@c This is part of the Emacs manual.@c Copyright (C) 1985,86,87,93,94,95,97,2000,2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.@c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions.@node Basic, Minibuffer, Exiting, Top@chapter Basic Editing Commands@kindex C-h t@findex help-with-tutorial We now give the basics of how to enter text, make corrections, andsave the text in a file. If this material is new to you, you mightlearn it more easily by running the Emacs learn-by-doing tutorial. Touse the tutorial, run Emacs and type @kbd{Control-h t}(@code{help-with-tutorial}). To clear the screen and redisplay, type @kbd{C-l} (@code{recenter}).@menu* Inserting Text:: Inserting text by simply typing it.* Moving Point:: How to move the cursor to the place where you want to change something.* Erasing:: Deleting and killing text.* Undo:: Undoing recent changes in the text.* Files: Basic Files. Visiting, creating, and saving files.* Help: Basic Help. Asking what a character does.* Blank Lines:: Commands to make or delete blank lines.* Continuation Lines:: Lines too wide for the screen.* Position Info:: What page, line, row, or column is point on?* Arguments:: Numeric arguments for repeating a command.* Repeating:: A short-cut for repeating the previous command.@end menu@node Inserting Text@section Inserting Text@cindex insertion@cindex graphic characters To insert printing characters into the text you are editing, just typethem. This inserts the characters you type into the buffer at thecursor (that is, at @dfn{point}; @pxref{Point}). The cursor movesforward, and any text after the cursor moves forward too. If the textin the buffer is @samp{FOOBAR}, with the cursor before the @samp{B},then if you type @kbd{XX}, you get @samp{FOOXXBAR}, with the cursorstill before the @samp{B}. To @dfn{delete} text you have just inserted, use the large keylabeled @key{DEL}, @key{BACKSPACE} or @key{DELETE} which is a shortdistance above the @key{RET} or @key{ENTER} key. This is the key younormally use, outside Emacs, for erasing the last character that youtyped. Regardless of the label on that key, Emacs thinks of it as@key{DEL}, and that's what we call it in this manual. The @key{DEL} key deletes the character @emph{before} the cursor.As a consequence, the cursor and all the characters after it movebackwards. If you type a printing character and then type @key{DEL},they cancel out. On most computers, Emacs recognizes automatically which key ought tobe @key{DEL}, and sets it up that way. But in some cases, especiallywith text-only terminals, you will need to tell Emacs which key to usefor that purpose. If the large key not far above the @key{RET} or@key{ENTER} key doesn't delete backwards, you need to do this.@xref{DEL Does Not Delete}, for an explanation of how. Most PC keyboards have both a @key{BACKSPACE} key a short ways above@key{RET} or @key{ENTER}, and a @key{DELETE} key elsewhere. On thesekeyboards, Emacs supports when possible the usual convention that the@key{BACKSPACE} key deletes backwards (it is @key{DEL}), while the@key{DELETE} key deletes ``forwards,'' deleting the character afterpoint, the one underneath the cursor, like @kbd{C-d} (see below).@kindex RET@cindex newline To end a line and start typing a new one, type @key{RET}. Thisinserts a newline character in the buffer. If point is in the middle ofa line, @key{RET} splits the line. Typing @key{DEL} when the cursor isat the beginning of a line deletes the preceding newline, thus joiningthe line with the preceding line. Emacs can split lines automatically when they become too long, if youturn on a special minor mode called @dfn{Auto Fill} mode.@xref{Filling}, for how to use Auto Fill mode. If you prefer to have text characters replace (overwrite) existingtext rather than shove it to the right, you can enable Overwrite mode,a minor mode. @xref{Minor Modes}.@cindex quoting@kindex C-q@findex quoted-insert Direct insertion works for printing characters and @key{SPC}, but othercharacters act as editing commands and do not insert themselves. If youneed to insert a control character or a character whose code is above 200octal, you must @dfn{quote} it by typing the character @kbd{Control-q}(@code{quoted-insert}) first. (This character's name is normally written@kbd{C-q} for short.) There are two ways to use @kbd{C-q}:@refill@itemize @bullet@item@kbd{C-q} followed by any non-graphic character (even @kbd{C-g})inserts that character.@item@kbd{C-q} followed by a sequence of octal digits inserts the characterwith the specified octal character code. You can use any number ofoctal digits; any non-digit terminates the sequence. If theterminating character is @key{RET}, it serves only to terminate thesequence. Any other non-digit terminates the sequence and then actsas normal input---thus, @kbd{C-q 1 0 1 B} inserts @samp{AB}.The use of octal sequences is disabled in ordinary non-binaryOverwrite mode, to give you a convenient way to insert a digit insteadof overwriting with it.@end itemize@cindex 8-bit character codes@noindentWhen multibyte characters are enabled, if you specify a code in therange 0200 through 0377 octal, @kbd{C-q} assumes that you intend touse some ISO 8859-@var{n} character set, and converts the specifiedcode to the corresponding Emacs character code. @xref{EnablingMultibyte}. You select @emph{which} of the ISO 8859 character sets touse through your choice of language environment (@pxref{LanguageEnvironments}).@vindex read-quoted-char-radixTo use decimal or hexadecimal instead of octal, set the variable@code{read-quoted-char-radix} to 10 or 16. If the radix is greater than10, some letters starting with @kbd{a} serve as part of a charactercode, just like digits.A numeric argument to @kbd{C-q} specifies how many copies of thequoted character should be inserted (@pxref{Arguments}).@findex newline@findex self-insert Customization information: @key{DEL} in most modes runs the command@code{delete-backward-char}; @key{RET} runs the command @code{newline}, andself-inserting printing characters run the command @code{self-insert},which inserts whatever character was typed to invoke it. Some major modesrebind @key{DEL} to other commands.@node Moving Point@section Changing the Location of Point@cindex arrow keys@cindex moving point@cindex movement@cindex cursor motion@cindex moving the cursor To do more than insert characters, you have to know how to move point(@pxref{Point}). The simplest way to do this is with arrow keys, or byclicking the left mouse button where you want to move to. There are also control and meta characters for cursor motion. Someare equivalent to the arrow keys (these date back to the days beforeterminals had arrow keys, and are usable on terminals which don't havethem). Others do more sophisticated things.@kindex C-a@kindex C-e@kindex C-f@kindex C-b@kindex C-n@kindex C-p@kindex M->@kindex M-<@kindex M-r@kindex LEFT@kindex RIGHT@kindex UP@kindex DOWN@findex beginning-of-line@findex end-of-line@findex forward-char@findex backward-char@findex next-line@findex previous-line@findex beginning-of-buffer@findex end-of-buffer@findex goto-char@findex goto-line@findex move-to-window-line@table @kbd@item C-aMove to the beginning of the line (@code{beginning-of-line}).@item C-eMove to the end of the line (@code{end-of-line}).@item C-fMove forward one character (@code{forward-char}). The right-arrow keydoes the same thing.@item C-bMove backward one character (@code{backward-char}). The left-arrowkey has the same effect.@item M-fMove forward one word (@code{forward-word}).@item M-bMove backward one word (@code{backward-word}).@item C-nMove down one line, vertically (@code{next-line}). This commandattempts to keep the horizontal position unchanged, so if you start inthe middle of one line, you end in the middle of the next. Thedown-arrow key does the same thing.@item C-pMove up one line, vertically (@code{previous-line}). The up-arrow keyhas the same effect.@item M-rMove point to left margin, vertically centered in the window(@code{move-to-window-line}). Text does not move on the screen.A numeric argument says which screen line to place point on. It countsscreen lines down from the top of the window (zero for the top line). Anegative argument counts lines from the bottom (@minus{}1 for the bottomline).@item M-<Move to the top of the buffer (@code{beginning-of-buffer}). Withnumeric argument @var{n}, move to @var{n}/10 of the way from the top.@xref{Arguments}, for more information on numeric arguments.@refill@item M->Move to the end of the buffer (@code{end-of-buffer}).@item C-vScroll the display one screen forward, and move point if necessary to putit on the screen (@code{scroll-up}). This doesn't alwaysmove point, but it is commonly used to do so.If your keyboard has a @key{PAGEDOWN} key, it does the same thing.Scrolling commands are further described in @ref{Scrolling}.@item M-vScroll one screen backward, and move point if necessary to put it onthe screen (@code{scroll-down}). This doesn't always move point, butit is commonly used to do so. The @key{PAGEUP} key has the sameeffect.@item M-x goto-charRead a number @var{n} and move point to buffer position @var{n}.Position 1 is the beginning of the buffer.@item M-x goto-lineRead a number @var{n} and move point to line number @var{n}. Line 1is the beginning of the buffer.@item C-x C-n@findex set-goal-column@kindex C-x C-nUse the current column of point as the @dfn{semipermanent goal column} for@kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} (@code{set-goal-column}). Henceforth, thosecommands always move to this column in each line moved into, or asclose as possible given the contents of the line. This goal column remainsin effect until canceled.@item C-u C-x C-nCancel the goal column. Henceforth, @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} onceagain try to stick to a fixed horizontal position, as usual.@end table@vindex track-eol If you set the variable @code{track-eol} to a non-@code{nil} value,then @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p}, when starting at the end of the line, moveto the end of another line. Normally, @code{track-eol} is @code{nil}.@xref{Variables}, for how to set variables such as @code{track-eol}.@vindex next-line-add-newlines @kbd{C-n} normally gets an error when you use it on the last line ofthe buffer (just as @kbd{C-p} gets an error on the first line). Butif you set the variable @code{next-line-add-newlines} to anon-@code{nil} value, @kbd{C-n} on the last line of a buffer createsan additional line at the end and moves down onto it.@node Erasing @section Erasing Text@table @kbd@item @key{DEL}Delete the character before point (@code{delete-backward-char}).@item C-dDelete the character after point (@code{delete-char}).@item @key{DELETE}@itemx @key{BACKSPACE}One of these keys, whichever is the large key above the @key{RET} or@key{ENTER} key, deletes the character before point, like @key{DEL}.If that is @key{BACKSPACE}, and your keyboard also has @key{DELETE},then @key{DELETE} deletes forwards, like @kbd{C-d}.@item C-kKill to the end of the line (@code{kill-line}).@item M-dKill forward to the end of the next word (@code{kill-word}).@item M-@key{DEL}Kill back to the beginning of the previous word(@code{backward-kill-word}).@end table@cindex killing characters and lines@cindex deleting characters and lines@cindex erasing characters and lines You already know about the @key{DEL} key which deletes the characterbefore point (that is, before the cursor). Another key, @kbd{Control-d}(@kbd{C-d} for short), deletes the character after point (that is, thecharacter that the cursor is on). This shifts the rest of the text onthe line to the left. If you type @kbd{C-d} at the end of a line, itjoins together that line and the next line. To erase a larger amount of text, use the @kbd{C-k} key, which kills aline at a time. If you type @kbd{C-k} at the beginning or middle of aline, it kills all the text up to the end of the line. If you type@kbd{C-k} at the end of a line, it joins that line and the next line. @xref{Killing}, for more flexible ways of killing text.@node Undo@section Undoing Changes@cindex undo@cindex changes, undoing You can undo all the recent changes in the buffer text, up to acertain point. Each buffer records changes individually, and the undocommand always applies to the current buffer. Usually each editingcommand makes a separate entry in the undo records, but some commandssuch as @code{query-replace} make many entries, and very simple commandssuch as self-inserting characters are often grouped to make undoing lesstedious.@table @kbd@item C-x uUndo one batch of changes---usually, one command worth (@code{undo}).@item C-_The same.@item C-u C-x uUndo one batch of changes in the region.@end table@kindex C-x u@kindex C-_@findex undo The command @kbd{C-x u} or @kbd{C-_} is how you undo. The first timeyou give this command, it undoes the last change. Point moves back towhere it was before the command that made the change. Consecutive repetitions of @kbd{C-_} or @kbd{C-x u} undo earlier andearlier changes, back to the limit of the undo information available.If all recorded changes have already been undone, the undo commanddisplays an error message and does nothing. Any command other than an undo command breaks the sequence of undocommands. Starting from that moment, the previous undo commands becomeordinary changes that you can undo. Thus, to redo changes you haveundone, type @kbd{C-f} or any other command that will harmlessly breakthe sequence of undoing, then type more undo commands.@cindex selective undo@kindex C-u C-x u Ordinary undo applies to all changes made in the current buffer. Youcan also perform @dfn{selective undo}, limited to the current region.To do this, specify the region you want, then run the @code{undo}command with a prefix argument (the value does not matter): @kbd{C-u C-xu} or @kbd{C-u C-_}. This undoes the most recent change in the region.To undo further changes in the same region, repeat the @code{undo}command (no prefix argument is needed). In Transient Mark mode, any useof @code{undo} when there is an active region performs selective undo;you do not need a prefix argument. If you notice that a buffer has been modified accidentally, theeasiest way to recover is to type @kbd{C-_} repeatedly until the starsdisappear from the front of the mode line. At this time, all themodifications you made have been canceled. Whenever an undo commandmakes the stars disappear from the mode line, it means that the buffercontents are the same as they were when the file was last read in orsaved. If you do not remember whether you changed the buffer deliberately,type @kbd{C-_} once. When you see the last change you made undone, youwill see whether it was an intentional change. If it was an accident,leave it undone. If it was deliberate, redo the change as describedabove. Not all buffers record undo information. Buffers whose names start withspaces don't; these buffers are used internally by Emacs and its extensionsto hold text that users don't normally look at or edit. You cannot undo mere cursor motion; only changes in the buffercontents save undo information. However, some cursor motion commandsset the mark, so if you use these commands from time to time, you canmove back to the neighborhoods you have moved through by popping themark ring (@pxref{Mark Ring}).@vindex undo-limit@vindex undo-strong-limit@cindex undo limit When the undo information for a buffer becomes too large, Emacsdiscards the oldest undo information from time to time (during garbagecollection). You can specify how much undo information to keep bysetting two variables: @code{undo-limit} and @code{undo-strong-limit}.Their values are expressed in units of bytes of space. The variable @code{undo-limit} sets a soft limit: Emacs keeps undodata for enough commands to reach this size, and perhaps exceed it, butdoes not keep data for any earlier commands beyond that. Its defaultvalue is 20000. The variable @code{undo-strong-limit} sets a stricterlimit: the command which pushes the size past this amount is itselfforgotten. Its default value is 30000. Regardless of the values of those variables, the most recent change isnever discarded, so there is no danger that garbage collection occurringright after an unintentional large change might prevent you from undoingit. The reason the @code{undo} command has two keys, @kbd{C-x u} and@kbd{C-_}, set up to run it is that it is worthy of a single-characterkey, but on some keyboards it is not obvious how to type @kbd{C-_}.@kbd{C-x u} is an alternative you can type straightforwardly on anyterminal.@node Basic Files@section Files The commands described above are sufficient for creating and alteringtext in an Emacs buffer; the more advanced Emacs commands just makethings easier. But to keep any text permanently you must put it in a@dfn{file}. Files are named units of text which are stored by theoperating system for you to retrieve later by name. To look at or usethe contents of a file in any way, including editing the file withEmacs, you must specify the file name. Consider a file named @file{/usr/rms/foo.c}. In Emacs, to begin editingthis file, type@exampleC-x C-f /usr/rms/foo.c @key{RET}@end example@noindentHere the file name is given as an @dfn{argument} to the command @kbd{C-xC-f} (@code{find-file}). That command uses the @dfn{minibuffer} toread the argument, and you type @key{RET} to terminate the argument(@pxref{Minibuffer}).@refill Emacs obeys the command by @dfn{visiting} the file: creating a buffer,copying the contents of the file into the buffer, and then displayingthe buffer for you to edit. If you alter the text, you can @dfn{save}the new text in the file by typing @kbd{C-x C-s} (@code{save-buffer}).This makes the changes permanent by copying the altered buffer contentsback into the file @file{/usr/rms/foo.c}. Until you save, the changesexist only inside Emacs, and the file @file{foo.c} is unaltered. To create a file, just visit the file with @kbd{C-x C-f} as if italready existed. This creates an empty buffer in which you can insertthe text you want to put in the file. The file is actually created whenyou save this buffer with @kbd{C-x C-s}. Of course, there is a lot more to learn about using files. @xref{Files}.@node Basic Help@section Help@cindex getting help with keys If you forget what a key does, you can find out with the Helpcharacter, which is @kbd{C-h} (or @key{F1}, which is an alias for@kbd{C-h}). Type @kbd{C-h k} followed by the key you want to knowabout; for example, @kbd{C-h k C-n} tells you all about what @kbd{C-n}does. @kbd{C-h} is a prefix key; @kbd{C-h k} is just one of itssubcommands (the command @code{describe-key}). The other subcommands of@kbd{C-h} provide different kinds of help. Type @kbd{C-h} twice to geta description of all the help facilities. @xref{Help}.@refill@node Blank Lines@section Blank Lines@cindex inserting blank lines@cindex deleting blank lines Here are special commands and techniques for putting in and taking outblank lines.@table @kbd@item C-oInsert one or more blank lines after the cursor (@code{open-line}).@item C-x C-oDelete all but one of many consecutive blank lines(@code{delete-blank-lines}).@end table@kindex C-o@kindex C-x C-o@cindex blank lines@findex open-line@findex delete-blank-lines When you want to insert a new line of text before an existing line, youcan do it by typing the new line of text, followed by @key{RET}.However, it may be easier to see what you are doing if you first make ablank line and then insert the desired text into it. This is easy to dousing the key @kbd{C-o} (@code{open-line}), which inserts a newlineafter point but leaves point in front of the newline. After @kbd{C-o},type the text for the new line. @kbd{C-o F O O} has the same effect as@w{@kbd{F O O @key{RET}}}, except for the final location of point. You can make several blank lines by typing @kbd{C-o} several times, orby giving it a numeric argument to tell it how many blank lines to make.@xref{Arguments}, for how. If you have a fill prefix, then @kbd{C-o}command inserts the fill prefix on the new line, when you use it at thebeginning of a line. @xref{Fill Prefix}. The easy way to get rid of extra blank lines is with the command@kbd{C-x C-o} (@code{delete-blank-lines}). @kbd{C-x C-o} in a run ofseveral blank lines deletes all but one of them. @kbd{C-x C-o} on asolitary blank line deletes that blank line. When point is on anonblank line, @kbd{C-x C-o} deletes any blank lines following thatnonblank line.@node Continuation Lines@section Continuation Lines@cindex continuation line@cindex wrapping@cindex line wrapping If you add too many characters to one line without breaking it with@key{RET}, the line grows to occupy two (or more) lines on the screen.On graphical displays, Emacs indicates line wrapping with small bentarrows in the fringes to the left and right of the window. Ontext-only terminals, Emacs displays a @samp{\} character at the rightmargin of a screen line if it is not the last in its text line. This@samp{\} character says that the following screen line is not really adistinct line in the text, just a @dfn{continuation} of a line toolong to fit the screen. Continuation is also called @dfn{linewrapping}. When line wrapping occurs before a character that is wider than onecolumn, some columns at the end of the previous screen line may be``empty.'' In this case, Emacs displays additional @samp{\}characters in the ``empty'' columns, just before the @samp{\}character that indicates continuation. Sometimes it is nice to have Emacs insert newlines automatically whena line gets too long. Continuation on the screen does not do that. UseAuto Fill mode (@pxref{Filling}) if that's what you want.@vindex truncate-lines@cindex truncation As an alternative to continuation, Emacs can display long lines by@dfn{truncation}. This means that all the characters that do not fitin the width of the screen or window do not appear at all. Theyremain in the buffer, temporarily invisible. On terminals, @samp{$}in the last column informs you that the line has been truncated on thedisplay. On window systems, a small straight arrow in the fringe tothe right of the window indicates a truncated line.@findex toggle-truncate-lines Truncation instead of continuation happens whenever horizontalscrolling is in use, and optionally in all side-by-side windows(@pxref{Windows}). You can enable or disable truncation for aparticular buffer with the command @kbd{M-x toggle-truncate-lines}. @xref{Display Custom}, for additional variables that affect how text isdisplayed.@node Position Info@section Cursor Position Information Here are commands to get information about the size and position ofparts of the buffer, and to count lines.@table @kbd@item M-x what-pageDisplay the page number of point, and the line number within the page.@item M-x what-lineDisplay the line number of point in the buffer.@item M-x line-number-mode@itemx M-x column-number-modeToggle automatic display of current line number or column number.@xref{Optional Mode Line}.@item M-=Display the number of lines in the current region (@code{count-lines-region}).@xref{Mark}, for information about the region.@item C-x =Display the character code of character after point, character position ofpoint, and column of point (@code{what-cursor-position}).@item M-x hl-line-modeEnable or disable highlighting of the current line. @xref{CursorDisplay}.@end table@findex what-page@findex what-line@cindex line number commands@cindex location of point@cindex cursor location@cindex point location There are two commands for working with line numbers. @kbd{M-xwhat-line} computes the current line number and displays it in the echoarea. To go to a given line by number, use @kbd{M-x goto-line}; itprompts you for the number. These line numbers count from one at thebeginning of the buffer. You can also see the current line number in the mode line; see @ref{ModeLine}. If you narrow the buffer, then the line number in the mode lineis relative to the accessible portion (@pxref{Narrowing}). By contrast,@code{what-line} shows both the line number relative to the narrowedregion and the line number relative to the whole buffer. @kbd{M-x what-page} counts pages from the beginning of the file, andcounts lines within the page, showing both numbers in the echo area.@xref{Pages}.@kindex M-=@findex count-lines-region While on this subject, we might as well mention @kbd{M-=} (@code{count-lines-region}),which displays the number of lines in the region (@pxref{Mark}).@xref{Pages}, for the command @kbd{C-x l} which counts the lines in thecurrent page.@kindex C-x =@findex what-cursor-position The command @kbd{C-x =} (@code{what-cursor-position}) can be used to find outthe column that the cursor is in, and other miscellaneous information aboutpoint. It displays a line in the echo area that looks like this:@smallexampleChar: c (0143, 99, 0x63) point=21044 of 26883(78%) column 53 @end smallexample@noindent(In fact, this is the output produced when point is before the@samp{column} in the example.) The four values after @samp{Char:} describe the character that followspoint, first by showing it and then by giving its character code inoctal, decimal and hex. For a non-ASCII multibyte character, these arefollowed by @samp{ext} and the character's representation, in hex, inthe buffer's coding system, if that coding system encodes the charactersafely and with a single byte (@pxref{Coding Systems}). If thecharacter's encoding is longer than one byte, Emacs shows @samp{ext ...}. @samp{point=} is followed by the position of point expressed as a charactercount. The front of the buffer counts as position 1, one character lateras 2, and so on. The next, larger, number is the total number of charactersin the buffer. Afterward in parentheses comes the position expressed as apercentage of the total size. @samp{column} is followed by the horizontal position of point, incolumns from the left edge of the window. If the buffer has been narrowed, making some of the text at thebeginning and the end temporarily inaccessible, @kbd{C-x =} displaysadditional text describing the currently accessible range. For example, itmight display this:@smallexampleChar: C (0103, 67, 0x43) point=252 of 889(28%) <231 - 599> column 0 @end smallexample@noindentwhere the two extra numbers give the smallest and largest characterposition that point is allowed to assume. The characters between thosetwo positions are the accessible ones. @xref{Narrowing}. If point is at the end of the buffer (or the end of the accessiblepart), the @w{@kbd{C-x =}} output does not describe a character afterpoint. The output might look like this:@smallexamplepoint=26957 of 26956(100%) column 0 @end smallexample @w{@kbd{C-u C-x =}} displays additional information about a character,in place of the buffer coordinates and column: the character set nameand the codes that identify the character within that character set;ASCII characters are identified as belonging to the @code{ASCII}character set. In addition, the full character encoding, even if ittakes more than a single byte, is shown after @samp{ext}. Here's anexample for a Latin-1 character A with a grave accent in a buffer whosecoding system is iso-2022-7bit@footnote{On terminals that supportLatin-1 characters, the character shown after @samp{Char:} is displayedas the actual glyph of A with grave accent.}:@smallexampleChar: @`A (04300, 2240, 0x8c0, ext ESC , A @@) (latin-iso8859-1 64)@end smallexample@node Arguments@section Numeric Arguments@cindex numeric arguments@cindex prefix arguments@cindex arguments to commands In mathematics and computer usage, the word @dfn{argument} means``data provided to a function or operation.'' You can give any Emacscommand a @dfn{numeric argument} (also called a @dfn{prefix argument}).Some commands interpret the argument as a repetition count. Forexample, @kbd{C-f} with an argument of ten moves forward ten charactersinstead of one. With these commands, no argument is equivalent to anargument of one. Negative arguments tell most such commands to move oract in the opposite direction.@kindex M-1@kindex M-@t{-}@findex digit-argument@findex negative-argument If your terminal keyboard has a @key{META} key, the easiest way tospecify a numeric argument is to type digits and/or a minus sign whileholding down the @key{META} key. For example,@exampleM-5 C-n@end example@noindentwould move down five lines. The characters @kbd{Meta-1}, @kbd{Meta-2},and so on, as well as @kbd{Meta--}, do this because they are keys boundto commands (@code{digit-argument} and @code{negative-argument}) thatare defined to contribute to an argument for the next command.@kbd{Meta--} without digits normally means @minus{}1. Digits and@kbd{-} modified with Control, or Control and Meta, also specify numericarguments.@kindex C-u@findex universal-argument Another way of specifying an argument is to use the @kbd{C-u}(@code{universal-argument}) command followed by the digits of theargument. With @kbd{C-u}, you can type the argument digits withoutholding down modifier keys; @kbd{C-u} works on all terminals. To type anegative argument, type a minus sign after @kbd{C-u}. Just a minus signwithout digits normally means @minus{}1. @kbd{C-u} followed by a character which is neither a digit nor a minussign has the special meaning of ``multiply by four.'' It multiplies theargument for the next command by four. @kbd{C-u} twice multiplies it bysixteen. Thus, @kbd{C-u C-u C-f} moves forward sixteen characters. Thisis a good way to move forward ``fast,'' since it moves about 1/5 of a linein the usual size screen. Other useful combinations are @kbd{C-u C-n},@kbd{C-u C-u C-n} (move down a good fraction of a screen), @kbd{C-u C-uC-o} (make ``a lot'' of blank lines), and @kbd{C-u C-k} (kill fourlines).@refill Some commands care only about whether there is an argument, and not aboutits value. For example, the command @kbd{M-q} (@code{fill-paragraph}) withno argument fills text; with an argument, it justifies the text as well.(@xref{Filling}, for more information on @kbd{M-q}.) Plain @kbd{C-u} is ahandy way of providing an argument for such commands. Some commands use the value of the argument as a repeat count, but dosomething peculiar when there is no argument. For example, the command@kbd{C-k} (@code{kill-line}) with argument @var{n} kills @var{n} lines,including their terminating newlines. But @kbd{C-k} with no argument isspecial: it kills the text up to the next newline, or, if point is right atthe end of the line, it kills the newline itself. Thus, two @kbd{C-k}commands with no arguments can kill a nonblank line, just like @kbd{C-k}with an argument of one. (@xref{Killing}, for more information on@kbd{C-k}.)@refill A few commands treat a plain @kbd{C-u} differently from an ordinaryargument. A few others may treat an argument of just a minus signdifferently from an argument of @minus{}1. These unusual cases aredescribed when they come up; they are always for reasons of convenienceof use of the individual command. You can use a numeric argument to insert multiple copies of acharacter. This is straightforward unless the character is a digit; forexample, @kbd{C-u 6 4 a} inserts 64 copies of the character @samp{a}.But this does not work for inserting digits; @kbd{C-u 6 4 1} specifiesan argument of 641, rather than inserting anything. To separate thedigit to insert from the argument, type another @kbd{C-u}; for example,@kbd{C-u 6 4 C-u 1} does insert 64 copies of the character @samp{1}. We use the term ``prefix argument'' as well as ``numeric argument'' toemphasize that you type the argument before the command, and todistinguish these arguments from minibuffer arguments that come afterthe command.@node Repeating@section Repeating a Command@cindex repeating a command Many simple commands, such as those invoked with a single key orwith @kbd{M-x @var{command-name} @key{RET}}, can be repeated byinvoking them with a numeric argument that serves as a repeat count(@pxref{Arguments}). However, if the command you want to repeatprompts for some input, or uses a numeric argument in another way,repetition using a numeric argument might be problematical.@kindex C-x z@findex repeat The command @kbd{C-x z} (@code{repeat}) provides another way to repeatan Emacs command many times. This command repeats the previous Emacscommand, whatever that was. Repeating a command uses the same argumentsthat were used before; it does not read new arguments each time. To repeat the command more than once, type additional @kbd{z}'s: each@kbd{z} repeats the command one more time. Repetition ends when youtype a character other than @kbd{z}, or press a mouse button. For example, suppose you type @kbd{C-u 2 0 C-d} to delete 20characters. You can repeat that command (including its argument) threeadditional times, to delete a total of 80 characters, by typing @kbd{C-xz z z}. The first @kbd{C-x z} repeats the command once, and eachsubsequent @kbd{z} repeats it once again.