emacs/man/xresmini.texi

@c This is part of the Emacs manual.
@c Copyright (C) 1987, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2003,
@c   2004, 2005, 2006 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
@c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions.
@node X Resources, Antinews, Emacs Invocation, Top
@appendix X Options and Resources

  You can customize some X-related aspects of Emacs behavior using X
resources, as is usual for programs that use X.  On MS-Windows, you
can customize some of the same aspects using the system registry.
@xref{MS-Windows Registry}.  Likewise, Emacs on MacOS Carbon emulates X
resources using the Preferences system.  @xref{Mac Environment Variables}.

  When Emacs is built using an ``X toolkit'', such as Lucid or
LessTif, you need to use X resources to customize the appearance of
the widgets, including the menu-bar, scroll-bar, and dialog boxes.
This is because the libraries that implement these don't provide for
customization through Emacs.  GTK+ widgets use a separate system of
``GTK resources''.  In this chapter we describe the most commonly used
resource specifications.  For full documentation, see the online
manual.

@c Add xref for LessTif/Motif menu resources.

@menu
* Resources::           Using X resources with Emacs (in general).
* Table of Resources::  Table of specific X resources that affect Emacs.
* Face Resources::      X resources for customizing faces.
* Lucid Resources::     X resources for Lucid menus.
* GTK resources::       Resources for GTK widgets.
@end menu

@node Resources
@appendixsec X Resources
@cindex resources
@cindex X resources
@cindex @file{~/.Xdefaults} file
@cindex @file{~/.Xresources} file

  Programs running under the X Window System organize their user
options under a hierarchy of classes and resources.  You can specify
default values for these options in your X resources file, usually
named @file{~/.Xdefaults} or @file{~/.Xresources}.
If changes in @file{~/.Xdefaults} do not
take effect, it is because your X server stores its own list of
resources; to update them, use the shell command @command{xrdb}---for
instance, @samp{xrdb ~/.Xdefaults}.

  Each line in the file specifies a value for one option or for a
collection of related options, for one program or for several programs
(optionally even for all programs).

@cindex Registry (MS-Windows)
  MS-Windows systems don't support @file{~/.Xdefaults} files, but
Emacs compiled for Windows looks for X resources in the Windows
Registry, under the key @samp{HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\GNU\Emacs}
and then under the key @samp{HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\GNU\Emacs}.
The menu and scrollbars are native widgets on MS-Windows, so they are
only customizable via the system-wide settings in the Display Control
Panel.  You can also set resources using the @samp{-xrm} command line
option (see below.)

  Applications such as Emacs look for resources with specific names
and their particular meanings.  Case distinctions are significant in
these names.  Each resource specification in @file{~/.Xdefaults}
states the name of the program and the name of the resource.  For
Emacs, the program name is @samp{Emacs}.  It looks like this:

@example
Emacs.borderWidth: 2
@end example

  The order in which the lines appear in the file does not matter.
Also, command-line options always override the X resources file.

  You can experiment with the effect of different resource settings
with the @code{editres} program.  Select @samp{Get Tree} from the
@samp{Commands} menu, then click on an Emacs frame.  This will display
a tree showing the structure of X toolkit widgets used in an Emacs
frame.  Select one of them, such as @samp{menubar}, then select
@samp{Show Resource Box} from the @samp{Commands} menu.  This displays
a list of all the meaningful X resources for that widget, and allows
you to edit them.  Changes take effect when you click on the
@samp{Apply} button.  (See the @code{editres} man page for more
details.)

@node Table of Resources
@appendixsec Table of X Resources for Emacs

  This table lists the resource names that designate options for
Emacs, not counting those for the appearance of the menu bar, each
with the class that it belongs to:

@table @asis
@item @code{background} (class @code{Background})
Background color name.

@item @code{borderColor} (class @code{BorderColor})
Color name for the external border.

@item @code{cursorColor} (class @code{Foreground})
Color name for text cursor (point).

@item @code{font} (class @code{Font})
Font name (or fontset name, @pxref{Fontsets}) for @code{default} font.

@item @code{foreground} (class @code{Foreground})
Color name for text.

@item @code{geometry} (class @code{Geometry})
Window size and position.  Be careful not to specify this resource as
@samp{emacs*geometry}, because that may affect individual menus as well
as the Emacs frame itself.

If this resource specifies a position, that position applies only to the
initial Emacs frame (or, in the case of a resource for a specific frame
name, only that frame).  However, the size, if specified here, applies to
all frames.

@item @code{iconName} (class @code{Title})
Name to display in the icon.

@item @code{internalBorder} (class @code{BorderWidth})
Width in pixels of the internal border.

@item @code{lineSpacing} (class @code{LineSpacing})
@cindex line spacing
@cindex leading
Additional space (@dfn{leading}) between lines, in pixels.

@item @code{menuBar} (class @code{MenuBar})
@cindex menu bar
Give frames menu bars if @samp{on}; don't have menu bars if
@samp{off}.  @xref{Lucid Resources}, for how to control the appearance
of the menu bar if you have one.

@item @code{pointerColor} (class @code{Foreground})
Color of the mouse cursor.

@item @code{screenGamma} (class @code{ScreenGamma})
@cindex gamma correction
Gamma correction for colors, equivalent to the frame parameter
@code{screen-gamma}.

@item @code{title} (class @code{Title})
Name to display in the title bar of the initial Emacs frame.

@item @code{toolBar} (class @code{ToolBar})
@cindex tool bar
Number of lines to reserve for the tool bar.  A zero value suppresses
the tool bar.  If the value is non-zero and
@code{auto-resize-tool-bars} is non-@code{nil}, the tool bar's size
will be changed automatically so that all tool bar items are visible.

@item @code{useXIM} (class @code{UseXIM})
@cindex XIM
@cindex X input methods
@cindex input methods, X
Turn off use of X input methods (XIM) if @samp{false} or @samp{off}.
This is only relevant if your Emacs is actually built with XIM
support.  It is potentially useful to turn off XIM for efficiency,
especially slow X client/server links.

@item @code{verticalScrollBars} (class @code{ScrollBars})
Give frames scroll bars if @samp{on}; don't have scroll bars if
@samp{off}.
@end table

@node Face Resources
@appendixsec X Resources for Faces

  You can use resources to customize the appearance of particular
faces (@pxref{Faces}):

@table @code
@item @var{face}.attributeForeground
Foreground color for face @var{face}.
@item @var{face}.attributeBackground
Background color for face @var{face}.
@item @var{face}.attributeUnderline
Underline flag for face @var{face}.  Use @samp{on} or @samp{true} for
yes.
@item @var{face}.attributeStrikeThrough
@itemx @var{face}.attributeOverline
@itemx @var{face}.attributeBox
@itemx @var{face}.attributeInverse
Likewise, for other boolean font attributes.
@item @var{face}.attributeStipple
The name of a pixmap data file to use for the stipple pattern, or
@code{false} to not use stipple for the face @var{face}.
@item @var{face}.attributeBackgroundPixmap
The background pixmap for the face @var{face}.  Should be a name of a
pixmap file or @code{false}.
@item @var{face}.attributeFont
Font name (full XFD name or valid X abbreviation) for face @var{face}.
Instead of this, you can specify the font through separate attributes.
@end table

  Instead of using @code{attributeFont} to specify a font name, you can
select a font through these separate attributes:

@table @code
@item @var{face}.attributeFamily
Font family for face @var{face}.
@item @var{face}.attributeHeight
Height of the font to use for face @var{face}: either an integer
specifying the height in units of 1/10@dmn{pt}, or a floating point
number that specifies a scale factor to scale the underlying face's
default font, or a function to be called with the default height which
will return a new height.
@item @var{face}.attributeWidth
@itemx @var{face}.attributeWeight
@itemx @var{face}.attributeSlant
Each of these resources corresponds to a like-named font attribute,
and you write the resource value the same as the symbol you would use
for the font attribute value.
@item @var{face}.attributeBold
Bold flag for face @var{face}---instead of @code{attributeWeight}.  Use @samp{on} or @samp{true} for
yes.
@item @var{face}.attributeItalic
Italic flag for face @var{face}---instead of @code{attributeSlant}.
@end table

@node Lucid Resources
@appendixsec Lucid Menu X Resources
@cindex Menu X Resources (Lucid widgets)
@cindex Lucid Widget X Resources

  If the Emacs installed at your site was built to use the X toolkit
with the Lucid menu widgets, then the menu bar is a separate widget
and has its own resources.  The resource specifications start with
@samp{Emacs.pane.menubar}---for instance, to specify the font
@samp{8x16} for the menu-bar items, write this:

@example
Emacs.pane.menubar.font:  8x16
@end example

@noindent
Resources for @emph{non-menubar} toolkit pop-up menus have
@samp{menu*} instead of @samp{pane.menubar}.  For example, to specify
the font @samp{8x16} for the pop-up menu items, write this:

@example
Emacs.menu*.font:	8x16
@end example

@noindent
For dialog boxes, use @samp{dialog*}:

@example
Emacs.dialog*.font:	8x16
@end example

@noindent
The Lucid menus can display multilingual text in your locale.  For
more information about fontsets see the man page for
@code{XCreateFontSet}.  To enable multilingual menu text you specify a
@code{fontSet} resource instead of the font resource.  If both
@code{font} and @code{fontSet} resources are specified, the
@code{fontSet} resource is used.

  Thus, to specify @samp{-*-helvetica-medium-r-*--*-120-*-*-*-*-*-*,*}
for both the popup and menu bar menus, write this:

@example
Emacs*menu*fontSet:  -*-helvetica-medium-r-*--*-120-*-*-*-*-*-*,*
@end example

@noindent
The @samp{*menu*} as a wildcard matches @samp{pane.menubar} and
@samp{menu@dots{}}.

  Experience shows that on some systems you may need to add
@samp{shell.}@: before the @samp{pane.menubar} or @samp{menu*}.  On
some other systems, you must not add @samp{shell.}.  The generic wildcard
approach should work on both kinds of systems.

  Here is a list of the specific resources for menu bars and pop-up menus:

@table @code
@item font
Font for menu item text.
@item fontSet
Fontset for menu item text.
@item foreground
Color of the foreground.
@item background
Color of the background.
@item buttonForeground
In the menu bar, the color of the foreground for a selected item.
@item margin
The margin of the menu bar, in characters.  Default is 1.
@end table

@node GTK resources
@appendixsec GTK resources

  The most common way to customize the GTK widgets Emacs uses (menus, dialogs
tool bars and scroll bars) is by choosing an appropriate theme, for example
with the GNOME theme selector.  You can also do Emacs specific customization
by inserting GTK style directives in the file @file{~/.emacs.d/gtkrc}.  Some GTK
themes ignore customizations in @file{~/.emacs.d/gtkrc} so not everything
works with all themes.  To customize Emacs font, background, faces, etc., use
the normal X resources (@pxref{Resources}).  We will present some examples of
customizations here, but for a more detailed description, see the online manual.

  The first example is just one line.  It changes the font on all GTK widgets
to courier with size 12:

@smallexample
gtk-font-name = "courier 12"
@end smallexample

  The thing to note is that the font name is not an X font name, like
-*-helvetica-medium-r-*--*-120-*-*-*-*-*-*, but a Pango font name.  A Pango
font name is basically of the format "family style size", where the style
is optional as in the case above.  A name with a style could be for example:

@smallexample
gtk-font-name = "helvetica bold 10"
@end smallexample

  To customize widgets you first define a style and then apply the style to
the widgets.  Here is an example that sets the font for menus, but not
for other widgets:

@smallexample
# @r{Define the style @samp{menufont}.}
style "menufont"
@{
  font_name = "helvetica bold 14"  # This is a Pango font name
@}

# @r{Specify that widget type @samp{*emacs-menuitem*} uses @samp{menufont}.}
widget "*emacs-menuitem*" style "menufont"
@end smallexample

The widget name in this example contains wildcards, so the style will be
applied to all widgets that match "*emacs-menuitem*".  The widgets are
named by the way they are contained, from the outer widget to the inner widget.
So to apply the style "my_style" (not shown) with the full, absolute name, for
the menubar and the scroll bar in Emacs we use:

@smallexample
widget "Emacs.pane.menubar" style "my_style"
widget "Emacs.pane.emacs.verticalScrollBar" style "my_style"
@end smallexample
 
But to aoid having to type it all, wildcards are often used.  @samp{*}
matches zero or more characters and @samp{?} matches one character.  So "*"
matches all widgets.

  Each widget has a class (for example GtkMenuItem) and a name (emacs-menuitem).
You can assign styles by name or by class.  In this example we have used the
class:

@smallexample
style "menufont"
@{
  font_name = "helvetica bold 14"
@}

widget_class "*GtkMenuBar" style "menufont"
@end smallexample

@noindent
The names and classes for the GTK widgets Emacs uses are:

@multitable {@code{verticalScrollbar plus}} {@code{GtkFileSelection} and some}
@item @code{emacs-filedialog}
@tab @code{GtkFileSelection}
@item @code{emacs-dialog}
@tab @code{GtkDialog}
@item @code{Emacs}
@tab @code{GtkWindow}
@item @code{pane}
@tab @code{GtkVHbox}
@item @code{emacs}
@tab @code{GtkFixed}
@item @code{verticalScrollBar}
@tab @code{GtkVScrollbar}
@item @code{emacs-toolbar}
@tab @code{GtkToolbar}
@item @code{menubar}
@tab @code{GtkMenuBar}
@item @code{emacs-menuitem}
@tab anything in menus
@end multitable

  GTK absolute names are quite strange when it comes to menus
and dialogs.  The names do not start with @samp{Emacs}, as they are
free-standing windows and not contained (in the GTK sense) by the
Emacs GtkWindow.  To customize the dialogs and menus, use wildcards like this:

@smallexample
widget "*emacs-dialog*" style "my_dialog_style"
widget "*emacs-filedialog* style "my_file_style"
widget "*emacs-menuitem* style "my_menu_style"
@end smallexample

  If you specify a customization in @file{~/.emacs.d/gtkrc}, then it
automatically applies only to Emacs, since other programs don't read
that file.  For example, the drop down menu in the file dialog can not
be customized by any absolute widget name, only by an absolute class
name.  This is because the widgets in the drop down menu do not
have names and the menu is not contained in the Emacs GtkWindow.  To
have all menus in Emacs look the same, use this in
@file{~/.emacs.d/gtkrc}:

@smallexample
widget_class "*Menu*" style "my_menu_style"
@end smallexample

  Here is a more elaborate example, showing how to change the parts of
the scroll bar:

@smallexample
style "scroll"
@{
  fg[NORMAL] = "red"@ @ @ @ @ # @r{The arrow color.}
  bg[NORMAL] = "yellow"@ @ # @r{The thumb and background around the arrow.}
  bg[ACTIVE] = "blue"@ @ @ @ # @r{The trough color.}
  bg[PRELIGHT] = "white"@ # @r{The thumb color when the mouse is over it.}
@}

widget "*verticalScrollBar*" style "scroll"
@end smallexample

@ignore
   arch-tag: e1856f29-2482-42c0-a990-233cdccd1f21
@end ignore