Mercurial > hg > xemacs-beta
diff etc/NEWS @ 0:376386a54a3c r19-14
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date | Mon, 13 Aug 2007 08:45:50 +0200 |
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--- /dev/null Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 +0000 +++ b/etc/NEWS Mon Aug 13 08:45:50 2007 +0200 @@ -0,0 +1,3130 @@ +-*- mode:outline; minor-mode:outl-mouse -*- + +* Introduction +============== + +This file presents some general information about XEmacs. It is primarily +about the evolution of XEmacs and its release history. + +There are five sections. + + Introduction................(this section) provides an introduction + + Using Outline Mode..........briefly explains how to use outline mode + + The History of XEmacs.......some historical notes + + What's Different?...........new or changed capabilities + + XEmacs Release Notes........details of the changes between releases + +New users should look at the next section on "Using Outline Mode". You will +be more efficient when you can navigate quickly through this file. Users +interested in some of the details of how XEmacs differs from FSF GNU Emacs +should read the section "What's Different?". Users who would to know which +capabilities have been introduced in each release should look at the +appropriate subsection of the "XEmacs Release Notes." + + N.B. The term "FSF GNU Emacs" refers to any release of Emacs Version 19 + from the Free Software Foundation's GNU Project. (We do not say just + "GNU Emacs" because Richard M. Stallman ["RMS"] thinks that this term + is too generic; although we sometimes say e.g. "GNU Emacs 19.30" to refer + to a specific version of FSF GNU Emacs. We do not say merely "Emacs", as + RMS prefers, because that is clearly an even more generic term.) The term + "XEmacs" refers to this program or to its predecessors "Era" and + "Lucid Emacs". The predecessor of all these program is called "Emacs 18". + When no particular version is implied, "Emacs" will be used. + + +* Using Outline Mode +==================== + +This file is in outline mode, a major mode for viewing (or editing) +outlines. It allows you to make parts of the text temporarily invisible so +that you can see just the overall structure of the outline. + +There are two ways of using outline mode: with keys or with menus. Using +outline mode with menus is the simplest and is just as effective as using +keystrokes. There are menus for outline mode on the menubar as well as in +popup menus activated by pressing mouse button 3. + +Experiment with the menu commands. Menu items under "Headings" allow +you to navigate from heading to heading. Menu items under "Show" make +visible portions of the outline while menu items under "Hide" do the +opposite. + +A special minor mode called "outl-mouse" has been automatically enabled. In +this minor mode, glyphs appear which, when clicked on, will alternately hide +or show sections of the outline. + +You may at any time press `C-h m' to get a listing of the outline mode key +bindings. They are reproduced here: + +Commands: +C-c C-n outline-next-visible-heading move by visible headings +C-c C-p outline-previous-visible-heading +C-c C-f outline-forward-same-level similar but skip subheadings +C-c C-b outline-backward-same-level +C-c C-u outline-up-heading move from subheading to heading + +C-c C-t make all text invisible (not headings). +M-x show-all make everything in buffer visible. + +The remaining commands are used when point is on a heading line. +They apply to some of the body or subheadings of that heading. +C-c C-d hide-subtree make body and subheadings invisible. +C-c C-s show-subtree make body and subheadings visible. +C-c tab show-children make direct subheadings visible. + No effect on body, or subheadings 2 or more levels down. + With arg N, affects subheadings N levels down. +C-c C-c make immediately following body invisible. +C-c C-e make it visible. +C-c C-l make body under heading and under its subheadings invisible. + The subheadings remain visible. +C-c C-k make all subheadings at all levels visible.x1 + + +* The History of XEmacs +======================= + +This product is an extension of GNU Emacs, previously known to some as +"Lucid Emacs" or "ERA". It was initially based on an early version of Emacs +Version 19 from the Free Software Foundation and has since been kept +up-to-date with recent versions of that product. It stems from a +collaboration of Lucid, Inc. with SunSoft DevPro (a division of Sun +Microsystems, Inc.; formerly called SunPro) and the University of Illinois. + +NOTE: Lucid, Inc. is currently out of business but development on XEmacs +continues strong. Recently, Amdahl Corporation and INS Engineering have +both contributed significantly to the development of XEmacs. + + +** Why Haven't XEmacs and FSF GNU Emacs Merged? +=============================================== + +This question comes up again and again on comp.emacs.xemacs and other +newsgroups and mailing lists. Recently in fact there was a long, heated +thread about this issue. + +Here is what one XEmacs developer said about this issue. + +DISCLAIMER: This is provided for informational purposes only and does +_NOT_ necessarily represent the opinions of any of the other XEmacs +developers or of any of the organizations involved. Keep in mind +that this is a highly charged issue with differing and strongly-held +opinions held by the various parties involved. + + Subject: Re: elisp code in GNU Emacs/XEmacs + From: wing@666.com (Ben Wing) + Message-ID: <wingDqGwLH.K6w@netcom.com> + Date: Fri, 26 Apr 1996 11:44:05 GMT + + In article <9xo91fmordx.fsf@bcarsf26.nortel.ca>, Stephane Boucher + <sbo@bcarsf26.nortel.ca> wrote: + + Well, I don't think the number of volunteers is greater by having 2 + Emacsen. I think your affirmation holds true because of the + inhability of the various parties involved to work together and + compromise. If people could all work together, I don't think there + would be any benifit in having 2 Emacsen. It may seem profitable + right now, but in the long run, I think everyone looses. The time + everyone spends porting back and forth, and imitating what the other + has done is not spent to do new features. I've presonnally + experienced a project split in the past, and in the end everyone + lost. + + I don't want to try to blame anybody for the current fiasco. But we do + have a fiasco. That is unfortunate. There are so many contributors + out there that if everyone worked together we might be looking + forward to having, say, threads in Emacs. But instead, as someone + told me not that long ago, maybe we'll soon see a new editor come out + based on Java. Threads will be part of it at no extra cost, and those + people still using Emacs will continue to curse at the fact that they + can't start GNUS while typing an E-mail, and the various Emacs + contributors will continue to argue among themselves, nitpicking + about how to get the perfect solution, rather than try to move + forward. Meanwhile, people will enjoy using a new state of the art + editor. + + Don't think we're just being needlessly perverse by continuing to have + XEmacs. I'm well aware of the problems in having a project split, and + don't think for a minute that we haven't tried (extremely hard, in + fact) to come up with a merge. + + Unfortunately, as I have said before, the odds of this happening are + quite low due to severe conflicts (both technical, procedural, and + philosophical) between RMS and the XEmacs developers. If we were to + assent to even half of what RMS wants in a merged Emacs, it would take + years of work to produce the merged Emacs, and the result would be + less powerful than the existing XEmacs. + + Since so many people seem so misinformed about this problem, I'll go + ahead and state the fundamental dividing issues: + + 1. RMS does not believe in data abstraction, and cannot be convinced + of the folly of this. This by itself is such a huge division that + it makes a merge basically unthinkable. Because of this, FSF Emacs + is basically unmaintainable by anyone other than RMS. RMS has + consented to all the data abstraction I want provided that I take + sole responsibility for writing this code (which basically means + I'd have to write almost all of the code or rewrite most of his + code), and provided that he can use this issue as a bargaining + chip to get concessions of his own. + 2. RMS sees the merge process as a series of mutual concessions + traded back and forth. IMHO this is reasonable for a peace treaty + but absurd for a piece of software -- we have to have technical + agreement on the major issues involved, and the chance of that + happening is basically nil. + 3. RMS has insisted in full backwards compatibility with all aspects + of FSF Emacs, no matter how ugly; and furthermore, this backwards + compatibility must work fast enough to make existing code run + without problem. This basically means that there would have to be + parallel C implementations of events, keymaps, and many other data + structures. This not only will take months or years of extra work + to implement, but poses some fundamental technical problems due to + the non-abstractedness of FSF Emacs (e.g. in FSF Emacs keymaps are + conses or vectors and a lot of code depends on this, and + reconciling this with XEmacs's primitive keymap type is difficult + to impossible). + 4. RMS will not even consent to neutral names for the two editors. He + objects to call his editor FSF Emacs because for some unfathomable + reason he finds it insulting. He suggests just Emacs, which I find + not only insulting (XEmacs is just as much Emacs as is FSF Emacs) + but also quite confusing. He will not even consent to calling his + editor GNU Emacs without also referring to XEmacs as GNU XEmacs -- + basically a Borg-like assimilation attempt at making XEmacs a GNU + product, which it is not. (None of the developers of Lucid Emacs + and XEmacs were or are sanctioned by GNU, and none of us got the + least bit of assistance or cooperation in doing our work. In fact, + RMS actively made it harder by choosing to ignore all work + previously done in XEmacs and adding his own incompatible + interfaces for functionality already in XEmacs. This makes it + quite difficult to track FSF Emacs and keep a sane API.) He has + stated many times, and continues to assert, that most or all of + the work done on Lucid Emacs and XEmacs was done primarily as a + testing ground for potential features to be added to FSF Emacs. + All of the developers of Lucid Emacs and XEmacs assert that this + is patently false -- so why does RMS continue to insist that this + is the case? + + ben + -- + "... then the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was + more painful than the risk it took to blossom." -- Anais Nin + + +** Why Another Version of Emacs? (The Lucid, Inc. Point of View) +================================================================= + +Lucid's latest product, Energize, is a C/C++ development environment. +Rather than invent (and force our users to learn) a new user-interface, we +chose to build part of our environment on top of the world's best editor, +GNU Emacs. (Though our product is commercial, the work we did on is +free software, and is useful without having to purchase our product.) + +We needed a version of Emacs with mouse-sensitive regions, multiple fonts, +the ability to mark sections of a buffer as read-only, the ability to detect +which parts of a buffer has been modified, and many other features. + +*** Why Not Epoch or GNU Emacs? +------------------------------- + +For our purposes, the existing version of Epoch was not sufficient; it did +not allow us to put arbitrary pixmaps/icons in buffers, `undo' did not +restore changes to regions, regions did not overlap and merge their +attributes in the way we needed, and several other things. + +We could have devoted our time to making Epoch do what we needed (and, in +fact, we spent some time doing that in 1990) but, since the Free Software +Foundation planned to include Epoch-like features in their Version 19, we +decided that our efforts would be better spent improving GNU Emacs +instead of Epoch. + +Our original hope was that our changes to GNU Emacs would be +incorporated into the "official" v19. However, scheduling conflicts arose, +and we found that, given the amount of work still remaining to be done, we +didn't have the time or manpower to do the level of coordination that would +be necessary to get our changes accepted by the Free Software Foundation. +Consequently, we released our work as a forked branch of Emacs, instead of +delaying any longer. + +Roughly a year after Lucid Emacs 19.0 was released, a beta version of the +Free Software Foundation branch of Emacs 19 was released. This version +was better in some areas, and worse in others, as reflects the differing +focus of our development efforts. + +We planned to continue developing and supporting Lucid Emacs, and merging in +bug fixes and new features from the Free Software Foundation branch as +appropriate; we did not plan to discard any of the functionality that we +implemented which Richard Stallman of the Free Software Foundation has +chosen not to include in his version. + +However, events have overtaken us, and Lucid, Inc. has effectively ceased +doing business and is (September 1994) in the process of being sold. Our +efforts on Lucid Emacs have also ceased and we've turned over the continued +enhancement of Lucid Emacs to the University of Illinois under Chuck +Thompson, a member of the Lucid Emacs team and a maintainer of Epoch. +At the same time, Lucid Emacs has been renamed XEmacs to reflect the +substantial contribution of the University of Illinois with the support of +Sun Microsystems. + +Certain elements of Lucid Emacs, or derivatives of them, have been ported to +the FSF GNU Emacs. We have not been doing work in this direction, because +we feel that Lucid Emacs has a cleaner and more extensible substrate, and +that any kind of merger between the two branches would be far easier by +merging the Free Software Foundation changes into our version than the other +way around. + +We were working closely with the Epoch developers to merge in the +remaining Epoch functionality which Lucid Emacs does not yet have. Epoch +and Lucid Emacs will soon be one and the same thing. Work is being done on +a compatibility package which will allow Epoch 4 code to run in XEmacs with +little or no change. (As of 19.8, Lucid Emacs is running a descendant of +the Epoch redisplay engine.) + +** Why Another Version of Emacs? (The SunPro Point of View) +============================================================ + +Emacs 18 has been around for a long, long time. Version 19 was supposed to +be the successor to Emacs 18 with X support. It was going to be available +"real soon" for a long time (some people remember hearing about v19 as early +as 1984!), but it never came out. v19 development was going very, very +slowly, and from the outside it seemed that it was not moving at all. In +the meantime other people gave up waiting for v19 and decided to build their +own X-aware Emacsen. The most important of these was probably Epoch, which +came from the University of Illinois and was based on v18. + +Around three years ago we decided that we wanted an integrated editor. We +contracted with the University of Illinois to provide a number of basic +enhancements to the functionality in Epoch. The University of Illinois +initially was planning to deliver this on top of Epoch code. + +In the meantime (actually some time before we talked with the University of +Illinois) Lucid had decided that it also wanted to provide an integrated +environment with an integrated editor. Lucid decided that the Version 19 +basis was a better one than Version 18 and thus decided not to use Epoch but +instead work with Richard Stallman, the head of the Free Software Foundation +and principle author of Emacs, on getting Version 19 out. At some point +Stallman and Lucid parted ways. Lucid kept working and got a Version 19 out +that they called Lucid Emacs 19. + +After Lucid's v19 came out it became clear to us (the University of Illinois +and SunPro) that the right thing to do was to push for an integration of +both Lucid Emacs and Epoch, and to get the deliverables that we were asking +from the University of Illinois on top of this integrated platform. Through +the last two years, SunPro has been actively supporting this product and has +been investing a comparable amount of effort into it as Lucid has. +Substantial portions of the current code have originated under the support +of SunPro, either directly in SunPro, or in the University of Illinois but +paid for by us. This code was kept away from Lucid for a while, but later +was made available to them. Initially Lucid didn't know that we were +supporting UofI, but later we were open about it. + +Eventually, all development source trees were synched up. Currently, there +is basically no difference in the source trees between what is at the +University of Illinois and SunPro. + +SunPro originally called the integrated product ERA, for "Emacs Rewritten +Again". At some point, SunPro and Lucid came to an agreement to find a name +for the product that was not specific to either company. An additional +constraint that Lucid placed on the name was that it must contain the word +"Emacs" in it -- thus "ERA" was not acceptable. The agreed-upon name was +"XEmacs", and this is what the product has been called starting with the +19.11 release. + + +* What's Different? +=================== + + +** Differences between XEmacs and FSF GNU Emacs 19 +================================================== + +In XEmacs, events are first-class objects. FSF 19 represents them as +integers, which obscures the differences between a key gesture and the +ancient ASCII code used to represent a particular overlapping subset of them. + +In XEmacs, keymaps are first-class opaque objects. FSF 19 represents them as +complicated combinations of association lists and vectors. If you use the +advertised functional interface to manipulation of keymaps, the same code +will work in XEmacs, Emacs 18, and and FSF GNU Emacs 19; if your code depends +on the underlying implementation of keymaps, it will not. + +XEmacs uses "extents" to represent all non-textual aspects of buffers; +FSF 19 uses two distinct objects, "text properties" and "overlays", +which divide up the functionality between them. Extents are a +superset of the functionality of the two FSF data types. The full FSF +19 interface to text properties is supported in XEmacs (with extents +being the underlying representation). + +Extents can be made to be copied into strings, and thus restored by kill +and yank. Thus, one can specify this behavior on either "extents" or +"text properties", whereas in FSF 19 text properties always have this +behavior and overlays never do. + +Many more packages are provided standard with XEmacs than with FSF 19. + +Pixmaps of arbitrary size can be embedded in a buffer. + +Variable width fonts work. + +The height of a line is the height of the tallest font on that line, instead +of all lines having the same height. + +XEmacs uses the MIT "Xt" toolkit instead of raw Xlib calls, which +makes it be a more well-behaved X citizen (and also improves +portability). A result of this is that it is possible to include +other Xt "Widgets" in the XEmacs window. Also, XEmacs understands the +standard Xt command-line arguments. + +XEmacs provides support for ToolTalk on systems that have it. + +XEmacs can ask questions using popup dialog boxes. Any command executed from +a menu will ask yes/no questions with dialog boxes, while commands executed +via the keyboard will use the minibuffer. + +XEmacs has a built-in toolbar. Four toolbars can actually be configured: +top, bottom, left, and right toolbars. + +XEmacs has vertical and horizontal scrollbars. Unlike in FSF 19 (which +provides a primitive form of vertical scrollbar), these are true toolkit +scrollbars. A look-alike Motif scrollbar is provided for those who +don't have Motif. (Even for those who do, the look-alike may be preferable +as it is faster.) + +If you're running on a machine with audio hardware, you can specify sound +files for XEmacs to play instead of the default X beep. See the documentation +of the function load-sound-file and the variable sound-alist. + +An XEmacs frame can be placed within an "external client widget" managed by +another application. This allows an application to use an XEmacs frame as its +text pane rather than the standard Text widget that is provided with Motif or +Athena. XEmacs supports Motif applications, generic Xt (e.g. Athena) +applications, and raw Xlib applications. + +Here are some more specifics about the XEmacs implementation: + +*** The Input Model +------------------- + +The fundamental unit of input is an "event" instead of a character. An +event is a new data type that contains several pieces of information. +There are several kinds of event, and corresponding accessor and utility +functions. We tried to abstract them so that they would apply equally +well to a number of window systems. + +NOTE: All timestamps are measured as milliseconds since Emacs started. + + key_press_event + event_channel A token representing which keyboard generated it. + For this kind of event, this is a frame object. + (This is for eventual support of multiple displays.) + timestamp When it happened + key What keysym this is; an integer or a symbol. + If this is an integer, it will be in the printing + ASCII range: >32 and <127. + modifiers Bucky-bits on that key: control, meta, etc. + For most keys, Shift is not a bit; that is implicit + in the keyboard layout. + + button_press_event + button_release_event + event_channel A token representing which mouse generated it. + For this kind of event, this is a frame object. + timestamp When it happened + button What button went down or up. + modifiers Bucky-bits on that button: shift, control, meta, etc. + x, y Where it was at the button-state-change (in pixels). + + pointer_motion_event + event_channel A token representing which mouse generated it. + For this kind of event, this is a frame object. + timestamp When it happened + x, y Where it was after it moved (in pixels). + modifiers Bucky-bits down when the motion was detected. + (Possibly not all window systems will provide this?) + + process_event + timestamp When it happened + process the emacs "process" object in question + + timeout_event + timestamp Now (really, when the timeout was signaled) + interval_id The ID returned when the associated call to + add_timeout_cb() was made + ------ the rest of the fields are filled in by Emacs ----- + id_number The Emacs timeout ID for this timeout (more + than one timeout event can have the same value + here, since Emacs timeouts, as opposed to + add_timeout_cb() timeouts, can resignal + themselves) + function An elisp function to call when this timeout is + processed. + object The object passed to that function. + + eval_event + timestamp When it happened + function An elisp function to call with this event object. + object Anything. + This kind of event is used internally; sometimes the + window system interface would like to inform emacs of + some user action (such as focusing on another frame) + but needs that to happen synchronously with the other + user input, like keypresses. This is useful when + events are reported through callbacks rather + than in the standard event stream. + + misc_user_event + timestamp When it happened + function An elisp function to call with this event object. + object Anything. + This is similar to an eval_event, except that it is + generated by user actions: selections in the + menubar or scrollbar actions. It is a "command" + event, like key and mouse presses (and unlike mouse + motion, process output, and enter and leave window + hooks). In many ways, eval_events are not the same + as keypresses or misc_user_events. + + magic_event + No user-serviceable parts within. This is for things + like KeymapNotify and ExposeRegion events and so on + that emacs itself doesn't care about, but which it + must do something with for proper interaction with + the window system. + + Magic_events are handled somewhat asynchronously, just + like subprocess filters. However, occasionally a + magic_event needs to be handled synchronously; in that + case, the asynchronous handling of the magic_event will + push an eval_event back onto the queue, which will be + handled synchronously later. This is one of the + reasons why eval_events exist; I'm not entirely happy + with this aspect of this event model. + + +The function `next-event' blocks and returns one of the above-described +event objects. The function `dispatch-event' takes an event and processes +it in the appropriate way. + +For a process-event, dispatch-event calls the process's handler; for a +mouse-motion event, the mouse-motion-handler hook is called, and so on. +For magic-events, dispatch-event does window-system-dependent things, +including calling some non-window-system-dependent hooks: map-frame-hook, +unmap-frame-hook, mouse-enter-frame-hook, and mouse-leave-frame-hook. + +The function `next-command-event' calls `next-event' until it gets a key or +button from the user (that is, not a process, motion, timeout, or magic +event). If it gets an event that is not a key or button, it calls +`dispatch-event' on it immediately and reads another one. The +next-command-event function could be implemented in Emacs Lisp, though it +isn't. Generally one should call `next-command-event' instead of +`next-event'. + +read-char calls next-command-event; if it doesn't get an event that can be +converted to an ASCII character, it signals an error. Otherwise it returns +an integer. + +The variable `last-command-char' always contains an integer, or nil (if the +last read event has no ASCII equivalent, as when it is a mouse-click or a +non-ASCII character chord.) + +The new variable `last-command-event' holds an event object, that could be +a non-ASCII character, a button click, a menu selection, etc. + +The variable `unread-command-char' no longer exists, and has been replaced +by `unread-command-events'. With the new event model, it is incorrect for +code to do (setq unread-command-char (read-char)), because all user-input +can't be represented as ASCII characters. *** This is an incompatible +change. Code which sets `unread-command-char' must be updated to use the +combination of `next-command-event' and `unread-command-events' instead. + +The functions `this-command-keys' and `recent-keys' return a vector of +event objects, instead of a string of ASCII characters. *** This also +is an incompatible change. + +Almost nothing happens at interrupt level; the SIGIO handler simply sets a +flag, and later, the X event queue is scanned for KeyPress events which map +to ^G. All redisplay happens in the main thread of the process. + + +*** Keymaps +----------- + +Instead of keymaps being alists or obarrays, they are a new primary data +type. The only user access to the contents of a keymap is through the +existing keymap-manipulation functions, and a new function, map-keymap. +This means that existing code that manipulates keymaps may need to +be changed. + +One of our goals with the new input and keymap code was to make more +character combinations available for binding, besides just ASCII and +function keys. We want to be able bind different commands to Control-a +and Control-Shift-a; we also want it to be possible for the keys Control-h +and Backspace (and Control-M and Return, and Control-I and Tab, etc) to +be distinct. + +One of the most common complaints that new Emacs users have is that backspace +is help. The answer is to play around with the keyboard-translate-table, or +be lucky enough to have a system administrator who has done this for you +already; but if it were possible to bind backspace and C-h to different +things, then (under a window manager at least) both backspace and delete +would delete a character, and ^H would be help. There's no need to deal +with xmodmap, kbd-translate-table, etc. + +Here are some more examples: suppose you want to bind one function to Tab, +and another to Control-Tab. This can't be done if Tab and Control-I are the +same thing. What about control keys that have no ASCII equivalent, like +Control-< ? One might want that to be bound to set-mark-at-point-min. We +want M-C-Backspace to be kill-backward-sexp. But we want M-Backspace to be +kill-backward-word. Again, this can't be done if Backspace and C-h are +indistinguishable. + +The user represents keys as a string of ASCII characters (when possible and +convenient), or as a vector of event objects, or as a vector of "key +description lists", that looks like (control a), or (control meta delete) +or (shift f1). The order of the modifier-names is not significant, so +(meta control x) and (control meta x) are the same. + +`define-key' knows how to take any of the above representations and store them +into a keymap. When Emacs wants to return a key sequence (this-command-keys, +recent-keys, keyboard-macros, and read-key-sequence, for example) it returns +a vector of event objects. Keyboard macros can also be represented as ASCII +strings or as vectors of key description lists. + +This is an incompatible change: code which calls `this-command-keys', +`recent-keys', `read-key-sequence', or manipulates keyboard-macros probably +needs to be changed so that it no longer assumes that the returned value is a +string. + +Control-Shift-a is specified as (control A), not (control shift a), since A +is a two-case character. But for keys that don't have an upper case +version, like F1, Backspace, and Escape, you use the (shift backspace) syntax. + +See the doc string for our version of define-key, reproduced below in the +`Changed Functions' section. Note that when the KEYS argument is a string, +it has the same semantics as the v18 define-key. + + +*** Xt Integration +------------------ + +The heart of the event loop is implemented in terms of the Xt event functions +(specifically XtAppProcessEvent), and uses Xt's concept of timeouts and +file-descriptor callbacks, eliminating a large amount of system-dependent code +(Xt does it for you.) + +If Emacs is compiled with support for X, it uses the Xt event loop even when +Emacs is not running on an X display (the Xt event loop supports this). This +makes it possible to run Emacs on a dumb TTY, and later connect it to one or +more X servers. It should also be possible to later connect an existing Emacs +process to additional TTY's, although this code is still experimental. (Our +intent at this point is not to have an Emacs that is being used by multiple +people at the same time: it is to make it possible for someone to go home, log +in on a dialup line, and connect to the same Emacs process that is running +under X in their office without having to recreate their buffer state and so +on.) + +If Emacs is not compiled with support for X, then it instead uses more general +code, something like what v18 does; but this way of doing things is a lot more +modular. + +(Linking Emacs with Xt seems to only add about 300k to the executable size, +compared with an Emacs linked with Xlib only.) + + +*** Region Highlighting +----------------------- + +If the variable `zmacs-regions' is true, then the region between point and +mark will be highlighted when "active". Those commands which push a mark +(such as C-SPC, and C-x C-x) make the region become "active" and thus +highlighted. Most commands (all non-motion commands, basically) cause it to +become non-highlighted (non-"active"). Commands that operate on the region +(such as C-w, C-x C-l, etc.) only work if the region is in the highlighted +state. + +zmacs-activate-region-hook and zmacs-deactivate-region-hook are run at the +appropriate times; under X, zmacs-activate-region-hook makes the X selection +be the region between point and mark, thus doing two things at once: making +the region and the X selection be the same; and making the region highlight +in the same way as the X selection. + +If `zmacs-regions' is true, then the `mark-marker' command returns nil unless +the region is currently in the active (highlighted) state. With an argument +of t, this returns the mark (if there is one) regardless of the active-region +state. You should *generally* not use the mark unless the region is active, +if the user has expressed a preference for the active-region model. Watch +out! Moving this marker changes the mark position. If you set the marker not +to point anywhere, the buffer will have no mark. + +In this way, the primary selection is a fairly transitory entity; but +when something is copied to the kill ring, it is made the Clipboard +selection. It is also stored into CUT_BUFFER0, for compatibility with +X applications that don't understand selections (like Emacs18). + +Compatibility note: if you have code which uses (mark) or (mark-marker), +then you need to either: change those calls to (mark t) or (mark-marker t); +or simply bind `zmacs-regions' to nil around the call to mark or mark-marker. +This is probably the best solution, since it will work in Emacs 18 as well. + + +*** Menubars and Dialog Boxes +----------------------------- + +Here is an example of a menubar definition: + +(defvar default-menubar + '(("File" ["Open File..." find-file t] + ["Save Buffer" save-buffer t] + ["Save Buffer As..." write-file t] + ["Revert Buffer" revert-buffer t] + "-----" + ["Print Buffer" lpr-buffer t] + "-----" + ["Delete Frame" delete-frame t] + ["Kill Buffer..." kill-buffer t] + ["Exit Emacs" save-buffers-kill-emacs t] + ) + ("Edit" ["Undo" advertised-undo t] + ["Cut" kill-primary-selection t] + ["Copy" copy-primary-selection t] + ["Paste" yank-clipboard-selection t] + ["Clear" delete-primary-selection t] + ) + ...)) + +The first element of each menu item is the string to print on the menu. + +The second element is the callback function; if it is a symbol, it is +invoked with `call-interactively.' If it is a list, it is invoked with +`eval'. + +If the second element is a symbol, then the menu also displays the key that +is bound to that command (if any). + +The third element of the menu items determines whether the item is selectable. +It may be t, nil, or a form to evaluate. Also, a hook is run just before a +menu is exposed, which can be used to change the value of these slots. +For example, there is a hook that makes the "undo" menu item be selectable +only in the cases when `advertised-undo' would not signal an error. + +Menus may have other menus nested within them; they will cascade. + +There are utility functions for adding items to menus, deleting items, +disabling them, etc. + +The function `popup-menu' takes a menu description and pops it up. + +The function `popup-dialog-box' takes a dialog-box description and pops +it up. Dialog box descriptions look a lot like menu descriptions. + +The menubar, menu, and dialog-box code is implemented as a library, +with an interface which hides the toolkit that implements it. + + +*** Isearch Changes +------------------- + +Isearch has been reimplemented in a different way, adding some new features, +and causing a few incompatible changes. + + - the old isearch-*-char variables are no longer supported. In the old + system, one could make ^A mean "repeat the search" by doing something + like (setq search-repeat-char ?C-a). In the new system, this is + accomplished with + + (define-key isearch-mode-map "\C-a" 'isearch-repeat-forward) + + - The advantage of using the normal keymap mechanism for this is that you + can bind more than one key to an isearch command: for example, both C-a + and C-s could do the same thing inside isearch mode. You can also bind + multi-key sequences inside of isearch mode, and bind non-ASCII keys. + For example, to use the F1 key to terminate a search: + + (define-key isearch-mode-map 'f1 'isearch-exit) + + or to make ``C-c C-c'' terminate a search: + + (define-key isearch-mode-map "\C-c\C-c" 'isearch-exit) + + - If isearch is behaving case-insensitively (the default) and you type an + upper case character, then the search will become case-sensitive. This + can be disabled by setting `search-caps-disable-folding' to nil. + + - There is a history ring of the strings previously searched for; typing + M-p or M-n while searching will cycle through this ring. Typing M-TAB + will do completion across the set of items in the history ring. + + - The ESC key is no longer used to terminate an incremental search. The + RET key should be used instead. This change is necessary for it to be + possible to bind "meta" characters to isearch commands. + + +*** Startup Code Changes +------------------------ + +The initial X frame is mapped before the user's .emacs file is executed. +Without this, there is no way for the user to see any error messages +generated by their .emacs file, any windows created by the .emacs file +don't show up, and the copyleft notice isn't shown. + +The default values for load-path, exec-path, lock-directory, and +Info-directory-list are not (necessarily) built into Emacs, but are +computed at startup time. + +First, Emacs looks at the directory in which its executable file resides: + + o If that directory contains subdirectories named "lisp" and "lib-src", + then those directories are used as the lisp library and exec directory. + + o If the parent of the directory in which the emacs executable is located + contains "lisp" and "lib-src" subdirectories, then those are used. + + o If ../lib/xemacs-<version> (starting from the directory in which the + emacs executable is located) contains a "lisp" subdirectory and either + a "lib-src" subdirectory or a <configuration-name> subdirectory, then + those are used. + + o If the emacs executable that was run is a symbolic link, then the link + is chased, and the resultant directory is checked as above. + +(Actually, it doesn't just look for "lisp/", it looks for "lisp/prim/", +which reduces the chances of a false positive.) + +If the lisp directory contains subdirectories, they are added to the default +load-path as well. If the site-lisp directory exists and contains +subdirectories, they are then added. Subdirectories whose names begin with +a dot or a hyphen are not added to the load-path. + +These heuristics fail if the Emacs binary was copied from the main Emacs +tree to some other directory, and links for the lisp directory were not put +in. This isn't much of a restriction: either make there be subdirectories +(or symbolic links) of the directory of the emacs executable, or make the +"installed" emacs executable be a symbolic link to an executable in a more +appropriate directory structure. For example, this setup works: + + /usr/local/xemacs/xemacs* ; The executable. + /usr/local/xemacs/lisp/ ; The associated directories. + /usr/local/xemacs/etc/ ; Any of the files in this list + /usr/local/xemacs/lock/ ; could be symbolic links as well. + /usr/local/xemacs/info/ + +As does this: + + /usr/local/bin/xemacs -> ../xemacs/src/xemacs-19.14 ; A link... + /usr/local/xemacs/src/xemacs-19.14* ; The executable, + /usr/local/xemacs/lisp/ ; and the rest of + /usr/local/xemacs/etc/ ; the the source + /usr/local/xemacs/lock/ ; tree. + /usr/local/xemacs/info/ + +This configuration might be used for a multi-architecture installation; assume +that $LOCAL refers to a directory which contains only files specific to a +particular architecture (i.e., executables) and $SHARED refers to those files +which are not machine specific (i.e., lisp code and documentation.) + + $LOCAL/bin/xemacs@ -> $LOCAL/xemacs-19.14/xemacs* + $LOCAL/xemacs-19.14/lisp@ -> $SHARED/xemacs-19.14/lisp/ + $LOCAL/xemacs-19.14/etc@ -> $SHARED/xemacs-19.14/etc/ + $LOCAL/xemacs-19.14/info@ -> $SHARED/xemacs-19.14/info/ + +The following would also work, but the above is probably more attractive: + + $LOCAL/bin/xemacs* + $LOCAL/bin/lisp@ -> $SHARED/xemacs-19.14/lisp/ + $LOCAL/bin/etc@ -> $SHARED/xemacs-19.14/etc/ + $LOCAL/bin/info@ -> $SHARED/xemacs-19.14/info/ + +If Emacs can't find the requisite directories, it writes a message like this +(or some appropriate subset of it) to stderr: + + WARNING: + couldn't find an obvious default for load-path, exec-directory, and + lock-directory, and there were no defaults specified in paths.h when + Emacs was built. Perhaps some directories don't exist, or the Emacs + executable, /cadillac-th/jwz/somewhere/xemacs is in a strange place? + + Without both exec-directory and load-path, Emacs will be very broken. + Consider making a symbolic link from /cadillac-th/jwz/somewhere/etc + to wherever the appropriate Emacs etc/ directory is, and from + /cadillac-th/jwz/somewhere/lisp/ to wherever the appropriate Emacs + lisp library is. + + Without lock-directory set, file locking won't work. Consider + creating /cadillac-th/jwz/somewhere/lock as a directory or symbolic + link for use as the lock directory. + +The default installation tree is the following: + + /usr/local/bin/b2m ; + ctags ; executables that + emacsclient ; should be in + etags ; user's path + xemacs -> xemacs-<version> ; + xemacs ; + /usr/local/lib/xemacs/site-lisp + /usr/local/lib/xemacs/lock + /usr/local/lib/xemacs-<version>/etc ; architecture ind. files + /usr/local/lib/xemacs-<version>/info + /usr/local/lib/xemacs-<version>/lisp + /usr/local/lib/xemacs-<version>/<configuration> ; binaries emacs may run + + +*** X Resources +--------------- + +(Note: This section is copied verbatim from the XEmacs Reference Manual.) + + The Emacs resources are generally set per-frame. Each Emacs frame +can have its own name or the same name as another, depending on the +name passed to the `make-frame' function. + + You can specify resources for all frames with the syntax: + + Emacs*parameter: value + +or + + Emacs*EmacsFrame.parameter:value + +You can specify resources for a particular frame with the syntax: + + Emacs*FRAME-NAME.parameter: value + + +**** Geometry Resources +----------------------- + + To make the default size of all Emacs frames be 80 columns by 55 +lines, do this: + + Emacs*EmacsFrame.geometry: 80x55 + +To set the geometry of a particular frame named `fred', do this: + + Emacs*fred.geometry: 80x55 + +Important! Do not use the following syntax: + + Emacs*geometry: 80x55 + +You should never use `*geometry' with any X application. It does not +say "make the geometry of Emacs be 80 columns by 55 lines." It really +says, "make Emacs and all subwindows thereof be 80x55 in whatever units +they care to measure in." In particular, that is both telling the +Emacs text pane to be 80x55 in characters, and telling the menubar pane +to be 80x55 pixels, which is surely not what you want. + + As a special case, this geometry specification also works (and sets +the default size of all Emacs frames to 80 columns by 55 lines): + + Emacs.geometry: 80x55 + +since that is the syntax used with most other applications (since most +other applications have only one top-level window, unlike Emacs). In +general, however, the top-level shell (the unmapped ApplicationShell +widget named `Emacs' that is the parent of the shell widgets that +actually manage the individual frames) does not have any interesting +resources on it, and you should set the resources on the frames instead. + + The `-geometry' command-line argument sets only the geometry of the +initial frame created by Emacs. + + A more complete explanation of geometry-handling is + + * The `-geometry' command-line option sets the `Emacs.geometry' + resource, that is, the geometry of the ApplicationShell. + + * For the first frame created, the size of the frame is taken from + the ApplicationShell if it is specified, otherwise from the + geometry of the frame. + + * For subsequent frames, the order is reversed: First the frame, and + then the ApplicationShell. + + * For the first frame created, the position of the frame is taken + from the ApplicationShell (`Emacs.geometry') if it is specified, + otherwise from the geometry of the frame. + + * For subsequent frames, the position is taken only from the frame, + and never from the ApplicationShell. + + This is rather complicated, but it does seem to provide the most +intuitive behavior with respect to the default sizes and positions of +frames created in various ways. + + +**** Iconic Resources +--------------------- + + Analogous to `-geometry', the `-iconic' command-line option sets the +iconic flag of the ApplicationShell (`Emacs.iconic') and always applies +to the first frame created regardless of its name. However, it is +possible to set the iconic flag on particular frames (by name) by using +the `Emacs*FRAME-NAME.iconic' resource. + + +**** Resource List +------------------ + + Emacs frames accept the following resources: + +`geometry' (class `Geometry'): string + Initial geometry for the frame. *Note Geometry Resources:: for a + complete discussion of how this works. + +`iconic' (class `Iconic'): boolean + Whether this frame should appear in the iconified state. + +`internalBorderWidth' (class `InternalBorderWidth'): int + How many blank pixels to leave between the text and the edge of the + window. + +`interline' (class `Interline'): int + How many pixels to leave between each line (may not be + implemented). + +`menubar' (class `Menubar'): boolean + Whether newly-created frames should initially have a menubar. Set + to true by default. + +`initiallyUnmapped' (class `InitiallyUnmapped'): boolean + Whether XEmacs should leave the initial frame unmapped when it + starts up. This is useful if you are starting XEmacs as a server + (e.g. in conjunction with gnuserv or the external client widget). + You can also control this with the `-unmapped' command-line option. + +`barCursor' (class `BarColor'): boolean + Whether the cursor should be displayed as a bar, or the + traditional box. + +`textPointer' (class `Cursor'): cursor-name + The cursor to use when the mouse is over text. This resource is + used to initialize the variable `x-pointer-shape'. + +`selectionPointer' (class `Cursor'): cursor-name + The cursor to use when the mouse is over a selectable text region + (an extent with the `highlight' property; for example, an Info + cross-reference). This resource is used to initialize the variable + `x-selection-pointer-shape'. + +`spacePointer' (class `Cursor'): cursor-name + The cursor to use when the mouse is over a blank space in a buffer + (that is, after the end of a line or after the end-of-file). This + resource is used to initialize the variable + `x-nontext-pointer-shape'. + +`modeLinePointer' (class `Cursor'): cursor-name + The cursor to use when the mouse is over a mode line. This + resource is used to initialize the variable `x-mode-pointer-shape'. + +`gcPointer' (class `Cursor'): cursor-name + The cursor to display when a garbage-collection is in progress. + This resource is used to initialize the variable + `x-gc-pointer-shape'. + +`scrollbarPointer' (class `Cursor'): cursor-name + The cursor to use when the mouse is over the scrollbar. This + resource is used to initialize the variable + `x-scrollbar-pointer-shape'. + +`pointerColor' (class `Foreground'): color-name +`pointerBackground' (class `Background'): color-name + The foreground and background colors of the mouse cursor. These + resources are used to initialize the variables + `x-pointer-foreground-color' and `x-pointer-background-color'. + +`scrollBarWidth' (class `ScrollBarWidth'): integer + How wide the vertical scrollbars should be, in pixels; 0 means no + vertical scrollbars. You can also use a resource specification of + the form `*scrollbar.width', or the usual toolkit scrollbar + resources: `*XmScrollBar.width' (Motif), `*XlwScrollBar.width' + (Lucid), or `*Scrollbar.thickness' (Athena). We don't recommend + that you use the toolkit resources, though, because they're + dependent on how exactly your particular build of XEmacs was + configured. + +`scrollBarHeight' (class `ScrollBarHeight'): integer + How high the horizontal scrollbars should be, in pixels; 0 means no + horizontal scrollbars. You can also use a resource specification + of the form `*scrollbar.height', or the usual toolkit scrollbar + resources: `*XmScrollBar.height' (Motif), `*XlwScrollBar.height' + (Lucid), or `*Scrollbar.thickness' (Athena). We don't recommend + that you use the toolkit resources, though, because they're + dependent on how exactly your particular build of XEmacs was + configured. + +`scrollBarPlacement' (class `ScrollBarPlacement'): string + Where the horizontal and vertical scrollbars should be positioned. + This should be one of the four strings `bottom-left', + `bottom-right', `top-left', and `top-right'. Default is + `bottom-right' for the Motif and Lucid scrollbars and + `bottom-left' for the Athena scrollbars. + +`topToolBarHeight' (class `TopToolBarHeight'): integer +`bottomToolBarHeight' (class `BottomToolBarHeight'): integer +`leftToolBarWidth' (class `LeftToolBarWidth'): integer +`rightToolBarWidth' (class `RightToolBarWidth'): integer + Height and width of the four possible toolbars. + +`topToolBarShadowColor' (class `TopToolBarShadowColor'): color-name +`bottomToolBarShadowColor' (class `BottomToolBarShadowColor'): color-name + Color of the top and bottom shadows for the toolbars. NOTE: These + resources do *not* have anything to do with the top and bottom + toolbars (i.e. the toolbars at the top and bottom of the frame)! + Rather, they affect the top and bottom shadows around the edges of + all four kinds of toolbars. + +`topToolBarShadowPixmap' (class `TopToolBarShadowPixmap'): pixmap-name +`bottomToolBarShadowPixmap' (class `BottomToolBarShadowPixmap'): pixmap-name + Pixmap of the top and bottom shadows for the toolbars. If set, + these resources override the corresponding color resources. NOTE: + These resources do *not* have anything to do with the top and + bottom toolbars (i.e. the toolbars at the top and bottom of the + frame)! Rather, they affect the top and bottom shadows around the + edges of all four kinds of toolbars. + +`toolBarShadowThickness' (class `ToolBarShadowThickness'): integer + Thickness of the shadows around the toolbars, in pixels. + +`visualBell' (class `VisualBell'): boolean + Whether XEmacs should flash the screen rather than making an + audible beep. + +`bellVolume' (class `BellVolume'): integer + Volume of the audible beep. + +`useBackingStore' (class `UseBackingStore'): boolean + Whether XEmacs should set the backing-store attribute of the X + windows it creates. This increases the memory usage of the X + server but decreases the amount of X traffic necessary to update + the screen, and is useful when the connection to the X server goes + over a low-bandwidth line such as a modem connection. + + +**** Face Resources +------------------- + + The attributes of faces are also per-frame. They can be specified as: + + Emacs.FACE_NAME.parameter: value + + (*do not* use `Emacs*FACE_NAME...') + +or + + Emacs*FRAME_NAME.FACE_NAME.parameter: value + +Faces accept the following resources: + +`attributeFont' (class `AttributeFont'): font-name + The font of this face. + +`attributeForeground' (class `AttributeForeground'): color-name +`attributeBackground' (class `AttributeBackground'): color-name + The foreground and background colors of this face. + +`attributeBackgroundPixmap' (class `AttributeBackgroundPixmap'): file-name + The name of an XBM file (or XPM file, if your version of Emacs + supports XPM), to use as a background stipple. + +`attributeUnderline' (class `AttributeUnderline'): boolean + Whether text in this face should be underlined. + + All text is displayed in some face, defaulting to the face named +`default'. To set the font of normal text, use +`Emacs*default.attributeFont'. To set it in the frame named `fred', use +`Emacs*fred.default.attributeFont'. + + These are the names of the predefined faces: + +`default' + Everything inherits from this. + +`bold' + If this is not specified in the resource database, Emacs tries to + find a bold version of the font of the default face. + +`italic' + If this is not specified in the resource database, Emacs tries to + find an italic version of the font of the default face. + +`bold-italic' + If this is not specified in the resource database, Emacs tries to + find a bold-italic version of the font of the default face. + +`modeline' + This is the face that the modeline is displayed in. If not + specified in the resource database, it is determined from the + default face by reversing the foreground and background colors. + +`highlight' + This is the face that highlighted extents (for example, Info + cross-references and possible completions, when the mouse passes + over them) are displayed in. + +`left-margin' +`right-margin' + These are the faces that the left and right annotation margins are + displayed in. + +`primary-selection' + This is the face that mouse selections are displayed in. + +`text-cursor' + This is the face that the cursor is displayed in. + +`isearch' + This is the face that the matched text being searched for is + displayed in. + +`info-node' + This is the face of info menu items. If unspecified, it is copied + from `bold-italic'. + +`info-xref' + This is the face of info cross-references. If unspecified, it is + copied from `bold'. (Note that, when the mouse passes over a + cross-reference, the cross-reference's face is determined from a + combination of the `info-xref' and `highlight' faces.) + + Other packages might define their own faces; to see a list of all +faces, use any of the interactive face-manipulation commands such as +`set-face-font' and type `?' when you are prompted for the name of a +face. + + If the `bold', `italic', and `bold-italic' faces are not specified +in the resource database, then XEmacs attempts to derive them from the +font of the default face. It can only succeed at this if you have +specified the default font using the XLFD (X Logical Font Description) +format, which looks like + + *-courier-medium-r-*-*-*-120-*-*-*-*-*-* + +If you use any of the other, less strict font name formats, some of +which look like + + lucidasanstypewriter-12 + fixed + 9x13 + + then XEmacs won't be able to guess the names of the bold and italic +versions. All X fonts can be referred to via XLFD-style names, so you +should use those forms. See the man pages for `X(1)', `xlsfonts(1)', +and `xfontsel(1)'. + + +**** Widgets +------------ + + There are several structural widgets between the terminal EmacsFrame +widget and the top level ApplicationShell; the exact names and types of +these widgets change from release to release (for example, they changed +in 19.9, 19.10, 19.12, and 19.13) and are subject to further change in +the future, so you should avoid mentioning them in your resource database. +The above-mentioned syntaxes should be forward-compatible. As of 19.14, +the exact widget hierarchy is as follows: + + INVOCATION-NAME "shell" "container" FRAME-NAME + x-emacs-application-class "TopLevelEmacsShell" "EmacsManager" "EmacsFrame" + +(for normal frames) + +or + + INVOCATION-NAME "shell" "container" FRAME-NAME + x-emacs-application-class "TransientEmacsShell" "EmacsManager" "EmacsFrame" + +(for popup/dialog-box frames) + +where INVOCATION-NAME is the terminal component of the name of the +XEmacs executable (usually `xemacs'), and `x-emacs-application-class' +is generally `Emacs'. + + +**** Menubar Resources +---------------------- + + As the menubar is implemented as a widget which is not a part of +XEmacs proper, it does not use the face mechanism for specifying fonts +and colors: It uses whatever resources are appropriate to the type of +widget which is used to implement it. + + If Emacs was compiled to use only the Motif-lookalike menu widgets, +then one way to specify the font of the menubar would be + + Emacs*menubar*font: *-courier-medium-r-*-*-*-120-*-*-*-*-*-* + + If the Motif library is being used, then one would have to use + + Emacs*menubar*fontList: *-courier-medium-r-*-*-*-120-*-*-*-*-*-* + + because the Motif library uses the `fontList' resource name instead +of `font', which has subtly different semantics. + + The same is true of the scrollbars: They accept whichever resources +are appropriate for the toolkit in use. + + +*** Source Code Highlighting +---------------------------- + +It's possible to have your buffers "decorated" with fonts or colors +indicating syntactic structures (such as strings, comments, function names, +"reserved words", etc.). In XEmacs, the preferred way to do this is with +font-lock-mode; activate it by adding the following code to your .emacs file: + + (add-hook 'emacs-lisp-mode-hook 'turn-on-font-lock) + (add-hook 'c-mode-hook 'turn-on-font-lock) + (add-hook 'c++-mode-hook 'turn-on-font-lock) + (add-hook 'dired-mode-hook 'turn-on-font-lock) + ...etc... + +To customize it, see the descriptions of the function `font-lock-mode' and +the variables `font-lock-keywords', `c-font-lock-keywords', etc. + +There exist several other source code highlighting packages, but font-lock +does does one thing that most others don't do: highlights as you type new +text; and one thing that no others do: bases part of its decoration on the +syntax table of the major mode. Font-lock has C-level support to do this +efficiently, so it should also be significantly faster than the others. + +If there's something that another highlighting package does that you can't +make font-lock do, let us know. We would prefer to consolidate all of the +desired functionality into one package rather than ship several different +packages which do essentially the same thing in different ways. + + +** Differences Between XEmacs and Emacs 18 +========================================== + +Auto-configure support has been added, so it should be fairly easy to compile +XEmacs on different systems. If you have any problems or feedback about +compiling on your system, please let us know. + +We have reimplemented the basic input model in a more general way; instead of +X input being a special-case of the normal ASCII input stream, XEmacs has a +concept of "input events", and ASCII characters are a subset of that. The +events that XEmacs knows about are not X events, but are a generalization of +them, so that XEmacs can eventually be ported to different window systems. + +We have reimplemented keymaps so that sequences of events can be stored into +them instead of just ASCII codes; it is possible to, for example, bind +different commands to each of the chords Control-h, Control-H, Backspace, +Control-Backspace, and Super-Shift-Backspace. Key bindings, function key +bindings, and mouse bindings live in the same keymaps. + +Input and display of all ISO-8859-1 characters is supported. + +You can have multiple X windows ("frames" in XEmacs terminology). + +XEmacs has objects called "extents" and "faces", which are roughly +analogous to Epoch's "buttons," "zones," and "styles." An extent is a +region of text (a start position and an end position) and a face is a +collection of textual attributes like fonts and colors. Every extent +is displayed in some "face", so changing the properties of a face +immediately updates the display of all associated extents. Faces can +be frame-local: you can have a region of text which displays with +completely different attributes when its buffer is viewed from a +different X window. + +The display attributes of faces may be specified either in lisp or through +the X resource manager. + +Pixmaps of arbitrary size can be embedded in a buffer. + +Variable width fonts work. + +The height of a line is the height of the tallest font on that line, instead +of all lines having the same height. + +XEmacs uses the MIT "Xt" toolkit instead of raw Xlib calls, which +makes it be a more well-behaved X citizen (and also improves +portability). A result of this is that it is possible to include +other Xt "Widgets" in the XEmacs window. Also, XEmacs understands the +standard Xt command-line arguments. + +XEmacs understands the X11 "Selection" mechanism; it's possible to define +and customize selection converter functions and new selection types from +Emacs Lisp, without having to recompile XEmacs. + +XEmacs provides support for ToolTalk on systems that have it. + +XEmacs supports the Zmacs/Lispm style of region highlighting, where the +region between the point and mark is highlighted when in its "active" state. + +XEmacs has a menubar, whose contents are customizable from emacs-lisp. +This menubar looks Motif-ish, but does not require Motif. If you already +own Motif, however, you can configure XEmacs to use a *real* Motif menubar +instead. + +XEmacs can ask questions using popup dialog boxes. Any command executed from +a menu will ask yes/no questions with dialog boxes, while commands executed +via the keyboard will use the minibuffer. + +XEmacs has vertical and horizontal scrollbars. + +The initial load-path is computed at run-time, instead of at compile-time. +This means that if you move the XEmacs executable and associated directories +to somewhere else, you don't have to recompile anything. + +You can specify what the title of the XEmacs windows and icons should be +with the variables `frame-title-format' and `frame-icon-title-format', +which have the same syntax as `mode-line-format'. + +XEmacs now supports floating-point numbers. + +XEmacs now knows about timers directly, instead of them being simulated by +a subprocess. + +XEmacs understands truenames, and can be configured to notice when you are +visiting two names of the same file. See the variables find-file-use-truenames +and find-file-compare-truenames. + +If you're running on a machine with audio hardware, you can specify sound +files for XEmacs to play instead of the default X beep. See the documentation +of the function load-sound-file and the variable sound-alist. + +An XEmacs frame can be placed within an "external client widget" managed by +another application. This allows an application to use an XEmacs frame as its +text pane rather than the standard Text widget that is provided with Motif or +Athena. XEmacs supports Motif applications, generic Xt (e.g. Athena) +applications, and raw Xlib applications. + +Random changes to the emacs-lisp library: (some of this was not written by +us, but is included because it's free software and we think it's good stuff) + + - there is a new optimizing byte-compiler + - there is a new abbrev-based mail-alias mechanism + - the -*- line can contain local-variable settings + - there is a new TAGS package + - there is a new VI-emulation mode (viper) + - there is a new implementation of Dired + - there is a new implementation of Isearch + - the VM package for reading mail is provided + - the W3 package for browsing the World Wide Web hypertext information + system is provided + - the Hyperbole package, a programmable information management and + hypertext system + - the OO-Browser package, a multi-language object-oriented browser + +There are many more specifics in the "Miscellaneous Changes" section, below. + +The online Emacs Manual and Emacs-Lisp Manual are now both relatively +up-to-date. + +* XEmacs Release Notes +====================== + +** Future Plans for XEmacs +========================== + +For the curious, the biggest changes in 19.15 will include integration +of TM (a MIME package for VM and GNUS), EFS (the next generation of +ange-ftp), and Auc-TeX, and a "lite" distribution that includes a +minimal base and a set of optional packages (which will include TM, +EFS, and Auc-TeX, as well as all of the large packages currently +distributed with XEmacs). There will also still be a full distribution +that includes all the optional packages. + +In the longer term, we are also working on a separate branch of XEmacs that +includes full Asian-language ("MULE") support. This work is currently in +beta and is being supported by Sun Microsystems. + + +** Major Differences Between 19.13 and 19.14 +============================================ + +XEmacs has a new address! The canonical ftp site is now +ftp.xemacs.org:/pub/xemacs and the Web page is now at +http://www.xemacs.org/. All mailing lists now have @xemacs.org +addresses. For the time being the @cs.uiuc.edu addresses will +continue to function. + +This is a major new release. Many features have been added, as well +as many bugs fixed. The Motif menubar has still _NOT_ been fixed for +19.14. You should use the Lucid menubar instead. + + + +Major user-visible changes: +--------------------------- + +-- Color support in TTY mode is provided. You have to have a TTY capable + of displaying them, such as color xterm or the console under Linux. + If your terminal type supports colors (e.g. `xterm-color'), XEmacs + will automatically notice this and start using color. + +-- blink-cursor-mode enables a blinking text cursor. There is a + menubar option for this also. + +-- auto-show-mode is turned on by default; this means that XEmacs + will automatically scroll a window horizontally as necessary to + keep point in view. + +-- a file dialog box is provided and will be used whenever you + are prompted for a filename as a result of a menubar selection. + +-- XEmacs can be compiled with built-in GIF, JPEG, and PNG support. + The GIF libraries are supplied with XEmacs; for JPEG and PNG, + you have to obtain the appropriate libraries (this is well- + documented). This makes image display much easier and faster under + W3 (the web browser) and TM (adds MIME support to VM and GNUS; + not yet included with XEmacs but will be in 19.15). + +-- XEmacs provides a really nice mode (PSGML with "Wing improvements") + for editing HTML and other SGML documents. It parses the document, + and as a result it does proper indentation, can show you the context + you're in, the allowed tags at a particular position, etc. + +-- XEmacs comes standard with modes for editing Java and VRML code, + including font-lock support. + +-- GNUS 5.2 comes standard with XEmacs. + +-- You can now embed colors in the modeline, with different sections + of the modeline responding appropriately to various mouse gestures: + For example, clicking on the "read-only" indicator toggles the + read-only status of a buffer, and clicking on the buffer name + cycles to the next buffer. Pressing button3 on these areas brings + up a popup menu of appropriate commands. + +-- There is a much nicer mode for completion lists and such. + At the minibuffer prompt, if you hit page-up or Meta-V, the completion + buffer will be displayed (if it wasn't already), you're moved into + it, and can move around and select filenames using the arrow keys + and the return key. Rather than a cursor, a filename is highlighted, + and the arrow keys change which filename is highlighted. + +-- The edit-faces subsystem has also been much improved, in somewhat + similar ways to the completion list improvements. + +-- Many improvements were made to the multi-device support. + We now provide an auxiliary utility called "gnuattach" that + lets you connect to an existing XEmacs process and display + a TTY frame on the current TTY connection, and commands + `make-frame-on-display' (with a corresponding menubar entry) + and `make-frame-on-tty' for more easily creating frames on + new TTY or X connections. + +-- We have incorporated nearly all of the functionality of GNU Emacs + 19.30 into XEmacs. This includes support for lazy-loaded + byte code and documentation strings, improved paragraph filling, + better support for margins within documents, v19 regular expression + routines (including caching of compiled regexps), etc. + +-- In accordance with GNU Emacs 19.30, the following key binding + changes have been made: + + C-x ESC -> C-x ESC ESC + ESC ESC -> ESC : + ESC ESC ESC is "abort anything" (keyboard-escape-quit). + +-- All major packages have been updated to their latest-released + versions. + +-- XEmacs now gracefully handles a full colormap (such as typically + results when running Netscape). The nearest available color + is automatically substituted. + +-- Many bug fixes to the subprocess/PTY code, ps-print, menubar + functions, `set-text-properties', DEC Alpha support, toolbar + resizing (the "phantom VM toolbar" bug), and lots and lots + of other things were made. + +-- The ncurses library (a replacement for curses, found especially + under Linux) is supported, and will be automatically used + if it can be found. + +-- You can now undo in the minibuffer. + +-- Surrogate minibuffers now work. These are also sometimes referred + to as "global" minibuffers. + +-- font-lock has been merged with GNU Emacs 19.30, improved defaults + have been added, and changes have been made to the way it is + configured. + +-- Many, many modes have menubar entries for them. + +-- `recover-session' lets you recover whatever files can be recovered + after your XEmacs process has died unexpectedly. + +-- C-h k followed by a toolbar button press correctly reports + the binding of the toolbar button. + +-- `function-key-map', `key-translation-map', and `keyboard-translate-table' + are now correctly implemented. + +-- `show-message-log' (and its menubar entry under Edit) have been + removed; instead use `view-lossage' (and its menubar entry under + Help). + +-- There is a standard menubar entry for specifying which browser + (Netscape, W3, Mosaic, etc.) to use when dispatching URL's + in mail, Usenet news, etc. + +-- Improved native sound support under Linux. + +-- Lots of other things we forgot to mention. + + + +Significant Lisp-level changes: +------------------------------- + +-- Many improvements to the E-Lisp documentation have been made; + it should now be up-to-date and complete in nearly all cases. + +-- XEmacs has extensive documentation on its internals, for + would-be C hackers. + +-- Common-Lisp support (the CL package) is now dumped standard + into XEmacs. No more need for (require 'cl) or anything + like that. + +-- Full support for extents and text properties over strings is + provided. + +-- The extent properties `start-open', `end-open', `start-closed', + and `end-closed' now work correctly w.r.t. text properties. + +-- The `face' property of extents and text properties can now + be a list. + +-- The `mouse-face' property from FSF GNU Emacs is now supported. + It supersedes the `highlight' property. + +-- `enriched' and `facemenu' packages from FSF GNU Emacs have been ported. + +-- New functions for easier creation of dialog boxes: + `get-dialog-box-response', `message-box', and `message-or-box'. + +-- `function-min-args' and `function-max-args' allow you to determine + the minimum and maximum allowed arguments for any type of + function (i.e. subr, lambda expression, byte-compiled function, etc.). + +-- Some C-level support for doing E-Lisp profiling is provided. + See `start-profiling', `stop-profiling', and + `pretty-print-profiling-info'. + +-- `current-process-time' reports the user, system, and real times + for the currently running XEmacs process. + +-- `next-window', `previous-window', `next-frame', `previous-frame', + `other-window', `get-lru-window', etc. have an extra device + argument that allows you to restrict which devices it includes + (normally all devices). Some functions that incorrectly ignored + frames on different devices (e.g. C-x 0) are fixed. + +-- new functions `run-hook-with-args-until-success', + `run-hook-with-args-until-failure'. + +-- generalized facility for local vs. global hooks. See `make-local-hook', + `add-hook'. + +-- New functions for querying the window tree: `frame-leftmost-window', + `frame-rightmost-window', `window-first-hchild', `window-first-vchild', + `window-next-child', `window-previous-child', and `window-parent'. + +-- Epoch support works. This gets you direct access to some X events + and objects (e.g. properties and property-notify events). + +-- The multi-device support has been majorly revamped. There is now + a new concept of "consoles" (devices grouped together under a + common keyboard/mouse), console-local variables, and a generalized + concept of device/console connection. + +-- `display-buffer' synched with GNU Emacs 19.30, giving you lots of + wondrous cruft such as + -- unsplittable frames + -- pop-up-frames, pop-up-frame-function + -- special-display-buffer-names, special-display-regexps, + special-display-function + -- same-window-buffer-names, same-window-regexps + +-- XEmacs has support for accessing DBM- and/or DB-format databases, + provided that you have the appropriate libraries on your system. + +-- There is a new font style: "strikethru" fonts. + +-- New data type "weak list", which is a list with special + garbage-collection properties, similar to weak hash tables. + +-- `set-face-parent' makes one face inherit all properties from another. + +-- The junky frame parameters mechanism has been revamped as + frame properties, which a standard property-list interface. + +-- Lots and lots of functions for working with property lists have + been added. + +-- New functions `push-window-configuration', `pop-window-configuration', + `unpop-window-configuration' for maintain a stack of window + configurations. + +-- Many fixups to the glyph code; icons and mouse pointers are now + properly merged into the glyph mechanism. + +-- `set-specifier' works more sensibly, like `set-face-property'. + +-- Many new specifiers for individually controlling toolbar height/width + and visibility and text cursor visibility. + +-- New face `text-cursor' controls the colors of the text cursor. + +-- Many new variables for turning on debug information about the + inner workings of XEmacs. + +-- Hash tables can now compare their keys using `equal' or `eql' + as well as `eq'. + +-- Other things too numerous to mention. + + + +Significant configuration/build changes: +---------------------------------------- + +-- You can disable TTY support, toolbar support, scrollbar support, + menubar support, and/or dialog box support at configure time + to save memory. + +-- New configure option `--extra-verbose' shows the diagnostic + output from feature testing; this should help track down + problems with incorrect feature detection. + +-- `dont-have-xmu' is now `with-xmu', with the reversed sense. + (It defaults to `yes'.) + +-- `with-mocklisp' lets you add Mocklisp support if you really + need this. + +-- `with-term' for adding TERM support for Linux users. + + + +** Major Differences Between 19.12 and 19.13 +============================================ + +This is primarily a bug-fix release. Lots of bugs have been fixed. +Hopefully only a few have been introduced. The most noteworthy bug +fixes are: + + -- There should be no more problems connecting XEmacs to an X + server over SLIP or other slow connections. + -- Periodic crashes when using the Buffers menu should be gone. + -- etags would sometimes erase the current buffer; it doesn't + any more. + -- XEmacs will correctly exit if the X server dies. + -- uniconified frames are displayed properly under TVTWM. + -- Breakage in `add-menu-item' / `add-menu-button' is fixed. + +The Motif menubar has _NOT_ been fixed for 19.13. You should use the +Lucid menubar instead. + +Multi-device support should now be working properly. You can now open +an X device after having started out on a TTY device. + +Background pixmaps now work. See `set-face-background-pixmap'. + +Echo area messages are now saved to a buffer, " *Message Log*". To +see this buffer, use the command `show-message-log'. It is possible +to filter the message which are actually included by modifying the +variables `log-message-ignore-regexps' and `log-message-ignore-labels'. + +You can now control which warnings you want to see. See +`display-warning-suppressed-classes' and friends. + +You can now set the default location of an "other window" from the +Options menu. + +"Save Options" now saves the state of all faces. + +You can choose which file "Save Options" writes into; see +`save-options-file'. + +XPM support is no longer required for the toolbar. + +The relocating allocator is now enabled by default whenever possible. +This allows buffer memory to be returned to the system when no longer +in use which helps keep XEmacs process size down. + +The ability to have captioned toolbars has been added. Currently only +the default toolbar actually has a captioned version provided. A new +specifier variable, `toolbar-buttons-captioned-p' controls whether the +toolbar is captioned. + +A copy of the XEmacs FAQ is now included and is available through info. + +The on-line E-Lisp reference manual has been significantly updated. + +There is now audio support under Linux. + +Modifier keys can now be sticky. This is controlled by the variable +`modifier-keys-are-sticky'. + +manual-entry should now work correctly under Irix with the penalty of +a longer startup time the first time it is invoked. If you are having +problems with this on another system try setting +`Manual-use-subdirectory-list' to t. + +make-tty-device no longer automatically creates the first frame. + +Rectangular regions now work correctly. + +ediff no longer sets synchronize-minibuffers to t unless you first set +ediff-synchronize-minibuffers + +keyboard-translate-table has been implemented. This means that the +`enable-flow-control' command for dealing with TTY connections that +filter out ^S and ^Q now works. + +You can now create frames that are initially unmapped and frames that +are "transient for another frame", meaning that they behave more like +dialog-box frames. + +Other E-Lisp changes: + +-- Specifier `menubar-visible-p' for controlling menubar visibility +-- Local command hooks should be set using `local-pre-command-hook' + and `local-post-command-hook' instead of making the global + equivalents be buffer-local. +-- `quit-char', `help-char', `meta-prefix-char' can be any key specifier + instead of just an integer. +-- new functions `add-async-timeout' and `disable-async-timeout'. + These let you create asynchronous timeouts, which are like + normal timeouts except that they're executed even during + running Lisp code. Use this with care! +-- `debug-on-error' and `stack-trace-on-error' now enter the debugger + only when an *unhandled* error occurs. If you want the old + behavior, use `debug-on-signal' and `stack-trace-on-signal'. +-- \U, \L, \u, \l, \E recognized specially in `replace-match'. + These are standard ex/perl commands for changing the case of + replaced text. +-- New function event-matches-key-specifier-p. This provides + a clean way of comparing keypress events with key specifiers + such as 65, (shift home), etc. without having to resort + to ugly `character-to-event' / `event-to-character' hacks. +-- New function `add-to-list' +-- New Common-Lisp functions `some', `every', `notevery', `notany', + `adjoin', `union', `intersection', `set-difference', + `set-exclusive-or', `subsetp' +-- `remove-face-property' provides a clean way of removing a + face property. + +Many of the Emacs Lisp packages have been updated. Some of the new +Emacs Lisp packages --- + +ada-mode: major mode for editing Ada source + +arc-mode: simple editing of archives + +auto-show-mode: automatically scrolls horizontally to keep point on-screen + +completion: dynamic word completion mode + +dabbrev: the dynamic abbrev package has been rewritten and is much + more powerful -- e.g. it searches in other buffers as well + as the current one + +easymenu: menu support package + +live-icon: makes frame icons represent the current frame contents + +mailcrypt 3.2: mail encryption with PGP; included but v2.4 is still + the default + +two-column: for editing two-column text + + +** Major Differences Between 19.11 and 19.12 +============================================ + +This is a huge new release. Almost every aspect of XEmacs has been changed +at least somewhat. The highlights are: + +-- TTY support (includes face support) +-- new redisplay engine; should be faster, less buggy, and more powerful +-- terminology change from "screen" to "frame" +-- built-in toolbar +-- toolbar support added to many packages +-- multiple device support (still in beta; improvements to come in + 19.13) +-- Purify used to ensure that there are no memory leaks or memory corruption + problems +-- horizontal and vertical scrollbars in all windows +-- new Lucid (i.e. look-alike Motif) scrollbar widget +-- stay-up menus in the Lucid (look-alike Motif) menubar widget +-- 3-d modeline +-- new extents engine; should be faster, less buggy, and more powerful +-- much more powerful control over faces +-- expanded menubar +-- more work on synching with GNU Emacs 19.28 +-- new packages: Hyperbole, OOBR (object browser), hm--html-menus, viper, + lazy-lock.el, ksh-mode.el, rsz-minibuf.el +-- package updates for all major packages +-- dynodump package for Solaris: provides proper undumping and portable + binaries across different OS versions and machine types +-- Greatly expanded concept of "glyphs" (pixmaps etc. in a buffer) +-- built-in support for displaying X-Faces, if the X-Face library is + available +-- built-in support for SOCKS if the SOCKS library is available +-- graceful behavior when the colormap is full (e.g. Netscape ate + all the colors) +-- built-in MD5 (secure hashing function) support + + +More specific information: + +*** TTY Support +--------------- + +The long-awaited TTY support is now available. XEmacs will start up +in TTY mode (using the tty you started XEmacs from) if the DISPLAY +environment variable is not set or if you use the `-nw' option. + +Faces are available on TTY's. For a demonstration, try editing a C +file and turning on font-lock-mode. + +You can also connect to additional TTY's using `make-tty-device', +whether your first frame was a TTY or an X window. This ability is +not yet completely finished. + +The full event-loop capabilities (processes, timeouts, etc.) are +available on TTY's. + + + +*** New Redisplay Engine +------------------------ + +The redisplay engine has been rewritten to improve its efficiency and +to increase its functionality. It should also be significantly more +bug-free than the previous redisplay engine. + +A line that is not big enough to display at the bottom of the window +will normally be clipped (so that it is partially visible) rather than +not displayed at all. The variable `pixel-vertical-clip-threshold' +can be used to control the minimum space that must be available for a +line to be clipped rather than not displayed at all. + +Tabs are displayed in such a way that things line up fairly well even +in the presence of variable-width fonts and/or lines with +multiply-sized fonts. + +Display tables are implemented, through the specifier variable +`current-display-table'. They can be buffer-local, window-local, +frame-local, or device-local. See below for info about specifiers. + + + +*** Toolbar +----------- + +There is now built-in support for a toolbar. A sample toolbar is +visible by default at the top of the frame. Four separate toolbars +can be configured (at the top, bottom, left, and right of the frame). +The toolbar specification is similar to the menubar specification. +The up, down, and disabled glyphs of a toolbar button can be +separately controlled. Explanatory text can be echoed in the echo +area when the mouse passes over a toolbar button. The size, contents, +and visibility of the various toolbars can be controlled on a +per-buffer, per-window, per-frame, and per-device basis through the +use of specifiers. See the chapter on toolbars in the Lisp Reference +Manual (included with XEmacs) for more information. + +The toolbar color and shadow thicknesses are currently controlled only +through `modify-frame-parameters' and through X resources. We are +planning on making these controllable through specifiers as well. (Our +hope is to make `modify-frame-parameters' obsolete, as it is a clunky +and not very powerful mechanism.) + +Info, GNUS, VM, W3, and various other packages include custom toolbars +with them. + + + +*** Menubar +----------- + +Stay-up menus are implemented in the look-alike Motif menubar. + +The default menubar has been expanded to include most commonly-used +functions in XEmacs. + +The options menu has been greatly expanded to include many more +options. + +The menubar specification format has been greatly expanded. Per-menu +activation hooks can be specified through the :filter keyword (thus +obsoleting `activate-menubar-hook'); this allows for fast response +time when you have a large and complex menu. You can dynamically +control whether menu items are present through the :included and +:config keywords. (The latter keyword implements a simple menubar +configuration scheme, in conjunction with the variable +`menubar-configuration'.) Many different menu-item separators (single +or double line; solid or dashed; flat, etched-in, or etched-out) are +available. See the chapter on menus in the Lisp Reference Manual for +more information about all of this. + +New functions `add-submenu' and `add-menu-button' are available. +These supersede the older `add-menu' and `add-menu-item' functions, +and provide a more powerful and consistent interface. + +New convenience functions for popping up the part or all of the +menubar in a pop-up menu are available: `popup-menubar-menu' and +`popup-buffer-menu'. + +Menus are now incrementally constructed greatly improving menubar +response time. + + + +*** Scrollbars +-------------- + +A look-alike Motif scrollbar is now included with XEmacs. No longer +will you have to suffer with ugly Athena scrollbars. + +Windows can now have horizontal scrollbars. Normally they are visible +when the window's buffer is set to truncate lines rather than wrap +them (e.g. `(setq truncate-lines t)'). + +All windows, not only the right-most ones, can have vertical +scrollbars. + +The functions to change a scrollbar's width have been superseded by +the specifier variables `scrollbar-width' and `scrollbar-height'. +This allows their values to be controlled on a buffer-local, +window-local, frame-local, and device-local basis. See below. + +The scrollbars interact better with the event loop (for example, you +can type `C-h k', do a scrollbar action, and see a description of this +scrollbar action printed as if you had pressed a key sequence or +selected a menu item). + +The scrollbar behavior can be reprogrammed, by advising the +`scrollbar-*' functions. + + + +*** Key Bindings +---------------- + +The oft-used function `goto-line' now has its own binding: M-g. + +New bindings are available for scrolling the "other" window: M-next, +M-prior, M-home, M-end. (On many keyboards, `next' and `prior' +labelled `PgUp' and `PgDn'.) + +You can reactivate a deactivated Zmacs region, without having any +other effects, with the binding M-C-z. + +The bindings `M-u', `M-l', and `M-c' now work on the region (if a +region is active) or work on a word, as before. + +Shift-Control-G forces a "critical quit", which drops immediately into +the debugger; see below. + + + +*** Modeline +------------ + +The modeline can now have a 3-d look; this is enabled by default. The +specifier variable `modeline-shadow-thickness' controls the size. + +The modeline can now be turned off on a per-buffer, per-window, +per-frame, or per-device basis. The specifier variable +`has-modeline-p' controls whether the modeline is visible. See below +for details about the vastly powerful specifier mechanism. + +The modeline functions and variables have been renamed to be +`*-modeline-*' rather than `*-mode-line-*'. Aliases are provided for +all the old names. + +Variable width fonts now work correctly when used in the modeline. + + + +*** Minibuffer, Echo Area +------------------------- + +The minibuffer is no longer constrained to be one line high. The +package rsz-minibuf.el is included to automatically resize the +minibuffer when its contents are too big; enable this with +`resize-minibuffer-mode'. + +The echo area is now a true buffer, called " *Echo Area*". This +allows you to customize the echo area behavior through +before-change-functions and after-change-functions. + + + +*** Specifiers +-------------- + +XEmacs has a new concept called "specifiers", used to configure most +display options (toolbar size and contents, scrollbar size, face +properties, modeline visibility and shadow-thickness, glyphs, display +tables, etc.). We are planning on converting all display +characteristics to use specifiers, and obsoleting the clunky functions +`frame-parameters' and `modify-frame-parameters'. Specifically: + +-- You can specify values (called "instantiators") for particular + "locales" (i.e. buffers, windows, frames, devices, or a global value). + When determining what the actual value (or "instance") of a specifier + is, the specifications that are provided are searched from most + specific (i.e. buffer-local) to most general (i.e. global), looking + for a matching one. + +-- You can specify multiple instantiators for a particular locale. + For example, when specifying what the foreground color of a face + is in a particular buffer, you could specify two instantiators: + "dark sea green" and "green". The color would then be dark sea + green on devices that recognize that color, and green on other + devices. You have effectively provided a fallback value to make + sure you get reasonable behavior on all devices. + +-- You can add one or more tags to an instantiator, where a tag + is a symbol that has been previously registered with XEmacs. + This allows you to identify your instantiators for later + removal in a way that won't interfere with other applications + using the same specifier. Furthermore, particular tags can + be restricted to match only particular sorts of devices. + Any tagged instantiator will be ignored if the device over which + it is being instanced does not match any of its tags. This + allows you, for example, to restrict an instantiator to a + particular device type (X or TTY) and/or class (color, grayscale, + or mono). (You might want to specify, for example, that a + particular face is displayed in green on color devices and is + underlined on mono devices.) + +-- A full API is provided for manipulating specifiers, and full + documentation is provided in the Lisp Reference Manual. + + + +*** Basic Lisp Stuff +-------------------- + +Common-Lisp backquote syntax is recognized. For example, the old +expression + +(` (a b (, c))) + +can now be written + +`(a b ,c) + +The old backquote syntax is still accepted. + +The new function `type-of' returns a symbol describing the type of a +Lisp object (`integer', `string', `symbol', etc.) + +Symbols beginning with a colon (called "keywords") are treated +specially in that they are automatically made self-evaluating when +they are interned into `obarray'. The new function `keywordp' returns +whether a symbol begins with a colon. + +`get', `put', and `remprop' have been generalized to allow you to set +and retrieve properties on many different kinds of objects: symbols, +strings, faces, glyphs, and extents (for extents, however, this is not +yet implemented). They are joined by a new function `object-props' +that returns all of the properties that have been set on an object. + +New functions `plists-eq' and `plists-equal' are provided for +comparing property lists (a property list is an alternating list +of keys and values). + +The Common-Lisp functions `caar', `cadr', `cdar', `cddr', `caaar', etc. +(up to four a's and/or d's), `first', `second', `third', etc. (up to +`tenth'), `last', `rest', and `endp' have been added, for more +convenient manipulation of lists. + +New function `mapvector' maps over a sequence and returns a vector +of the results, analogous to `mapcar'. + +New functions `rassoc', `remassoc', `remassq', `remrassoc', and +`remrassq' are provided for working with alists. + +New functions `defvaralias', `variable-alias' and `indirect-variable' +are provided for creating variable aliases. + +Strings have a modified-tick that is bumped every time a string +is modified in-place with `aset' or `fillarray'. This is retrieved +with the new function `string-modified-tick'. + +New macro `push' destructively adds an element to the beginning of a +list. New macro `pop' destructively removes and returns the first +element of a list. + + + +*** Buffers +----------- + +Most functions that operate on buffer text now take an optional BUFFER +argument, specifying which buffer they operate on. (Previously, they +always operated on the current buffer.) + +The new function `transpose-regions' is provided, ported from GNU +Emacs. + +The new function `save-current-buffer' works like `save-excursion' +but only saves the current buffer, not the location of point in +that buffer. + + + +*** Devices +----------- + +XEmacs has a new concept of "device", which is represents a particular +X display or TTY connection. `make-frame' has a new, optional device +parameter that allows you to specify which device the frame is to be +created on. + +Multiple simultaneous TTY and/or X connections may be made. The +specifier mechanism provides reasonable behavior of glyphs, faces, +etc. over heterogeneous device types and over devices whose individual +capabilities may vary. + +There is also a device type called "stream" that represents a STDIO +device that has no redisplay or cursor-motion capabilities, such as +the "glass terminal" that XEmacs uses when it is run noninteractively. +There is not all that much you can do with stream devices currently; +please let us know if there are good uses you can think of for this +capability. (For example, log files?) + +A new device API is provided. Functions are provided such as +`device-name' (the name of the device, which generally is based on the +X display or TTY file name), `device-type' (X, TTY, or stream), +`device-class' (color, grayscale, or mono), etc. See the Lisp +Reference Manual. + +Many functions have been extended to contain an additional, optional +device argument, where such an extension makes sense. In general, if +the argument is omitted, it is equivalent to specifying +`(selected-device)'. + +Many previous functions and variables are obsoleted in favor of the +device API. For example, `window-system' is obsoleted by +`device-type', and `x-color-display-p' and friends are obsoleted by +`device-class'. + +** NOTE **: The obsolete variable `window-system' is going +to be deleted soon, probably in 19.14. Please correct all +your code to use `device-type'. + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The function `x-display-visual-class' +returns different values from previous versions of XEmacs. + + + +*** Errors, Warnings, C-g +------------------------- + +There is a new warnings system implemented. Many warnings that were +formerly displayed in various ad-hoc ways (e.g. warnings about screwy +modifier mappings, messages about failures handling the mouse cursor +and errors in a gc-hook) have been regularized through this system. +The new function `warn' displays a warning before the next redisplay +(the actually display of the warning messages is accomplished through +`display-warning-buffer'). Both `warn' and `display-warning-buffer' +are Lisp functions (the C code calls out to them as necessary), and +thus you can customize the warning system. + +Under an X display, you can press Shift-Control-G to force a "critical +quit". This will immediately display a backtrace and pop you into the +debugger, regardless of the settings of `inhibit-quit' and +`debug-on-quit'. + +C-g now works properly even on systems that don't implement SIGIO or +for which SIGIO is broken (e.g. IRIX 5.3 and older versions of Linux). +In addition, the SIGIO support has been fixed for many systems on +which it didn't always work properly before (e.g. HPUX and Solaris). + + + +*** Events +---------- + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: Many event functions have been changed to +accept and return windows instead of frames. + +New function: `event-live-p', specifying whether `deallocate-event' +has been called on an event. + +The "menu event" type has been renamed to "misc-user event", and +encompasses scrollbar events as well as menu events. We are planning +on making it also encompass toolbar events in a future release. + +New functions are provided for determining whether an particular +sections of a frame: `event-over-border-p', `event-over-glyph-p', +`event-over-modeline-p', `event-over-text-area-p', and +`event-over-toolbar-p'. The old, kludgey methods of checking the +window-height, the internal-border-width, etc. are unreliable and +should not be used. + +New functions `event-window-x-pixel' and `event-window-y-pixel' are +provided for determining where in a particular window an event +happened. + +New functions `event-glyph-x-pixel' and `event-glyph-y-pixel' are +provided for determining where in a particular glyph an event +happened. + +New function `event-closest-point', which returns the closest buffer +position to the event even if the event did not occur over any text. + +New variable `unread-command-events', superseding the older +`unread-command-event'. + +Many event-loop bugs have been fixed. + + + +*** Extents +----------- + +The extent code has been largely rewritten. It should be faster and +more reliable. + +The text-property implementation has been greatly improved. + +Some new extent primitives are provided to return the position of the +next or previous property change in a buffer. + +Extents can now have a parent specified; then all of its properties +(except for the buffer it's in and its position in that buffer) come +from that extent. Hierarchies of such extents can be created. + +Extents now have a `detachable' property that controls what happens +(they either get detached or shrink down to zero-length) when their +text is deleted. Previously, such extents would always be detached. + +The `invisible' property on extents now works. + +`map-extents' has three additional parameters that provide more +control over which extents are mapped. + +`map-extents' deals better with changes made to extents in the +buffer being mapped over. + +A new function `mapcar-extents' (an alternative to `map-extents') has +been provided and should be easier to use than `map-extents'. + + + +*** Faces +--------- + +Faces can now be buffer-local, window-local, and device-local as well +as frame-local, and can be further restricted to a particular device +type or class. The way in which faces can be controlled is now based +on the general and powerful specifier mechanism; see above. + +The new function `set-face-property' generalizes `set-face-font', +`set-face-foreground', etc. and takes many new optional arguments, in +accordance with the new specifier mechanism. + +The new functions `face-property' and `face-property-instance' +generalize `face-font', `face-foreground', etc. and take many new +optional arguments, in accordance with the new specifier mechanism. +(`face-property' returns the value, if any, that was specified for a +particular locale, and `face-property-instance' returns the actual +value that will be used for display. See the section on specifiers.) + +The functions `face-font', `face-foreground', `face-background', +`set-face-font', `set-face-foreground', `set-face-background', +etc. are now convenience functions, trivially implemented using +`face-property' and `set-face-property' and take new optioanl +arguments in accordance with those functions. New convenience +functions `face-font-instance', `face-foreground-instance', +`face-background-instance', etc. are provided and are trivially +implemented using `face-property-instance'. + +Inheritance of face properties can now be specified. Each individual +face property can inherit differently from other properties, or not +inherit at all. + +You can set user-defined properties on faces using +`set-face-property'. + +You can create "temporary" faces, which are faces that disappear +when they are no longer in use. This is as opposed to normal +faces, which stay around forever. + +The function `make-face' takes a new optional argument specifying +whether a face should be permanent or temporary, and returns the +actual face object rather than the face symbol, as in previous +versions of XEmacs. + +The function `face-list' takes a new optional argument specifying +whether permanent, temporary, or both kinds of faces should be +returned. + +Faces have new TTY-specific properties: `highlight', `reverse', +`alternate', `blinking', and `dim'. + +Redisplay is smarter about dealing with face changes: changes to a +particular face no longer cause all frames to be cleared and +redisplayed. + +The Edit-Faces package is provided for interactively changing faces. +A menu item on the options menu is provided for this. + +New functions are provided for retrieving the ascent, descent, height, +and width of a character in a particular face. + + + +*** Fonts, Colors +----------------- + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The old "font" and "pixel" objects are gone. +In place are new objects "font specifier", "font instance", "color +specifier", and "color instance". Functions `font-name', `pixel-name' +(an obsolete alias for `color-name'), etc. are now convenience +functions for working with font and color specifiers. Old code that +is not too sophisticated about working with font and pixel objects may +still work, though. (For example, the idiom `(font-name (face-font +'default))' still works.) + +You can now extract the RGB components of a color-instance object +(similar to the old pixel object) with the function +`color-instance-rgb-components'. There is also a convenience function +`color-rgb-components' for working with color specifiers. + +If there are no more colors available in the colormap, the nearest +existing color will be used when allocating a new color. + + + +*** Frames +---------- + +What used to be called "screens" are now called "frames", for clarity +and consistency with GNU Emacs. Aliases are provided for all the old +screen functions and variables, to avoid introducing a huge E-Lisp +incompatibility. + +The frame code has been merged with GNU Emacs 19.28, providing +improved functionality for many functions. + + + +*** Glyphs, Images, and Pixmaps +------------------------------- + +Glyphs (used in various places, i.e. as begin-glyphs and end-glyphs +attached to extents and appearing in a buffer or in marginal +annotations; as the truncator and continuor glyphs marking line wrap +or truncation; as an overlay at the beginning of a line; as the +displayable element in a toolbar button; etc.) can now be +buffer-local, window-local, frame-local, and device-local, and can be +further restricted to a particular device type or class. The way in +which faces can be controlled is now based on the general and powerful +specifier mechanism; see above. + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The glyph and pixmap API has been completely +overhauled. A new Lisp object "glyph" is provided and should be used +where the old "pixmap" object would have been used. The pixmap object +exists no longer. There are also new Lisp objects "image specifier" +and "image instance" (an image-instance is the closest equivalent to +what a pixmap object was). More work on glyphs and images is slated +for 19.13. The glyph and image docs in the Lisp Reference Manual are +incomplete and will be finished in 19.13. + +The new function `set-glyph-property' allows setting of all the +glyph properties (`baseline', `contrib-p', etc.). Convenience +functions for particular properties are also provided, just like +for faces. + +You can set user-defined properties on glyphs using the new function +`set-glyph-property'. + +When displaying pixmaps, existing, closest-matching colors will be +used if the colormap is full. + +If the compface library is compiled into XEmacs, there is built-in +support for displaying X-Face bitmaps. (These are typically small +pictures of people's faces, included in a mail message through the +X-Face: header.) VM and highlight-headers will automatically use the +built-in X-Face support if it is available. + +Annotations in the right margin (as well as the left margin) are now +implemented. The left and right margin width functions have been +superseded by the specifier variables `left-margin-width' and +`right-margin-width', allowing much more flexible control through the +specifier mechanism. + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The variable `use-left-overflow', +for controlling annotations in the left margin, is now a specifier +variable instead of a buffer-local variable. (There is also a new +variable `use-right-overflow', that is complementary.) + + + +*** Hashing +----------- + +Two new types of weak hashtables can be created: key-weak and +value-weak. In a key-weak hashtable, an entry remains around +if its key is referenced elsewhere, regardless of whether this +is also the case for the value. Value-weak hashtables are +complementary. (This is as opposed to the traditional weak +hashtables, where an entry remains around only if both the +key and value are referenced elsewhere.) New functions +`make-key-weak-hashtable' and `make-value-weak-hashtable' +are provided for creating these hashtables. + +The new function `md5' is provided for performing an MD5 +hash of an object. MD5 is a secure message digest algorithm +developed by RSA, inc. + + + +*** Keymaps +----------- + +The FSF GNU Emacs concept of `function-key-map' is now partially +implemented. This allows conversion of function-key escape sequences +such as `ESC [ 1 1 ~' into an equivalent human-readable keysym such as +`F1'. This work will be completed in 19.14. The function-key map is +device-local and controllable through the functions +`device-function-key-map' and `set-device-function-key-map'. + +`where-is-internal' now correctly searches minor-mode keymaps, +extent-local keymaps, etc. As a side effect of this, menu items will +now correctly show the keyboard equivalent for commands that are +available through a minor-mode keymap, extent-local keymap, etc. + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The modifier key "Symbol" has +been renamed to "Alt", for compatibility with the rest of the world. +Keep in mind that on many keyboards, the key labelled "Alt" actually +generates the "Meta" modifier. (On Sun keyboards, however, the key +labelled "Alt" does indeed generate the "Alt" modifier, and the key +labelled with a diamond generates the "Meta" modifier.) + + + +*** Mouse, Active Region +------------------------ + +The mouse internals in mouse.el have been rewritten. Hooks have been +provided for easier customization of mouse behavior. For example, you +can now easily specify an action to be invoked on single-click +(i.e. down-up without appreciable motion), double-click, drag-up, etc. + +Some code from FSF GNU Emacs has been ported over, generalizing some of +the X-specific mouse stuff. + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The function `set-mouse-position' accepts +a window instead of a frame. + +New function `mouse-position' that obsoletes and is more powerful than +`read-mouse-position'. + +New functions `mouse-pixel-positon' and `set-mouse-pixel-position' for +working with pixels instead of characters. + +The active (Zmacs) region is now highlighted using the `zmacs-region-face' +instead of the `primary-selection-face'; this generalizes what used +to be X-specific. + +New functions `region-active-p', `region-exists-p', and `activate-region' +provide a uniform API for dealing with the region irrespective of +whether the variable `zmacs-regions' is set. + +XEmacs is now a better X citizen with respect to the primary selection: +it does not stomp on the primary selection quite so much. This makes +things more manageable if you set `zmacs-regions' to nil. + + + +*** Processes +------------- + +Various process race conditions and bugs have been fixed. Problems +with process termination not getting noticed until much later (if at +all) should be gone now, as well as problems with zombie processes +under some systems. + +SOCKS support is now included. SOCKS is a package that allows hosts +behind a firewall to gain full access to the Internet without +requiring direct IP reachability. + + + +*** Windows +----------- + +Windows 95 is still not out yet. + +** INCOMPATIBLE CHANGE **: The functions `locate-window-from-coordinates' +and `window-edges' have been eliminated. It no longer makes sense to +work with windows in terms of character positions, because windows can +(and often do) have many differently-sized fonts in them, because the +3-D modeline is not exactly one line high, etc. + +The new functions `window-pixel-edges', `window-highest-p', +`window-lowest-p', `frame-highest-window', and `frame-lowest-window' +are provided as substitutes for the above-mentioned, deleted +functions. + +The function `window-end' now takes an optional GUARANTEE argument +that will ensure that the value is actually correct as of the next +redisplay. + +The window code has been merged with GNU Emacs 19.28, providing +improved functionality for many functions. + + + +*** System-Specific Information +------------------------------- + +Georg Nikodym's dynodump package is provided, for proper unexec()ing +on Solaris systems. Executables built on Solaris 2.3 can now run on +Solaris 2.4 without crashing; similarly with executables built on one +type of Sun machine and run on another. + +AIX 4.x is supported. + +The NeXTstep operating system is supported in TTY mode (this is still +in beta). There are plans to port XEmacs to the NeXTstep window +system, but it may be awhile before this is complete. + +Problems with the `round' function causing arithmetic errors on HPUX 9 +have been fixed. + +You can now build XEmacs as an ELF executable on Linux systems that +support ELF. + +Various other new system configurations are supported. + + + +*** Packages +------------ + +Most packages have been updated to the latest available versions. + + +Some of the new Emacs Lisp packages --- + +Hyperbole: the everyday information manager. Provides a Rolodex, + allows links to be embedded in text, etc. + +OOBR: a sophisticated class browser for object-oriented languages. + +viper: a better VI emulator that allows Emacs and VI features + to coexist happily. + +hm--html-menus: a sophisticated package for editing HTML code, + from Heiko Muenkel. + +ksh-mode.el: for editing shell scripts. + +lazy-lock.el: a lazy, on-the-fly fontifier. + +paren.el: an improved matching paren highlighter + + + +Major changes to existing packages -- + +VM: has a toolbar, many other nice features. + +w3: has a toolbar, many other nice features. + +ediff: provides three-way merging, has a better user interface. + +info: has a toolbar. + +highlight-headers.el: now highlights URL's and makes them active so + that when clicked either Netscape 1.1 is called + or Emacs W3 is run. + + +** Major Differences Between 19.10 and 19.11 +============================================ + +The name has changed from "Lucid Emacs" to "XEmacs". Along with this is a +new canonical ftp site: cs.uiuc.edu:/pub/xemacs. + +XEmacs now has its very own World Wide Web page! It contains a +complete list of the FTP distribution sites, the most recent FAQ, +pointers to Emacs Lisp packages not included with the distribution, and +other useful stuff. Check it out at http://xemacs.cs.uiuc.edu/. + +A preliminary New Users Guide. + +cc-mode.el now provides the default C, C++ and Objective-C modes. + +The primary goal of this release is stability. Very few new features have +been introduced but lots of bugs have been fixed. Many of the Emacs Lisp +packages have been updated. + +Some of the new Emacs Lisp packages --- + +tcl-mode.el: major mode for editing TCL code + +fast-lock.el: saves and restores font-lock highlighting, greatly + reducing the time necessary for loading a font-lock'ed + file + +ps-print.el: prints buffers to Postscript printers preserving the + buffer's bold and italic text attributes + +toolbar.el: provides a "fake" toolbar for use with XEmacs (an + integrated one will be included with 19.12) + + +** Major Differences Between 19.9 and 19.10 +=========================================== + +The GNU `configure' system is now used to build lemacs. + +The Emacs Manual and Emacs Lisp Reference Manual now document version 19.10. +If you notice any errors, please let us know. + +When pixmaps are displayed in a buffer, they contribute to the line height - +that is, if the glyph is taller than the rest of the text on the line, the +line will be as tall as necessary to display the glyph. + +In addition to using arbitrary sound files as emacs beeps, one can control +the pitch and duration of the standard X beep, on X servers which allow that +(Note: most don't.) + +There is support for playing sounds on systems with NetAudio servers. + +Minor modes may have mode-specific key bindings; keymaps may have an arbitrary +number of parent maps. + +Menus can have toggle and radio buttons in them. + +There is a font selection menu. + +Some default key bindings have changed to match FSF19; the new bindings are + + Screen-related commands: + C-x 5 2 make-screen + C-x 5 0 delete-screen + C-x 5 b switch-to-buffer-other-screen + C-x 5 f find-file-other-screen + C-x 5 C-f find-file-other-screen + C-x 5 m mail-other-screen + C-x 5 o other-screen + C-x 5 r find-file-read-only-other-screen + Abbrev-related commands: + C-x a l add-mode-abbrev + C-x a C-a add-mode-abbrev + C-x a g add-global-abbrev + C-x a + add-mode-abbrev + C-x a i g inverse-add-global-abbrev + C-x a i l inverse-add-mode-abbrev + C-x a - inverse-add-global-abbrev + C-x a e expand-abbrev + C-x a ' expand-abbrev + Register-related commands: + C-x r C-SPC point-to-register + C-x r SPC point-to-register + C-x r j jump-to-register + C-x r s copy-to-register + C-x r x copy-to-register + C-x r i insert-register + C-x r g insert-register + C-x r r copy-rectangle-to-register + C-x r c clear-rectangle + C-x r k kill-rectangle + C-x r y yank-rectangle + C-x r o open-rectangle + C-x r t string-rectangle + C-x r w window-configuration-to-register + Narrowing-related commands: + C-x n n narrow-to-region + C-x n w widen + Other changes: + C-x 3 split-window-horizontally (was undefined) + C-x - shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer + C-x + balance-windows + +The variable allow-deletion-of-last-visible-screen has been removed, since +it was widely hated. You can now always delete the last visible screen if +there are other iconified screens in existence. + +ToolTalk support is provided. + +An Emacs screen can be placed within an "external client widget" managed +by another application. This allows an application to use an Emacs screen +as its text pane rather than the standard Text widget that is provided +with Motif or Athena. + +Additional compatibility with Epoch is provided (though this is not yet +complete.) + + +** Major Differences Between 19.8 and 19.9 +========================================== + +Scrollbars! If you have Motif, these are real Motif scrollbars; otherwise, +Athena scrollbars are used. They obey all the usual resources of their +respective toolkits. + +There is now an implementation of dialog boxes based based on the Athena +widgets, as well as the existing Motif implementation. + +This release works with Motif 1.2 as well as 1.1. If you link with Motif, +you do not also need to link with Athena. + +If you compile lwlib with both USE_MOTIF and USE_LUCID defined (which is the +recommended configuration) then the Lucid menus will draw text using the Motif +string-drawing library, instead of the Xlib one. The reason for this is that +one can take advantage of the XmString facilities for including non-Latin1 +characters in resource specifications. However, this is a user-visible change +in that, in this configuration, the menubar will use the "*fontList" resource +in preference to the "*font" resource, if it is set. + +It's possible to make extents which are copied/pasted by kill and undo. +There is an implementation of FSF19-style text properties based on this. + +There is a new variable, minibuffer-max-depth, which is intended to circumvent +a common source of confusion among new Emacs users. Since, under a window +system, it's easy to jump out of the minibuffer (by doing M-x, then getting +distracted, and clicking elsewhere) many, many novice users have had the +problem of having multiple minibuffers build up, even to the point of +exhausting the lisp stack. So the default behavior is to disallow the +minibuffer to ever be reinvoked while active; if you attempt to do so, you +will be prompted about it. + +There is a new variable, teach-extended-commands-p, which if set, will cause +`M-x' to remind you of any key bindings of the command you just invoked the +"long way." + +There are menus in Dired, Tar, Comint, Compile, and Grep modes. + +There is a menu of window management commands on the right mouse button over +the modelines. + +Popup menus now have titles at the top; this is controlled by the new +variable `popup-menu-titles'. + +The `Find' key on Sun keyboards will search for the next (or previous) +occurrence of the selected text, as in OpenWindows programs. + +The `timer' package has been renamed to `itimer' to avoid a conflict with +a different package called `timer'. + +VM 5.40 is included. + +W3, the emacs interface to the World Wide Web, is included. + +Felix Lee's GNUS speedups have been installed, including his new version of +nntp.el which makes GNUS efficiently utilize the NNTP XOVER command if +available (which is much faster.) + +GNUS should also be much friendlier to new users: it starts up much faster, +and doesn't (necessarily) subscribe you to every single newsgroup. + +The byte-compiler issues a new class of warnings: variables which are +bound but not used. This is merely an advisory, and does not mean the +code is incorrect; you can disable these warnings in the usual way with +the `byte-compiler-options' macro. + +the `start-open' and `end-open' extent properties, for specifying whether +characters inserted exactly at a boundary of an extent should go into the +extent or out of it, now work correctly. + +The `extent-data' slot has been generalized/replaced with a property list, +so it's easier to attach arbitrary data to extent objects. + +The `event-modifiers' and `event-modifier-bits' functions work on motion +events as well as other mouse and keyboard events. + +Forms-mode uses fonts and read-only regions. + +The behavior of the -geometry command line option should be correct now. + +The `iconic' screen parameter works when passed to x-create-screen. + +The user's manual now documents Lucid Emacs 19.9. + +The relocating buffer allocator is turned on by default; this means that when +buffers are killed, their storage will be returned to the operating system, +and the size of the emacs process will shrink. + +CAVEAT: code which contains calls to certain `face' accessor functions will +need to be recompiled by version 19.9 before it will work. The functions +whose callers must be recompiled are: face-font, face-foreground, +face-background, face-background-pixmap, and face-underline-p. The symptom +of this problem is the error "Wrong type argument, arrayp, #<face ... >". +The .elc files generated by version 19.9 will work in 19.6 and 19.8, but +older .elc files which contain calls to these functions will not work in 19.9. + +Work In Progress: + + - We have been in the process of internationalizing Lucid Emacs. This code is + ***not*** ready for general use yet. However, the code is included (and + turned off by default) in this release. + + - If you define I18N2 at compile-time, then sorting/collation will be done + according to the locale returned by setlocale(). + + - If you define I18N3 at compile-time, then all messages printed by lemacs + will be filtered through the gettext() library routine, to enable the use + of locale-specific translation catalogues. The current implementation of + this is quite dependent on Solaris 2, and has a very large impact on + existing code, therefore we are going to be making major changes soon. + (You'll notice calls to `gettext' and `GETTEXT' scattered around much of + the lisp and C code; ignore it, this will be going away.) + + - If you define I18N4 at compile-time, then lemacs will internally use a + wide representation of characters, enabling the use of large character + sets such as Kanji. This code is very OS dependent: it requires X11R5, + and several OS-supplied library routines for reading and writing wide + characters (getwc(), putwc(), and a few others.) Performance is also a + problem. This code is also scheduled for a major overhaul, with the + intent of improving performance and portability. + + Our eventual goal is to merge with MULE, or at least provide the same base + level of functionality. If you would like to help out with this, let us + know. + + - Other work-in-progress includes Motif drag-and-drop support, ToolTalk + support, and support for embedding an Emacs widget inside another + application (where it can function as that other application's text-entry + area). This code has not been extensively tested, and may (or may not) + have portability problems, but it's there for the adventurous. Comments, + suggestions, bug reports, and especially fixes are welcome. But have no + expectations that this experimental code will work at all. + + +** Major Differences Between 19.6 and 19.8 +========================================== + +There were almost no differences between versions 19.6 and 19.7; version 19.7 +was a bug-fix release that was distributed with Energize 2.1. + +Lucid Emacs 19.8 represents the first stage of the Lucid Emacs/Epoch merger. +The redisplay engine now in lemacs is an improved descendant of the Epoch +redisplay. As a result, many bugs have been eliminated, and several disabled +features have been re-enabled. Notably: + +Selective display (and outline-mode) work. + +Horizontally split windows work. + +The height of a line is the height of the tallest font displayed on that line; +it is possible for a screen to display lines of differing heights. (Previously, +the height of all lines was the height of the tallest font loaded.) + +There is lisp code to scale fonts up and down, for example, to load the next- +taller version of a font. + +There is a new internal representation for lisp objects, giving emacs-lisp 28 +bit integers and a 28 bit address space, up from the previous maximum of 26. +We expect eventually to increase this to 30 bit integers and a 32 bit address +space, eliminating the need for DATA_SEG_BITS on some architectures. (On 64 +bit machines, add 32 to all of these numbers.) + +GC performance is improved. + +Various X objects (fonts, colors, cursors, pixmaps) are accessible as first- +class lisp objects, with finalization. + +An alternate interface to embedding images in the text is provided, called +"annotations." You may create an "annotation margin" which is whitespace at +the left side of the screen that contains only annotations, not buffer text. + +When using XPM files, one can specify the values of logical color names to be +used when loading the files. + +It is possible to resize windows by dragging their modelines up and down. More +generally, it is possible to add bindings for mouse gestures on the modelines. + +There is support for playing sound files on HP machines. + +ILISP version 5.5 is included. + +The Common Lisp #' read syntax is supported (#' is to "function" as ' is to +"quote".) + +The `active-p' slot of menu items is now evaluated, so one can put arbitrary +lisp code in a menu to decide whether that item should be selectable, rather +than doing this with an `activate-menubar-hook'. + +The X resource hierarchy has changed slightly, to be more consistent. It used +to be + argv[0] SCREEN-NAME pane screen + ApplicationShell EmacsShell Paned EmacsFrame + + now it is + + argv[0] shell pane SCREEN-NAME + ApplicationShell EmacsShell Paned EmacsFrame + +The Lucid Emacs sources have been largely merged with FSF version 19; this +means that the lisp library contains the most recent releases of various +packages, and many new features of FSF 19 have been incorporated. + +Because of this, the lemacs sources should also be substantially more portable. + + +** Major Differences Between 19.4 and 19.6 +========================================== + +There were almost no differences between versions 19.4 and 19.5; we fixed +a few minor bugs and repacked 19.4 as 19.5 for a CD-ROM that we gave away +as a trade show promotion. + +The primary goal of the 19.6 release is stability, rather than improved +functionality, so there aren't many user-visible changes. The most notable +changes are: + + - The -geometry command-line option now correctly overrides geometry + specifications in the resource database. + - The `width' and `height' screen-parameters work. + - Font-lock-mode considers the comment start and end characters to be + a part of the comment. + - The lhilit package has been removed. Use font-lock-mode instead. + - vm-isearch has been fixed to work with isearch-mode. + - new versions of ispell and calendar. + - sccs.el has menus. + +Lots of bugs were fixed, including the problem that lemacs occasionally +grabbed the keyboard focus. + +Also, as of Lucid Emacs 19.6 and Energize 2.0 (shipping now) it is possible +to compile the public release of Lucid Emacs with support for Energize; so +now Energize users will be able to build their own Energize-aware versions +of lemacs, and will be able to use newer versions of lemacs as they are +released to the net. (Of course, this is not behavior covered by your +Energize support contract; you do it at your own risk.) + +I have not incorporated all portability patches that I have been sent since +19.4; I will try to get to them soon. However, if you need to make any +changes to lemacs to get it to compile on your system, it would be quite +helpful if you would send me context diffs (diff -c) against version 19.6. + + +** Major Differences Between 19.3 and 19.4 +========================================== + +Prototypes have been added for all functions. Emacs compiles in the strict +ANSI modes of lcc and gcc, so portability should be vastly improved. + +Many many many many core leaks have been plugged, especially in screen +creation and deletion. + +The float support reworked to be more portable and ANSI conformant. This +resulted in these new configuration parameters: HAVE_INVERSE_HYPERBOLIC, +HAVE_CBRT, HAVE_RINT, FLOAT_CHECK_ERRNO, FLOAT_CATCH_SIGILL, +FLOAT_CHECK_DOMAIN. Let us know if you had to change the defaults on your +architecture. + +The SunOS unexec has been rewritten, and now works with either static or +dynamic libraries, depending on whether -Bstatic or -Bdynamic were specified +at link-time. + +Small (character-sized) bitmaps can be mixed in with buffer text via the new +functions set-extent-begin-glyph and set-extent-end-glyph. (This is actually +a piece of functionality that Energize has been using for a while, but we've +just gotten around to making it possible to use it without Energize. See how +nice we are? Go buy our product.) + +If compiled with Motif support, one can pop up dialog boxes from emacs lisp. +We encourage someone to contribute Athena an version of this code; it +shouldn't be much work. + +If dialog boxes are available, then y-or-n-p and yes-or-no-p use dialog boxes +instead of the minibuffer if invoked as a result of a command that was +executed from a menu instead of from the keyboard. + +Multiple screen support works better; check out doc of get-screen-for-buffer. + +The default binding of backspace is the same as delete. (C-h is still help.) + +A middle click while the minibuffer is active does completion if you click on +a highlighted completion, otherwise it executes the global binding of button2. + +New versions of Barry Warsaw's c++-mode and syntax.c. Font-lock-mode works +with C++ mode now. + +The semantics of activate-menubar-hook has changed; the functions are called +with no arguments now. + +`truename' no longer hacks the automounter; use directory-abbrev-alist instead. + +Most minibuffer handling has been reimplemented in emacs-lisp. + +There is now a builtin minibuffer history mechanism which replaces gmhist. + + +** Major Differences Between 19.2 and 19.3 +========================================== + +The ISO characters have correct case and syntax tables now, so the word-motion +and case-converting commands work sensibly on them. + +If you set ctl-arrow to an integer, you can control exactly which characters +are printable. (There will be a less crufty way to do this eventually.) + +Menubars can now be buffer local; the function set-screen-menubar no longer +exists. Look at GNUS and VM for examples of how to do this, or read +menubar.el. + +When emacs is reading from the minibuffer with completions, any completions +which are visible on the screen will highlight when the mouse moves over them; +clicking middle on a completion is the same as typing it at the minibuffer. +Some implications of this: The *Completions* buffer is always mousable. If +you're using the completion feature of find-tag, your source code will be +mousable when you type M-. Dired buffers will be mousable as soon as you +type ^X^F. And so on. + +The old isearch code has been replaced with a descendant of Dan LaLiberte's +excellent isearch-mode; it is more customizable, and generally less bogus. +You can search for "composed" characters. There are new commands, too; see +the doc for ^S, or the NEWS file. + +A patched GNUS 3.14 is included. + +The user's manual now documents Lucid Emacs 19.3. + +A few more modes have mouse and menu support. + +The startup code should be a little more robust, and give you more reasonable +error messages when things aren't installed quite right (instead of the +ubiquitous "cannot open DISPLAY"...) + +Subdirectories of the lisp directory whose names begin with a hyphen or dot +are not automatically added to the load-path, so you can use this to avoid +accidentally inflicting experimental software on your users. + +I've tried to incorporate all of the portability patches that were sent to +me; I tried to solve some of the problems in different ways than the +patches did, so let me know if I missed something. + +Some systems will need to define NEED_STRDUP, NEED_REALPATH, HAVE_DREM, or +HAVE_REMAINDER in config.h. Really this should be done in the appropriate +s- or m- files, but I don't know which systems need these and which don't. +If yours does, let me know which file it should be in. + +Check out these new packages: + +blink-paren.el: causes the matching parenthesis to flash on and off whenever + the cursor is sitting on a paren-syntax character. + +pending-del.el: Certain commands implicitly delete the highlighted region: + Typing a character when there is a highlighted region replaces + that region with the typed character. + +font-lock.el: A code-highlighting package, driven off of syntax tables, so + that it understands block comments, strings, etc. The + insertion hook is used to fontify text as you type it in. + +shell-font.el: Displays your shell-buffer prompt in boldface.