GNU Emacs FAQ: Introduction

    [To find what has changed, see the "diff" posting.

    We are seeking more volunteers who would like to take charge of a section of the FAQ list. The FAQ list is now set up so that the responsibility can easily be shared. Send e-mail if you are interested.]

    This is the introduction to a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) about GNU Emacs with answers. This article contains a listing of the questions; subsequent articles contain the questions and answers.

    The FAQ list is posted to reduce the noise level in the `gnu.emacs.help' newsgroup (which is also the `help-gnu-emacs' mailing list) which results from the repetition of frequently asked questions, wrong answers to these questions, corrections to the wrong answers, corrections to the corrections, debate, name calling, etc. Also, it serves as a repository of the canonical "best" answers to these questions. However, if you know a better answer or even a slight change that improves an answer, please tell us!

    If you know the answer of a question is in the FAQ list, please reply to the question by e-mail instead of posting. Help reduce noise!

    The FAQ list is crossposted to `comp.emacs' because some sites do not receive the `gnu.*' newsgroups. The FAQ list is also crossposted to `news.answers'.

    Please suggest new questions, answers, wording changes, deletions, etc. The most helpful form for suggestions is a context diff (ie., the output of `diff -c'). Include `FAQ' in the subject of messages sent to us about the FAQ list.

    Please do not send questions to us just because you do not want to disturb a lot of people and you think we would know the answer. We do not have time to answer questions individually. :-(

    Full instructions for getting the latest FAQ are in question 22. Also see the `Introduction to news.answers' posting in the `news.answers' newsgroup, or send e-mail to `mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu' with `help' on a body line, or use FTP, WAIS, or Prospero to rtfm.mit.edu.

    These ideas have already been suggested, but we have not had time to implement them:

    * Verification for files available via FTP and for mailing lists. * Up-to-date IP addresses for sites mentioned for FTP access. * A Texinfo version. * Marking questions in the table of contents that have been changed recently.

    -- Joe Wells and Steven Byrnes

    E-mail jbw@cs.bu.edu for details about the League for Programming Freedom.

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    GNU Emacs FAQ: Table of Contents

    Notation Used in FAQ

  • 1 What do these mean: C-h, M-C-a, RET, "ESC a", etc.?
  • 2 What does "M-x command" mean?
  • 3 How do I read topic XXX in the on-line manual?
  • 4 What do these mean: etc/SERVICE, src/config.h, lisp/default.el?
  • 5 What are FSF, LPF, OSF, GNU, RMS, FTP, and GPL?

    General Questions

  • 6 What is the LPF and why should I join it?
  • 7 What is the real legal meaning of the GNU copyleft?
  • 8 What are appropriate messages for gnu.emacs.help, gnu.emacs.bug, comp.emacs, etc.?
  • 9 Where can I get old postings to gnu.emacs.help and other GNU groups?
  • 10 Where should I report bugs and other problems with GNU Emacs?
  • 11 How do I unsubscribe to this mailing list?
  • 12 What is the current address of the FSF?

    On-line Help, Printed Manuals, Other Sources of Help

  • 13 I'm just starting GNU Emacs; how do I do basic editing?
  • 14 How do I find out how to do something in GNU Emacs?
  • 15 How do I get a printed copy of the GNU Emacs manual?
  • 16 Where can I get documentation on GNU Emacs Lisp?
  • 17 How do I install a piece of Texinfo documentation?
  • 18 How do I print a Texinfo file?
  • 19 Can I view Info files without using GNU Emacs?
  • 20 What informational files are available for GNU Emacs?
  • 21 Where can I get help in installing GNU Emacs?
  • 22 Where can I get the latest version of this document (the FAQ list)?

    Status of Emacs

  • 23 Where does the name "Emacs" come from?
  • 24 What is the latest version of GNU Emacs?
  • 25 When will GNU Emacs 19 be available?
  • 26 What is different about GNU Emacs 19?
  • 27 What variants of GNU Emacs exist?

    Common Things People Want To Do

  • 28 How do I set up a .emacs file properly?
  • 29 How do I debug a .emacs file?
  • 30 How do I make Emacs display the current line (or column) number?
  • 31 How do I turn on Abbrevs by default just in mode XXX?
  • 32 How do I turn on Auto-Fill mode by default?
  • 33 How do I make Emacs use a certain major mode for certain files?
  • 34 How do I search for, delete, or replace unprintable (8-bit or control) characters?
  • 35 How can I highlight a region of text in Emacs?
  • 36 How do I control Emacs's case-sensitivity when searching/replacing?
  • 37 How do I make Emacs wrap words for me?
  • 38 Where can I get a better spelling checker for Emacs?
  • 39 How can I spell-check TeX or *roff documents?
  • 40 How do I change load-path?
  • 41 How do I use an already running Emacs from another window?
  • 42 How do I make Emacs recognize my compiler's funny error messages?
  • 43 How do I indent switch statements like this?
  • 44 How can I make Emacs automatically scroll horizontally?
  • 45 How do I make Emacs "typeover" or "overwrite" instead of inserting?
  • 46 How do I stop Emacs from beeping on a terminal?
  • 47 How do I turn down the bell volume in Emacs running under X Windows?
  • 48 How do I tell Emacs to automatically indent a new line to the indentation of the previous line?
  • 49 How do I show which parenthesis matches the one I'm looking at?
  • 50 In C mode, can I show just the lines that will be left after #ifdef commands are handled by the compiler?
  • 51 Is there an equivalent to the `.' (dot) command of vi?
  • 52 What are the valid X resource settings (ie., stuff in .Xdefaults)?
  • 53 How do I execute a piece of Emacs Lisp code?
  • 54 How do I change Emacs's idea of the tab character's length?
  • 55 How do I insert `>' at the beginning of every line?
  • 56 How do I insert `_^H' before each character in a paragraph to get an underlined paragraph?
  • 57 How do I repeat a command as many times as possible?
  • 58 How do I make Emacs behave like this: when I go up or down, the cursor should stay in the same column even if the line is too short?
  • 59 How do I tell Emacs to iconify itself?
  • 60 How do I use regexps (regular expressions) in Emacs?
  • 61 How do I perform a replace operation across more than one file?
  • 62 Where is the documentation for `etags'?

    Bugs/Problems

  • 63 Does Emacs have problems with files larger than 8 megabytes?
  • 64 Why can't Emacs find files in current directory on startup?
  • 65 How do I get rid of the ^M junk in my Shell buffer?
  • 66 Why do I get `Process shell exited abnormally with code 1'?
  • 67 Why can't I cut from Emacs and paste in other X programs?
  • 68 Where is the termcap/terminfo entry for terminal type `emacs'?
  • 69 Why does Emacs spontaneously start displaying `I-search:' and beeping?
  • 70 Why can't Emacs talk to certain hosts (or certain hostnames)?
  • 71 Why does Emacs say `Error in init file'?
  • 72 Why does Emacs ignore my X resources (my .Xdefaults file)?
  • 73 Why does Emacs take 20 seconds to visit a file?
  • 74 How do I edit a file with a `$' in its name?
  • 75 Why does Shell mode lose track of the shell's current directory?
  • 76 Why doesn't my change to load-path work?
  • 77 Why does the cursor always go to the wrong column when I move up or down one line?
  • 78 Why does Emacs hang with message `Unknown XMenu error' with X11R4?
  • 79 Why doesn't display-time show the load average in the mode line anymore?
  • 80 Why does ispell sometimes ignore the local dictionary?
  • 81 Why does Ispell treat each line as a single word?
  • 82 Are there any security risks in GNU Emacs?

    Difficulties Building/Installing/Porting Emacs

  • 83 What should I do if I have trouble building Emacs?
  • 84 How do I stop Emacs from failing when the executable is stripped?
  • 85 How do I get Emacs to compile with all features under OpenWindows?
  • 86 How do I build Emacs under HP-UX 8.0?
  • 87 Why does Emacs 18.55 say `Fatal error (6).Abort' under SunOS 4.1?
  • 88 Why do I get an `f68881_used undefined' error, when I build Emacs on my Sun 3?

    Finding/Getting Emacs and Related Packages

  • 89 Where can I get GNU Emacs on the net (or by snail mail)?
  • 90 How do I find a GNU Emacs Lisp package that does XXX?
  • 91 Where can I get GNU Emacs Lisp packages that don't come with Emacs?
  • 92 How do I submit code to the Emacs Lisp Archive?
  • 93 Where can I get other up-to-date GNU stuff?
  • 94 Where can I get an Emacs with better mouse and X window support?
  • 95 What is the difference between GNU Emacs and Epoch?
  • 96 What is the difference between GNU Emacs and Lucid GNU Emacs?
  • 97 Where can I get the "unofficial HP GNU Emacs"?
  • 98 Where can I get Emacs for my PC running MS-DOS?
  • 99 Where can I get Emacs for my PC running Windows?
  • 100 Where can I get Emacs for my PC running OS/2?
  • 101 Where can I get Emacs for my Atari ST?
  • 102 Where can I get Emacs for my Amiga?
  • 103 Where can I get Emacs for my Apple computer?
  • 104 Where can I get Emacs with NeWS support?
  • 105 Where do I get Emacs that runs on VMS under DECwindows?
  • 106 Where can I get modes for Lex, Yacc/Bison, Bourne Shell, Csh, C++, Objective C, Pascal, Awk?
  • 107 What is the IP address of XXX.YYY.ZZZ?

    Major Emacs Lisp Packages, Emacs Extensions, and Related Programs

  • 108 VM (View Mail) -- another mail reader within Emacs
  • 109 Supercite -- mail and news citation package within Emacs
  • 110 GNUS -- news reader within Emacs
  • 111 Calc -- poor man's Mathematica within Emacs
  • 112 Calendar/Diary -- calendar manager within Emacs
  • 113 Ange-FTP -- transparent FTP access for Emacs's file access routines
  • 114 VIP -- vi emulation for Emacs
  • 115 Dired -- better directory editor for Emacs
  • 116 AUC TeX -- enhanced LaTeX mode with debugging facilities
  • 117 Hyperbole -- extensible hypertext management system within Emacs
  • 118 Byte Compiler -- enhanced version of Emacs's byte compiler
  • 119 comint -- hugely enhanced shell mode and other derived modes
  • 120 BBDB -- personal info rolodex integrated with mail/news readers
  • 121 Ispell -- spell checker in C with interface for Emacs
  • 122 Epoch -- enhanced GNU Emacs with better X interface
  • 123 Lucid GNU Emacs -- alternative Emacs 19 with better X interface
  • 124 Demacs -- GNU Emacs altered to run on MS-DOS on 386/486 machines
  • 125 Freemacs -- a small Emacs for MS-DOS
  • 126 Patch -- program to apply "diffs" for updating files

    Changing Key Bindings and Handling Key Binding Problems

  • 127 How do I bind keys (including function keys) to commands?
  • 128 Why does Emacs say `Key sequence XXX uses invalid prefix characters'?
  • 129 Why doesn't this [terminal or window-system setup] code work in my .emacs file, but it works just fine after Emacs starts up?
  • 130 How do I use function keys under X Windows?
  • 131 How do I tell what characters my function or arrow keys emit?
  • 132 How do I set the X key "translations" for Emacs?
  • 133 How do I handle C-s and C-q being used for flow control?
  • 134 How do I use commands bound to C-s and C-q (or any key) if these keys are filtered out?
  • 135 Why does the `BackSpace' key invoke help?
  • 136 Why doesn't Emacs look at the stty settings for Backspace vs. Delete?
  • 137 Why don't the arrow keys work?
  • 138 How do I "swap" two keys?
  • 139 How do I produce C-XXX with my keyboard?
  • 140 What if I don't have a Meta key?
  • 141 What if I don't have an Escape key?
  • 142 How do I type DEL on PC terminal emulators?
  • 143 Can I make my `Compose Character' key behave like a Meta key?
  • 144 How do I bind a combination of modifier key and function key?
  • 145 Why doesn't my Meta key work in an xterm window?
  • 146 Why doesn't my ExtendChar key work as a Meta key under HP-UX 8.0?
  • 147 Where can I get key bindings to make Emacs emulate WordStar?
  • 148 Where can I get an XEDIT emulator for Emacs?

    Using Emacs with Alternate Character Sets

  • 149 How do I make Emacs display 8-bit characters?
  • 150 How do I input 8-bit characters?
  • 151 Where can I get an Emacs that can handle kanji characters?
  • 152 Where can I get an Emacs that can handle Chinese?
  • 153 Where is an Emacs that can handle Semitic (right-to-left) alphabets?

    Mail and News

  • 154 How do I change the included text prefix in mail/news followups?
  • 155 How do I save a copy of outgoing mail?
  • 156 Why doesn't Emacs expand my aliases when sending mail?
  • 157 Why does RMAIL think all my saved messages are one big message?
  • 158 How can I sort the messages in my RMAIL folder?
  • 159 Why does RMAIL need to write to /usr/spool/mail?
  • 160 How do I recover my mail files after RMAIL munges their format?
  • 161 How do I make Emacs automatically start my mail/news reader?
  • 162 How do I read news under Emacs?
  • 163 Why does `rnews' say "No News is good news" when there is news?
  • 164 Why doesn't GNUS work anymore via NNTP?
  • 165 How do I view text with embedded underlining (eg., ClariNews)?
  • 166 When I try to post a long article in GNUS (about 10K or longer), I get the error, "Writing to process: no more processes, nntpd"
  • 167 How do I save all the items of a multi-part posting in GNUS?
  • 168 Why does GNUS put the subjects in replies beyond the 80th column?
  • 169 Why is GNUS so slow to start up?
  • 170 How do I catch up all newsgroups in GNUS?
  • 171 Why can't I kill in GNUS on the Newsgroups/Keywords/Control line?
  • 172 How do I get rid of flashing messages in GNUS for slow connections?
  • 173 Why is catch up slow in Gnews/GNUS?
  • 174 Why does GNUS hang for a long time when posting?
  • 175 Why don't my news postings in GNUS get past the local machine?
  • 176 Why is the GNUS-generated `Date:' header invalid?
  • 177 Why doesn't GNUS generate the `Lines:' header?
  • 178 Why do I get "Cannot open load file" "nntp" when compiling GNUS?
  • 179 How do I kill all articles in GNUS but those matching a pattern?