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1
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2 @node M-x, Help, Minibuffer, Top
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3 @chapter Running Commands by Name
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4
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5 The Emacs commands that are used often or that must be quick to type are
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6 bound to keys---short sequences of characters---for convenient use. Other
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7 Emacs commands that are used more rarely are not bound to keys; to run
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8 them, you must refer to them by name.
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9
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10 A command name consists, by convention, of one or more words,
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11 separated by hyphens: for example, @code{auto-fill-mode} or
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12 @code{manual-entry}. The use of English words makes the command name
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13 easier to remember than a key made up of obscure characters, even though
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14 it results in more characters to type. You can run any command by name,
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15 even if it can be run by keys as well.
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16
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17 @kindex M-x
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18 @cindex minibuffer
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19 To run a command by name, start with @kbd{M-x}, then type the
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20 command name, and finish with @key{RET}. @kbd{M-x} uses the minibuffer
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21 to read the command name. @key{RET} exits the minibuffer and runs the
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22 command.
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23
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24 Emacs uses the minibuffer for reading input for many different purposes;
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25 on this occasion, the string @samp{M-x} is displayed at the beginning of
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26 the minibuffer as a @dfn{prompt} to remind you that your input should be
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27 the name of a command to be run. @xref{Minibuffer}, for full information
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28 on the features of the minibuffer.
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29
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30 You can use completion to enter a command name. For example, to
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31 invoke the command @code{forward-char}, type:
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32
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33 @example
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34 M-x forward-char @key{RET}
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35 @end example
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36 or
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37 @example
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38 M-x fo @key{TAB} c @key{RET}
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39 @end example
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40
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41 @noindent
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42 After you type in @code{M-x fo TAB} emacs will give you a possible list of
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43 completions from which you can choose. Note that @code{forward-char} is the
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44 same command that you invoke with the key @kbd{C-f}. You can call any
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45 command (interactively callable function) defined in Emacs by its name
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46 using @kbd{M-x} regardless of whether or not any keys are bound to it.
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47
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48 If you type @kbd{C-g} while Emacs reads the command name, you cancel
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49 the @kbd{M-x} command and get out of the minibuffer, ending up at top level.
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50
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51 To pass a numeric argument to a command you are invoking with
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52 @kbd{M-x}, specify the numeric argument before the @kbd{M-x}. @kbd{M-x}
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53 passes the argument along to the function that it calls. The argument
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54 value appears in the prompt while the command name is being read.
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55
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56 @findex interactive
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57 You can use the command @code{M-x interactive} to specify a way of
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58 parsing arguments for interactive use of a function. For example, write:
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59
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60 @example
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61 (defun foo (arg) "Doc string" (interactive "p") ...use arg...)
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62 @end example
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63
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64 to make @code{arg} be the prefix argument when @code{foo} is called as a
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65 command. The call to @code{interactive} is actually a declaration
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66 rather than a function; it tells @code{call-interactively} how to read
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67 arguments to pass to the function. When actually called, @code{interactive}
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68 returns @code{nil}.
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69
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70 The argument of @var{interactive} is usually a string containing a code
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71 letter followed by a prompt. Some code letters do not use I/O to get
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72 the argument and do not need prompts. To prompt for multiple arguments,
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73 you must provide a code letter, its prompt, a newline, and another code
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74 letter, and so forth. If the argument is not a string, it is evaluated
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75 to get a list of arguments to pass to the function. If you do not provide an
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76 argument to @code{interactive}, no arguments are passed when calling
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77 interactively.
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78
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79 Available code letters are:
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80
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81 @table @code
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82 @item a
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83 Function name: symbol with a function definition
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84 @item b
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85 Name of existing buffer
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86 @item B
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87 Name of buffer, possibly nonexistent
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88 @item c
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89 Character
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90 @item C
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91 Command name: symbol with interactive function definition
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92 @item d
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93 Value of point as number (does not do I/O)
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94 @item D
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95 Directory name
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96 @item e
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97 Last mouse event
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98 @item f
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99 Existing file name
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100 @item F
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101 Possibly nonexistent file name
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102 @item k
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103 Key sequence (string)
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104 @item m
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105 Value of mark as number (does not do I/O)
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106 @item n
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107 Number read using minibuffer
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108 @item N
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109 Prefix arg converted to number, or if none, do like code @code{n}
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110 @item p
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111 Prefix arg converted to number (does not do I/O)
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112 @item P
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113 Prefix arg in raw form (does not do I/O)
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114 @item r
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115 Region: point and mark as two numeric arguments, smallest first (does
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116 not do I/O)
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117 @item s
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118 Any string
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119 @item S
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120 Any symbol
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121 @item v
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122 Variable name: symbol that is @code{user-variable-p}
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123 @item x
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124 Lisp expression read but not evaluated
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125 @item X
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126 Lisp expression read and evaluated
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127 @end table
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128
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129 In addition, if the string begins with @samp{*}, an error is
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130 signaled if the buffer is read-only. This happens before reading any
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131 arguments. If the string begins with @samp{@@}, the window the mouse is
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132 over is selected before anything else is done. You may use both
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133 @samp{@@} and @samp{*}; they are processed in the order that they appear.
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134
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135 Normally, when describing a command that is run by name, we omit the
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136 @key{RET} that is needed to terminate the name. Thus we may refer to
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137 @kbd{M-x auto-fill-mode} rather than @kbd{M-x auto-fill-mode} @key{RET}.
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138 We mention the @key{RET} only when it is necessary to emphasize its
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139 presence, for example, when describing a sequence of input that contains
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140 a command name and arguments that follow it.
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141
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142 @findex execute-extended-command
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143 @kbd{M-x} is defined to run the command @code{execute-extended-command},
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144 which is responsible for reading the name of another command and invoking
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145 it.
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