comparison man/help.texi @ 46243:dfc7817ae834

Document the major rearrangement of help commands after 21.1.

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Finally, you can try looking up a suitable package using keywords
pertinent to the feature you need.  @xref{Library Keywords}.
@end table

  To find the documentation of a key sequence or a menu item, type
@kbd{C-h C-k} and then type that key sequence or select the menu
item.  This looks up the description of the command invoked by the key
or the menu in the appropriate manual (not necessarily the Emacs
manual).  Likewise, use @kbd{C-h C-f} for reading documentation of a
command.

@menu
* Help Summary::	Brief list of all Help commands.
* Key Help::		Asking what a key does in Emacs.

* Apropos::		Asking what pertains to a given topic.
* Library Keywords::	Finding Lisp libraries by keywords (topics).
* Language Help::       Help relating to international language support.
* Help Mode::           Special features of Help mode and Help buffers.
* Misc Help::		Other help commands.
* Help Echo::           Help on active text and tooltips (`balloon help')
@end menu

@iftex
@node Help Summary

@ifinfo
@node Help Summary
@section Help Summary
@end ifinfo

  Here is a summary of the defined help commands.

@table @kbd
@item C-h a @var{regexp} @key{RET}
Display a list of commands whose names match @var{regexp}
(@code{apropos-command}).

@item C-h l
Display a description of the last 100 characters you typed
(@code{view-lossage}).
@item C-h m
Display documentation of the current major mode (@code{describe-mode}).
@item C-h n
Display documentation of Emacs changes, most recent first
(@code{view-emacs-news}).
@item C-h P
Display info on known problems with Emacs and possible workarounds
(@code{view-emacs-problems}).
@item C-h p
Find packages by topic keyword (@code{finder-by-keyword}).
@item C-h s
Display the current contents of the syntax table, plus an explanation of
what they mean (@code{describe-syntax}).  @xref{Syntax}.

Describe an input method (@code{describe-input-method}).
@item C-h L @var{language-env} @key{RET}
Display information on the character sets, coding systems, and input
methods used for language environment @var{language-env}
(@code{describe-language-environment}).
@item C-h C-c
Display the copying conditions for GNU Emacs.
@item C-h C-d
Display information about getting new versions of GNU Emacs.
@item C-h C-f @var{function} @key{RET}
Enter Info and go to the node documenting the Emacs function @var{function}
(@code{Info-goto-emacs-command-node}).
@item C-h C-k @var{key}
Enter Info and go to the node where the key sequence @var{key} is
documented (@code{Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node}).
@item C-h C-p
Display information about the GNU Project.
@item C-h @key{TAB} @var{symbol} @key{RET}
Display the Info documentation on symbol @var{symbol} according to the
programming language you are editing (@code{info-lookup-symbol}).
@end table

@node Key Help

a documentation file.  This way, you can browse a file which doesn't
have an entry in the top-level Info menu.  It is also handy when you
need to get to the documentation quickly, and you know the exact name of
the file.

@kindex C-h C-f
@kindex C-h C-k
@findex Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node
@findex Info-goto-emacs-command-node
  There are two special help commands for accessing Emacs documentation
through Info.  @kbd{C-h C-f @var{function} @key{RET}} enters Info and
goes straight to the documentation of the Emacs function
@var{function}.  @kbd{C-h C-k @var{key}} enters Info and goes straight
to the documentation of the key @var{key}.  These two keys run the
commands @code{Info-goto-emacs-command-node} and
@code{Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node}.  You can use @kbd{C-h C-k} to
find the documentation of a menu item: just select that menu item when
@kbd{C-h C-k} prompts for a key.

  @kbd{C-h C-f} and @kbd{C-h C-k} know about commands and keys
described in manuals other than the Emacs manual.  Thus, they make it
easier to find the documentation of commands and keys when you are not
sure which manual describes them, like when using some specialized
mode.

  When editing a program, if you have an Info version of the manual for
the programming language, you can use the command @kbd{C-h C-i} to refer
to the manual documentation for a symbol (keyword, function or
variable).  The details of how this command works depend on the major
mode.

@kindex C-h l
@findex view-lossage
  If something surprising happens, and you are not sure what commands you
typed, use @kbd{C-h l} (@code{view-lossage}).  @kbd{C-h l} displays the last
100 command characters you typed in.  If you see commands that you don't
know, you can use @kbd{C-h c} to find out what they do.

@kindex C-h m
@findex describe-mode
  Emacs has numerous major modes, each of which redefines a few keys and
makes a few other changes in how editing works.  @kbd{C-h m}

@kbd{C-h} after the prefix key.  (There are a few prefix keys for which
this does not work---those that provide their own bindings for
@kbd{C-h}.  One of these is @key{ESC}, because @kbd{@key{ESC} C-h} is
actually @kbd{C-M-h}, which marks a defun.)

@kindex C-h F
@findex view-emacs-FAQ
@kindex C-h n
@findex view-emacs-news
@kindex C-h C-c
@findex describe-copying
@kindex C-h C-d
@findex describe-distribution
@kindex C-h C-w
@findex describe-no-warranty
@kindex C-h C-p
@findex describe-project
@kindex C-h P
@findex view-emacs-problems
  The other @kbd{C-h} options display various files containing useful
information.  @kbd{C-h C-w} displays the full details on the complete
absence of warranty for GNU Emacs.  @kbd{C-h n} (@code{view-emacs-news})
displays the file @file{emacs/etc/NEWS}, which contains documentation on
Emacs changes arranged chronologically.  @kbd{C-h F}
(@code{view-emacs-FAQ}) displays the Emacs frequently-answered-questions
list.  @kbd{C-h t} (@code{help-with-tutorial}) displays the
learn-by-doing Emacs tutorial.  @kbd{C-h C-c} (@code{describe-copying})
displays the file @file{emacs/etc/COPYING}, which tells you the
conditions you must obey in distributing copies of Emacs.  @kbd{C-h C-d}
(@code{describe-distribution}) displays the file
@file{emacs/etc/DISTRIB}, which tells you how you can order a copy of
the latest version of Emacs.  @kbd{C-h C-p} (@code{describe-project})
displays general information about the GNU Project.  @kbd{C-h P}
(@code{view-emacs-problems}) displays the file
@file{emacs/etc/PROBLEMS}, which lists known problems with Emacs in
various situations with solutions or workarounds in many cases.

@node Help Echo
@section Help on Active Text and Tooltips

@cindex tooltips

46243:dfc7817ae834

Finally, you can try looking up a suitable package using keywords
pertinent to the feature you need.  @xref{Library Keywords}.
@end table

  To find the documentation of a key sequence or a menu item, type
@kbd{C-h K} and then type that key sequence or select the menu
item.  This looks up the description of the command invoked by the key
or the menu in the appropriate manual (not necessarily the Emacs
manual).  Likewise, use @kbd{C-h F} for reading documentation of a
command.

@menu
* Help Summary::	Brief list of all Help commands.
* Key Help::		Asking what a key does in Emacs.

* Apropos::		Asking what pertains to a given topic.
* Library Keywords::	Finding Lisp libraries by keywords (topics).
* Language Help::       Help relating to international language support.
* Help Mode::           Special features of Help mode and Help buffers.
* Misc Help::		Other help commands.
* Help Files::          Commands to display pre-written help files.
* Help Echo::           Help on active text and tooltips (`balloon help')
@end menu

@iftex
@node Help Summary

@ifinfo
@node Help Summary
@section Help Summary
@end ifinfo

  Here is a summary of the Emacs interactive help commands.
@xref{Help Files}, for other help commands that just display a
pre-written file of information.

@table @kbd
@item C-h a @var{regexp} @key{RET}
Display a list of commands whose names match @var{regexp}
(@code{apropos-command}).

@item C-h l
Display a description of the last 100 characters you typed
(@code{view-lossage}).
@item C-h m
Display documentation of the current major mode (@code{describe-mode}).
@item C-h p
Find packages by topic keyword (@code{finder-by-keyword}).
@item C-h s
Display the current contents of the syntax table, plus an explanation of
what they mean (@code{describe-syntax}).  @xref{Syntax}.

Describe an input method (@code{describe-input-method}).
@item C-h L @var{language-env} @key{RET}
Display information on the character sets, coding systems, and input
methods used for language environment @var{language-env}
(@code{describe-language-environment}).
@item C-h F @var{function} @key{RET}
Enter Info and go to the node documenting the Emacs function @var{function}
(@code{Info-goto-emacs-command-node}).
@item C-h K @var{key}
Enter Info and go to the node where the key sequence @var{key} is
documented (@code{Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node}).
@item C-h S @var{symbol} @key{RET}
Display the Info documentation on symbol @var{symbol} according to the
programming language you are editing (@code{info-lookup-symbol}).
@end table

@node Key Help

a documentation file.  This way, you can browse a file which doesn't
have an entry in the top-level Info menu.  It is also handy when you
need to get to the documentation quickly, and you know the exact name of
the file.

@kindex C-h F
@kindex C-h K
@findex Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node
@findex Info-goto-emacs-command-node
  There are two special help commands for accessing Emacs
documentation through Info.  @kbd{C-h F @var{function} @key{RET}}
enters Info and goes straight to the documentation of the Emacs
function @var{function}.  @kbd{C-h K @var{key}} enters Info and goes
straight to the documentation of the key @var{key}.  These two keys
run the commands @code{Info-goto-emacs-command-node} and
@code{Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node}.  You can use @kbd{C-h K} to
find the documentation of a menu item: just select that menu item when
@kbd{C-h K} prompts for a key.

  @kbd{C-h F} and @kbd{C-h K} know about commands and keys described
in manuals other than the Emacs manual.  Thus, they make it easier to
find the documentation of commands and keys when you are not sure
which manual describes them, like when using some specialized mode.

@kindex C-h S
@findex info-lookup-symbol
  When editing a program, if you have an Info version of the manual
for the programming language, you can use the command @kbd{C-h S}
(@code{info-lookup-symbol}) to refer to the manual documentation for a
symbol (keyword, function or variable).  The details of how this
command works depend on the major mode.

@kindex C-h l
@findex view-lossage
  If something surprising happens, and you are not sure what commands you
typed, use @kbd{C-h l} (@code{view-lossage}).  @kbd{C-h l} displays the last
100 command characters you typed in.  If you see commands that you don't
know, you can use @kbd{C-h c} to find out what they do.

@kindex C-h e
@findex view-echo-area-messages
  To review messages that recently appeared in the echo area, use
@kbd{C-h e} (@code{view-echo-area-messages}).  This displays the
buffer @code{*Messages*}, where those messages are kept.

@kindex C-h m
@findex describe-mode
  Emacs has numerous major modes, each of which redefines a few keys and
makes a few other changes in how editing works.  @kbd{C-h m}

@kbd{C-h} after the prefix key.  (There are a few prefix keys for which
this does not work---those that provide their own bindings for
@kbd{C-h}.  One of these is @key{ESC}, because @kbd{@key{ESC} C-h} is
actually @kbd{C-M-h}, which marks a defun.)

@node Help Files
@section Help Files

  The Emacs help commands described above display the state of data
bases within Emacs.  Emacs has a few other help commands that display
pre-written help files.  These commands all have the form @kbd{C-h
C-@var{char}}; that is, @kbd{C-h} followed by a control character.

@kindex C-h C-c
@findex describe-copying
@kindex C-h C-d
@findex describe-distribution
@kindex C-h C-e
@findex view-emacs-problems
@kindex C-h C-f
@findex view-emacs-FAQ
@kindex C-h C-n
@findex view-emacs-news
@kindex C-h C-p
@findex describe-project
@kindex C-h C-t
@findex view-emacs-todo
@kindex C-h C-w
@findex describe-no-warranty
  The other @kbd{C-h} options display various files containing useful
information.

@table @kbd
@item C-h C-c
Displays the Emacs copying conditions (@code{describe-copying}).
These are the rules under which you can copy and redistribute Emacs.
@item C-h C-d
Displays information on how to download or order the latest version of
Emacs and other GNU software (@code{describe-distribution}).
@item C-h C-e
Displays the list of known Emacs problems, sometimes with suggested
workarounds (@code{view-emacs-problems}).
@item C-h C-f
Displays the Emacs frequently-answered-questions list (@code{view-emacs-FAQ}).
@item C-h C-n
Displays the Emacs ``news'' file, which lists new Emacs features, most
recent first (@code{view-emacs-news}).
@item C-h C-p
Displays general information about the GNU Project
(@code{describe-project}).
@item C-h C-t
Displays the Emacs to-do list (@code{view-todo}).
@item C-h C-w
Displays the full details on the complete absence of warranty for GNU
Emacs (@code{describe-no-warranty}).
@end table

@node Help Echo
@section Help on Active Text and Tooltips

@cindex tooltips