@chapter Frames
@cindex frame
- In Emacs editing, A @dfn{frame} is a screen objec that contains one
+ In Emacs editing, A @dfn{frame} is a screen object that contains one
or more Emacs windows. It's the kind of object that is called a
``window'' in the terminology of graphical environments; but we can't
call it a ``window'' here, because Emacs uses that word in a different
@node Management Parameters
@subsubsection Window Management Parameters
-
+
These frame parameters, meaningful only on window system displays,
interact with the window manager.
form @code{(@var{on-state} . @var{off-state})}. Whenever the cursor
type equals @var{on-state} (comparing using @code{equal}), the
corresponding @var{off-state} specifies what the cursor looks like
-when it blinks ``off''. Both @var{on-state} and @var{off-state}
+when it blinks ``off.'' Both @var{on-state} and @var{off-state}
should be suitable values for the @code{cursor-type} frame parameter.
There are various defaults for how to blink each type of cursor, if
@defvar frame-title-format
This variable specifies how to compute a name for a frame when you have
not explicitly specified one. The variable's value is actually a mode
-line construct, just like @code{mode-line-format}. @xref{Mode Line
+line construct, just like @code{mode-line-format}, except that the
+@samp{%c} and @samp{%l} constructs are ignored. @xref{Mode Line
Data}.
@end defvar
@defun visible-frame-list
This function returns a list of just the currently visible frames.
@xref{Visibility of Frames}. (Terminal frames always count as
-``visible'', even though only the selected one is actually displayed.)
+``visible,'' even though only the selected one is actually displayed.)
@end defun
@defun next-frame &optional frame minibuf
This option is how you inform Emacs whether the window manager transfers
focus when the user moves the mouse. Non-@code{nil} says that it does.
When this is so, the command @code{other-frame} moves the mouse to a
-position consistent with the new selected frame.
+position consistent with the new selected frame. (This option has no
+effect on MS-Windows, where the mouse pointer is always automatically
+moved by the OS to the selected frame.)
@end defopt
@node Visibility of Frames
Most window systems use a desktop metaphor. Part of this metaphor is
the idea that windows are stacked in a notional third dimension
perpendicular to the screen surface, and thus ordered from ``highest''
-to ``lowest''. Where two windows overlap, the one higher up covers
+to ``lowest.'' Where two windows overlap, the one higher up covers
the one underneath. Even a window at the bottom of the stack can be
seen if no other window overlaps it.
@cindex lowering a frame
A window's place in this ordering is not fixed; in fact, users tend
to change the order frequently. @dfn{Raising} a window means moving
-it ``up'', to the top of the stack. @dfn{Lowering} a window means
+it ``up,'' to the top of the stack. @dfn{Lowering} a window means
moving it to the bottom of the stack. This motion is in the notional
third dimension only, and does not change the position of the window
on the screen.
A dialog box is a variant of a pop-up menu---it looks a little
different, it always appears in the center of a frame, and it has just
one level and one or more buttons. The main use of dialog boxes is
-for asking questions that the user can answer with ``yes'', ``no'',
+for asking questions that the user can answer with ``yes,'' ``no,''
and a few other alternatives. With a single button, they can also
force the user to acknowledge important information. The functions
@code{y-or-n-p} and @code{yes-or-no-p} use dialog boxes instead of the
If @var{header} is non-@code{nil}, the frame title for the box is
@samp{Information}, otherwise it is @samp{Question}. The former is used
-for @code{message-box} (@pxref{The Echo Area}).
+for @code{message-box} (@pxref{message-box}).
In some configurations, Emacs cannot display a real dialog box; so
instead it displays the same items in a pop-up menu in the center of the
@defvar selection-coding-system
This variable specifies the coding system to use when reading and
-writing selections, the clipboard, or a cut buffer. @xref{Coding
+writing selections or the clipboard. @xref{Coding
Systems}. The default is @code{compound-text-with-extensions}, which
converts to the text representation that X11 normally uses.
@end defvar
These functions provide a way to determine which color names are
valid, and what they look like. In some cases, the value depends on the
@dfn{selected frame}, as described below; see @ref{Input Focus}, for the
-meaning of the term ``selected frame''.
+meaning of the term ``selected frame.''
@defun color-defined-p color &optional frame
This function reports whether a color name is meaningful. It returns
On a character terminal, it gives the height in characters.
@end defun
-@defun display-mm-height &optional display
-This function returns the height of the screen in millimeters,
-or @code{nil} if Emacs cannot get that information.
-@end defun
-
@defun display-pixel-width &optional display
This function returns the width of the screen in pixels.
On a character terminal, it gives the width in characters.
@end defun
+@defun display-mm-height &optional display
+This function returns the height of the screen in millimeters,
+or @code{nil} if Emacs cannot get that information.
+@end defun
+
@defun display-mm-width &optional display
This function returns the width of the screen in millimeters,
or @code{nil} if Emacs cannot get that information.
@end defun
+@defvar display-mm-dimensions-alist
+This variable allows the user to specify the dimensions of graphical
+displays returned by @code{display-mm-height} and
+@code{display-mm-width} in case the system provides incorrect values.
+@end defvar
+
@defun display-backing-store &optional display
This function returns the backing store capability of the display.
Backing store means recording the pixels of windows (and parts of
server.
When the developers of X labelled software distributors as
-``vendors'', they showed their false assumption that no system could
+``vendors,'' they showed their false assumption that no system could
ever be developed and distributed noncommercially.
@end defun