Mercurial > emacs
changeset 84180:5dca7a89aae8
Move to ../doc/emacs/, misc/
author | Glenn Morris <rgm@gnu.org> |
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date | Thu, 06 Sep 2007 04:38:49 +0000 |
parents | 51005891840f |
children | e93c32e7cd52 |
files | man/msdog-xtra.texi |
diffstat | 1 files changed, 0 insertions(+), 687 deletions(-) [+] |
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--- a/man/msdog-xtra.texi Thu Sep 06 04:38:43 2007 +0000 +++ /dev/null Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 +0000 @@ -1,687 +0,0 @@ -@c This is part of the Emacs manual. -@c Copyright (C) 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Free Software Foundation, Inc. -@c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions. -@c -@c This file is included either in emacs-xtra.texi (when producing the -@c printed version) or in the main Emacs manual (for the on-line version). -@node MS-DOS -@section Emacs and MS-DOS -@cindex MS-DOG -@cindex MS-DOS peculiarities - - This section briefly describes the peculiarities of using Emacs on -the MS-DOS ``operating system'' (also known as ``MS-DOG''). -@iftex -Information about Emacs and Microsoft's current operating system -Windows (also known as ``Losedows) is in the main Emacs manual -(@pxref{Microsoft Systems,,, emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -Information about peculiarities common to MS-DOS and Microsoft's -current operating systems Windows (also known as ``Losedows) is in -@ref{Microsoft Windows}. -@end ifnottex - - If you build Emacs for MS-DOS, the binary will also run on Windows -3.X, Windows NT, Windows 9X/ME, Windows 2000/XP, or OS/2 as a DOS -application; all of this chapter applies for all of those systems, if -you use an Emacs that was built for MS-DOS. - -@iftex - @xref{Text and Binary,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}, for information -@end iftex -@ifnottex - @xref{Text and Binary}, for information -@end ifnottex -about Emacs' special handling of text files under MS-DOS (and Windows). - -@menu -* Keyboard: MS-DOS Keyboard. Keyboard conventions on MS-DOS. -* Mouse: MS-DOS Mouse. Mouse conventions on MS-DOS. -* Display: MS-DOS Display. Fonts, frames and display size on MS-DOS. -* Files: MS-DOS File Names. File name conventions on MS-DOS. -* Printing: MS-DOS Printing. Printing specifics on MS-DOS. -* I18N: MS-DOS and MULE. Support for internationalization on MS-DOS. -* Processes: MS-DOS Processes. Running subprocesses on MS-DOS. -@end menu - -@node MS-DOS Keyboard -@subsection Keyboard Usage on MS-DOS - -@kindex DEL @r{(MS-DOS)} -@kindex BS @r{(MS-DOS)} - The key that is called @key{DEL} in Emacs (because that's how it is -designated on most workstations) is known as @key{BS} (backspace) on a -PC. That is why the PC-specific terminal initialization remaps the -@key{BS} key to act as @key{DEL}; the @key{DELETE} key is remapped to act -as @kbd{C-d} for the same reasons. - -@kindex C-g @r{(MS-DOS)} -@kindex C-BREAK @r{(MS-DOS)} -@cindex quitting on MS-DOS - Emacs built for MS-DOS recognizes @kbd{C-@key{BREAK}} as a quit -character, just like @kbd{C-g}. This is because Emacs cannot detect -that you have typed @kbd{C-g} until it is ready for more input. As a -consequence, you cannot use @kbd{C-g} to stop a running command -@iftex -(@pxref{Quitting,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Quitting}). -@end ifnottex -By contrast, @kbd{C-@key{BREAK}} @emph{is} detected as soon as you -type it (as @kbd{C-g} is on other systems), so it can be used to stop -a running command and for emergency escape -@iftex -(@pxref{Emergency Escape,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Emergency Escape}). -@end ifnottex - -@cindex Meta (under MS-DOS) -@cindex Hyper (under MS-DOS) -@cindex Super (under MS-DOS) -@vindex dos-super-key -@vindex dos-hyper-key - The PC keyboard maps use the left @key{ALT} key as the @key{META} key. -You have two choices for emulating the @key{SUPER} and @key{HYPER} keys: -choose either the right @key{CTRL} key or the right @key{ALT} key by -setting the variables @code{dos-hyper-key} and @code{dos-super-key} to 1 -or 2 respectively. If neither @code{dos-super-key} nor -@code{dos-hyper-key} is 1, then by default the right @key{ALT} key is -also mapped to the @key{META} key. However, if the MS-DOS international -keyboard support program @file{KEYB.COM} is installed, Emacs will -@emph{not} map the right @key{ALT} to @key{META}, since it is used for -accessing characters like @kbd{~} and @kbd{@@} on non-US keyboard -layouts; in this case, you may only use the left @key{ALT} as @key{META} -key. - -@kindex C-j @r{(MS-DOS)} -@vindex dos-keypad-mode - The variable @code{dos-keypad-mode} is a flag variable that controls -what key codes are returned by keys in the numeric keypad. You can also -define the keypad @key{ENTER} key to act like @kbd{C-j}, by putting the -following line into your @file{_emacs} file: - -@smallexample -;; @r{Make the @key{ENTER} key from the numeric keypad act as @kbd{C-j}.} -(define-key function-key-map [kp-enter] [?\C-j]) -@end smallexample - -@node MS-DOS Mouse -@subsection Mouse Usage on MS-DOS - -@cindex mouse support under MS-DOS - Emacs on MS-DOS supports a mouse (on the default terminal only). -The mouse commands work as documented, including those that use menus -and the menu bar -@iftex -(@pxref{Menu Bar,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Menu Bar}). -@end ifnottex - Scroll bars don't work in MS-DOS Emacs. PC mice usually have only -two buttons; these act as @kbd{Mouse-1} and @kbd{Mouse-2}, but if you -press both of them together, that has the effect of @kbd{Mouse-3}. If -the mouse does have 3 buttons, Emacs detects that at startup, and all -the 3 buttons function normally, as on X. - - Help strings for menu-bar and pop-up menus are displayed in the echo -area when the mouse pointer moves across the menu items. Highlighting -of mouse-sensitive text -@iftex -(@pxref{Mouse References,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Mouse References}) -@end ifnottex -is also supported. - -@cindex mouse, set number of buttons -@findex msdos-set-mouse-buttons - Some versions of mouse drivers don't report the number of mouse -buttons correctly. For example, mice with a wheel report that they -have 3 buttons, but only 2 of them are passed to Emacs; the clicks on -the wheel, which serves as the middle button, are not passed. In -these cases, you can use the @kbd{M-x msdos-set-mouse-buttons} command -to tell Emacs how many mouse buttons to expect. You could make such a -setting permanent by adding this fragment to your @file{_emacs} init -file: - -@example -;; @r{Treat the mouse like a 2-button mouse.} -(msdos-set-mouse-buttons 2) -@end example - -@cindex Windows clipboard support - Emacs built for MS-DOS supports clipboard operations when it runs on -Windows. Commands that put text on the kill ring, or yank text from -the ring, check the Windows clipboard first, just as Emacs does on the -X Window System -@iftex -(@pxref{Mouse Commands,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Mouse Commands}). -@end ifnottex -Only the primary selection and the cut buffer are supported by MS-DOS -Emacs on Windows; the secondary selection always appears as empty. - - Due to the way clipboard access is implemented by Windows, the -length of text you can put into the clipboard is limited by the amount -of free DOS memory that is available to Emacs. Usually, up to 620KB of -text can be put into the clipboard, but this limit depends on the system -configuration and is lower if you run Emacs as a subprocess of -another program. If the killed text does not fit, Emacs outputs a -message saying so, and does not put the text into the clipboard. - - Null characters also cannot be put into the Windows clipboard. If the -killed text includes null characters, Emacs does not put such text into -the clipboard, and displays in the echo area a message to that effect. - -@vindex dos-display-scancodes - The variable @code{dos-display-scancodes}, when non-@code{nil}, -directs Emacs to display the @acronym{ASCII} value and the keyboard scan code of -each keystroke; this feature serves as a complement to the -@code{view-lossage} command, for debugging. - -@node MS-DOS Display -@subsection Display on MS-DOS -@cindex faces under MS-DOS -@cindex fonts, emulating under MS-DOS - - Display on MS-DOS cannot use font variants, like bold or italic, but -it does support multiple faces, each of which can specify a foreground -and a background color. Therefore, you can get the full functionality -of Emacs packages that use fonts (such as @code{font-lock}, Enriched -Text mode, and others) by defining the relevant faces to use different -colors. Use the @code{list-colors-display} command -@iftex -(@pxref{Frame Parameters,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Frame Parameters}) -@end ifnottex -and the @code{list-faces-display} command -@iftex -(@pxref{Faces,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Faces}) -@end ifnottex -to see what colors and faces are available and what they look like. - - @xref{MS-DOS and MULE}, later in this chapter, for information on -how Emacs displays glyphs and characters that aren't supported by the -native font built into the DOS display. - -@cindex cursor shape on MS-DOS - When Emacs starts, it changes the cursor shape to a solid box. This -is for compatibility with other systems, where the box cursor is the -default in Emacs. This default shape can be changed to a bar by -specifying the @code{cursor-type} parameter in the variable -@code{default-frame-alist} -@iftex -(@pxref{Creating Frames,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Creating Frames}). -@end ifnottex -The MS-DOS terminal doesn't support a vertical-bar cursor, -so the bar cursor is horizontal, and the @code{@var{width}} parameter, -if specified by the frame parameters, actually determines its height. -For this reason, the @code{bar} and @code{hbar} cursor types produce -the same effect on MS-DOS. As an extension, the bar cursor -specification can include the starting scan line of the cursor as well -as its width, like this: - -@example - '(cursor-type bar @var{width} . @var{start}) -@end example - -@noindent -In addition, if the @var{width} parameter is negative, the cursor bar -begins at the top of the character cell. - -@cindex frames on MS-DOS - The MS-DOS terminal can only display a single frame at a time. The -Emacs frame facilities work on MS-DOS much as they do on text-only -terminals -@iftex -(@pxref{Frames,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Frames}). -@end ifnottex -When you run Emacs from a DOS window on MS-Windows, you can make the -visible frame smaller than the full screen, but Emacs still cannot -display more than a single frame at a time. - -@cindex frame size under MS-DOS -@findex mode4350 -@findex mode25 - The @code{mode4350} command switches the display to 43 or 50 -lines, depending on your hardware; the @code{mode25} command switches -to the default 80x25 screen size. - - By default, Emacs only knows how to set screen sizes of 80 columns by -25, 28, 35, 40, 43 or 50 rows. However, if your video adapter has -special video modes that will switch the display to other sizes, you can -have Emacs support those too. When you ask Emacs to switch the frame to -@var{n} rows by @var{m} columns dimensions, it checks if there is a -variable called @code{screen-dimensions-@var{n}x@var{m}}, and if so, -uses its value (which must be an integer) as the video mode to switch -to. (Emacs switches to that video mode by calling the BIOS @code{Set -Video Mode} function with the value of -@code{screen-dimensions-@var{n}x@var{m}} in the @code{AL} register.) -For example, suppose your adapter will switch to 66x80 dimensions when -put into video mode 85. Then you can make Emacs support this screen -size by putting the following into your @file{_emacs} file: - -@example -(setq screen-dimensions-66x80 85) -@end example - - Since Emacs on MS-DOS can only set the frame size to specific -supported dimensions, it cannot honor every possible frame resizing -request. When an unsupported size is requested, Emacs chooses the next -larger supported size beyond the specified size. For example, if you -ask for 36x80 frame, you will get 40x80 instead. - - The variables @code{screen-dimensions-@var{n}x@var{m}} are used only -when they exactly match the specified size; the search for the next -larger supported size ignores them. In the above example, even if your -VGA supports 38x80 dimensions and you define a variable -@code{screen-dimensions-38x80} with a suitable value, you will still get -40x80 screen when you ask for a 36x80 frame. If you want to get the -38x80 size in this case, you can do it by setting the variable named -@code{screen-dimensions-36x80} with the same video mode value as -@code{screen-dimensions-38x80}. - - Changing frame dimensions on MS-DOS has the effect of changing all the -other frames to the new dimensions. - -@node MS-DOS File Names -@subsection File Names on MS-DOS -@cindex file names under MS-DOS -@cindex init file, default name under MS-DOS - - On MS-DOS, file names are case-insensitive and limited to eight -characters, plus optionally a period and three more characters. Emacs -knows enough about these limitations to handle file names that were -meant for other operating systems. For instance, leading dots -@samp{.} in file names are invalid in MS-DOS, so Emacs transparently -converts them to underscores @samp{_}; thus your default init file -@iftex -(@pxref{Init File,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Init File}) -@end ifnottex -is called @file{_emacs} on MS-DOS. Excess characters before or after -the period are generally ignored by MS-DOS itself; thus, if you visit -the file @file{LongFileName.EvenLongerExtension}, you will silently -get @file{longfile.eve}, but Emacs will still display the long file -name on the mode line. Other than that, it's up to you to specify -file names which are valid under MS-DOS; the transparent conversion as -described above only works on file names built into Emacs. - -@cindex backup file names on MS-DOS - The above restrictions on the file names on MS-DOS make it almost -impossible to construct the name of a backup file -@iftex -(@pxref{Backup Names,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Backup Names}) -@end ifnottex -without losing some of the original file name characters. For -example, the name of a backup file for @file{docs.txt} is -@file{docs.tx~} even if single backup is used. - -@cindex file names under Windows 95/NT -@cindex long file names in DOS box under Windows 95/NT - If you run Emacs as a DOS application under Windows 9X, Windows ME, or -Windows 2000/XP, you can turn on support for long file names. If you do -that, Emacs doesn't truncate file names or convert them to lower case; -instead, it uses the file names that you specify, verbatim. To enable -long file name support, set the environment variable @env{LFN} to -@samp{y} before starting Emacs. Unfortunately, Windows NT doesn't allow -DOS programs to access long file names, so Emacs built for MS-DOS will -only see their short 8+3 aliases. - -@cindex @env{HOME} directory under MS-DOS - MS-DOS has no notion of home directory, so Emacs on MS-DOS pretends -that the directory where it is installed is the value of the @env{HOME} -environment variable. That is, if your Emacs binary, -@file{emacs.exe}, is in the directory @file{c:/utils/emacs/bin}, then -Emacs acts as if @env{HOME} were set to @samp{c:/utils/emacs}. In -particular, that is where Emacs looks for the init file @file{_emacs}. -With this in mind, you can use @samp{~} in file names as an alias for -the home directory, as you would on GNU or Unix. You can also set -@env{HOME} variable in the environment before starting Emacs; its -value will then override the above default behavior. - - Emacs on MS-DOS handles the directory name @file{/dev} specially, -because of a feature in the emulator libraries of DJGPP that pretends -I/O devices have names in that directory. We recommend that you avoid -using an actual directory named @file{/dev} on any disk. - -@node MS-DOS Printing -@subsection Printing and MS-DOS - - Printing commands, such as @code{lpr-buffer} -@iftex -(@pxref{Printing,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) and @code{ps-print-buffer} -(@pxref{PostScript,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Printing}) and @code{ps-print-buffer} (@pxref{PostScript}) -@end ifnottex -can work on MS-DOS by sending the output to one of the printer ports, -if a Posix-style @code{lpr} program is unavailable. The same Emacs -variables control printing on all systems, but in some cases they have -different default values on MS-DOS. - -@iftex -@xref{Windows Printing,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}, -@end iftex -@ifnottex -@xref{Windows Printing}, -@end ifnottex -for details about setting up printing to a networked printer. - - Some printers expect DOS codepage encoding of non-@acronym{ASCII} text, even -though they are connected to a Windows machine which uses a different -encoding for the same locale. For example, in the Latin-1 locale, DOS -uses codepage 850 whereas Windows uses codepage 1252. @xref{MS-DOS and -MULE}. When you print to such printers from Windows, you can use the -@kbd{C-x RET c} (@code{universal-coding-system-argument}) command before -@kbd{M-x lpr-buffer}; Emacs will then convert the text to the DOS -codepage that you specify. For example, @kbd{C-x RET c cp850-dos RET -M-x lpr-region RET} will print the region while converting it to the -codepage 850 encoding. You may need to create the @code{cp@var{nnn}} -coding system with @kbd{M-x codepage-setup}. - -@vindex dos-printer -@vindex dos-ps-printer - For backwards compatibility, the value of @code{dos-printer} -(@code{dos-ps-printer}), if it has a value, overrides the value of -@code{printer-name} (@code{ps-printer-name}), on MS-DOS. - - -@node MS-DOS and MULE -@subsection International Support on MS-DOS -@cindex international support @r{(MS-DOS)} - - Emacs on MS-DOS supports the same international character sets as it -does on GNU, Unix and other platforms -@iftex -(@pxref{International,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}), -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{International}), -@end ifnottex -including coding systems for converting between the different -character sets. However, due to incompatibilities between -MS-DOS/MS-Windows and other systems, there are several DOS-specific -aspects of this support that you should be aware of. This section -describes these aspects. - - The description below is largely specific to the MS-DOS port of -Emacs, especially where it talks about practical implications for -Emacs users. For other operating systems, see the @file{code-pages.el} -package, which implements support for MS-DOS- and MS-Windows-specific -encodings for all platforms other than MS-DOS. - -@table @kbd -@item M-x dos-codepage-setup -Set up Emacs display and coding systems as appropriate for the current -DOS codepage. - -@item M-x codepage-setup -Create a coding system for a certain DOS codepage. -@end table - -@cindex codepage, MS-DOS -@cindex DOS codepages - MS-DOS is designed to support one character set of 256 characters at -any given time, but gives you a variety of character sets to choose -from. The alternative character sets are known as @dfn{DOS codepages}. -Each codepage includes all 128 @acronym{ASCII} characters, but the other 128 -characters (codes 128 through 255) vary from one codepage to another. -Each DOS codepage is identified by a 3-digit number, such as 850, 862, -etc. - - In contrast to X, which lets you use several fonts at the same time, -MS-DOS normally doesn't allow use of several codepages in a single -session. MS-DOS was designed to load a single codepage at system -startup, and require you to reboot in order to change -it@footnote{Normally, one particular codepage is burnt into the -display memory, while other codepages can be installed by modifying -system configuration files, such as @file{CONFIG.SYS}, and rebooting. -While there is third-party software that allows changing the codepage -without rebooting, we describe here how a stock MS-DOS system -behaves.}. Much the same limitation applies when you run DOS -executables on other systems such as MS-Windows. - -@cindex unibyte operation @r{(MS-DOS)} - If you invoke Emacs on MS-DOS with the @samp{--unibyte} option -@iftex -(@pxref{Initial Options,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}), -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Initial Options}), -@end ifnottex -Emacs does not perform any conversion of non-@acronym{ASCII} -characters. Instead, it reads and writes any non-@acronym{ASCII} -characters verbatim, and sends their 8-bit codes to the display -verbatim. Thus, unibyte Emacs on MS-DOS supports the current -codepage, whatever it may be, but cannot even represent any other -characters. - -@vindex dos-codepage - For multibyte operation on MS-DOS, Emacs needs to know which -characters the chosen DOS codepage can display. So it queries the -system shortly after startup to get the chosen codepage number, and -stores the number in the variable @code{dos-codepage}. Some systems -return the default value 437 for the current codepage, even though the -actual codepage is different. (This typically happens when you use the -codepage built into the display hardware.) You can specify a different -codepage for Emacs to use by setting the variable @code{dos-codepage} in -your init file. - -@cindex language environment, automatic selection on @r{MS-DOS} - Multibyte Emacs supports only certain DOS codepages: those which can -display Far-Eastern scripts, like the Japanese codepage 932, and those -that encode a single ISO 8859 character set. - - The Far-Eastern codepages can directly display one of the MULE -character sets for these countries, so Emacs simply sets up to use the -appropriate terminal coding system that is supported by the codepage. -The special features described in the rest of this section mostly -pertain to codepages that encode ISO 8859 character sets. - - For the codepages which correspond to one of the ISO character sets, -Emacs knows the character set name based on the codepage number. Emacs -automatically creates a coding system to support reading and writing -files that use the current codepage, and uses this coding system by -default. The name of this coding system is @code{cp@var{nnn}}, where -@var{nnn} is the codepage number.@footnote{The standard Emacs coding -systems for ISO 8859 are not quite right for the purpose, because -typically the DOS codepage does not match the standard ISO character -codes. For example, the letter @samp{@,{c}} (@samp{c} with cedilla) has -code 231 in the standard Latin-1 character set, but the corresponding -DOS codepage 850 uses code 135 for this glyph.} - -@cindex mode line @r{(MS-DOS)} - All the @code{cp@var{nnn}} coding systems use the letter @samp{D} -(for ``DOS'') as their mode-line mnemonic. Since both the terminal -coding system and the default coding system for file I/O are set to -the proper @code{cp@var{nnn}} coding system at startup, it is normal -for the mode line on MS-DOS to begin with @samp{-DD\-}. -@iftex -@xref{Mode Line,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}. -@end iftex -@ifnottex -@xref{Mode Line}. -@end ifnottex -Far-Eastern DOS terminals do not use the @code{cp@var{nnn}} coding -systems, and thus their initial mode line looks like the Emacs -default. - - Since the codepage number also indicates which script you are using, -Emacs automatically runs @code{set-language-environment} to select the -language environment for that script -@iftex -(@pxref{Language Environments,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Language Environments}). -@end ifnottex - - If a buffer contains a character belonging to some other ISO 8859 -character set, not the one that the chosen DOS codepage supports, Emacs -displays it using a sequence of @acronym{ASCII} characters. For example, if the -current codepage doesn't have a glyph for the letter @samp{@`o} (small -@samp{o} with a grave accent), it is displayed as @samp{@{`o@}}, where -the braces serve as a visual indication that this is a single character. -(This may look awkward for some non-Latin characters, such as those from -Greek or Hebrew alphabets, but it is still readable by a person who -knows the language.) Even though the character may occupy several -columns on the screen, it is really still just a single character, and -all Emacs commands treat it as one. - -@cindex IBM graphics characters (MS-DOS) -@cindex box-drawing characters (MS-DOS) -@cindex line-drawing characters (MS-DOS) - Not all characters in DOS codepages correspond to ISO 8859 -characters---some are used for other purposes, such as box-drawing -characters and other graphics. Emacs maps these characters to two -special character sets called @code{eight-bit-control} and -@code{eight-bit-graphic}, and displays them as their IBM glyphs. -However, you should be aware that other systems might display these -characters differently, so you should avoid them in text that might be -copied to a different operating system, or even to another DOS machine -that uses a different codepage. - -@vindex dos-unsupported-character-glyph - Emacs supports many other characters sets aside from ISO 8859, but it -cannot display them on MS-DOS. So if one of these multibyte characters -appears in a buffer, Emacs on MS-DOS displays them as specified by the -@code{dos-unsupported-character-glyph} variable; by default, this glyph -is an empty triangle. Use the @kbd{C-u C-x =} command to display the -actual code and character set of such characters. -@iftex -@xref{Position Info,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}. -@end iftex -@ifnottex -@xref{Position Info}. -@end ifnottex - -@findex codepage-setup - By default, Emacs defines a coding system to support the current -codepage. To define a coding system for some other codepage (e.g., to -visit a file written on a DOS machine in another country), use the -@kbd{M-x codepage-setup} command. It prompts for the 3-digit code of -the codepage, with completion, then creates the coding system for the -specified codepage. You can then use the new coding system to read and -write files, but you must specify it explicitly for the file command -when you want to use it -@iftex -(@pxref{Text Coding,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}). -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Text Coding}). -@end ifnottex - - These coding systems are also useful for visiting a file encoded using -a DOS codepage, using Emacs running on some other operating system. - -@cindex MS-Windows codepages - MS-Windows provides its own codepages, which are different from the -DOS codepages for the same locale. For example, DOS codepage 850 -supports the same character set as Windows codepage 1252; DOS codepage -855 supports the same character set as Windows codepage 1251, etc. -The MS-Windows version of Emacs uses the current codepage for display -when invoked with the @samp{-nw} option. Support for codepages in the -Windows port of Emacs is part of the @file{code-pages.el} package. - -@node MS-DOS Processes -@subsection Subprocesses on MS-DOS - -@cindex compilation under MS-DOS -@cindex inferior processes under MS-DOS -@findex compile @r{(MS-DOS)} -@findex grep @r{(MS-DOS)} - Because MS-DOS is a single-process ``operating system,'' -asynchronous subprocesses are not available. In particular, Shell -mode and its variants do not work. Most Emacs features that use -asynchronous subprocesses also don't work on MS-DOS, including -Shell mode and GUD. When in doubt, try and see; commands that -don't work output an error message saying that asynchronous processes -aren't supported. - - Compilation under Emacs with @kbd{M-x compile}, searching files with -@kbd{M-x grep} and displaying differences between files with @kbd{M-x -diff} do work, by running the inferior processes synchronously. This -means you cannot do any more editing until the inferior process -finishes. - - Spell checking also works, by means of special support for synchronous -invocation of the @code{ispell} program. This is slower than the -asynchronous invocation on other platforms - - Instead of the Shell mode, which doesn't work on MS-DOS, you can use -the @kbd{M-x eshell} command. This invokes the Eshell package that -implements a Posix-like shell entirely in Emacs Lisp. - - By contrast, Emacs compiled as a native Windows application -@strong{does} support asynchronous subprocesses. -@iftex -@xref{Windows Processes,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}. -@end iftex -@ifnottex -@xref{Windows Processes}. -@end ifnottex - -@cindex printing under MS-DOS - Printing commands, such as @code{lpr-buffer} -@iftex -(@pxref{Printing,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}) and -@code{ps-print-buffer} (@pxref{PostScript,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}), -work in MS-DOS by sending the output to one of the printer ports. -@xref{MS-DOS Printing,,,emacs, the Emacs Manual}. -@end iftex -@ifnottex -(@pxref{Printing}) and @code{ps-print-buffer} (@pxref{PostScript}), -work in MS-DOS by sending the output to one of the printer ports. -@xref{MS-DOS Printing}. -@end ifnottex - - When you run a subprocess synchronously on MS-DOS, make sure the -program terminates and does not try to read keyboard input. If the -program does not terminate on its own, you will be unable to terminate -it, because MS-DOS provides no general way to terminate a process. -Pressing @kbd{C-c} or @kbd{C-@key{BREAK}} might sometimes help in these -cases. - - Accessing files on other machines is not supported on MS-DOS. Other -network-oriented commands such as sending mail, Web browsing, remote -login, etc., don't work either, unless network access is built into -MS-DOS with some network redirector. - -@cindex directory listing on MS-DOS -@vindex dired-listing-switches @r{(MS-DOS)} - Dired on MS-DOS uses the @code{ls-lisp} package where other -platforms use the system @code{ls} command. Therefore, Dired on -MS-DOS supports only some of the possible options you can mention in -the @code{dired-listing-switches} variable. The options that work are -@samp{-A}, @samp{-a}, @samp{-c}, @samp{-i}, @samp{-r}, @samp{-S}, -@samp{-s}, @samp{-t}, and @samp{-u}. - -@ignore - arch-tag: 868d50ff-07f8-4a13-a807-dab6f1cdb431 -@end ignore