@cindex locking files
When you make the first modification in an Emacs buffer that is
visiting a file, Emacs records that the file is @dfn{locked} by you.
-(It does this by creating a specially-named symbolic link in the same
-directory.) Emacs removes the lock when you save the changes. The
-idea is that the file is locked whenever an Emacs buffer visiting it
-has unsaved changes.
+(It does this by creating a specially-named symbolic link or regular
+file with special contents in the same directory.) Emacs removes the
+lock when you save the changes. The idea is that the file is locked
+whenever an Emacs buffer visiting it has unsaved changes.
@vindex create-lockfiles
You can prevent the creation of lock files by setting the variable
simultaneously under different names.
A lock file cannot be written in some circumstances, e.g., if Emacs
-lacks the system permissions or the system does not support symbolic
-links. In these cases, Emacs can still detect the collision when you
-try to save a file, by checking the file's last-modification date. If
-the file has changed since the last time Emacs visited or saved it,
-that implies that changes have been made in some other way, and will
-be lost if Emacs proceeds with saving. Emacs then displays a warning
-message and asks for confirmation before saving; answer @kbd{yes} to
-save, and @kbd{no} or @kbd{C-g} cancel the save.
+lacks the system permissions or cannot create lock files for some
+other reason. In these cases, Emacs can still detect the collision
+when you try to save a file, by checking the file's last-modification
+date. If the file has changed since the last time Emacs visited or
+saved it, that implies that changes have been made in some other way,
+and will be lost if Emacs proceeds with saving. Emacs then displays a
+warning message and asks for confirmation before saving; answer
+@kbd{yes} to save, and @kbd{no} or @kbd{C-g} cancel the save.
If you are notified that simultaneous editing has already taken
place, one way to compare the buffer to its file is the @kbd{M-x
displayed. If the image can be animated, the command @kbd{RET}
(@code{image-toggle-animation}) starts or stops the animation.
Animation plays once, unless the option @code{image-animate-loop} is
-non-@code{nil}. Currently, Emacs only supports animation in GIF
-files.
+non-@code{nil}.
@cindex ImageMagick support
@vindex imagemagick-enabled-types