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75 lines
3.2 KiB
Plaintext
75 lines
3.2 KiB
Plaintext
@c This is part of the Emacs manual.
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@c Copyright (C) 1985, 86, 87, 93, 94, 95, 1997 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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@c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions.
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@node M-x, Help, Minibuffer, Top
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@chapter Running Commands by Name
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The Emacs commands that are used often or that must be quick to type are
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bound to keys---short sequences of characters---for convenient use. Other
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Emacs commands that do not need to be brief are not bound to keys; to run
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them, you must refer to them by name. (Command bound to keys can also
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be invoked by their name.) @xref{Key Binding}, for the description of
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how to bind commands to keys.
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A command name is, by convention, made up of one or more words,
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separated by hyphens; for example, @code{auto-fill-mode} or
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@code{manual-entry}. The use of English words makes the command name
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easier to remember than a key made up of obscure characters, even though
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it is more characters to type.
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@kindex M-x
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The way to run a command by name is to start with @kbd{M-x}, type the
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command name, and finish it with @key{RET}. @kbd{M-x} uses the
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minibuffer to read the command name. @key{RET} exits the minibuffer and
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runs the command. The string @samp{M-x} appears at the beginning of the
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minibuffer as a @dfn{prompt} to remind you to enter the name of a
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command to be run. @xref{Minibuffer}, for full information on the
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features of the minibuffer.
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You can use completion to enter the command name. For example, the
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command @code{forward-char} can be invoked by name by typing
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@example
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M-x forward-char @key{RET}
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@end example
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@noindent
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or
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@example
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M-x forw @key{TAB} c @key{RET}
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@end example
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@noindent
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Note that @code{forward-char} is the same command that you invoke with
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the key @kbd{C-f}. You can run any Emacs command by name using
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@kbd{M-x}, whether or not any keys are bound to it.
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If you type @kbd{C-g} while the command name is being read, you cancel
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the @kbd{M-x} command and get out of the minibuffer, ending up at top level.
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To pass a numeric argument to the command you are invoking with
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@kbd{M-x}, specify the numeric argument before the @kbd{M-x}. @kbd{M-x}
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passes the argument along to the command it runs. The argument value
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appears in the prompt while the command name is being read.
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@vindex suggest-key-bindings
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If the command you type has a key binding of its own, Emacs mentions
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this in the echo area, two seconds after the command finishes (if you
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don't type anything else first). For example, if you type @kbd{M-x
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forward-word}, the message says that you can run the same command more
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easily by typing @kbd{M-f}. You can turn off these messages by setting
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@code{suggest-key-bindings} to @code{nil}.
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Normally, when describing in this manual a command that is run by
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name, we omit the @key{RET} that is needed to terminate the name. Thus
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we might speak of @kbd{M-x auto-fill-mode} rather than @kbd{M-x
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auto-fill-mode @key{RET}}. We mention the @key{RET} only when there is
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a need to emphasize its presence, such as when we show the command
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together with following arguments.
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@findex execute-extended-command
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@kbd{M-x} works by running the command
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@code{execute-extended-command}, which is responsible for reading the
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name of another command and invoking it.
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