variants of all | |
55 printing characters, and for distinguishing between @kbd{C-a} and | |
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56 @kbd{C-A}. Graphical terminals make it possible to enter all these |
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57 characters. For example, @kbd{C--} (that's Control-Minus) and |
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58 @kbd{C-5} are meaningful Emacs commands on a graphical terminal. |
25829 | 59 |
60 Another Emacs character-set extension is additional modifier bits. | |
61 Only one modifier bit is commonly used; it is called Meta. Every | |
62 character has a Meta variant; examples include @kbd{Meta-a} (normally | |
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63 written @kbd{M-a}, for short), @kbd{M-A} (different from @kbd{M-a}, |
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64 but they are normally equivalent in Emacs), @kbd{M-@key{RET}}, and |
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65 @kbd{M-C-a}. That last means @kbd{a} with both the @key{CTRL} and |
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66 @key{META} modifiers. We usually write it as @kbd{C-M-a} rather than |
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67 @kbd{M-C-a}, for reasons of tradition. |
25829 | 68 |
69 @cindex Meta | |
70 @cindex M- | |
71 @cindex @key{ESC} replacing @key{META} key | |
72 Some terminals have a @key{META} key, and allow you to type Meta | |
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73 characters by holding this key down. Thus, you can type @kbd{Meta-a} |
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74 by holding down @key{META} and pressing @kbd{a}. The @key{META} key |
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75 works much like the @key{SHIFT} key. In fact, this key is more often |
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76 labeled @key{ALT} or @key{EDIT}, instead of @key{META}; on a Sun |
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77 keyboard, it may have a diamond on it. |
25829 | 78 |
79 If there is no @key{META} key, you can still type Meta characters | |
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80 using two-character sequences starting with @key{ESC}. Thus, you can |
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81 enter @kbd{M-a} by typing @kbd{@key{ESC} a}. You can enter |
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82 @kbd{C-M-a} by typing @kbd{@key{ESC} C-a}. Unlike @key{META}, which |
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83 modifies other characters, @key{ESC} is a separate character. You |
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84 don't hold down @key{ESC} while typing the next character; instead, |
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85 you press it and release it, then you enter the next character. |
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86 @key{ESC} is allowed on terminals with @key{META} keys, too, in case |
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87 you have formed a habit of using it. |
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88 |
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89 Emacs defines several other modifier keys that can be applied to any |
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90 input character. These are called @key{SUPER}, @key{HYPER} and |
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91 @key{ALT}. We write @samp{s-}, @samp{H-} and @samp{A-} to say that a |
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92 character uses these modifiers. Thus, @kbd{s-H-C-x} is short for |
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93 @kbd{Super-Hyper-Control-x}. Not all graphical terminals actually |
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94 provide keys for these modifier flags---in fact, many terminals have a |
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95 key labeled @key{ALT} which is really a @key{META} key. The standard |
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96 key bindings of Emacs do not include any characters with these |
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97 modifiers. But you can assign them meanings of your own by |
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98 customizing Emacs. |
25829 | 99 |
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100 If your keyboard lacks one of these modifier keys, you can enter it |
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101 using @kbd{C-x @@}: @kbd{C-x @@ h} adds the ``hyper'' flag to the next |
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102 character, @kbd{C-x @@ s} adds the ``super'' flag, and @kbd{C-x @@ a} |
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103 adds the ``alt'' flag. For instance, @kbd{C-x @@ h C-a} is a way to |
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104 enter @kbd{Hyper-Control-a}. (Unfortunately there is no way to add |
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105 two modifiers by using @kbd{C-x @@} twice for the same character, |
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106 because the first one goes to work on the @kbd{C-x}.) |
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107 |
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108 Keyboard input includes keyboard keys that are not characters at |
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109 all: for example function keys and arrow keys. Mouse buttons are also |
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110 outside the gamut of characters. However, you can modify these events |
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111 with the modifier keys @key{CTRL}, @key{META}, @key{SUPER}, |
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112 @key{HYPER} and @key{ALT}, just as you can modify keyboard characters. |
25829 | 113 |
114 @cindex input event | |
115 Input characters and non-character inputs are collectively called | |
116 @dfn{input events}. @xref{Input Events,,, elisp, The Emacs Lisp | |
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117 Reference Manual}, for the full Lisp-level details. If you are not |
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118 doing Lisp programming, but simply want to redefine the meaning of |
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119 some characters or non-character events, see @ref{Customization}. |
25829 | 120 |
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121 @acronym{ASCII} terminals cannot really send anything to the computer except |
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122 @acronym{ASCII} characters. These terminals use a sequence of characters to |
25829 | 123 represent each function key. But that is invisible to the Emacs user, |
124 because the keyboard input routines recognize these special sequences | |
125 and convert them to function key events before any other part of Emacs | |
126 gets to see them. | |
127 | |
128 @node Keys, Commands, User Input, Top | |
129 @section Keys | |
130 | |
131 @cindex key sequence | |
132 @cindex key | |
133 A @dfn{key sequence} (@dfn{key}, for short) is a sequence of input | |
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134 events that are meaningful as a unit---as ``a single command.'' Some |
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135 Emacs command sequences are just one character or one event; for |
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136 example, just @kbd{C-f} is enough to move forward one character in the |
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137 buffer. But Emacs also has commands that take two or more events to |
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138 invoke. |
25829 | 139 |
140 @cindex complete key | |
141 @cindex prefix key | |
142 If a sequence of events is enough to invoke a command, it is a | |
143 @dfn{complete key}. Examples of complete keys include @kbd{C-a}, | |
144 @kbd{X}, @key{RET}, @key{NEXT} (a function key), @key{DOWN} (an arrow | |
145 key), @kbd{C-x C-f}, and @kbd{C-x 4 C-f}. If it isn't long enough to be | |
146 complete, we call it a @dfn{prefix key}. The above examples show that | |
147 @kbd{C-x} and @kbd{C-x 4} are prefix keys. Every key sequence is either | |
148 a complete key or a prefix key. | |
149 | |
150 Most single characters constitute complete keys in the standard Emacs | |
151 command bindings. A few of them are prefix keys. A prefix key combines | |
152 with the following input event to make a longer key sequence, which may | |
153 itself be complete or a prefix. For example, @kbd{C-x} is a prefix key, | |
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154 so @kbd{C-x} and the next input event combine to make a two-event |
25829 | 155 key sequence. Most of these key sequences are complete keys, including |
156 @kbd{C-x C-f} and @kbd{C-x b}. A few, such as @kbd{C-x 4} and @kbd{C-x | |
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157 r}, are themselves prefix keys that lead to three-event key |
25829 | 158 sequences. There's no limit to the length of a key sequence, but in |
159 practice people rarely use sequences longer than four events. | |
160 | |
161 By contrast, you can't add more events onto a complete key. For | |
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162 example, the two-event sequence @kbd{C-f C-k} is not a key, because |
25829 | 163 the @kbd{C-f} is a complete key in itself. It's impossible to give |
164 @kbd{C-f C-k} an independent meaning as a command. @kbd{C-f C-k} is two | |
165 key sequences, not one.@refill | |
166 | |
167 All told, the prefix keys in Emacs are @kbd{C-c}, @kbd{C-h}, | |
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168 @kbd{C-x}, @kbd{C-x @key{RET}}, @kbd{C-x @@}, @kbd{C-x a}, @kbd{C-x |
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169 n}, @w{@kbd{C-x r}}, @kbd{C-x v}, @kbd{C-x 4}, @kbd{C-x 5}, @kbd{C-x |
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170 6}, @key{ESC}, @kbd{M-g}, and @kbd{M-o}. (@key{F1} and @key{F2} are |
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171 aliases for @kbd{C-h} and @kbd{C-x 6}.) But this list is not cast in |
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172 concrete; it is just a matter of Emacs's standard key bindings. If |
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173 you customize Emacs, you can make new prefix keys, or eliminate some |
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174 of the standard ones. @xref{Key Bindings}. |
25829 | 175 |
176 If you do make or eliminate prefix keys, that changes the set of | |
177 possible key sequences. For example, if you redefine @kbd{C-f} as a | |
178 prefix, @kbd{C-f C-k} automatically becomes a key (complete, unless you | |
38953 | 179 define that too as a prefix). Conversely, if you remove the prefix |
25829 | 180 definition of @kbd{C-x 4}, then @kbd{C-x 4 f} (or @kbd{C-x 4 |
181 @var{anything}}) is no longer a key. | |
182 | |
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183 Typing the help character (@kbd{C-h} or @key{F1}) after a prefix key |
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184 displays a list of the commands starting with that prefix. There are |
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185 a few prefix keys for which @kbd{C-h} does not work---for historical |
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186 reasons, they define other meanings for @kbd{C-h} which are painful to |
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187 change. But @key{F1} should work for all prefix keys. |
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188 |
25829 | 189 @node Commands, Text Characters, Keys, Top |
190 @section Keys and Commands | |
191 | |
192 @cindex binding | |
193 @cindex command | |
194 @cindex function definition | |
195 This manual is full of passages that tell you what particular keys | |
196 do. But Emacs does not assign meanings to keys directly. Instead, | |
197 Emacs assigns meanings to named @dfn{commands}, and then gives keys | |
198 their meanings by @dfn{binding} them to commands. | |
199 | |
200 Every command has a name chosen by a programmer. The name is usually | |
201 made of a few English words separated by dashes; for example, | |
202 @code{next-line} or @code{forward-word}. A command also has a | |
203 @dfn{function definition} which is a Lisp program; this is what makes | |
204 the command do what it does. In Emacs Lisp, a command is actually a | |
205 special kind of Lisp function; one which specifies how to read arguments | |
206 for it and call it interactively. For more information on commands and | |
207 functions, see @ref{What Is a Function,, What Is a Function, elisp, The | |
208 Emacs Lisp Reference Manual}. (The definition we use in this manual is | |
209 simplified slightly.) | |
210 | |
211 The bindings between keys and commands are recorded in various tables | |
212 called @dfn{keymaps}. @xref{Keymaps}. | |
213 | |
214 When we say that ``@kbd{C-n} moves down vertically one line'' we are | |
215 glossing over a distinction that is irrelevant in ordinary use but is vital | |
216 in understanding how to customize Emacs. It is the command | |
217 @code{next-line} that is programmed to move down vertically. @kbd{C-n} has | |
218 this effect @emph{because} it is bound to that command. If you rebind | |
219 @kbd{C-n} to the command @code{forward-word} then @kbd{C-n} will move | |
220 forward by words instead. Rebinding keys is a common method of | |
221 customization.@refill | |
222 | |
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223 In the rest of this manual, we usually ignore this distinction to |
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224 keep things simple. We will often speak of keys like @kbd{C-n} as |
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225 commands, even though strictly speaking a key is bound to some |
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226 command. To give the information needed for customization, we state |
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227 the name of the command which really does the work in parentheses |
25829 | 228 after mentioning the key that runs it. For example, we will say that |
229 ``The command @kbd{C-n} (@code{next-line}) moves point vertically | |
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230 down,'' meaning that @code{next-line} is a command that moves |
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231 vertically down, and @kbd{C-n} is a key that is normally bound to it. |
25829 | 232 |
233 While we are on the subject of information for customization only, | |
234 it's a good time to tell you about @dfn{variables}. Often the | |
235 description of a command will say, ``To change this, set the variable | |
236 @code{mumble-foo}.'' A variable is a name used to remember a value. | |
237 Most of the variables documented in this manual exist just to facilitate | |
238 customization: some command or other part of Emacs examines the variable | |
239 and behaves differently according to the value that you set. Until you | |
240 are interested in customizing, you can ignore the information about | |
241 variables. When you are ready to be interested, read the basic | |
242 information on variables, and then the information on individual | |
243 variables will make sense. @xref{Variables}. | |
244 | |
245 @node Text Characters, Entering Emacs, Commands, Top | |
246 @section Character Set for Text | |
247 @cindex characters (in text) | |
248 | |
249 Text in Emacs buffers is a sequence of 8-bit bytes. Each byte can | |
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250 hold a single @acronym{ASCII} character. Both @acronym{ASCII} control characters (octal |
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251 codes 000 through 037, and 0177) and @acronym{ASCII} printing characters (codes |
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252 040 through 0176) are allowed; however, non-@acronym{ASCII} control characters |
25829 | 253 cannot appear in a buffer. The other modifier flags used in keyboard |
254 input, such as Meta, are not allowed in buffers either. | |
255 | |
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256 Some @acronym{ASCII} control characters serve special purposes in text, and have |
25829 | 257 special names. For example, the newline character (octal code 012) is |
258 used in the buffer to end a line, and the tab character (octal code 011) | |
259 is used for indenting to the next tab stop column (normally every 8 | |
260 columns). @xref{Text Display}. | |
261 | |
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262 Non-@acronym{ASCII} printing characters can also appear in buffers. When |
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263 multibyte characters are enabled, you can use any of the non-@acronym{ASCII} |
25829 | 264 printing characters that Emacs supports. They have character codes |
265 starting at 256, octal 0400, and each one is represented as a sequence | |
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266 of two or more bytes. @xref{International}. Single-byte characters |
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267 with codes 128 through 255 can also appear in multibyte buffers. |
25829 | 268 |
269 If you disable multibyte characters, then you can use only one | |
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270 alphabet of non-@acronym{ASCII} characters, but they all fit in one byte. They |
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271 use codes 0200 through 0377. @xref{Unibyte Mode}. |
52401 | 272 |
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273 @ifnottex |
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274 @lowersections |
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275 @end ifnottex |
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276 |
52401 | 277 @ignore |
278 arch-tag: 9be43eef-d1f4-4d03-a916-c741ea713a45 | |
279 @end ignore |