Minimal emacs

<BODY > <HR><center> <table border=1> <td> <A NAME="tex2html172" HREF="node15.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="PREVIOUS" src="../../../icons/latex2html/previous.gif"></A></td> <td> <A NAME="tex2html178" HREF="minimum.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="UP" src="../../../icons/latex2html/up.gif"></A></td> <td> <A NAME="tex2html180" HREF="node17.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="NEXT" src="../../../icons/latex2html/next.gif"></A></td> <td><a href="contents-node16.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="CONTENTS" src="../../../icons/latex2html/toc.gif"></a></td> </table> </center> <HR>  <H1><A NAME="SECTION00030000000000000000"> Minimal emacs</A> </H1> <P> The emacs text editor is extremely powerful and has so many features, no one uses them all. But you can run any text editor in the world, knowing only six procedures. Here they are for emacs, the one we use in our Unix courses: <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030010000000000000"> 1. Starting the editor</A> </H4> <P> Let's create a new file <B>junk3</B>. You can do this by typing a command in an <B>terminal</B> window or with the mouse from the desktop Launch menu with our course setup. The command is <PRE> emacs junk3 & </PRE> You should see a mostly empty new window on your screen with the title <B>emacs...</B>. Position this window so that both it and this tutorial window are visible at the same time. (The ampersand <B>&</B> in this command is useful, since it frees up the parent window for further commands.) <P> To use the window menu, select <B>Application->emacs</B> to open the emacs window. Then inside the emacs window, use the <B>File->Open File</B> pulldown menu and type the name of the file that you want to open, followed by the ``Enter'' key. <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030020000000000000"> 2. Inserting text</A> </H4> <P> Click with the Mouse in the emacs window where you want to make the insertion. Then simply start typing. Type a couple of lines of anything. <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030030000000000000"> 3. Navigating</A> </H4> <P> To move around in the window, either point and click with the Mouse (left button), or use the arrow keys. Practise this operation. Insert some more text. Notice that insertions go directly under the cursor position. <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030040000000000000"> 4. Deleting text</A> </H4> <P> There are two ways to delete text. The <B>Backspace</B> key deletes one character immediately before the cursor. The <B>Ctrl-d</B> key combination deletes one character immediately beneath the cursor. (Notice that <B>Ctrl-d</B> had an entirely different meaning in the terminal window, namely, ``end-of-file''.) <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030050000000000000"> 5. Saving your work</A> </H4> <P> To save your work, type <B>Ctrl-x Ctrl-s</B> or select <B>File, Save Buffer</B> in the pulldown menu. <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030060000000000000"> 6. Exiting the editor</A> </H4> <P> To exit emacs, type <B>Ctrl-x Ctrl-c</B> or select <B>File, Exit Emacs</B> in the pulldown menu. If you forgot to save your work, emacs will ask you if you want to in the space at the bottom of the window. Type <B>y</B> at the prompt to signify that you want it saved. <P> Use <B>ls</B> and <B>more</B> in the terminal window to verify that your new file is as expected. After you have created the file <B>junk3</B> as specified, try editing it. Do this by starting the editor with the same command <B>emacs junk3 &</B> that you used to create it in the first place. Now you should see your old file as it was when you left it. <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030070000000000000"> emacs pull-down menus</A> </H4> <P> The emacs pull-down menus access a variety of functions. The various keyboard shortcuts are also indicated so you can learn the most common ones. <P> <H4><A NAME="SECTION00030080000000000000"> emacs tutorial</A> </H4> <P> If you want to learn more now, the emacs editor has its own tutorial that is accessed by typing <B>Ctrl-h t</B>. Try it. <P> When you are done practising, exit emacs using <B>Ctrl-x Ctrl-c</B> or use the pulldown menu. <P> <HR><center> <table border=1> <td> <A NAME="tex2html172" HREF="node15.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="PREVIOUS" src="../../../icons/latex2html/previous.gif"></A></td> <td> <A NAME="tex2html178" HREF="minimum.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="UP" src="../../../icons/latex2html/up.gif"></A></td> <td> <A NAME="tex2html180" HREF="node17.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="NEXT" src="../../../icons/latex2html/next.gif"></A></td> <td><a href="contents-node16.html"><img height=36 width=36 alt="CONTENTS" src="../../../icons/latex2html/toc.gif"></a></td> </table> </center> <HR>  <HR><P><ADDRESS> <I></I> </ADDRESS> </BODY>