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1 @comment node-name, next, previous, up
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2 @node Entering, Windows and Menus, Concept Index, Top
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3 @chapter Entering and Exiting Emacs
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4 @cindex buffer
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5 @cindex file
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6 @cindex windows
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7
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8 While using Emacs you should be familiar with the following three terms:
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9
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10 @table @asis
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11 @item Buffer
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12 A @b{buffer} is a region of memory holding characters. It is the basic
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13 editing unit; one buffer corresponds to one piece of text being
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14 edited. You can have multiple buffers but you can edit only one buffer
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15 at any one time. For more information, @xref{Buffers,,,,XEmacs User's
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16 Manual}.
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17
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18 @item File
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19 A @b{file} is a region of disk space holding characters. Emacs edits a file by
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20 reading it into a buffer, editing that buffer and writing out the buffer
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21 back to the file. To save your work permanently you have to write it to a file.
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22 So after you load and work with a file, you have to save it back.
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23
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24 @item Windows
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25 A @b{window} is a rectangular region in which a buffer is displayed. You can
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26 open multiple windows with multiple buffers and edit them by selecting the
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27 corresponding buffer. Initially, when you start emacs, it will automatically
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28 open up a window for you.
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29 @end table
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30
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31 @comment node-name, next, previous, up
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32 @menu
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33 * Enter:: Entering Emacs from the shell
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34 * Frame:: Basic information about the XEmacs Frame
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35 * Exiting:: Exiting Emacs
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36 * Mode Line:: Interpreting the mode line.
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37 * Echo Area:: Bottom of the frame where you interact
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38 with Emacs.
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39 @end menu
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40
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41 @node Enter, Frame, Entering, Entering
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42 @section Entering Emacs
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43 @cindex entering Emacs
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44 @cindex entering XEmacs
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45
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46 To enter Emacs type @kbd{xemacs} and press the Return key at the
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47 shell i.e. @kbd{xemacs @key{RET}}.
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48 This will bring up an emacs window with @samp{*scratch*} as the default
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49 buffer because Emacs must always have a buffer to work on. Then choose
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50 the @b{Open...} option from the @b{File} menu on the menubar at the top
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51 of the frame. It will prompt you to enter a filename. After you enter
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52 the filename, Emacs will read that file into the current buffer. You can
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53 also type :
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54 @example
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55 @kbd{xemacs <filename> @key{RET}}
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56 @end example
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57 directly which will bring up
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58 an Emacs frame with the @dfn{filename} as the buffer.
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59
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60
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61 @comment
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62 @node Frame, Exiting, Enter, Entering
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63 @section Emacs Frame
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64 @cindex open another file
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65
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66 When you run XEmacs under X, a menu bar on top of the Emacs frame
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67 provides access to pull-down menus of file, edit, and help-related
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68 commands. The menus only provide convenient shortcuts, the options that
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69 they provide are available via key commands. You can invoke those
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70 commands from the keyboard also. For many of the options, their
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71 corresponding key commands are displayed right besides them. The five
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72 default menus on the menubar that you will see on the frame are
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73 @b{File}, @b{Edit}, @b{Options}, @b{Buffers} and @b{Help}. @xref{XEmacs
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74 Pull-down Menus,,,,XEmacs User's Manual}, for detailed information on
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75 the functions provided by the pull-down menus.
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76
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77 The Emacs frame has a rectangle shaped box at the extreme right and you can
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78 drag it up or down to scroll the window accordingly. Clicking on the
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79 arrows also serves the same purpose.
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80
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81 The last line in your window is @samp{the Mode line} which will give
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82 you a description of what's going on in that particular
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83 window. @xref{Mode Line}, for more
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84 information. Below the mode line is the @samp{Echo area}. Emacs uses
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85 this area to interact with the user. @xref{Echo Area}.
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86
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87 If you wish to open another file in a new window after you enter
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88 XEmacs, select @b{Open in New Frame...} from the @b{File} menu, which
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89 will prompt you for a filename and open a new window with that filename
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90 as the current buffer. If you want to open a new file in the same
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91 window, select @b{Open..} from the @b{File} menu. You need to enter
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92 XEmacs only once, you can edit multiple files by opening several other
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93 frames or by switching between buffers.
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94
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95
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96 @comment new section
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97 @node Exiting, Mode Line, Frame, Entering
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98 @section Exiting Emacs
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99 @cindex exiting
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100 @cindex killing Emacs
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101 @cindex suspending
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102 @cindex shrinking XEmacs frame
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103
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104 There are two commands for exiting Emacs, one for @dfn{suspending} Emacs
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105 and the other for @dfn{killing} Emacs. @dfn{Suspending} means stopping
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106 Emacs temporarily and returning control to the shell, allowing you to
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107 resume editing
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108 later in the same Emacs job, with the same files, same kill ring, same
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109 undo history, and so on. This is the usual way to exit. @dfn{Killing}
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110 Emacs means destroying the Emacs job. You can run Emacs again later,
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111 but you will get a fresh Emacs; there is no way to resume the same
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112 editing session after it has been killed.
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113
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114 @kindex C-z
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115 @findex suspend-emacs
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116 @kindex C-x C-c
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117 @findex save-buffers-kill-emacs
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118
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119 @table @kbd
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120 @item C-z
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121 Suspend Emacs (@code{suspend-emacs}). If used under the X window system,
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122 this command will shrink the X window containing the Emacs frame to an
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123 icon. Clicking on the icon will resume that Emacs process
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124 again. @xref{Exiting Emacs,,,,XEmacs User's Manual}.
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125
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126 @item C-x C-c
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127 Kill Emacs (@code{save-buffers-kill-emacs}). You can also select
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128 @b{Exit Emacs} option from the @b{File} menu to kill that Emacs
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129 process. If you haven't saved the file, Emacs will ask you if you wish
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130 to save the file before killing that process.
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131 @end table
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132
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133
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134
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135 @comment node-name, next, previous, up
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136 @node Mode Line, Echo Area, Exiting, Entering
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137 @section The Mode Line
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138 @cindex mode line
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139 @cindex top level
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140
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141 When you enter XEmacs, each text window's last line is a @dfn{mode
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142 line} which describes what is going on in that window. Normally, the
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143 mode line looks like :
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144
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145 @example
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146 @cartouche
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147 --@var{ch}-XEmacs: @var{buf} (@var{major} @var{minor})----@var{pos}------
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148 @end cartouche
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149 @end example
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150
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151 @noindent
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152 This gives information about the buffer being displayed in the window: the
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153 buffer's name, what major and minor modes are in use, whether the buffer's
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154 text has been changed, and how far down the buffer you are currently
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155 looking.
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156
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157 The @var{ch} contains :
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158 @table @samp
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159 @item **
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160 if the text in the buffer has been edited
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161
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162 @item --
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163 if the text in the buffer has not been edited
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164
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165 @item %%
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166 if the buffer is a read-only-buffer i.e. it cannot be edited
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167 @end table
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168
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169 @var{buf} is the name of the window's chosen @dfn{buffer}. If you are
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170 editing a file (which is the selected buffer), the file name appears
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171 in @var{buf}. @xref{Buffers,,,,XEmacs User's Manual}.
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172
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173 @var{pos} contains :
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174 @table @samp
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175 @item All
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176 if your entire file is visible on the screen.
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177 @item Top
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178 if you are looking at the beginning of the file.
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179 @item Bot
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180 if you are looking at the end of the file.
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181 @item @var{nn}%
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182 @var{nn} will be a number corresponding to the percentage of the file
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183 above the top of the screen, for example @samp{52}, which means that 52%
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184 of the file is above the top of the screen.
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185 @end table
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186
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187 @var{major} is the name of the @dfn{major mode} in effect in the
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188 buffer. At any time, each buffer is in one and only one major mode.
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189 The available major modes include Fundamental mode (the least
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190 specialized), Text mode, Lisp mode, and C mode. @xref{Major
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191 Modes,,,,XEmacs User's Manual}, for details on how the modes differ
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192 and how you select one.
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193
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194 @var{minor} is a list of some of the @dfn{minor modes} that are
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195 turned on in the window's chosen buffer. For example, @samp{Fill} means
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196 that Auto Fill mode is on which means that lines are broken
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197 automatically when they become too wide. @xref{Minor Modes,,,,XEmacs
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198 Reference Manual}, for more information on various minor modes and how
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199 to enable them.
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200
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201 You can also display time in the mode line. @xref{The Mode
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202 Line,,,,XEmacs User's Manual}, for more information regarding the
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203 mode line.
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204
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205
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206 @comment node-name, next, previous, up
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207 @node Echo Area, , Mode Line, Entering
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208 @section The Echo Area
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209 @cindex echo area
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210
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211 The line at the bottom of the frame (below the mode line) is the
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212 @dfn{echo area}. Emacs uses this area to communicate with you:
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213
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214 @itemize @bullet
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215 @item
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216 The @dfn{echo area} will print out the characters that you type. For
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217 example, if you choose the @b{Open...} option from the @b{File} menu you
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218 might get the following in the echo area:
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219
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220 @example
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221 Find file: /usr/lib/x11/
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222 @end example
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223
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224 @noindent
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225 Now you need to give a file name to open, for example if the file name
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226 is @file{myfile}, you will type @file{myfile} after
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227 @file{/usr/lib/x11/} and press the @key{Return} key. If you pause for
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228 more than a second while typing, you will see the characters that you
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229 type in the @dfn{echo area}.
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230 @item
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231 The @dfn{echo area} also prints error messages. For example, if you
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232 misspell @samp{usr} and type @file{/urs/lib/x11/myfile} @key{RETURN} in
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233 the above example you might get an error message. Since
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234 Emacs will not be able to find the @file{/urs}
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235 directory, the @dfn{echo area} will say:
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236
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237 @example
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238 @error{} Opening directory: no such file or directory, /urs/lib/x11/myfile
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239 @end example
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240
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241 @noindent
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242 This error message will be accompanied by a beep. Some XEmacs commands
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243 will print informative messages in the @dfn{echo area}. @xref{The Echo
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244 Area,,,,XEmacs User's Manual}, for more information on the @dfn{echo
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245 area}.
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246 @end itemize
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247
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248
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