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author | Juri Linkov <juri@jurta.org> |
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date | Tue, 25 Oct 2005 16:15:55 +0000 |
parents | 3723093a21fd |
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@c This is part of the Emacs manual. @c Copyright (C) 1985, 1986, 1987, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2002, @c 2003, 2004, 2005 Free Software Foundation, Inc. @c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions. @node Mark, Killing, Help, Top @chapter The Mark and the Region @cindex mark @cindex setting a mark @cindex region Many Emacs commands operate on an arbitrary contiguous part of the current buffer. To specify the text for such a command to operate on, you set @dfn{the mark} at one end of it, and move point to the other end. The text between point and the mark is called @dfn{the region}. Emacs highlights the region whenever there is one, if you enable Transient Mark mode (@pxref{Transient Mark}). Certain Emacs commands set the mark; other editing commands do not affect it, so the mark remains where you set it last. Each Emacs buffer has its own mark, and setting the mark in one buffer has no effect on other buffers' marks. When you return to a buffer that was current earlier, its mark is at the same place as before. The ends of the region are always point and the mark. It doesn't matter which of them was put in its current place first, or which one comes earlier in the text---the region starts from point or the mark (whichever comes first), and ends at point or the mark (whichever comes last). Every time you move point, or set the mark in a new place, the region changes. Many commands that insert text, such as @kbd{C-y} (@code{yank}) and @kbd{M-x insert-buffer}, position point and the mark at opposite ends of the inserted text, so that the region consists of the text just inserted. Aside from delimiting the region, the mark is also useful for remembering a spot that you may want to go back to. To make this feature more useful, each buffer remembers 16 previous locations of the mark in the @dfn{mark ring}. @menu * Setting Mark:: Commands to set the mark. * Transient Mark:: How to make Emacs highlight the region-- when there is one. * Momentary Mark:: Enabling Transient Mark mode momentarily. * Using Region:: Summary of ways to operate on contents of the region. * Marking Objects:: Commands to put region around textual units. * Mark Ring:: Previous mark positions saved so you can go back there. * Global Mark Ring:: Previous mark positions in various buffers. @end menu @node Setting Mark @section Setting the Mark Here are some commands for setting the mark: @table @kbd @item C-@key{SPC} Set the mark where point is (@code{set-mark-command}). @item C-@@ The same. @item C-x C-x Interchange mark and point (@code{exchange-point-and-mark}). @item Drag-Mouse-1 Set point and the mark around the text you drag across. @item Mouse-3 Set the mark where point is, then move point to where you click (@code{mouse-save-then-kill}). @end table For example, suppose you wish to convert part of the buffer to upper case, using the @kbd{C-x C-u} (@code{upcase-region}) command, which operates on the text in the region. You can first go to the beginning of the text to be capitalized, type @kbd{C-@key{SPC}} to put the mark there, move to the end, and then type @kbd{C-x C-u}. Or, you can set the mark at the end of the text, move to the beginning, and then type @kbd{C-x C-u}. @kindex C-SPC @findex set-mark-command The most common way to set the mark is with the @kbd{C-@key{SPC}} command (@code{set-mark-command}). This sets the mark where point is. Then you can move point away, leaving the mark behind. There are two ways to set the mark with the mouse. You can drag mouse button one across a range of text; that puts point where you release the mouse button, and sets the mark at the other end of that range. Or you can click mouse button three, which sets the mark at point (like @kbd{C-@key{SPC}}) and then moves point where you clicked (like @kbd{Mouse-1}). Both of these methods copy the region into the kill ring in addition to setting the mark; that gives behavior consistent with other window-driven applications, but if you don't want to modify the kill ring, you must use keyboard commands to set the mark. @xref{Mouse Commands}. @kindex C-x C-x @findex exchange-point-and-mark When Emacs was developed, terminals had only one cursor, so Emacs does not show where the mark is located--you have to remember. If you enable Transient Mark mode (see below), then the region is highlighted when it is active; you can tell mark is at the other end of the highlighted region. But this only applies when the mark is active. The usual solution to this problem is to set the mark and then use it soon, before you forget where it is. Alternatively, you can see where the mark is with the command @kbd{C-x C-x} (@code{exchange-point-and-mark}) which puts the mark where point was and point where the mark was. The extent of the region is unchanged, but the cursor and point are now at the previous position of the mark. In Transient Mark mode, this command also reactivates the mark. @kbd{C-x C-x} is also useful when you are satisfied with the position of point but want to move the other end of the region (where the mark is); do @kbd{C-x C-x} to put point at that end of the region, and then move it. Using @kbd{C-x C-x} a second time, if necessary, puts the mark at the new position with point back at its original position. For more facilities that allow you to go to previously set marks, see @ref{Mark Ring}. @kindex C-@@ There is no such character as @kbd{C-@key{SPC}} in @acronym{ASCII}; when you type @key{SPC} while holding down @key{CTRL} on a text terminal, what you get is the character @kbd{C-@@}. This key is also bound to @code{set-mark-command}--so unless you are unlucky enough to have a text terminal where typing @kbd{C-@key{SPC}} does not produce @kbd{C-@@}, you might as well think of this character as @kbd{C-@key{SPC}}. @node Transient Mark @section Transient Mark Mode @cindex mode, Transient Mark @cindex Transient Mark mode @cindex highlighting region @cindex region highlighting On a terminal that supports colors, Emacs has the ability to highlight the current region. But normally it does not. Why not? Once you have set the mark in a buffer, there is @emph{always} a region in that buffer. This is because every command that sets the mark also activates it, and nothing ever deactivates it. Highlighting the region all the time would be a nuisance. So normally Emacs highlights the region only immediately after you have selected one with the mouse. If you want region highlighting, you can use Transient Mark mode. This is a more rigid mode of operation in which the region always ``lasts'' only until you use it; you explicitly must set up a region for each command that uses one. In Transient Mark mode, most of the time there is no region; therefore, highlighting the region when it exists is useful and not annoying. When Transient Mark mode is enabled, Emacs always highlights the region whenever there is a region. @findex transient-mark-mode To enable Transient Mark mode, type @kbd{M-x transient-mark-mode}. This command toggles the mode; you can use the same command to turn the mode off again. Here are the details of Transient Mark mode: @itemize @bullet @item To set the mark, type @kbd{C-@key{SPC}} (@code{set-mark-command}). This makes the mark active and thus begins highlighting of the region. As you move point, you will see the highlighted region grow and shrink. @item The mouse commands for specifying the mark also make it active. So do keyboard commands whose purpose is to specify a region, including @kbd{M-@@}, @kbd{C-M-@@}, @kbd{M-h}, @kbd{C-M-h}, @kbd{C-x C-p}, and @kbd{C-x h}. @item You can tell that the mark is active because the region is highlighted. @item When the mark is active, you can execute commands that operate on the region, such as killing, indenting, or writing to a file. @item Any change to the buffer, such as inserting or deleting a character, deactivates the mark. This means any subsequent command that operates on a region will get an error and refuse to operate. You can make the region active again by typing @kbd{C-x C-x}. @item If Delete Selection mode is also enabled, some commands delete the region when used while the mark is active. @xref{Graphical Kill}. @item Quitting with @kbd{C-g} deactivates the mark. @item Commands like @kbd{M->} and @kbd{C-s}, that ``leave the mark behind'' in addition to some other primary purpose, do not activate the new mark. You can activate the new region by executing @kbd{C-x C-x} (@code{exchange-point-and-mark}). @item Commands that normally set the mark before moving long distances (like @kbd{M-<} and @kbd{C-s}) do not alter the mark in Transient Mark mode when the mark is active. @item Some commands operate on the region if a region is active. For instance, @kbd{C-x u} in Transient Mark mode operates on the region, when there is a region. (Outside Transient Mark mode, you must type @kbd{C-u C-x u} if you want it to operate on the region.) @xref{Undo}. Other commands that act this way are identified in their own documentation. @end itemize The highlighting of the region uses the @code{region} face; you can customize the appearance of the highlighted region by changing this face. @xref{Face Customization}. @vindex highlight-nonselected-windows When multiple windows show the same buffer, they can have different regions, because they can have different values of point (though they all share one common mark position). Ordinarily, only the selected window highlights its region (@pxref{Windows}). However, if the variable @code{highlight-nonselected-windows} is non-@code{nil}, then each window highlights its own region (provided that Transient Mark mode is enabled and the mark in the window's buffer is active). @vindex mark-even-if-inactive If the variable @code{mark-even-if-inactive} is non-@code{nil} in Transient Mark mode, then commands can use the mark and the region even when it is inactive. Region highlighting appears and disappears just as it normally does in Transient Mark mode, but the mark doesn't really go away when the highlighting disappears, so you can still use region commands. @cindex Zmacs mode Transient Mark mode is also sometimes known as ``Zmacs mode'' because the Zmacs editor on the MIT Lisp Machine handled the mark in a similar way. @node Momentary Mark @section Using Transient Mark Mode Momentarily If you don't like Transient Mark mode in general, you might still want to use it once in a while. To do this, type @kbd{C-@key{SPC} C-@key{SPC}} or @kbd{C-u C-x C-x}. These commands set or activate the mark, and enable Transient Mark mode only until the mark is deactivated. @table @kbd @item C-@key{SPC} C-@key{SPC} @kindex C-@key{SPC} C-@key{SPC} Set the mark at point (like plain @kbd{C-@key{SPC}}), and enable Transient Mark mode just once until the mark is deactivated. (This is not really a separate command; you are using the @kbd{C-@key{SPC}} command twice.) @item C-u C-x C-x @kindex C-u C-x C-x Activate the mark without changing it; enable Transient Mark mode just once, until the mark is deactivated. (This is the @kbd{C-x C-x} command, @code{exchange-point-and-mark}, with a prefix argument.) @end table One of the secondary features of Transient Mark mode is that certain commands operate only on the region, when there is an active region. If you don't use Transient Mark mode, the region once set never becomes inactive, so there is no way for these commands to make such a distinction. Enabling Transient Mark mode momentarily gives you a way to use these commands on the region. Momentary use of Transient Mark mode is also a way to highlight the region for the time being. @node Using Region @section Operating on the Region @cindex operations on a marked region Once you have a region and the mark is active, here are some of the ways you can operate on the region: @itemize @bullet @item Kill it with @kbd{C-w} (@pxref{Killing}). @item Save it in a register with @kbd{C-x r s} (@pxref{Registers}). @item Save it in a buffer or a file (@pxref{Accumulating Text}). @item Convert case with @kbd{C-x C-l} or @kbd{C-x C-u} (@pxref{Case}). @item Indent it with @kbd{C-x @key{TAB}} or @kbd{C-M-\} (@pxref{Indentation}). @item Fill it as text with @kbd{M-x fill-region} (@pxref{Filling}). @item Print hardcopy with @kbd{M-x print-region} (@pxref{Printing}). @item Evaluate it as Lisp code with @kbd{M-x eval-region} (@pxref{Lisp Eval}). @end itemize Most commands that operate on the text in the region have the word @code{region} in their names. @node Marking Objects @section Commands to Mark Textual Objects @cindex marking sections of text Here are the commands for placing point and the mark around a textual object such as a word, list, paragraph or page. @table @kbd @item M-@@ Set mark after end of next word (@code{mark-word}). This command and the following one do not move point. @item C-M-@@ Set mark after end of following balanced expression (@code{mark-sexp}). @item M-h Put region around current paragraph (@code{mark-paragraph}). @item C-M-h Put region around current defun (@code{mark-defun}). @item C-x h Put region around the entire buffer (@code{mark-whole-buffer}). @item C-x C-p Put region around current page (@code{mark-page}). @end table @kbd{M-@@} (@code{mark-word}) puts the mark at the end of the next word, while @kbd{C-M-@@} (@code{mark-sexp}) puts it at the end of the next balanced expression (@pxref{Expressions}). These commands handle arguments just like @kbd{M-f} and @kbd{C-M-f}. If you repeat these commands, that extends the region. For example, you can type either @kbd{C-u 2 M-@@} or @kbd{M-@@ M-@@} to mark the next two words. This command also extends the region when the mark is active in Transient Mark mode, regardless of the last command. @kindex C-x h @findex mark-whole-buffer Other commands set both point and mark, to delimit an object in the buffer. For example, @kbd{M-h} (@code{mark-paragraph}) moves point to the beginning of the paragraph that surrounds or follows point, and puts the mark at the end of that paragraph (@pxref{Paragraphs}). It prepares the region so you can indent, case-convert, or kill a whole paragraph. With prefix argument, if the argument's value is positive, @kbd{M-h} marks that many paragraphs starting with the one surrounding point. If the prefix argument is @minus{}@var{n}, @kbd{M-h} also marks @var{n} paragraphs, running back form the one surrounding point. In that last case, point moves forward to the end of that paragraph, and the mark goes at the start of the region. Repeating the @kbd{M-h} command extends the region, just as with @kbd{M-@@} and @kbd{C-M-@@}. @kbd{C-M-h} (@code{mark-defun}) similarly puts point before, and the mark after, the current (or following) major top-level definition, or defun (@pxref{Moving by Defuns}). Repeating @kbd{C-M-h} also extends the region. @kbd{C-x C-p} (@code{mark-page}) puts point before the current page, and mark at the end (@pxref{Pages}). The mark goes after the terminating page delimiter (to include it in the region), while point goes after the preceding page delimiter (to exclude it). A numeric argument specifies a later page (if positive) or an earlier page (if negative) instead of the current page. Finally, @kbd{C-x h} (@code{mark-whole-buffer}) sets up the entire buffer as the region, by putting point at the beginning and the mark at the end. In Transient Mark mode, all of these commands activate the mark. @node Mark Ring @section The Mark Ring @kindex C-u C-SPC @cindex mark ring @kindex C-u C-@@ Aside from delimiting the region, the mark is also useful for remembering a spot that you may want to go back to. To make this feature more useful, each buffer remembers 16 previous locations of the mark, in the @dfn{mark ring}. Commands that set the mark also push the old mark onto this ring. To return to a marked location, use @kbd{C-u C-@key{SPC}} (or @kbd{C-u C-@@}); this is the command @code{set-mark-command} given a numeric argument. It moves point to where the mark was, and restores the mark from the ring of former marks. If you repeat the character @kbd{C-@key{SPC}}, after typing @kbd{C-u C-@key{SPC}}, each repetition moves point to a previous mark position from the ring. The mark positions you move through in this way are not lost; they go to the end of the ring. Each buffer has its own mark ring. All editing commands use the current buffer's mark ring. In particular, @kbd{C-u C-@key{SPC}} always stays in the same buffer. Many commands that can move long distances, such as @kbd{M-<} (@code{beginning-of-buffer}), start by setting the mark and saving the old mark on the mark ring. This is to make it easier for you to move back later. Searches set the mark if they move point. However, in Transient Mark mode, these commands do not set the mark when the mark is already active. You can tell when a command sets the mark because it displays @samp{Mark set} in the echo area. If you want to move back to the same place over and over, the mark ring may not be convenient enough. If so, you can record the position in a register for later retrieval (@pxref{RegPos,, Saving Positions in Registers}). @vindex mark-ring-max The variable @code{mark-ring-max} specifies the maximum number of entries to keep in the mark ring. If that many entries exist and another one is pushed, the earliest one in the list is discarded. Repeating @kbd{C-u C-@key{SPC}} cycles through the positions currently in the ring. @vindex mark-ring The variable @code{mark-ring} holds the mark ring itself, as a list of marker objects, with the most recent first. This variable is local in every buffer. @node Global Mark Ring @section The Global Mark Ring @cindex global mark ring In addition to the ordinary mark ring that belongs to each buffer, Emacs has a single @dfn{global mark ring}. It records a sequence of buffers in which you have recently set the mark, so you can go back to those buffers. Setting the mark always makes an entry on the current buffer's mark ring. If you have switched buffers since the previous mark setting, the new mark position makes an entry on the global mark ring also. The result is that the global mark ring records a sequence of buffers that you have been in, and, for each buffer, a place where you set the mark. @kindex C-x C-@key{SPC} @findex pop-global-mark The command @kbd{C-x C-@key{SPC}} (@code{pop-global-mark}) jumps to the buffer and position of the latest entry in the global ring. It also rotates the ring, so that successive uses of @kbd{C-x C-@key{SPC}} take you to earlier and earlier buffers. @ignore arch-tag: f35e4d82-911b-4cfc-a3d7-3c87b2abba20 @end ignore