Version 19.34 of GNU emacs, an advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible editor, is now available for all platforms on RCS.
To run emacs under RCS, issue one of the following commands from a UNIX prompt:
emacs &
or
emacs filename &
(where filename is the name of your file)
Most users think of emacs as a text editor, but the program is actually more of a "text handling environment," in that it not only allows users to edit text, but also to read and write mail, read from and write to newsgroups, browse the World Wide Web, use the program as a desktop system, compile programs, check spelling, and edit binary files, among many other functions.
emacs is also self-documenting in that, at any time, you can get help by typing Control-h to obtain a list of available emacs options. There are also specific help options available via the Help menu, including an FAQ. To clear the help text window if it is "split screen," type Ctrl-x 1 in the main window. If the help text uses the whole screen, type Ctrl-x k followed by Return, or select your filename from the Buffers window. Note that you may also enter help mode by typing Esc x help, followed by Return. (This will be helpful for remote use on systems where Ctrl-h is set to perform the backspace function.)
When run under the X Window System, emacs provides its own menus and convenient bindings to mouse buttons. It also provides many of the benefits of a window system on a text-only terminal. For instance, you can look at or edit several files at once, move text between them, and edit files at the same time as you run shell commands. This version also provides the commands Ctrl-\ and Ctrl-^ as synonyms for Ctrl-s and Ctrl-q, a useful feature on remote systems where Ctrl-s and Ctrl-q are used for flow control.
Quick Study #23, Using the UNIX emacs Editor, available from the ACS Help Desk or ACS homepage, gives a short introduction to emacs, and the interactive tutorial, available by typing Ctrl-h t from within emacs, teaches the basics in a few minutes. For additional help, refer to the man page by entering the command man emacs at a UNIX prompt. Also, in the RCS directory /campus/gnu/emacs/19.34/common/doc, there is an FAQ file and an extensive (over 500 pages) manual in the file emacs.dvi, which is the primary documentation for emacs. See the file README-RCS in the same directory for instructions on viewing the manual or printing selected pages. You may also find further useful information about emacs on-line at the following URL:
http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Software/Text_Editors/Emacs/
If you have general questions about using emacs, you may also contact the consultants at the ACS Help Desk, or direct electronic mail to consult@rpi.edu.