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1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
2 @c %**start of header
3 @setfilename elisp
4 @settitle GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual
5 @c %**end of header
6
7 @c Version of the manual and of Emacs.
8 @c Please remember to update the edition number in README as well.
9 @set VERSION 2.9
10 @set EMACSVER 23.0.50
11
12 @c in general, keep the following line commented out, unless doing a
13 @c copy of this manual that will be published. The manual should go
14 @c onto the distribution in the full, 8.5 x 11" size.
15 @c set smallbook
16
17 @ifset smallbook
18 @smallbook
19 @end ifset
20
21 @c per rms and peterb, use 10pt fonts for the main text, mostly to
22 @c save on paper cost.
23 @c Do this inside @tex for now, so current makeinfo does not complain.
24 @tex
25 @ifset smallbook
26 @fonttextsize 10
27 @set EMACSVER 22.1
28 \global\let\urlcolor=\Black % don't print links in grayscale
29 \global\let\linkcolor=\Black
30 @end ifset
31 \global\hbadness=6666 % don't worry about not-too-underfull boxes
32 @end tex
33
34 @c Combine indices.
35 @synindex cp fn
36 @syncodeindex vr fn
37 @syncodeindex ky fn
38 @syncodeindex pg fn
39 @c We use the "type index" to index new functions and variables.
40 @c @syncodeindex tp fn
41
42 @copying
43 This is edition @value{VERSION} of the GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual,@*
44 corresponding to Emacs version @value{EMACSVER}.
45
46 Copyright @copyright{} 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998,
47 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Free Software
48 Foundation, Inc.
49
50 @quotation
51 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
52 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or
53 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
54 Invariant Sections being ``GNU General Public License,'' with the
55 Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual,'' and with the Back-Cover
56 Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license is included in the
57 section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License.''
58
59 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You are free to copy and modify
60 this GNU Manual. Buying copies from GNU Press supports the FSF in
61 developing GNU and promoting software freedom.''
62 @end quotation
63 @end copying
64
65 @dircategory Emacs
66 @direntry
67 * Elisp: (elisp). The Emacs Lisp Reference Manual.
68 @end direntry
69
70 @titlepage
71 @title GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual
72 @subtitle For Emacs Version @value{EMACSVER}
73 @subtitle Revision @value{VERSION}, April 2007
74
75 @author by Bil Lewis, Dan LaLiberte, Richard Stallman
76 @author and the GNU Manual Group
77 @page
78 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
79 @insertcopying
80
81 @sp 2
82 Published by the Free Software Foundation @*
83 51 Franklin St, Fifth Floor @*
84 Boston, MA 02110-1301 @*
85 USA @*
86 ISBN 1-882114-74-4
87
88 @sp 2
89 Cover art by Etienne Suvasa.
90 @end titlepage
91
92
93 @c Print the tables of contents
94 @summarycontents
95 @contents
96
97
98 @ifnottex
99 @node Top, Introduction, (dir), (dir)
100 @top Emacs Lisp
101
102 This Info file contains edition @value{VERSION} of the GNU Emacs Lisp
103 Reference Manual, corresponding to GNU Emacs version @value{EMACSVER}.
104 @end ifnottex
105
106 @menu
107 * Introduction:: Introduction and conventions used.
108
109 * Lisp Data Types:: Data types of objects in Emacs Lisp.
110 * Numbers:: Numbers and arithmetic functions.
111 * Strings and Characters:: Strings, and functions that work on them.
112 * Lists:: Lists, cons cells, and related functions.
113 * Sequences Arrays Vectors:: Lists, strings and vectors are called sequences.
114 Certain functions act on any kind of sequence.
115 The description of vectors is here as well.
116 * Hash Tables:: Very fast lookup-tables.
117 * Symbols:: Symbols represent names, uniquely.
118
119 * Evaluation:: How Lisp expressions are evaluated.
120 * Control Structures:: Conditionals, loops, nonlocal exits.
121 * Variables:: Using symbols in programs to stand for values.
122 * Functions:: A function is a Lisp program
123 that can be invoked from other functions.
124 * Macros:: Macros are a way to extend the Lisp language.
125 * Customization:: Writing customization declarations.
126
127 * Loading:: Reading files of Lisp code into Lisp.
128 * Byte Compilation:: Compilation makes programs run faster.
129 * Advising Functions:: Adding to the definition of a function.
130 * Debugging:: Tools and tips for debugging Lisp programs.
131
132 * Read and Print:: Converting Lisp objects to text and back.
133 * Minibuffers:: Using the minibuffer to read input.
134 * Command Loop:: How the editor command loop works,
135 and how you can call its subroutines.
136 * Keymaps:: Defining the bindings from keys to commands.
137 * Modes:: Defining major and minor modes.
138 * Documentation:: Writing and using documentation strings.
139
140 * Files:: Accessing files.
141 * Backups and Auto-Saving:: Controlling how backups and auto-save
142 files are made.
143 * Buffers:: Creating and using buffer objects.
144 * Windows:: Manipulating windows and displaying buffers.
145 * Frames:: Making multiple system-level windows.
146 * Positions:: Buffer positions and motion functions.
147 * Markers:: Markers represent positions and update
148 automatically when the text is changed.
149
150 * Text:: Examining and changing text in buffers.
151 * Non-ASCII Characters:: Non-ASCII text in buffers and strings.
152 * Searching and Matching:: Searching buffers for strings or regexps.
153 * Syntax Tables:: The syntax table controls word and list parsing.
154 * Abbrevs:: How Abbrev mode works, and its data structures.
155
156 * Processes:: Running and communicating with subprocesses.
157 * Display:: Features for controlling the screen display.
158 * System Interface:: Getting the user id, system type, environment
159 variables, and other such things.
160
161 Appendices
162
163 * Antinews:: Info for users downgrading to Emacs 21.
164 * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation
165 * GPL:: Conditions for copying and changing GNU Emacs.
166 * Tips:: Advice and coding conventions for Emacs Lisp.
167 * GNU Emacs Internals:: Building and dumping Emacs;
168 internal data structures.
169 * Standard Errors:: List of all error symbols.
170 * Standard Buffer-Local Variables::
171 List of variables buffer-local in all buffers.
172 * Standard Keymaps:: List of standard keymaps.
173 * Standard Hooks:: List of standard hook variables.
174
175 * Index:: Index including concepts, functions, variables,
176 and other terms.
177
178 @ignore
179 * New Symbols:: New functions and variables in Emacs @value{EMACSVER}.
180 @end ignore
181
182 @c Do NOT modify the following 3 lines! They must have this form to
183 @c be correctly identified by `texinfo-multiple-files-update'. In
184 @c particular, the detailed menu header line MUST be identical to the
185 @c value of `texinfo-master-menu-header'. See texnfo-upd.el.
186
187 @detailmenu
188 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
189 ---------------------------------
190
191 Here are other nodes that are inferiors of those already listed,
192 mentioned here so you can get to them in one step:
193
194 Introduction
195
196 * Caveats:: Flaws and a request for help.
197 * Lisp History:: Emacs Lisp is descended from Maclisp.
198 * Conventions:: How the manual is formatted.
199 * Version Info:: Which Emacs version is running?
200 * Acknowledgements:: The authors, editors, and sponsors of this manual.
201
202 Conventions
203
204 * Some Terms:: Explanation of terms we use in this manual.
205 * nil and t:: How the symbols @code{nil} and @code{t} are used.
206 * Evaluation Notation:: The format we use for examples of evaluation.
207 * Printing Notation:: The format we use for examples that print output.
208 * Error Messages:: The format we use for examples of errors.
209 * Buffer Text Notation:: The format we use for buffer contents in examples.
210 * Format of Descriptions:: Notation for describing functions, variables, etc.
211
212 Format of Descriptions
213
214 * A Sample Function Description:: A description of an imaginary
215 function, @code{foo}.
216 * A Sample Variable Description:: A description of an imaginary
217 variable, @code{electric-future-map}.
218
219 Lisp Data Types
220
221 * Printed Representation:: How Lisp objects are represented as text.
222 * Comments:: Comments and their formatting conventions.
223 * Programming Types:: Types found in all Lisp systems.
224 * Editing Types:: Types specific to Emacs.
225 * Circular Objects:: Read syntax for circular structure.
226 * Type Predicates:: Tests related to types.
227 * Equality Predicates:: Tests of equality between any two objects.
228
229 Programming Types
230
231 * Integer Type:: Numbers without fractional parts.
232 * Floating Point Type:: Numbers with fractional parts and with a large range.
233 * Character Type:: The representation of letters, numbers and
234 control characters.
235 * Symbol Type:: A multi-use object that refers to a function,
236 variable, property list, or itself.
237 * Sequence Type:: Both lists and arrays are classified as sequences.
238 * Cons Cell Type:: Cons cells, and lists (which are made from cons cells).
239 * Array Type:: Arrays include strings and vectors.
240 * String Type:: An (efficient) array of characters.
241 * Vector Type:: One-dimensional arrays.
242 * Char-Table Type:: One-dimensional sparse arrays indexed by characters.
243 * Bool-Vector Type:: One-dimensional arrays of @code{t} or @code{nil}.
244 * Hash Table Type:: Super-fast lookup tables.
245 * Function Type:: A piece of executable code you can call from elsewhere.
246 * Macro Type:: A method of expanding an expression into another
247 expression, more fundamental but less pretty.
248 * Primitive Function Type:: A function written in C, callable from Lisp.
249 * Byte-Code Type:: A function written in Lisp, then compiled.
250 * Autoload Type:: A type used for automatically loading seldom-used
251 functions.
252
253 Character Type
254
255 * Basic Char Syntax:: Syntax for regular characters.
256 * General Escape Syntax:: How to specify characters by their codes.
257 * Ctl-Char Syntax:: Syntax for control characters.
258 * Meta-Char Syntax:: Syntax for meta-characters.
259 * Other Char Bits:: Syntax for hyper-, super-, and alt-characters.
260
261 Cons Cell and List Types
262
263 * Box Diagrams:: Drawing pictures of lists.
264 * Dotted Pair Notation:: An alternative syntax for lists.
265 * Association List Type:: A specially constructed list.
266
267 String Type
268
269 * Syntax for Strings:: How to specify Lisp strings.
270 * Non-ASCII in Strings:: International characters in strings.
271 * Nonprinting Characters:: Literal unprintable characters in strings.
272 * Text Props and Strings:: Strings with text properties.
273
274 Editing Types
275
276 * Buffer Type:: The basic object of editing.
277 * Marker Type:: A position in a buffer.
278 * Window Type:: What makes buffers visible.
279 * Frame Type:: Windows subdivide frames.
280 * Window Configuration Type:: Recording the way a frame is subdivided.
281 * Frame Configuration Type:: Recording the status of all frames.
282 * Process Type:: A process running on the underlying OS.
283 * Stream Type:: Receive or send characters.
284 * Keymap Type:: What function a keystroke invokes.
285 * Overlay Type:: How an overlay is represented.
286
287 Numbers
288
289 * Integer Basics:: Representation and range of integers.
290 * Float Basics:: Representation and range of floating point.
291 * Predicates on Numbers:: Testing for numbers.
292 * Comparison of Numbers:: Equality and inequality predicates.
293 * Numeric Conversions:: Converting float to integer and vice versa.
294 * Arithmetic Operations:: How to add, subtract, multiply and divide.
295 * Rounding Operations:: Explicitly rounding floating point numbers.
296 * Bitwise Operations:: Logical and, or, not, shifting.
297 * Math Functions:: Trig, exponential and logarithmic functions.
298 * Random Numbers:: Obtaining random integers, predictable or not.
299
300 Strings and Characters
301
302 * String Basics:: Basic properties of strings and characters.
303 * Predicates for Strings:: Testing whether an object is a string or char.
304 * Creating Strings:: Functions to allocate new strings.
305 * Modifying Strings:: Altering the contents of an existing string.
306 * Text Comparison:: Comparing characters or strings.
307 * String Conversion:: Converting characters to strings and vice versa.
308 * Formatting Strings:: @code{format}: Emacs's analogue of @code{printf}.
309 * Case Conversion:: Case conversion functions.
310 * Case Tables:: Customizing case conversion.
311
312 Lists
313
314 * Cons Cells:: How lists are made out of cons cells.
315 * List-related Predicates:: Is this object a list? Comparing two lists.
316 * List Elements:: Extracting the pieces of a list.
317 * Building Lists:: Creating list structure.
318 * List Variables:: Modifying lists stored in variables.
319 * Modifying Lists:: Storing new pieces into an existing list.
320 * Sets And Lists:: A list can represent a finite mathematical set.
321 * Association Lists:: A list can represent a finite relation or mapping.
322 * Rings:: Managing a fixed-size ring of objects.
323
324 Modifying Existing List Structure
325
326 * Setcar:: Replacing an element in a list.
327 * Setcdr:: Replacing part of the list backbone.
328 This can be used to remove or add elements.
329 * Rearrangement:: Reordering the elements in a list; combining lists.
330
331 Sequences, Arrays, and Vectors
332
333 * Sequence Functions:: Functions that accept any kind of sequence.
334 * Arrays:: Characteristics of arrays in Emacs Lisp.
335 * Array Functions:: Functions specifically for arrays.
336 * Vectors:: Special characteristics of Emacs Lisp vectors.
337 * Vector Functions:: Functions specifically for vectors.
338 * Char-Tables:: How to work with char-tables.
339 * Bool-Vectors:: How to work with bool-vectors.
340
341 Hash Tables
342
343 * Creating Hash:: Functions to create hash tables.
344 * Hash Access:: Reading and writing the hash table contents.
345 * Defining Hash:: Defining new comparison methods
346 * Other Hash:: Miscellaneous.
347
348 Symbols
349
350 * Symbol Components:: Symbols have names, values, function definitions
351 and property lists.
352 * Definitions:: A definition says how a symbol will be used.
353 * Creating Symbols:: How symbols are kept unique.
354 * Property Lists:: Each symbol has a property list
355 for recording miscellaneous information.
356
357 Property Lists
358
359 * Plists and Alists:: Comparison of the advantages of property
360 lists and association lists.
361 * Symbol Plists:: Functions to access symbols' property lists.
362 * Other Plists:: Accessing property lists stored elsewhere.
363
364 Evaluation
365
366 * Intro Eval:: Evaluation in the scheme of things.
367 * Forms:: How various sorts of objects are evaluated.
368 * Quoting:: Avoiding evaluation (to put constants in
369 the program).
370 * Eval:: How to invoke the Lisp interpreter explicitly.
371
372 Kinds of Forms
373
374 * Self-Evaluating Forms:: Forms that evaluate to themselves.
375 * Symbol Forms:: Symbols evaluate as variables.
376 * Classifying Lists:: How to distinguish various sorts of list forms.
377 * Function Indirection:: When a symbol appears as the car of a list,
378 we find the real function via the symbol.
379 * Function Forms:: Forms that call functions.
380 * Macro Forms:: Forms that call macros.
381 * Special Forms:: "Special forms" are idiosyncratic primitives,
382 most of them extremely important.
383 * Autoloading:: Functions set up to load files
384 containing their real definitions.
385
386 Control Structures
387
388 * Sequencing:: Evaluation in textual order.
389 * Conditionals:: @code{if}, @code{cond}, @code{when}, @code{unless}.
390 * Combining Conditions:: @code{and}, @code{or}, @code{not}.
391 * Iteration:: @code{while} loops.
392 * Nonlocal Exits:: Jumping out of a sequence.
393
394 Nonlocal Exits
395
396 * Catch and Throw:: Nonlocal exits for the program's own purposes.
397 * Examples of Catch:: Showing how such nonlocal exits can be written.
398 * Errors:: How errors are signaled and handled.
399 * Cleanups:: Arranging to run a cleanup form if an
400 error happens.
401
402 Errors
403
404 * Signaling Errors:: How to report an error.
405 * Processing of Errors:: What Emacs does when you report an error.
406 * Handling Errors:: How you can trap errors and continue execution.
407 * Error Symbols:: How errors are classified for trapping them.
408 * Standard Errors:: List of all error symbols.
409
410 Variables
411
412 * Global Variables:: Variable values that exist permanently, everywhere.
413 * Constant Variables:: Certain "variables" have values that never change.
414 * Local Variables:: Variable values that exist only temporarily.
415 * Void Variables:: Symbols that lack values.
416 * Defining Variables:: A definition says a symbol is used as a variable.
417 * Tips for Defining:: Things you should think about when you
418 define a variable.
419 * Accessing Variables:: Examining values of variables whose names
420 are known only at run time.
421 * Setting Variables:: Storing new values in variables.
422 * Variable Scoping:: How Lisp chooses among local and global values.
423 * Buffer-Local Variables:: Variable values in effect only in one buffer.
424 * Frame-Local Variables:: Variable values in effect only in one frame.
425 * Future Local Variables:: New kinds of local values we might add some day.
426 * File Local Variables:: Handling local variable lists in files.
427 * Variable Aliases:: Variables that are aliases for other variables.
428 * Variables with Restricted Values:: Non-constant variables whose value can
429 @emph{not} be an arbitrary Lisp object.
430 * Standard Buffer-Local Variables::
431 List of variables buffer-local in all buffers.
432
433 Scoping Rules for Variable Bindings
434
435 * Scope:: Scope means where in the program a value
436 is visible. Comparison with other languages.
437 * Extent:: Extent means how long in time a value exists.
438 * Impl of Scope:: Two ways to implement dynamic scoping.
439 * Using Scoping:: How to use dynamic scoping carefully and
440 avoid problems.
441
442 Buffer-Local Variables
443
444 * Intro to Buffer-Local:: Introduction and concepts.
445 * Creating Buffer-Local:: Creating and destroying buffer-local bindings.
446 * Default Value:: The default value is seen in buffers
447 that don't have their own buffer-local values.
448
449 Functions
450
451 * What Is a Function:: Lisp functions vs primitives; terminology.
452 * Lambda Expressions:: How functions are expressed as Lisp objects.
453 * Function Names:: A symbol can serve as the name of a function.
454 * Defining Functions:: Lisp expressions for defining functions.
455 * Calling Functions:: How to use an existing function.
456 * Mapping Functions:: Applying a function to each element of a list, etc.
457 * Anonymous Functions:: Lambda-expressions are functions with no names.
458 * Function Cells:: Accessing or setting the function definition
459 of a symbol.
460 * Obsolete Functions:: Declaring functions obsolete.
461 * Inline Functions:: Defining functions that the compiler will open code.
462 * Function Safety:: Determining whether a function is safe to call.
463 * Related Topics:: Cross-references to specific Lisp primitives
464 that have a special bearing on how
465 functions work.
466
467 Lambda Expressions
468
469 * Lambda Components:: The parts of a lambda expression.
470 * Simple Lambda:: A simple example.
471 * Argument List:: Details and special features of argument lists.
472 * Function Documentation:: How to put documentation in a function.
473
474 Macros
475
476 * Simple Macro:: A basic example.
477 * Expansion:: How, when and why macros are expanded.
478 * Compiling Macros:: How macros are expanded by the compiler.
479 * Defining Macros:: How to write a macro definition.
480 * Backquote:: Easier construction of list structure.
481 * Problems with Macros:: Don't evaluate the macro arguments too many times.
482 Don't hide the user's variables.
483 * Indenting Macros:: Specifying how to indent macro calls.
484
485 Common Problems Using Macros
486
487 * Wrong Time:: Do the work in the expansion, not in the macro.
488 * Argument Evaluation:: The expansion should evaluate each macro arg once.
489 * Surprising Local Vars:: Local variable bindings in the expansion
490 require special care.
491 * Eval During Expansion:: Don't evaluate them; put them in the expansion.
492 * Repeated Expansion:: Avoid depending on how many times expansion is done.
493
494 Writing Customization Definitions
495
496 * Common Keywords:: Common keyword arguments for all kinds of
497 customization declarations.
498 * Group Definitions:: Writing customization group definitions.
499 * Variable Definitions:: Declaring user options.
500 * Customization Types:: Specifying the type of a user option.
501
502 Customization Types
503
504 * Simple Types:: Simple customization types: sexp, integer, number,
505 string, file, directory, alist.
506 * Composite Types:: Build new types from other types or data.
507 * Splicing into Lists:: Splice elements into list with @code{:inline}.
508 * Type Keywords:: Keyword-argument pairs in a customization type.
509 * Defining New Types:: Give your type a name.
510
511 Loading
512
513 * How Programs Do Loading:: The @code{load} function and others.
514 * Load Suffixes:: Details about the suffixes that @code{load} tries.
515 * Library Search:: Finding a library to load.
516 * Loading Non-ASCII:: Non-@acronym{ASCII} characters in Emacs Lisp files.
517 * Autoload:: Setting up a function to autoload.
518 * Repeated Loading:: Precautions about loading a file twice.
519 * Named Features:: Loading a library if it isn't already loaded.
520 * Where Defined:: Finding which file defined a certain symbol.
521 * Unloading:: How to "unload" a library that was loaded.
522 * Hooks for Loading:: Providing code to be run when
523 particular libraries are loaded.
524
525 Byte Compilation
526
527 * Speed of Byte-Code:: An example of speedup from byte compilation.
528 * Compilation Functions:: Byte compilation functions.
529 * Docs and Compilation:: Dynamic loading of documentation strings.
530 * Dynamic Loading:: Dynamic loading of individual functions.
531 * Eval During Compile:: Code to be evaluated when you compile.
532 * Compiler Errors:: Handling compiler error messages.
533 * Byte-Code Objects:: The data type used for byte-compiled functions.
534 * Disassembly:: Disassembling byte-code; how to read byte-code.
535
536 Advising Emacs Lisp Functions
537
538 * Simple Advice:: A simple example to explain the basics of advice.
539 * Defining Advice:: Detailed description of @code{defadvice}.
540 * Around-Advice:: Wrapping advice around a function's definition.
541 * Computed Advice:: ...is to @code{defadvice} as @code{fset} is to @code{defun}.
542 * Activation of Advice:: Advice doesn't do anything until you activate it.
543 * Enabling Advice:: You can enable or disable each piece of advice.
544 * Preactivation:: Preactivation is a way of speeding up the
545 loading of compiled advice.
546 * Argument Access in Advice:: How advice can access the function's arguments.
547 * Advising Primitives:: Accessing arguments when advising a primitive.
548 * Combined Definition:: How advice is implemented.
549
550 Debugging Lisp Programs
551
552 * Debugger:: How the Emacs Lisp debugger is implemented.
553 * Edebug:: A source-level Emacs Lisp debugger.
554 * Syntax Errors:: How to find syntax errors.
555 * Test Coverage:: Ensuring you have tested all branches in your code.
556 * Compilation Errors:: How to find errors that show up in
557 byte compilation.
558
559 The Lisp Debugger
560
561 * Error Debugging:: Entering the debugger when an error happens.
562 * Infinite Loops:: Stopping and debugging a program that doesn't exit.
563 * Function Debugging:: Entering it when a certain function is called.
564 * Explicit Debug:: Entering it at a certain point in the program.
565 * Using Debugger:: What the debugger does; what you see while in it.
566 * Debugger Commands:: Commands used while in the debugger.
567 * Invoking the Debugger:: How to call the function @code{debug}.
568 * Internals of Debugger:: Subroutines of the debugger, and global variables.
569
570 Edebug
571
572 * Using Edebug:: Introduction to use of Edebug.
573 * Instrumenting:: You must instrument your code
574 in order to debug it with Edebug.
575 * Edebug Execution Modes:: Execution modes, stopping more or less often.
576 * Jumping:: Commands to jump to a specified place.
577 * Edebug Misc:: Miscellaneous commands.
578 * Breaks:: Setting breakpoints to make the program stop.
579 * Trapping Errors:: Trapping errors with Edebug.
580 * Edebug Views:: Views inside and outside of Edebug.
581 * Edebug Eval:: Evaluating expressions within Edebug.
582 * Eval List:: Expressions whose values are displayed
583 each time you enter Edebug.
584 * Printing in Edebug:: Customization of printing.
585 * Trace Buffer:: How to produce trace output in a buffer.
586 * Coverage Testing:: How to test evaluation coverage.
587 * The Outside Context:: Data that Edebug saves and restores.
588 * Edebug and Macros:: Specifying how to handle macro calls.
589 * Edebug Options:: Option variables for customizing Edebug.
590
591 Debugging Invalid Lisp Syntax
592
593 * Excess Open:: How to find a spurious open paren or missing close.
594 * Excess Close:: How to find a spurious close paren or missing open.
595
596 Reading and Printing Lisp Objects
597
598 * Streams Intro:: Overview of streams, reading and printing.
599 * Input Streams:: Various data types that can be used as
600 input streams.
601 * Input Functions:: Functions to read Lisp objects from text.
602 * Output Streams:: Various data types that can be used as
603 output streams.
604 * Output Functions:: Functions to print Lisp objects as text.
605 * Output Variables:: Variables that control what the printing
606 functions do.
607
608 Minibuffers
609
610 * Intro to Minibuffers:: Basic information about minibuffers.
611 * Text from Minibuffer:: How to read a straight text string.
612 * Object from Minibuffer:: How to read a Lisp object or expression.
613 * Minibuffer History:: Recording previous minibuffer inputs
614 so the user can reuse them.
615 * Initial Input:: Specifying initial contents for the minibuffer.
616 * Completion:: How to invoke and customize completion.
617 * Yes-or-No Queries:: Asking a question with a simple answer.
618 * Multiple Queries:: Asking a series of similar questions.
619 * Reading a Password:: Reading a password from the terminal.
620 * Minibuffer Commands:: Commands used as key bindings in minibuffers.
621 * Minibuffer Contents:: How such commands access the minibuffer text.
622 * Minibuffer Windows:: Operating on the special minibuffer windows.
623 * Recursive Mini:: Whether recursive entry to minibuffer is allowed.
624 * Minibuffer Misc:: Various customization hooks and variables.
625
626 Completion
627
628 * Basic Completion:: Low-level functions for completing strings.
629 (These are too low level to use the minibuffer.)
630 * Minibuffer Completion:: Invoking the minibuffer with completion.
631 * Completion Commands:: Minibuffer commands that do completion.
632 * High-Level Completion:: Convenient special cases of completion
633 (reading buffer name, file name, etc.)
634 * Reading File Names:: Using completion to read file names.
635 * Programmed Completion:: Finding the completions for a given file name.
636
637 Command Loop
638
639 * Command Overview:: How the command loop reads commands.
640 * Defining Commands:: Specifying how a function should read arguments.
641 * Interactive Call:: Calling a command, so that it will read arguments.
642 * Distinguish Interactive:: Making a command distinguish interactive calls.
643 * Command Loop Info:: Variables set by the command loop for you to examine.
644 * Adjusting Point:: Adjustment of point after a command.
645 * Input Events:: What input looks like when you read it.
646 * Reading Input:: How to read input events from the keyboard or mouse.
647 * Special Events:: Events processed immediately and individually.
648 * Waiting:: Waiting for user input or elapsed time.
649 * Quitting:: How @kbd{C-g} works. How to catch or defer quitting.
650 * Prefix Command Arguments:: How the commands to set prefix args work.
651 * Recursive Editing:: Entering a recursive edit,
652 and why you usually shouldn't.
653 * Disabling Commands:: How the command loop handles disabled commands.
654 * Command History:: How the command history is set up, and how accessed.
655 * Keyboard Macros:: How keyboard macros are implemented.
656
657 Defining Commands
658
659 * Using Interactive:: General rules for @code{interactive}.
660 * Interactive Codes:: The standard letter-codes for reading arguments
661 in various ways.
662 * Interactive Examples:: Examples of how to read interactive arguments.
663
664 Input Events
665
666 * Keyboard Events:: Ordinary characters--keys with symbols on them.
667 * Function Keys:: Function keys--keys with names, not symbols.
668 * Mouse Events:: Overview of mouse events.
669 * Click Events:: Pushing and releasing a mouse button.
670 * Drag Events:: Moving the mouse before releasing the button.
671 * Button-Down Events:: A button was pushed and not yet released.
672 * Repeat Events:: Double and triple click (or drag, or down).
673 * Motion Events:: Just moving the mouse, not pushing a button.
674 * Focus Events:: Moving the mouse between frames.
675 * Misc Events:: Other events the system can generate.
676 * Event Examples:: Examples of the lists for mouse events.
677 * Classifying Events:: Finding the modifier keys in an event symbol.
678 * Accessing Events:: Functions to extract info from events.
679 * Strings of Events:: Special considerations for putting
680 keyboard character events in a string.
681
682 Reading Input
683
684 * Key Sequence Input:: How to read one key sequence.
685 * Reading One Event:: How to read just one event.
686 * Event Mod:: How Emacs modifies events as they are read.
687 * Invoking the Input Method:: How reading an event uses the input method.
688 * Quoted Character Input:: Asking the user to specify a character.
689 * Event Input Misc:: How to reread or throw away input events.
690
691 Keymaps
692
693 * Key Sequences:: Key sequences as Lisp objects.
694 * Keymap Basics:: Basic concepts of keymaps.
695 * Format of Keymaps:: What a keymap looks like as a Lisp object.
696 * Creating Keymaps:: Functions to create and copy keymaps.
697 * Inheritance and Keymaps:: How one keymap can inherit the bindings
698 of another keymap.
699 * Prefix Keys:: Defining a key with a keymap as its definition.
700 * Active Keymaps:: How Emacs searches the active keymaps
701 for a key binding.
702 * Searching Keymaps:: A pseudo-Lisp summary of searching active maps.
703 * Controlling Active Maps:: Each buffer has a local keymap
704 to override the standard (global) bindings.
705 A minor mode can also override them.
706 * Key Lookup:: How extracting elements from keymaps works.
707 * Functions for Key Lookup:: How to request key lookup.
708 * Changing Key Bindings:: Redefining a key in a keymap.
709 * Remapping Commands:: A keymap can translate one command to another.
710 * Translation Keymaps:: Keymaps for translating sequences of events.
711 * Key Binding Commands:: Interactive interfaces for redefining keys.
712 * Scanning Keymaps:: Looking through all keymaps, for printing help.
713 * Menu Keymaps:: A keymap can define a menu for X
714 or for use from the terminal.
715 * Standard Keymaps:: List of standard keymaps.
716
717 Major and Minor Modes
718
719 * Hooks:: How to use hooks; how to write code that
720 provides hooks.
721 * Major Modes:: Defining major modes.
722 * Minor Modes:: Defining minor modes.
723 * Mode Line Format:: Customizing the text that appears in the mode line.
724 * Imenu:: How a mode can provide a menu
725 of definitions in the buffer.
726 * Font Lock Mode:: How modes can highlight text according to syntax.
727 * Desktop Save Mode:: How modes can have buffer state saved between
728 Emacs sessions.
729
730 Menu Keymaps
731
732 * Defining Menus:: How to make a keymap that defines a menu.
733 * Mouse Menus:: How users actuate the menu with the mouse.
734 * Keyboard Menus:: How users actuate the menu with the keyboard.
735 * Menu Example:: Making a simple menu.
736 * Menu Bar:: How to customize the menu bar.
737 * Tool Bar:: A tool bar is a row of images.
738 * Modifying Menus:: How to add new items to a menu.
739
740 Defining Menus
741
742 * Simple Menu Items:: A simple kind of menu key binding,
743 limited in capabilities.
744 * Extended Menu Items:: More powerful menu item definitions
745 let you specify keywords to enable
746 various features.
747 * Menu Separators:: Drawing a horizontal line through a menu.
748 * Alias Menu Items:: Using command aliases in menu items.
749
750 Major and Minor Modes
751
752 * Hooks:: How to use hooks; how to write code that provides hooks.
753 * Major Modes:: Defining major modes.
754 * Minor Modes:: Defining minor modes.
755 * Mode Line Format:: Customizing the text that appears in the mode line.
756 * Imenu:: How a mode can provide a menu
757 of definitions in the buffer.
758 * Font Lock Mode:: How modes can highlight text according to syntax.
759 * Desktop Save Mode:: How modes can have buffer state saved between
760 Emacs sessions.
761
762 Major Modes
763
764 * Major Mode Basics::
765 * Major Mode Conventions:: Coding conventions for keymaps, etc.
766 * Example Major Modes:: Text mode and Lisp modes.
767 * Auto Major Mode:: How Emacs chooses the major mode automatically.
768 * Mode Help:: Finding out how to use a mode.
769 * Derived Modes:: Defining a new major mode based on another major
770 mode.
771 * Generic Modes:: Defining a simple major mode that supports
772 comment syntax and Font Lock mode.
773 * Mode Hooks:: Hooks run at the end of major mode functions.
774
775 Minor Modes
776
777 * Minor Mode Conventions:: Tips for writing a minor mode.
778 * Keymaps and Minor Modes:: How a minor mode can have its own keymap.
779 * Defining Minor Modes:: A convenient facility for defining minor modes.
780
781 Mode Line Format
782
783 * Mode Line Basics::
784 * Mode Line Data:: The data structure that controls the mode line.
785 * Mode Line Variables:: Variables used in that data structure.
786 * %-Constructs:: Putting information into a mode line.
787 * Properties in Mode:: Using text properties in the mode line.
788 * Header Lines:: Like a mode line, but at the top.
789 * Emulating Mode Line:: Formatting text as the mode line would.
790
791 Font Lock Mode
792
793 * Font Lock Basics:: Overview of customizing Font Lock.
794 * Search-based Fontification:: Fontification based on regexps.
795 * Customizing Keywords:: Customizing search-based fontification.
796 * Other Font Lock Variables:: Additional customization facilities.
797 * Levels of Font Lock:: Each mode can define alternative levels
798 so that the user can select more or less.
799 * Precalculated Fontification:: How Lisp programs that produce the buffer
800 contents can also specify how to fontify it.
801 * Faces for Font Lock:: Special faces specifically for Font Lock.
802 * Syntactic Font Lock:: Fontification based on syntax tables.
803 * Setting Syntax Properties:: Defining character syntax based on context
804 using the Font Lock mechanism.
805 * Multiline Font Lock:: How to coerce Font Lock into properly
806 highlighting multiline constructs.
807
808 Multiline Font Lock Constructs
809
810 * Font Lock Multiline:: Marking multiline chunks with a text property
811 * Region to Fontify:: Controlling which region gets refontified
812 after a buffer change.
813
814 Documentation
815
816 * Documentation Basics:: Good style for doc strings.
817 Where to put them. How Emacs stores them.
818 * Accessing Documentation:: How Lisp programs can access doc strings.
819 * Keys in Documentation:: Substituting current key bindings.
820 * Describing Characters:: Making printable descriptions of
821 non-printing characters and key sequences.
822 * Help Functions:: Subroutines used by Emacs help facilities.
823
824 Files
825
826 * Visiting Files:: Reading files into Emacs buffers for editing.
827 * Saving Buffers:: Writing changed buffers back into files.
828 * Reading from Files:: Reading files into other buffers.
829 * Writing to Files:: Writing new files from parts of buffers.
830 * File Locks:: Locking and unlocking files, to prevent
831 simultaneous editing by two people.
832 * Information about Files:: Testing existence, accessibility, size of files.
833 * Changing Files:: Renaming files, changing protection, etc.
834 * File Names:: Decomposing and expanding file names.
835 * Contents of Directories:: Getting a list of the files in a directory.
836 * Create/Delete Dirs:: Creating and Deleting Directories.
837 * Magic File Names:: Defining "magic" special handling
838 for certain file names.
839 * Format Conversion:: Conversion to and from various file formats.
840
841 Visiting Files
842
843 * Visiting Functions:: The usual interface functions for visiting.
844 * Subroutines of Visiting:: Lower-level subroutines that they use.
845
846 Information about Files
847
848 * Testing Accessibility:: Is a given file readable? Writable?
849 * Kinds of Files:: Is it a directory? A symbolic link?
850 * Truenames:: Eliminating symbolic links from a file name.
851 * File Attributes:: How large is it? Any other names? Etc.
852 * Locating Files:: How to find a file in standard places.
853
854 File Names
855
856 * File Name Components:: The directory part of a file name, and the rest.
857 * Relative File Names:: Some file names are relative to a
858 current directory.
859 * Directory Names:: A directory's name as a directory
860 is different from its name as a file.
861 * File Name Expansion:: Converting relative file names to absolute ones.
862 * Unique File Names:: Generating names for temporary files.
863 * File Name Completion:: Finding the completions for a given file name.
864 * Standard File Names:: If your package uses a fixed file name,
865 how to handle various operating systems simply.
866
867 Backups and Auto-Saving
868
869 * Backup Files:: How backup files are made; how their names
870 are chosen.
871 * Auto-Saving:: How auto-save files are made; how their
872 names are chosen.
873 * Reverting:: @code{revert-buffer}, and how to customize
874 what it does.
875
876 Backup Files
877
878 * Making Backups:: How Emacs makes backup files, and when.
879 * Rename or Copy:: Two alternatives: renaming the old file
880 or copying it.
881 * Numbered Backups:: Keeping multiple backups for each source file.
882 * Backup Names:: How backup file names are computed; customization.
883
884 Buffers
885
886 * Buffer Basics:: What is a buffer?
887 * Current Buffer:: Designating a buffer as current
888 so primitives will access its contents.
889 * Buffer Names:: Accessing and changing buffer names.
890 * Buffer File Name:: The buffer file name indicates which file
891 is visited.
892 * Buffer Modification:: A buffer is @dfn{modified} if it needs to be saved.
893 * Modification Time:: Determining whether the visited file was changed
894 ``behind Emacs's back''.
895 * Read Only Buffers:: Modifying text is not allowed in a
896 read-only buffer.
897 * The Buffer List:: How to look at all the existing buffers.
898 * Creating Buffers:: Functions that create buffers.
899 * Killing Buffers:: Buffers exist until explicitly killed.
900 * Indirect Buffers:: An indirect buffer shares text with some
901 other buffer.
902 * Buffer Gap:: The gap in the buffer.
903
904 Windows
905
906 * Basic Windows:: Basic information on using windows.
907 * Splitting Windows:: Splitting one window into two windows.
908 * Deleting Windows:: Deleting a window gives its space to other windows.
909 * Selecting Windows:: The selected window is the one that you edit in.
910 * Cyclic Window Ordering:: Moving around the existing windows.
911 * Buffers and Windows:: Each window displays the contents of a buffer.
912 * Displaying Buffers:: Higher-level functions for displaying a buffer
913 and choosing a window for it.
914 * Choosing Window:: How to choose a window for displaying a buffer.
915 * Window Point:: Each window has its own location of point.
916 * Window Start:: The display-start position controls which text
917 is on-screen in the window.
918 * Textual Scrolling:: Moving text up and down through the window.
919 * Vertical Scrolling:: Moving the contents up and down on the window.
920 * Horizontal Scrolling:: Moving the contents sideways on the window.
921 * Size of Window:: Accessing the size of a window.
922 * Resizing Windows:: Changing the size of a window.
923 * Coordinates and Windows:: Converting coordinates to windows.
924 * Window Tree:: The layout and sizes of all windows in a frame.
925 * Window Configurations:: Saving and restoring the state of the screen.
926 * Window Hooks:: Hooks for scrolling, window size changes,
927 redisplay going past a certain point,
928 or window configuration changes.
929
930 Frames
931
932 * Creating Frames:: Creating additional frames.
933 * Multiple Displays:: Creating frames on other displays.
934 * Frame Parameters:: Controlling frame size, position, font, etc.
935 * Frame Titles:: Automatic updating of frame titles.
936 * Deleting Frames:: Frames last until explicitly deleted.
937 * Finding All Frames:: How to examine all existing frames.
938 * Frames and Windows:: A frame contains windows;
939 display of text always works through windows.
940 * Minibuffers and Frames:: How a frame finds the minibuffer to use.
941 * Input Focus:: Specifying the selected frame.
942 * Visibility of Frames:: Frames may be visible or invisible, or icons.
943 * Raising and Lowering:: Raising a frame makes it hide other windows;
944 lowering it puts it underneath the others.
945 * Frame Configurations:: Saving the state of all frames.
946 * Mouse Tracking:: Getting events that say when the mouse moves.
947 * Mouse Position:: Asking where the mouse is, or moving it.
948 * Pop-Up Menus:: Displaying a menu for the user to select from.
949 * Dialog Boxes:: Displaying a box to ask yes or no.
950 * Pointer Shape:: Specifying the shape of the mouse pointer.
951 * Window System Selections::Transferring text to and from other windows.
952 * Drag and Drop:: Internals of Drag-and-Drop implementation.
953 * Color Names:: Getting the definitions of color names.
954 * Text Terminal Colors:: Defining colors for text-only terminals.
955 * Resources:: Getting resource values from the server.
956 * Display Feature Testing:: Determining the features of a terminal.
957
958 Frame Parameters
959
960 * Parameter Access:: How to change a frame's parameters.
961 * Initial Parameters:: Specifying frame parameters when you make a frame.
962 * Window Frame Parameters:: List of frame parameters for window systems.
963 * Size and Position:: Changing the size and position of a frame.
964 * Geometry:: Parsing geometry specifications.
965
966 Window Frame Parameters
967
968 * Basic Parameters:: Parameters that are fundamental.
969 * Position Parameters:: The position of the frame on the screen.
970 * Size Parameters:: Frame's size.
971 * Layout Parameters:: Size of parts of the frame, and
972 enabling or disabling some parts.
973 * Buffer Parameters:: Which buffers have been or should be shown.
974 * Management Parameters:: Communicating with the window manager.
975 * Cursor Parameters:: Controlling the cursor appearance.
976 * Color Parameters:: Colors of various parts of the frame.
977
978 Positions
979
980 * Point:: The special position where editing takes place.
981 * Motion:: Changing point.
982 * Excursions:: Temporary motion and buffer changes.
983 * Narrowing:: Restricting editing to a portion of the buffer.
984
985 Motion
986
987 * Character Motion:: Moving in terms of characters.
988 * Word Motion:: Moving in terms of words.
989 * Buffer End Motion:: Moving to the beginning or end of the buffer.
990 * Text Lines:: Moving in terms of lines of text.
991 * Screen Lines:: Moving in terms of lines as displayed.
992 * List Motion:: Moving by parsing lists and sexps.
993 * Skipping Characters:: Skipping characters belonging to a certain set.
994
995 Markers
996
997 * Overview of Markers:: The components of a marker, and how it relocates.
998 * Predicates on Markers:: Testing whether an object is a marker.
999 * Creating Markers:: Making empty markers or markers at certain places.
1000 * Information from Markers::Finding the marker's buffer or character
1001 position.
1002 * Marker Insertion Types:: Two ways a marker can relocate when you
1003 insert where it points.
1004 * Moving Markers:: Moving the marker to a new buffer or position.
1005 * The Mark:: How "the mark" is implemented with a marker.
1006 * The Region:: How to access "the region".
1007
1008 Text
1009
1010 * Near Point:: Examining text in the vicinity of point.
1011 * Buffer Contents:: Examining text in a general fashion.
1012 * Comparing Text:: Comparing substrings of buffers.
1013 * Insertion:: Adding new text to a buffer.
1014 * Commands for Insertion:: User-level commands to insert text.
1015 * Deletion:: Removing text from a buffer.
1016 * User-Level Deletion:: User-level commands to delete text.
1017 * The Kill Ring:: Where removed text sometimes is saved for
1018 later use.
1019 * Undo:: Undoing changes to the text of a buffer.
1020 * Maintaining Undo:: How to enable and disable undo information.
1021 How to control how much information is kept.
1022 * Filling:: Functions for explicit filling.
1023 * Margins:: How to specify margins for filling commands.
1024 * Adaptive Fill:: Adaptive Fill mode chooses a fill prefix
1025 from context.
1026 * Auto Filling:: How auto-fill mode is implemented to break lines.
1027 * Sorting:: Functions for sorting parts of the buffer.
1028 * Columns:: Computing horizontal positions, and using them.
1029 * Indentation:: Functions to insert or adjust indentation.
1030 * Case Changes:: Case conversion of parts of the buffer.
1031 * Text Properties:: Assigning Lisp property lists to text characters.
1032 * Substitution:: Replacing a given character wherever it appears.
1033 * Transposition:: Swapping two portions of a buffer.
1034 * Registers:: How registers are implemented. Accessing
1035 the text or position stored in a register.
1036 * Base 64:: Conversion to or from base 64 encoding.
1037 * MD5 Checksum:: Compute the MD5 "message digest"/"checksum".
1038 * Atomic Changes:: Installing several buffer changes "atomically".
1039 * Change Hooks:: Supplying functions to be run when text is changed.
1040
1041 The Kill Ring
1042
1043 * Kill Ring Concepts:: What text looks like in the kill ring.
1044 * Kill Functions:: Functions that kill text.
1045 * Yanking:: How yanking is done.
1046 * Yank Commands:: Commands that access the kill ring.
1047 * Low-Level Kill Ring:: Functions and variables for kill ring access.
1048 * Internals of Kill Ring:: Variables that hold kill-ring data.
1049
1050 Indentation
1051
1052 * Primitive Indent:: Functions used to count and insert indentation.
1053 * Mode-Specific Indent:: Customize indentation for different modes.
1054 * Region Indent:: Indent all the lines in a region.
1055 * Relative Indent:: Indent the current line based on previous lines.
1056 * Indent Tabs:: Adjustable, typewriter-like tab stops.
1057 * Motion by Indent:: Move to first non-blank character.
1058
1059 Text Properties
1060
1061 * Examining Properties:: Looking at the properties of one character.
1062 * Changing Properties:: Setting the properties of a range of text.
1063 * Property Search:: Searching for where a property changes value.
1064 * Special Properties:: Particular properties with special meanings.
1065 * Format Properties:: Properties for representing formatting of text.
1066 * Sticky Properties:: How inserted text gets properties from
1067 neighboring text.
1068 * Lazy Properties:: Computing text properties in a lazy fashion
1069 only when text is examined.
1070 * Clickable Text:: Using text properties to make regions of text
1071 do something when you click on them.
1072 * Links and Mouse-1:: How to make @key{Mouse-1} follow a link.
1073 * Fields:: The @code{field} property defines
1074 fields within the buffer.
1075 * Not Intervals:: Why text properties do not use
1076 Lisp-visible text intervals.
1077
1078 Non-ASCII Characters
1079
1080 * Text Representations:: Unibyte and multibyte representations
1081 * Converting Representations:: Converting unibyte to multibyte and vice versa.
1082 * Selecting a Representation:: Treating a byte sequence as unibyte or multi.
1083 * Character Codes:: How unibyte and multibyte relate to
1084 codes of individual characters.
1085 * Character Sets:: The space of possible character codes
1086 is divided into various character sets.
1087 * Chars and Bytes:: More information about multibyte encodings.
1088 * Splitting Characters:: Converting a character to its byte sequence.
1089 * Scanning Charsets:: Which character sets are used in a buffer?
1090 * Translation of Characters:: Translation tables are used for conversion.
1091 * Coding Systems:: Coding systems are conversions for saving files.
1092 * Input Methods:: Input methods allow users to enter various
1093 non-ASCII characters without special keyboards.
1094 * Locales:: Interacting with the POSIX locale.
1095
1096 Coding Systems
1097
1098 * Coding System Basics:: Basic concepts.
1099 * Encoding and I/O:: How file I/O functions handle coding systems.
1100 * Lisp and Coding Systems:: Functions to operate on coding system names.
1101 * User-Chosen Coding Systems:: Asking the user to choose a coding system.
1102 * Default Coding Systems:: Controlling the default choices.
1103 * Specifying Coding Systems:: Requesting a particular coding system
1104 for a single file operation.
1105 * Explicit Encoding:: Encoding or decoding text without doing I/O.
1106 * Terminal I/O Encoding:: Use of encoding for terminal I/O.
1107 * MS-DOS File Types:: How DOS "text" and "binary" files
1108 relate to coding systems.
1109
1110 Searching and Matching
1111
1112 * String Search:: Search for an exact match.
1113 * Searching and Case:: Case-independent or case-significant searching.
1114 * Regular Expressions:: Describing classes of strings.
1115 * Regexp Search:: Searching for a match for a regexp.
1116 * POSIX Regexps:: Searching POSIX-style for the longest match.
1117 * Match Data:: Finding out which part of the text matched,
1118 after a string or regexp search.
1119 * Search and Replace:: Commands that loop, searching and replacing.
1120 * Standard Regexps:: Useful regexps for finding sentences, pages,...
1121
1122 Regular Expressions
1123
1124 * Syntax of Regexps:: Rules for writing regular expressions.
1125 * Regexp Example:: Illustrates regular expression syntax.
1126 * Regexp Functions:: Functions for operating on regular expressions.
1127
1128 Syntax of Regular Expressions
1129
1130 * Regexp Special:: Special characters in regular expressions.
1131 * Char Classes:: Character classes used in regular expressions.
1132 * Regexp Backslash:: Backslash-sequences in regular expressions.
1133
1134 The Match Data
1135
1136 * Replacing Match:: Replacing a substring that was matched.
1137 * Simple Match Data:: Accessing single items of match data,
1138 such as where a particular subexpression started.
1139 * Entire Match Data:: Accessing the entire match data at once, as a list.
1140 * Saving Match Data:: Saving and restoring the match data.
1141
1142 Syntax Tables
1143
1144 * Syntax Basics:: Basic concepts of syntax tables.
1145 * Syntax Descriptors:: How characters are classified.
1146 * Syntax Table Functions:: How to create, examine and alter syntax tables.
1147 * Syntax Properties:: Overriding syntax with text properties.
1148 * Motion and Syntax:: Moving over characters with certain syntaxes.
1149 * Parsing Expressions:: Parsing balanced expressions
1150 using the syntax table.
1151 * Standard Syntax Tables:: Syntax tables used by various major modes.
1152 * Syntax Table Internals:: How syntax table information is stored.
1153 * Categories:: Another way of classifying character syntax.
1154
1155 Syntax Descriptors
1156
1157 * Syntax Class Table:: Table of syntax classes.
1158 * Syntax Flags:: Additional flags each character can have.
1159
1160 Parsing Expressions
1161
1162 * Motion via Parsing:: Motion functions that work by parsing.
1163 * Position Parse:: Determining the syntactic state of a position.
1164 * Parser State:: How Emacs represents a syntactic state.
1165 * Low-Level Parsing:: Parsing across a specified region.
1166 * Control Parsing:: Parameters that affect parsing.
1167
1168 Abbrevs And Abbrev Expansion
1169
1170 * Abbrev Mode:: Setting up Emacs for abbreviation.
1171 * Abbrev Tables:: Creating and working with abbrev tables.
1172 * Defining Abbrevs:: Specifying abbreviations and their expansions.
1173 * Abbrev Files:: Saving abbrevs in files.
1174 * Abbrev Expansion:: Controlling expansion; expansion subroutines.
1175 * Standard Abbrev Tables:: Abbrev tables used by various major modes.
1176
1177 Processes
1178
1179 * Subprocess Creation:: Functions that start subprocesses.
1180 * Shell Arguments:: Quoting an argument to pass it to a shell.
1181 * Synchronous Processes:: Details of using synchronous subprocesses.
1182 * Asynchronous Processes:: Starting up an asynchronous subprocess.
1183 * Deleting Processes:: Eliminating an asynchronous subprocess.
1184 * Process Information:: Accessing run-status and other attributes.
1185 * Input to Processes:: Sending input to an asynchronous subprocess.
1186 * Signals to Processes:: Stopping, continuing or interrupting
1187 an asynchronous subprocess.
1188 * Output from Processes:: Collecting output from an asynchronous subprocess.
1189 * Sentinels:: Sentinels run when process run-status changes.
1190 * Query Before Exit:: Whether to query if exiting will kill a process.
1191 * Transaction Queues:: Transaction-based communication with subprocesses.
1192 * Network:: Opening network connections.
1193 * Network Servers:: Network servers let Emacs accept net connections.
1194 * Datagrams:: UDP network connections.
1195 * Low-Level Network:: Lower-level but more general function
1196 to create connections and servers.
1197 * Misc Network:: Additional relevant functions for network connections.
1198 * Byte Packing:: Using bindat to pack and unpack binary data.
1199
1200 Receiving Output from Processes
1201
1202 * Process Buffers:: If no filter, output is put in a buffer.
1203 * Filter Functions:: Filter functions accept output from the process.
1204 * Decoding Output:: Filters can get unibyte or multibyte strings.
1205 * Accepting Output:: How to wait until process output arrives.
1206
1207 Low-Level Network Access
1208
1209 * Proc: Network Processes. Using @code{make-network-process}.
1210 * Options: Network Options. Further control over network connections.
1211 * Features: Network Feature Testing.
1212 Determining which network features work on
1213 the machine you are using.
1214
1215 Packing and Unpacking Byte Arrays
1216
1217 * Bindat Spec:: Describing data layout.
1218 * Bindat Functions:: Doing the unpacking and packing.
1219 * Bindat Examples:: Samples of what bindat.el can do for you!
1220
1221 Emacs Display
1222
1223 * Refresh Screen:: Clearing the screen and redrawing everything on it.
1224 * Forcing Redisplay:: Forcing redisplay.
1225 * Truncation:: Folding or wrapping long text lines.
1226 * The Echo Area:: Displaying messages at the bottom of the screen.
1227 * Warnings:: Displaying warning messages for the user.
1228 * Invisible Text:: Hiding part of the buffer text.
1229 * Selective Display:: Hiding part of the buffer text (the old way).
1230 * Temporary Displays:: Displays that go away automatically.
1231 * Overlays:: Use overlays to highlight parts of the buffer.
1232 * Width:: How wide a character or string is on the screen.
1233 * Line Height:: Controlling the height of lines.
1234 * Faces:: A face defines a graphics style
1235 for text characters: font, colors, etc.
1236 * Fringes:: Controlling window fringes.
1237 * Scroll Bars:: Controlling vertical scroll bars.
1238 * Display Property:: Enabling special display features.
1239 * Images:: Displaying images in Emacs buffers.
1240 * Buttons:: Adding clickable buttons to Emacs buffers.
1241 * Abstract Display:: Emacs' Widget for Object Collections.
1242 * Blinking:: How Emacs shows the matching open parenthesis.
1243 * Usual Display:: The usual conventions for displaying nonprinting chars.
1244 * Display Tables:: How to specify other conventions.
1245 * Beeping:: Audible signal to the user.
1246 * Window Systems:: Which window system is being used.
1247
1248 The Echo Area
1249
1250 * Displaying Messages:: Explicitly displaying text in the echo area.
1251 * Progress:: Informing user about progress of a long operation.
1252 * Logging Messages:: Echo area messages are logged for the user.
1253 * Echo Area Customization:: Controlling the echo area.
1254
1255 Reporting Warnings
1256
1257 * Warning Basics:: Warnings concepts and functions to report them.
1258 * Warning Variables:: Variables programs bind to customize their warnings.
1259 * Warning Options:: Variables users set to control display of warnings.
1260
1261 Overlays
1262
1263 * Managing Overlays:: Creating and moving overlays.
1264 * Overlay Properties:: How to read and set properties.
1265 What properties do to the screen display.
1266 * Finding Overlays:: Searching for overlays.
1267
1268 Faces
1269
1270 * Defining Faces:: How to define a face with @code{defface}.
1271 * Face Attributes:: What is in a face?
1272 * Attribute Functions:: Functions to examine and set face attributes.
1273 * Displaying Faces:: How Emacs combines the faces specified for
1274 a character.
1275 * Font Selection:: Finding the best available font for a face.
1276 * Face Functions:: How to define and examine faces.
1277 * Auto Faces:: Hook for automatic face assignment.
1278 * Font Lookup:: Looking up the names of available fonts
1279 and information about them.
1280 * Fontsets:: A fontset is a collection of fonts
1281 that handle a range of character sets.
1282
1283 Fringes
1284
1285 * Fringe Size/Pos:: Specifying where to put the window fringes.
1286 * Fringe Indicators:: Displaying indicator icons in the window fringes.
1287 * Fringe Cursors:: Displaying cursors in the right fringe.
1288 * Fringe Bitmaps:: Specifying bitmaps for fringe indicators.
1289 * Customizing Bitmaps:: Specifying your own bitmaps to use in the fringes.
1290 * Overlay Arrow:: Display of an arrow to indicate position.
1291
1292 The @code{display} Property
1293
1294 * Specified Space:: Displaying one space with a specified width.
1295 * Pixel Specification:: Specifying space width or height in pixels.
1296 * Other Display Specs:: Displaying an image; magnifying text; moving it
1297 up or down on the page; adjusting the width
1298 of spaces within text.
1299 * Display Margins:: Displaying text or images to the side of
1300 the main text.
1301
1302 Images
1303
1304 * Image Descriptors:: How to specify an image for use in @code{:display}.
1305 * XBM Images:: Special features for XBM format.
1306 * XPM Images:: Special features for XPM format.
1307 * GIF Images:: Special features for GIF format.
1308 * PostScript Images:: Special features for PostScript format.
1309 * Other Image Types:: Various other formats are supported.
1310 * Defining Images:: Convenient ways to define an image for later use.
1311 * Showing Images:: Convenient ways to display an image once
1312 it is defined.
1313 * Image Cache:: Internal mechanisms of image display.
1314
1315 Buttons
1316
1317 * Button Properties:: Button properties with special meanings.
1318 * Button Types:: Defining common properties for classes of buttons.
1319 * Making Buttons:: Adding buttons to Emacs buffers.
1320 * Manipulating Buttons:: Getting and setting properties of buttons.
1321 * Button Buffer Commands:: Buffer-wide commands and bindings for buttons.
1322
1323 Abstract Display
1324
1325 * Abstract Display Functions:: Functions in the Ewoc package.
1326 * Abstract Display Example:: Example of using Ewoc.
1327
1328 Display Tables
1329
1330 * Display Table Format:: What a display table consists of.
1331 * Active Display Table:: How Emacs selects a display table to use.
1332 * Glyphs:: How to define a glyph, and what glyphs mean.
1333
1334 Operating System Interface
1335
1336 * Starting Up:: Customizing Emacs start-up processing.
1337 * Getting Out:: How exiting works (permanent or temporary).
1338 * System Environment:: Distinguish the name and kind of system.
1339 * User Identification:: Finding the name and user id of the user.
1340 * Time of Day:: Getting the current time.
1341 * Time Conversion:: Converting a time from numeric form to a string, or
1342 to calendrical data (or vice versa).
1343 * Time Parsing:: Converting a time from numeric form to text
1344 and vice versa.
1345 * Processor Run Time:: Getting the run time used by Emacs.
1346 * Time Calculations:: Adding, subtracting, comparing times, etc.
1347 * Timers:: Setting a timer to call a function at a certain time.
1348 * Idle Timers:: Setting a timer to call a function when Emacs has
1349 been idle for a certain length of time.
1350 * Terminal Input:: Accessing and recording terminal input.
1351 * Terminal Output:: Controlling and recording terminal output.
1352 * Sound Output:: Playing sounds on the computer's speaker.
1353 * X11 Keysyms:: Operating on key symbols for X Windows
1354 * Batch Mode:: Running Emacs without terminal interaction.
1355 * Session Management:: Saving and restoring state with X Session Management.
1356
1357 Starting Up Emacs
1358
1359 * Startup Summary:: Sequence of actions Emacs performs at start-up.
1360 * Init File:: Details on reading the init file (@file{.emacs}).
1361 * Terminal-Specific:: How the terminal-specific Lisp file is read.
1362 * Command-Line Arguments:: How command-line arguments are processed,
1363 and how you can customize them.
1364
1365 Getting Out of Emacs
1366
1367 * Killing Emacs:: Exiting Emacs irreversibly.
1368 * Suspending Emacs:: Exiting Emacs reversibly.
1369
1370 Terminal Input
1371
1372 * Input Modes:: Options for how input is processed.
1373 * Recording Input:: Saving histories of recent or all input events.
1374
1375 Tips and Conventions
1376
1377 * Coding Conventions:: Conventions for clean and robust programs.
1378 * Key Binding Conventions:: Which keys should be bound by which programs.
1379 * Programming Tips:: Making Emacs code fit smoothly in Emacs.
1380 * Compilation Tips:: Making compiled code run fast.
1381 * Warning Tips:: Turning off compiler warnings.
1382 * Documentation Tips:: Writing readable documentation strings.
1383 * Comment Tips:: Conventions for writing comments.
1384 * Library Headers:: Standard headers for library packages.
1385
1386 GNU Emacs Internals
1387
1388 * Building Emacs:: How the dumped Emacs is made.
1389 * Pure Storage:: A kludge to make preloaded Lisp functions sharable.
1390 * Garbage Collection:: Reclaiming space for Lisp objects no longer used.
1391 * Memory Usage:: Info about total size of Lisp objects made so far.
1392 * Writing Emacs Primitives:: Writing C code for Emacs.
1393 * Object Internals:: Data formats of buffers, windows, processes.
1394
1395 Object Internals
1396
1397 * Buffer Internals:: Components of a buffer structure.
1398 * Window Internals:: Components of a window structure.
1399 * Process Internals:: Components of a process structure.
1400 @end detailmenu
1401 @end menu
1402
1403 @include intro.texi
1404 @include objects.texi
1405 @include numbers.texi
1406 @include strings.texi
1407
1408 @include lists.texi
1409 @include sequences.texi
1410 @include hash.texi
1411 @include symbols.texi
1412 @include eval.texi
1413
1414 @include control.texi
1415 @include variables.texi
1416 @include functions.texi
1417 @include macros.texi
1418
1419 @include customize.texi
1420 @include loading.texi
1421 @include compile.texi
1422 @include advice.texi
1423
1424 @include debugging.texi
1425 @include streams.texi
1426 @include minibuf.texi
1427 @include commands.texi
1428
1429 @include keymaps.texi
1430 @include modes.texi
1431 @include help.texi
1432 @include files.texi
1433
1434 @include backups.texi
1435 @include buffers.texi
1436 @include windows.texi
1437 @include frames.texi
1438
1439 @include positions.texi
1440 @include markers.texi
1441 @include text.texi
1442 @include nonascii.texi
1443
1444 @include searching.texi
1445 @include syntax.texi
1446 @include abbrevs.texi
1447 @include processes.texi
1448
1449 @include display.texi
1450 @include os.texi
1451
1452 @c MOVE to Emacs Manual: include misc-modes.texi
1453
1454 @c appendices
1455
1456 @c REMOVE this: include non-hacker.texi
1457
1458 @include anti.texi
1459 @include doclicense.texi
1460 @include gpl.texi
1461 @include tips.texi
1462 @include internals.texi
1463 @include errors.texi
1464 @include locals.texi
1465 @include maps.texi
1466 @include hooks.texi
1467
1468 @include index.texi
1469
1470 @ignore
1471 @node New Symbols, , Index, Top
1472 @unnumbered New Symbols Since the Previous Edition
1473
1474 @printindex tp
1475 @end ignore
1476
1477 @bye
1478
1479 \f
1480 These words prevent "local variables" above from confusing Emacs.
1481
1482 @ignore
1483 arch-tag: f7e9a219-a0e1-4776-b631-08eaa1d49b34
1484 @end ignore