Man Linux: Main Page and Category List

NAME

       emacs - GNU project Emacs

SYNOPSIS

       emacs [ command-line switches ] [ files ... ]

DESCRIPTION

       GNU  Emacs is a version of Emacs, written by the author of the original
       (PDP-10) Emacs, Richard Stallman.
       The primary documentation of GNU Emacs is  in  the  GNU  Emacs  Manual,
       which  you  can  read  using Info, either from Emacs or as a standalone
       program.  Please look there for complete and up-to-date  documentation.
       This  man  page  is  updated only when someone volunteers to do so; the
       Emacs maintainers’ priority goal is to minimize the amount of time this
       man page takes away from other more useful projects.
       The  user functionality of GNU Emacs encompasses everything other Emacs
       editors do, and it is easily extensible since its editing commands  are
       written in Lisp.

       Emacs  has  an  extensive  interactive  help facility, but the facility
       assumes that you know how to  manipulate  Emacs  windows  and  buffers.
       CTRL-h or F1 enters the Help facility.  Help Tutorial (CTRL-h t) starts
       an interactive tutorial which can teach beginners the  fundamentals  of
       Emacs  in  a  few  minutes.   Help  Apropos (CTRL-h a) helps you find a
       command given its functionality, Help Character (CTRL-h c) describes  a
       given  character’s  effect,  and  Help  Function (CTRL-h f) describes a
       given Lisp function specified by name.

       Emacs’s Undo can undo several steps of modification to your buffers, so
       it is easy to recover from editing mistakes.

       GNU  Emacs’s  many  special  packages  handle  mail reading (RMail) and
       sending (Mail), outline editing (Outline), compiling (Compile), running
       subshells  within Emacs windows (Shell), running a Lisp read-eval-print
       loop (Lisp-Interaction-Mode),  automated  psychotherapy  (Doctor),  and
       much more.

       There  is  an  extensive  reference  manual, but users of other Emacses
       should have little trouble adapting even without a copy.  Users new  to
       Emacs will be able to use basic features fairly rapidly by studying the
       tutorial and using the self-documentation features.

   Emacs Options
       The following options are of general interest:

              file    Edit file.

              --file file, --find-file file, --visit file
                      The same as specifying file directly as an argument.

              +number Go to the line specified by  number  (do  not  insert  a
                      space  between  the  "+"  sign  and  the  number).  This
                      applies only to the next file specified.

              +line:column
                      Go to the specified line and column.

              -q, --no-init-file
                      Do not load an init file.

              --no-site-file
                      Do not load the site-wide startup file.

              --no-desktop
                      Do not load a saved desktop.

              -nl, --no-shared-memory
                      Do not use shared memory.

              -Q, --quick
                      Equivalent to "-q --no-site-file --no-splash".

              --no-splash
                      Do not display a splash screen during start-up.

              --debug-init
                      Enable Emacs Lisp debugger during the processing of  the
                      user  init  file ~/.emacs.  This is useful for debugging
                      problems in the init file.

              -u user, --user user
                      Load user’s init file.

              -t file, --terminal file
                      Use specified file as  the  terminal  instead  of  using
                      stdin/stdout.  This must be the first argument specified
                      in the command line.

              --multibyte, --no-unibyte
                      Enable multibyte mode (enabled by default).

              --unibyte, --no-multibyte
                      Enable unibyte mode.

              --version
                      Display Emacs version information and exit.

              --help  Display this help and exit.

       The following options are lisp-oriented (these options are processed in
       the order encountered):

              -f function, --funcall function
                      Execute the lisp function function.

              -l file, --load file
                      Load the lisp code in the file file.

              --eval expr, --execute expr
                      Evaluate the Lisp expression expr.

       The following options are useful when running Emacs as a batch editor:

              --batch Edit  in  batch  mode.  The editor will send messages to
                      stderr.  This option must be the first in  the  argument
                      list.   You  must use -l and -f options to specify files
                      to execute and functions to call.

              --script file
                      Run file as an Emacs Lisp script.

              --insert file
                      Insert contents of file into the current buffer.

              --kill  Exit Emacs while in batch mode.

              -L dir, --directory dir
                      Add dir to the list of directories  Emacs  searches  for
                      Lisp files.

   Using Emacs with X
       Emacs  has been tailored to work well with the X window system.  If you
       run Emacs from under X windows, it will create  its  own  X  window  to
       display in.  You will probably want to start the editor as a background
       process so that you can continue using your original window.

       Emacs can be started with the following X switches:

              --name name
                      Specify the name which should be assigned to the initial
                      Emacs  window.   This controls looking up X resources as
                      well as the window title.

              -T name, --title name
                      Specify the title for the initial X window.

              -r, -rv, --reverse-video
                      Display the Emacs window in reverse video.

              -fn font, --font font
                      Set the Emacs window’s font to that specified  by  font.
                      You   will   find   the   various   X   fonts   in   the
                      /usr/lib/X11/fonts directory.  Note that Emacs will only
                      accept fixed width fonts.  Under the X11 Release 4 font-
                      naming conventions, any font with the value "m"  or  "c"
                      in  the eleventh field of the font name is a fixed width
                      font.  Furthermore, fonts whose name  are  of  the  form
                      widthxheight  are  generally fixed width, as is the font
                      fixed.  See xlsfonts(1) for more information.

                      When you specify a font, be sure to put a space  between
                      the switch and the font name.

              --xrm resources
                      Set additional X resources.

              --color, --color=mode
                      Override   color  mode  for  character  terminals;  mode
                      defaults to ‘auto’, and can  also  be  ‘never’,  ‘auto’,
                      ‘always’, or a mode name like ‘ansi8’.

              -bw pixels, --border-width pixels
                      Set  the  Emacs  window’s  border width to the number of
                      pixels specified by pixels.  Defaults to  one  pixel  on
                      each side of the window.

              -ib pixels, --internal-border pixels
                      Set  the window’s internal border width to the number of
                      pixels specified by pixels.  Defaults to  one  pixel  of
                      padding on each side of the window.

              -g geometry, --geometry geometry
                      Set  the  Emacs  window’s width, height, and position as
                      specified.   The  geometry  specification  is   in   the
                      standard  X  format; see X(7) for more information.  The
                      width  and  height  are  specified  in  characters;  the
                      default  is  80  by  24.   See the Emacs manual, section
                      "Options for Window Size and Position", for  information
                      on   how   window   sizes  interact  with  selecting  or
                      deselecting the tool bar and menu bar.

              -lsp pixels, --line-spacing pixels
                      Additional space to put between lines.

              -vb, --vertical-scroll-bars
                      Enable vertical scrollbars.

              -fh, --fullheight
                      Make the first frame as high as the screen.

              -fs, --fullscreen
                      Make the first frame fullscreen.

              -fw, --fullwidth
                      Make the first frame as wide as the screen.

              -fg color, --foreground-color color
                      On color displays, set the color of the text.

                      Use the command M-x list-colors-display for  a  list  of
                      valid color names.

              -bg color, --background-color color
                      On  color  displays,  set  the  color  of  the  window’s
                      background.

              -bd color, --border-color color
                      On color displays, set the color of the window’s border.

              -cr color, --cursor-color color
                      On  color  displays,  set the color of the window’s text
                      cursor.

              -ms color, --mouse-color color
                      On color displays, set the color of the  window’s  mouse
                      cursor.

              -d displayname, --display displayname
                      Create  the  Emacs  window  on  the display specified by
                      displayname.  Must be the first option specified in  the
                      command line.

              -nbi, --no-bitmap-icon
                      Do not use picture of gnu for Emacs icon.

              --iconic
                      Start Emacs in iconified state.

              -nbc, --no-blinking-cursor
                      Disable blinking cursor.

              -nw, --no-window-system
                      Tell  Emacs  not  to use its special interface to X.  If
                      you use this switch when invoking Emacs from an xterm(1)
                      window, display is done in that window.

              -D, --basic-display
                      This  option  disables many display features; use it for
                      debugging Emacs.

       You can set X default values for your Emacs windows in your .Xresources
       file (see xrdb(1)).  Use the following format:

              emacs.keyword:value

       where value specifies the default value of keyword.  Emacs lets you set
       default values for the following keywords:

              background (class Background)
                      For color displays, sets the window’s background  color.

              bitmapIcon (class BitmapIcon)
                      If  bitmapIcon’s  value  is  set  to on, the window will
                      iconify into the "kitchen sink."

              borderColor (class BorderColor)
                      For color displays,  sets  the  color  of  the  window’s
                      border.

              borderWidth (class BorderWidth)
                      Sets the window’s border width in pixels.

              cursorColor (class Foreground)
                      For  color displays, sets the color of the window’s text
                      cursor.

              cursorBlink (class CursorBlink)
                      Specifies whether to make the cursor blink.  The default
                      is on.  Use off or false to turn cursor blinking off.

              font (class Font)
                      Sets the window’s text font.

              foreground (class Foreground)
                      For color displays, sets the window’s text color.

              fullscreen (class Fullscreen)
                      The  desired  fullscreen  size.  The value can be one of
                      fullboth, fullwidth, or fullheight, which correspond  to
                      the   command-line  options  ‘-fs’,  ‘-fw’,  and  ‘-fh’,
                      respectively.  Note that this  applies  to  the  initial
                      frame only.

              geometry (class Geometry)
                      Sets  the  geometry  of  the  Emacs window (as described
                      above).

              iconName (class Title)
                      Sets the icon name for the Emacs window icon.

              internalBorder (class BorderWidth)
                      Sets the window’s internal border width in pixels.

              lineSpacing (class LineSpacing)
                      Additional space ("leading") between lines, in pixels.

              menuBar (class MenuBar)
                      Gives frames menu bars if on; don’t have  menu  bars  if
                      off.   See  the Emacs manual, sections "Lucid Resources"
                      and  "LessTif  Resources",  for  how  to   control   the
                      appearance of the menu bar if you have one.

              minibuffer (class Minibuffer)
                      If none, don’t make a minibuffer in this frame.  It will
                      use a separate minibuffer frame instead.

              paneFont (class Font)
                      Font name for menu pane titles, in non-toolkit  versions
                      of Emacs.

              pointerColor (class Foreground)
                      For color displays, sets the color of the window’s mouse
                      cursor.

              privateColormap (class PrivateColormap)
                      If on, use a private color map, in the  case  where  the
                      "default visual" of class PseudoColor and Emacs is using
                      it.

              reverseVideo (class ReverseVideo)
                      If reverseVideo’s value is set to on, the window will be
                      displayed in reverse video.

              screenGamma (class ScreenGamma)
                      Gamma  correction  for  colors,  equivalent to the frame
                      parameter ‘screen-gamma’.

              scrollBarWidth (class ScrollBarWidth)
                      The scroll bar width in pixels, equivalent to the  frame
                      parameter ‘scroll-bar-width’.

              selectionFont (class SelectionFont)
                      Font name for pop-up menu items, in non-toolkit versions
                      of Emacs.  (For toolkit versions, see the Emacs  manual,
                      sections "Lucid Resources" and "LessTif Resources".)

              selectionTimeout (class SelectionTimeout)
                      Number of milliseconds to wait for a selection reply.  A
                      value of 0 means wait as long as necessary.

              synchronous (class Synchronous)
                      Run Emacs in synchronous mode if on.   Synchronous  mode
                      is useful for debugging X problems.

              title (class Title)
                      Sets the title of the Emacs window.

              toolBar (class ToolBar)
                      Number of lines to reserve for the tool bar.

              useXIM (class UseXIM)
                      Turns  off use of X input methods (XIM) if false or off.

              verticalScrollBars (class ScrollBars)
                      Gives frames scroll bars if on; suppresses  scroll  bars
                      if off.

              visualClass (class VisualClass)
                      Specify  the  "visual"  that X should use.  This tells X
                      how to handle colors.  The value should start  with  one
                      of  TrueColor,  PseudoColor,  DirectColor,  StaticColor,
                      GrayScale, and StaticGray,  followed  by  -depth,  where
                      depth is the number of color planes.

       If  you  try to set color values while using a black and white display,
       the window’s characteristics will default as  follows:  the  foreground
       color  will be set to black, the background color will be set to white,
       the border color will be set to grey, and the text  and  mouse  cursors
       will be set to black.

   Using the Mouse
       The  following  lists  some  of the mouse button bindings for the Emacs
       window under X11.

              MOUSE BUTTON        FUNCTION
              ------------------------------------------------------------
              left                Set point.
              middle              Paste text.
              right               Cut text into X cut buffer.
              SHIFT-middle        Cut text into X cut buffer.
              SHIFT-right         Paste text.
              CTRL-middle         Cut text into X cut buffer and kill it.
              CTRL-right          Select this window, then split it  into
                                  two  windows.  Same as typing CTRL-x 2.
              CTRL-SHIFT-left     X buffer menu — hold  the  buttons  and
                                  keys  down,  wait  for  menu to appear,
                                  select buffer, and release.  Move mouse
                                  out of menu and release to cancel.

              CTRL-SHIFT-middle   X  help  menu  — pop up index card menu
                                  for Emacs help.
              CTRL-SHIFT-right    Select window with  mouse,  and  delete
                                  all  other  windows.   Same  as  typing
                                  CTRL-x 1.

MANUALS

       You can order printed copies of the GNU  Emacs  Manual  from  the  Free
       Software  Foundation, which develops GNU software.  See the file ORDERS
       for ordering information.
       Your local Emacs maintainer might also have copies available.  As  with
       all  software  and publications from FSF, everyone is permitted to make
       and distribute copies of the Emacs  manual.   The  TeX  source  to  the
       manual is also included in the Emacs source distribution.

FILES

       /usr/share/info  —  files  for  the  Info  documentation  browser.  The
       complete text of the Emacs reference manual is included in a convenient
       tree  structured  form.  Also includes the Emacs Lisp Reference Manual,
       useful to anyone wishing to write programs in the Emacs Lisp  extension
       language.

       /usr/share/emacs/$VERSION/lisp  —  Lisp source files and compiled files
       that define most editing commands.   Some  are  preloaded;  others  are
       autoloaded from this directory when used.

       /usr/lib/emacs/$VERSION/$ARCH — various programs that are used with GNU
       Emacs.

       /usr/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc — various files of information.

       /usr/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc/DOC.*  —   contains   the   documentation
       strings  for  the  Lisp  primitives and preloaded Lisp functions of GNU
       Emacs.  They are stored here to reduce the size of Emacs proper.

       /usr/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc/SERVICE  lists  people  offering  various
       services   to   assist   users   of  GNU  Emacs,  including  education,
       troubleshooting, porting and customization.

BUGS

       There is a mailing list,  bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org,  for  reporting  Emacs
       bugs and fixes.  But before reporting something as a bug, please try to
       be sure that it really is a bug, not a misunderstanding or a deliberate
       feature.   We ask you to read the section ‘‘Reporting Emacs Bugs’’ near
       the end of the reference manual (or Info system) for hints on  how  and
       when to report bugs.  Also, include the version number of the Emacs you
       are running in every bug report that you send in.  Bugs  tend  actually
       to  be  fixed  if  they  can  be isolated, so it is in your interest to
       report them in such a way that they can be easily reproduced.

       Do not expect a personal answer  to  a  bug  report.   The  purpose  of
       reporting  bugs  is to get them fixed for everyone in the next release,
       if possible.  For personal assistance, look in the  SERVICE  file  (see
       above) for a list of people who offer it.

       Please  do not send anything but bug reports to this mailing list.  For
       more  information   about   Emacs   mailing   lists,   see   the   file
       /usr/share/emacs/$VERSION/etc/MAILINGLISTS.

UNRESTRICTIONS

       Emacs  is free; anyone may redistribute copies of Emacs to anyone under
       the terms stated in the Emacs General Public License, a copy  of  which
       accompanies  each copy of Emacs and which also appears in the reference
       manual.

       Copies of Emacs may sometimes be received packaged  with  distributions
       of  Unix  systems, but it is never included in the scope of any license
       covering those systems.  Such inclusion violates  the  terms  on  which
       distribution is permitted.  In fact, the primary purpose of the General
       Public  License  is  to  prohibit  anyone  from  attaching  any   other
       restrictions to redistribution of Emacs.

       Richard  Stallman encourages you to improve and extend Emacs, and urges
       that you contribute your extensions to the GNU library.  Eventually GNU
       (Gnu’s  Not  Unix)  will  be a complete replacement for Unix.  Everyone
       will be free to use, copy, study and change the GNU system.

SEE ALSO

       emacsclient(1), etags(1), X(7), xlsfonts(1), xterm(1), xrdb(1)

AUTHORS

       Emacs was written by Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation.
       Joachim Martillo and Robert Krawitz added the X features.

COPYING

       Copyright (C) 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005,
             2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

       Permission  is  granted  to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
       document provided the copyright notice and this permission  notice  are
       preserved on all copies.

       Permission  is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
       document under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided  that  the
       entire  resulting  derived  work  is  distributed  under the terms of a
       permission notice identical to this one.

       Permission is granted to  copy  and  distribute  translations  of  this
       document into another language, under the above conditions for modified
       versions, except that  this  permission  notice  may  be  stated  in  a
       translation approved by the Free Software Foundation.