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1 | \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*- |
2 | @c %**start of header | |
db78a8cb | 3 | @setfilename ../../info/woman |
4009494e | 4 | @settitle WoMan: Browse Unix Manual Pages ``W.O. (without) Man'' |
135305ed | 5 | @c FIXME |
4009494e | 6 | @c Manual last updated: |
62e034c2 | 7 | @set UPDATED Time-stamp: <Thu 24-Jun-2010 00:06:54 gm on grasmoor> |
4009494e GM |
8 | @c Software version: |
9 | @set VERSION 0.54 (beta) | |
10 | @afourpaper | |
11 | @c With different size paper the printed page breaks will need attention! | |
12 | @c Look for @page and @need commands. | |
13 | @setchapternewpage off | |
14 | @paragraphindent 0 | |
15 | @c %**end of header | |
16 | ||
17 | @copying | |
18 | This file documents WoMan: A program to browse Unix manual pages `W.O. | |
19 | (without) man'. | |
20 | ||
73b0cd50 | 21 | Copyright @copyright{} 2001-2011 Free Software Foundation, Inc. |
4009494e GM |
22 | |
23 | @quotation | |
24 | Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document | |
6a2c4aec | 25 | under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or |
4009494e | 26 | any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no |
debf4439 GM |
27 | Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual,'' |
28 | and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license | |
29 | is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License.'' | |
4009494e | 30 | |
6f093307 GM |
31 | (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and |
32 | modify this GNU manual. Buying copies from the FSF supports it in | |
33 | developing GNU and promoting software freedom.'' | |
4009494e GM |
34 | @end quotation |
35 | @end copying | |
36 | ||
0c973505 | 37 | @dircategory Emacs misc features |
4009494e | 38 | @direntry |
62e034c2 | 39 | * WoMan: (woman). Browse UN*X Manual Pages "W.O. (without) Man". |
4009494e GM |
40 | @end direntry |
41 | ||
42 | @finalout | |
43 | ||
44 | @titlepage | |
45 | @title WoMan | |
46 | @subtitle Browse Unix Manual Pages ``W.O. (without) Man'' | |
47 | @subtitle Software Version @value{VERSION} | |
48 | @author Francis J. Wright | |
49 | @sp 2 | |
50 | @author School of Mathematical Sciences | |
51 | @author Queen Mary and Westfield College | |
52 | @author (University of London) | |
53 | @author Mile End Road, London E1 4NS, UK | |
54 | @author @email{F.J.Wright@@qmul.ac.uk} | |
55 | @author @uref{http://centaur.maths.qmw.ac.uk/} | |
56 | @c He no longer maintains this manual. | |
57 | @sp 2 | |
58 | @author Manual Last Updated @value{UPDATED} | |
59 | ||
60 | @comment The following two commands start the copyright page. | |
61 | @page | |
62 | @vskip 0pt plus 1filll | |
63 | @insertcopying | |
64 | @end titlepage | |
65 | ||
66 | @contents | |
67 | ||
68 | @c =================================================================== | |
69 | ||
70 | @ifnottex | |
71 | @node Top, Introduction, (dir), (dir) | |
72 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
73 | @top WoMan: Browse Unix Manual Pages ``W.O. (without) Man'' | |
74 | ||
75 | @display | |
76 | Software Version @value{VERSION} | |
77 | Manual Last Updated @value{UPDATED} | |
78 | ||
79 | @email{F.J.Wright@@qmw.ac.uk, Francis J. Wright} | |
80 | @uref{http://centaur.maths.qmw.ac.uk/, School of Mathematical Sciences} | |
81 | Queen Mary and Westfield College (University of London) | |
82 | Mile End Road, London E1 4NS, UK | |
83 | @end display | |
5dc584b5 KB |
84 | |
85 | @insertcopying | |
4009494e GM |
86 | @end ifnottex |
87 | ||
88 | @menu | |
89 | * Introduction:: Introduction | |
90 | * Background:: Background | |
91 | * Finding:: Finding and Formatting Man Pages | |
92 | * Browsing:: Browsing Man Pages | |
93 | * Customization:: Customization | |
94 | * Log:: The *WoMan-Log* Buffer | |
95 | * Technical:: Technical Details | |
96 | * Bugs:: Reporting Bugs | |
97 | * Acknowledgements:: Acknowledgements | |
98 | * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation. | |
99 | * Command Index:: Command Index | |
100 | * Variable Index:: Variable Index | |
101 | * Keystroke Index:: Keystroke Index | |
102 | * Concept Index:: Concept Index | |
103 | @end menu | |
104 | ||
105 | @c =================================================================== | |
106 | ||
107 | @node Introduction, Background, Top, Top | |
108 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
109 | @chapter Introduction | |
110 | @cindex introduction | |
111 | ||
112 | This version of WoMan should run with GNU Emacs 20.3 or later on any | |
113 | platform. It has not been tested, and may not run, with any other | |
114 | version of Emacs. It was developed primarily on various versions of | |
115 | Microsoft Windows, but has also been tested on MS-DOS, and various | |
116 | versions of UNIX and GNU/Linux. | |
117 | ||
118 | WoMan is distributed with GNU Emacs. In addition, the current source | |
119 | code and documentation files are available from | |
120 | @uref{http://centaur.maths.qmw.ac.uk/Emacs/WoMan/, the WoMan web | |
121 | server}. | |
122 | ||
123 | WoMan implements a subset of the formatting performed by the Emacs | |
124 | @code{man} (or @code{manual-entry}) command to format a Unix-style | |
125 | @dfn{manual page} (usually abbreviated to @dfn{man page}) for display, | |
126 | but without calling any external programs. It is intended to emulate | |
127 | the whole of the @code{roff -man} macro package, plus those @code{roff} | |
128 | requests (@pxref{Background, , Background}) that are most commonly used | |
129 | in man pages. However, the emulation is modified to include the | |
130 | reformatting done by the Emacs @code{man} command. No hyphenation is | |
131 | performed. | |
132 | ||
133 | @table @b | |
134 | @item Advantages | |
135 | Much more direct, does not require any external programs. Supports | |
136 | completion on man page names. | |
137 | @item Disadvantages | |
138 | Not a complete emulation. Currently no support for @code{eqn} or | |
139 | @code{tbl}. Slightly slower for large man pages (but usually faster for | |
140 | small- and medium-size pages). | |
141 | @end table | |
142 | ||
143 | This browser works quite well on simple well-written man files. It | |
144 | works less well on idiosyncratic files that ``break the rules'' or use | |
145 | the more obscure @code{roff} requests directly. Current test results | |
146 | are available in the file | |
147 | @uref{http://centaur.maths.qmw.ac.uk/Emacs/WoMan/files/woman.status, | |
148 | @file{woman.status}}. | |
149 | ||
150 | WoMan supports the use of compressed man files via | |
151 | @code{auto-compression-mode} by turning it on if necessary. But you may | |
152 | need to adjust the user option @code{woman-file-compression-regexp}. | |
153 | @xref{Interface Options, , Interface Options}. | |
154 | ||
155 | Brief help on the WoMan interactive commands and user options, all of | |
156 | which begin with the prefix @code{woman-} (or occasionally | |
157 | @code{WoMan-}), is available most easily by loading WoMan and then | |
158 | either running the command @code{woman-mini-help} or selecting the WoMan | |
159 | menu option @samp{Mini Help}. | |
160 | ||
161 | WoMan is (of course) still under development! Please | |
162 | @email{F.J.Wright@@qmw.ac.uk, let me know} what doesn't work---I am | |
163 | adding and improving functionality as testing shows that it is | |
164 | necessary. Guidance on reporting bugs is given below. @xref{Bugs, , | |
165 | Reporting Bugs}. | |
166 | ||
167 | @c =================================================================== | |
168 | ||
169 | @node Background, Finding, Introduction, Top | |
170 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
171 | @chapter Background | |
172 | @cindex background | |
173 | ||
174 | WoMan is a browser for traditional Unix-style manual page documentation. | |
175 | Each such document is conventionally referred to as a @dfn{manual page}, | |
176 | or @dfn{man page} for short, even though some are very much longer than | |
177 | one page. A man page is a document written using the Unix ``man'' | |
178 | macros, which are themselves written in the nroff/troff text processing | |
179 | markup language. @code{nroff} and @code{troff} are text processors | |
180 | originally written for the UNIX operating system by Joseph F. Ossanna at | |
181 | Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey, USA@. They are closely | |
182 | related, and except in the few cases where the distinction between them | |
183 | is important I will refer to them both ambiguously as @code{roff}. | |
184 | ||
185 | @code{roff} markup consists of @dfn{requests} and @dfn{escape | |
186 | sequences}. A request occupies a complete line and begins with either a | |
187 | period or a single forward quote. An escape sequences is embedded | |
188 | within the input text and begins (by default) with a backslash. The | |
189 | original man macro package defines 20 new @code{roff} requests | |
190 | implemented as macros, which were considered to be sufficient for | |
191 | writing man pages. But whilst in principle man pages use only the man | |
192 | macros, in practice a significant number use many other @code{roff} | |
193 | requests. | |
194 | ||
195 | The distinction between @code{troff} and @code{nroff} is that | |
196 | @code{troff} was designed to drive a phototypesetter whereas | |
197 | @code{nroff} was designed to produce essentially @acronym{ASCII} output for a | |
198 | character-based device similar to a teletypewriter (usually abbreviated | |
199 | to ``teletype'' or ``tty''). Hence, @code{troff} supports much finer | |
200 | control over output positioning than does @code{nroff} and can be seen | |
201 | as a forerunner of @TeX{}. Traditionally, man pages are either | |
202 | formatted by @code{troff} for typesetting or by @code{nroff} for | |
203 | printing on a character printer or displaying on a screen. Of course, | |
204 | over the last 25 years or so, the distinction between typeset output on | |
205 | paper and characters on a screen has become blurred by the fact that | |
206 | most screens now support bit-mapped displays, so that any information | |
207 | that can be printed can also be rendered on screen, the only difference | |
208 | being the resolution. | |
209 | ||
210 | Nevertheless, Unix-style manual page documentation is still normally | |
211 | browsed on screen by running a program called @code{man}. This program | |
212 | looks in a predefined set of directories for the man page matching a | |
213 | specified topic, then either formats the source file by running | |
214 | @code{nroff} or recovers a pre-formatted file, and displays it via a | |
215 | pager such as @code{more}. @code{nroff} normally formats for a printer, | |
216 | so it paginates the output, numbers the pages, etc., most of which is | |
217 | irrelevant when the document is browsed as a continuous scrollable | |
218 | document on screen. The only concession to on-screen browsing normally | |
219 | implemented by the @code{man} program is to squeeze consecutive blank | |
220 | lines into a single blank line. | |
221 | ||
222 | For some time, Emacs has offered an improved interface for browsing man | |
223 | pages in the form of the Emacs @code{man} (or @code{manual-entry}) | |
224 | command, see @ref{Documentation, man, Documentation Commands, emacs, GNU | |
225 | Emacs Manual}. | |
226 | This command runs @code{man} as described above, perhaps in | |
227 | the background, and then post-processes the output to remove much of the | |
228 | @code{nroff} pagination such as page headers and footers, and places the | |
229 | result into an Emacs buffer. It puts this buffer into a special major | |
230 | mode, which is tailored for man page browsing, and provides a number of | |
231 | useful navigation commands, support for following references, etc. It | |
232 | provides some support for special display faces (fonts), but no special | |
233 | menu or mouse support. The Emacs man package appears to have been | |
234 | developed over about 10 years, from the late 1980s to the late 1990s. | |
235 | ||
236 | There is considerable inefficiency in having @code{nroff} paginate a | |
237 | document and then removing most of the pagination! | |
238 | ||
239 | WoMan is an Emacs Lisp library that provides an emulation of the | |
240 | functionality of the Emacs @code{man} command, the main difference being | |
241 | that WoMan does not use any external programs. The only situation in | |
242 | which WoMan might use an external program is when the source file is | |
243 | compressed, when WoMan will use the standard Emacs automatic | |
244 | decompression facility, which does call an external program. | |
245 | ||
246 | I began developing WoMan in the Spring of 1997 and the first version was | |
247 | released in May 1997. The original motivation for WoMan was the fact | |
248 | that many GNU and Unix programs are ported to other platforms and come | |
249 | with Unix-style manual page documentation. This may be difficult to | |
250 | read because ports of the Unix-style @code{man} program can be a little | |
251 | awkward to set up. I decided that it should not be too hard to emulate | |
252 | the 20 @code{man} macros directly, without treating them as macros and | |
253 | largely ignoring the underlying @code{roff} requests, given the text | |
254 | processing capabilities of Emacs. This proved to be essentially true, | |
255 | and it did not take a great deal of work to be able to format simple man | |
256 | pages acceptably. | |
257 | ||
258 | One problem arose with the significant number of man pages that use | |
259 | @code{roff} requests in addition to the @code{man} macros, and since | |
260 | releasing the first version of WoMan I have been continually extending | |
261 | it to support more @code{roff} requests. WoMan can now format a | |
262 | significant proportion of the man pages that I have tested, either well | |
263 | or at least readably. However, I have added capabilities partly by | |
264 | making additional passes through the document, a design that is | |
265 | fundamentally flawed. This can only be solved by a major re-design of | |
266 | WoMan to handle the major formatting within a single recursive pass, | |
267 | rather than the present multiple passes without any significant | |
268 | recursion. There are some @code{roff} requests that cannot be handled | |
269 | satisfactorily within the present design. Some of these are currently | |
270 | handled by kludges that ``usually more or less work.'' | |
271 | ||
272 | The principle advantage of WoMan is that it does not require @code{man}, | |
273 | and indeed the name WoMan is a contraction of ``without man.'' But it | |
274 | has other advantages. It does not paginate the document, so it does not | |
275 | need to un-paginate it again, thereby saving time. It could take full | |
276 | advantage of the display capabilities available to it, and I hope to | |
277 | develop WoMan to take advantage of developments in Emacs itself. At | |
278 | present, WoMan uses several display faces to support bold and italic | |
279 | text, to indicate other fonts, etc. The default faces are also | |
280 | colored, but the choice of faces is customizable. WoMan provides menu | |
281 | support for navigation and mouse support for following references, in | |
282 | addition to the navigation facilities provided by @code{man} mode. | |
283 | WoMan has (this) texinfo documentation! | |
284 | ||
285 | WoMan @emph{does not} replace @code{man}, although it does use a number | |
286 | of the facilities implemented in the Emacs @code{man} library. WoMan | |
287 | and man can happily co-exist, which is very useful for comparison and | |
288 | debugging purposes. | |
289 | ||
290 | @code{nroff} simulates non-@acronym{ASCII} characters by using one or more | |
291 | @acronym{ASCII} characters. WoMan should be able to do much better than | |
292 | this. I have recently begun to add support for WoMan to use more of the | |
293 | characters in its default font and to use a symbol font, and it is an | |
294 | aspect that I intend to develop further in the near future. It should | |
295 | be possible to move WoMan from an emulation of @code{nroff} to an | |
296 | emulation of @code{troff} as GNU Emacs moves to providing bit-mapped | |
297 | display facilities. | |
298 | ||
299 | @node Finding, Browsing, Background, Top | |
300 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
301 | @chapter Finding and Formatting Man Pages | |
302 | @cindex using, finding man pages | |
303 | @cindex using, formatting man pages | |
304 | @cindex finding man pages | |
305 | @cindex formatting man pages | |
306 | @cindex man pages, finding | |
307 | @cindex man pages, formatting | |
308 | ||
309 | WoMan provides three user interfaces for finding and formatting man pages: | |
310 | ||
311 | @itemize @bullet | |
312 | @item | |
313 | a topic interface similar to that provided by the standard Emacs | |
314 | @code{man} command; | |
315 | ||
316 | @item | |
317 | a family of filename interfaces analogous to the standard Emacs | |
318 | @code{view-file} command; | |
319 | ||
320 | @item | |
321 | an automatic interface that detects the file type from its contents. | |
322 | (This is currently neither well tested, well supported nor recommended!) | |
323 | @end itemize | |
324 | ||
325 | The topic and filename interfaces support completion in the usual way. | |
326 | ||
327 | The topic interface is generally the most convenient for regular use, | |
328 | although it may require some special setup, especially if your machine | |
329 | does not already have a conventional @code{man} installation (which | |
330 | WoMan tries to detect). | |
331 | ||
332 | The simplest filename interface command @code{woman-find-file} can | |
333 | always be used with no setup at all (provided WoMan is installed and | |
334 | loaded or set up to autoload). | |
335 | ||
336 | The automatic interface always requires special setup. | |
337 | ||
338 | ||
339 | @heading Case-Dependence of Filenames | |
340 | ||
341 | @cindex case-sensitivity | |
342 | @vindex w32-downcase-file-names | |
343 | By default, WoMan ignores case in file pathnames only when it seems | |
344 | appropriate. Microsoft Windows users who want complete case | |
345 | independence should set the special NTEmacs variable | |
346 | @code{w32-downcase-file-names} to @code{t} and use all lower case when | |
347 | setting WoMan file paths. | |
348 | ||
349 | ||
350 | @menu | |
351 | * Topic:: Topic Interface | |
352 | * Filename:: Filename Interface | |
353 | * Automatic:: Automatic Interface | |
354 | @end menu | |
355 | ||
356 | @node Topic, Filename, Finding, Finding | |
357 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
358 | @section Topic Interface | |
359 | @cindex topic interface | |
360 | ||
361 | The topic interface is accessed principally via the command | |
362 | @code{woman}. The same command can be accessed via the menu item | |
363 | @samp{Help->Manuals->Read Man Page (WoMan)...} once WoMan has been | |
364 | loaded. The command reads a manual topic in the minibuffer, which can | |
365 | be the @dfn{basename} of a man file anywhere in the man file | |
366 | structure. The ``basename'' in this context means the filename | |
367 | without any directory component and without any extension or suffix | |
368 | components that relate to the file type. So, for example, if there is | |
369 | a compressed source file in Chapter 5 of the UNIX Programmer's Manual | |
370 | with the full pathname @file{/usr/local/man/man5/man.conf.5.gz} then | |
371 | the topic is @code{man.conf}. Provided WoMan is configured correctly, | |
372 | this topic will appear among the completions offered by @code{woman}. | |
373 | If more than one file has the same topic name then WoMan will prompt | |
374 | for which file to format. Completion of topics is case insensitive. | |
375 | ||
376 | Clearly, @code{woman} has to know where to look for man files and there | |
377 | are two customizable user options that store this information: | |
378 | @code{woman-manpath} and @code{woman-path}. @xref{Interface Options, , | |
379 | Interface Options}. If @code{woman-manpath} is not set explicitly then | |
380 | WoMan tries to pick up the information that would be used by the | |
381 | @code{man} command, as follows. If the environment variable | |
382 | @code{MANPATH} is set, which seems to be the standard mechanism under | |
383 | UNIX, then WoMan parses that. Otherwise, if WoMan can find a | |
384 | configuration file named (by default) @file{man.conf} (or something very | |
385 | similar), which seems to be the standard mechanism under GNU/Linux, then | |
386 | it parses that. To be precise, ``something very similar'' means | |
387 | starting with @samp{man} and ending with @samp{.conf} and possibly more | |
388 | lowercase letters, e.g.@: @file{manual.configuration}. | |
389 | The search path and/or precise full path name for this file are set by | |
390 | the value of the customizable user option @code{woman-man.conf-path}. | |
391 | If all else fails, WoMan uses a plausible default man search path. | |
392 | ||
393 | If the above default configuration does not work correctly for any | |
394 | reason then simply customize the value of @code{woman-manpath}. To | |
395 | access man files that are not in a conventional man file hierarchy, | |
396 | customize the value of @code{woman-path} to include the directories | |
397 | containing the files. In this way, @code{woman} can access manual files | |
398 | @emph{anywhere} in the entire file system. | |
399 | ||
400 | There are two differences between @code{woman-manpath} and | |
401 | @code{woman-path}. Firstly, the elements of @code{woman-manpath} must | |
402 | be directories that contain @emph{directories of} man files, whereas the | |
403 | elements of @code{woman-path} must be directories that contain man files | |
404 | @emph{directly}. Secondly, the last directory component of each element | |
405 | of @code{woman-path} is treated as a regular (Emacs) match expression | |
406 | rather than a fixed name, which allows collections of related | |
407 | directories to be specified succinctly. Also, elements of | |
408 | @code{woman-manpath} can be conses, indicating a mapping from | |
409 | @samp{PATH} environment variable components to man directory | |
410 | hierarchies. | |
411 | ||
412 | For topic completion to work, WoMan must build a list of all the manual | |
413 | files that it can access, which can be very slow, especially if a | |
414 | network is involved. For this reason, it caches various amounts of | |
415 | information, after which retrieving it from the cache is very fast. If | |
416 | the cache ever gets out of synchronism with reality, running the | |
417 | @code{woman} command with a prefix argument (e.g.@: @kbd{C-u M-x woman}) | |
418 | will force it to rebuild its cache. This is necessary only if the names | |
419 | or locations of any man files change; it is not necessary if only their | |
420 | contents change. It would always be necessary if such a change occurred | |
421 | whilst Emacs were running and after WoMan has been loaded. It may be | |
422 | necessary if such a change occurs between Emacs sessions and persistent | |
423 | caching is used, although WoMan can detect some changes that invalidate | |
424 | its cache and rebuild it automatically. | |
425 | ||
426 | Customize the variable @code{woman-cache-filename} to save the cache | |
427 | between Emacs sessions. This is recommended only if the @code{woman} | |
428 | command is too slow the first time it is run in an Emacs session, while | |
429 | it builds its cache in main memory, which @emph{may} be @emph{very} | |
430 | slow. @xref{Cache, , The WoMan Topic Cache}, for further details. | |
431 | ||
432 | ||
433 | @menu | |
434 | * Cache:: The WoMan Topic Cache | |
435 | * Word at point:: Using the ``Word at Point'' as a Topic Suggestion | |
436 | @end menu | |
437 | ||
438 | @node Cache, Word at point, Topic, Topic | |
439 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
440 | @subsection The WoMan Topic Cache | |
441 | @cindex topic cache | |
442 | @cindex cache, topic | |
443 | ||
444 | The amount of information that WoMan caches (in main memory and, | |
445 | optionally, saved to disc) is controlled by the user option | |
446 | @code{woman-cache-level}. There is a trade-off between the speed with | |
447 | which WoMan can find a file and the size of the cache, and the default | |
448 | setting gives a reasonable compromise. | |
449 | ||
450 | The @code{woman} command always performs a certain amount of caching in | |
451 | main memory, but it can also write its cache to the filestore as a | |
452 | persistent cache under control of the user option | |
453 | @code{woman-cache-filename}. If persistent caching is turned on then | |
454 | WoMan re-loads its internal cache from the cache file almost | |
455 | instantaneously, so that there is never any perceptible start-up delay | |
456 | @emph{except} when WoMan rebuilds its cache. Persistent caching is | |
457 | currently turned off by default. This is because users with persistent | |
458 | caching turned on may overlook the need to force WoMan to rebuild its | |
459 | cache the first time they run it after they have installed new man | |
460 | files; with persistent caching turned off, WoMan automatically rebuilds | |
461 | its cache every time it is run in a new Emacs session. | |
462 | ||
463 | A prefix argument always causes the @code{woman} command (only) to | |
464 | rebuild its topic cache, and to re-save it to | |
465 | @code{woman-cache-filename} if this variable has a non-@code{nil} value. This | |
466 | is necessary if the @emph{names} of any of the directories or files in | |
467 | the paths specified by @code{woman-manpath} or @code{woman-path} change. | |
468 | If WoMan user options that affect the cache are changed then WoMan will | |
469 | automatically update its cache file on disc (if one is in use) the next | |
470 | time it is run in a new Emacs session. | |
471 | ||
472 | ||
473 | @node Word at point, , Cache, Topic | |
474 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
475 | @subsection Using the ``Word at Point'' as a Topic Suggestion | |
476 | @cindex word at point | |
477 | @cindex point, word at | |
478 | ||
479 | By default, the @code{woman} command uses the word nearest to point in | |
480 | the current buffer as a suggestion for the topic to look up, if it | |
481 | exists as a valid topic. The topic can be confirmed or edited in the | |
482 | minibuffer. | |
483 | ||
484 | You can also bind the variable @code{woman-use-topic-at-point} locally | |
485 | to a non-@code{nil} value (using @code{let}), in which case | |
486 | @code{woman} will can use the suggested topic without confirmation if | |
487 | possible. This may be useful to provide special private key bindings, | |
488 | e.g.@: this key binding for @kbd{C-c w} runs WoMan on the topic at | |
489 | point without seeking confirmation: | |
490 | ||
491 | @lisp | |
492 | (global-set-key "\C-cw" | |
493 | (lambda () | |
494 | (interactive) | |
495 | (let ((woman-use-topic-at-point t)) | |
496 | (woman)))) | |
497 | @end lisp | |
498 | ||
499 | ||
500 | @node Filename, Automatic, Topic, Finding | |
501 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
502 | @section Filename Interface | |
503 | @cindex filename interface | |
504 | ||
505 | The commands in this family are completely independent of the topic | |
506 | interface, caching mechanism, etc. | |
507 | ||
508 | @findex woman-find-file | |
509 | The filename interface is accessed principally via the extended command | |
510 | @code{woman-find-file}, which is available without any configuration at | |
511 | all (provided WoMan is installed and loaded or set up to autoload). | |
512 | This command can be used to browse any accessible man file, regardless | |
513 | of its filename or location. If the file is compressed then automatic | |
514 | file decompression must already be turned on (e.g.@: see the | |
515 | @samp{Help->Options} submenu)---it is turned on automatically only by | |
516 | the @code{woman} topic interface. | |
517 | ||
518 | @findex woman-dired-find-file | |
519 | Once WoMan is loaded (or if specially set up), various additional | |
520 | commands in this family are available. In a dired buffer, the command | |
521 | @code{woman-dired-find-file} allows the file on the same line as point | |
522 | to be formatted and browsed by WoMan. It is bound to the key @kbd{W} in | |
523 | the dired mode map and added to the dired major mode menu. It may also | |
524 | be bound to @kbd{w}, unless this key is bound by another library, which | |
525 | it is by @code{dired-x}, for example. Because it is quite likely that | |
526 | other libraries will extend the capabilities of such a commonly used | |
527 | mode as dired, the precise key bindings added by WoMan to the dired mode | |
528 | map are controlled by the user option @code{woman-dired-keys}. | |
529 | ||
530 | @findex woman-tar-extract-file | |
531 | When a tar (Tape ARchive) file is visited in Emacs, it is opened in tar | |
532 | mode, which parses the tar file and shows a dired-like view of its | |
533 | contents. The WoMan command @code{woman-tar-extract-file} allows the | |
534 | file on the same line as point to be formatted and browsed by WoMan. It | |
535 | is bound to the key @kbd{w} in the tar mode map and added to the tar | |
536 | major mode menu. | |
537 | ||
538 | The command @code{woman-reformat-last-file}, which is bound to the key | |
539 | @kbd{R} in WoMan mode and available on the major mode menu, reformats | |
540 | the last file formatted by WoMan. This may occasionally be useful if | |
541 | formatting parameters, such as the fill column, are changed, or perhaps | |
542 | if the buffer is somehow corrupted. | |
543 | ||
544 | @findex woman-decode-buffer | |
545 | The command @code{woman-decode-buffer} can be used to decode and browse | |
546 | the current buffer if it is visiting a man file, although it is | |
547 | primarily used internally by WoMan. | |
548 | ||
549 | ||
550 | @node Automatic, , Filename, Finding | |
551 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
552 | @section Automatic Interface | |
553 | @cindex automatic interface | |
554 | ||
555 | Emacs provides an interface to detect automatically the format of a file | |
556 | and decode it when it is visited. It is used primarily by the | |
557 | facilities for editing rich (i.e.@: formatted) text, as a way to store | |
558 | formatting information transparently as @acronym{ASCII} markup. WoMan can in | |
559 | principle use this interface, but it must be configured explicitly. | |
560 | ||
561 | This use of WoMan does not seem to be particularly advantageous, so it | |
562 | is not really supported. It originated during early experiments on how | |
563 | best to implement WoMan, before I implemented the current topic | |
564 | interface, and I subsequently stopped using it. I might revive it as a | |
565 | mechanism for storing pre-formatted WoMan files, somewhat analogous to | |
566 | the standard Unix @code{catman} facility. In the meantime, it exists | |
567 | for anyone who wants to experiment with it. Once it is set up it is | |
568 | simply a question of visiting the file and there is no WoMan-specific | |
569 | user interface! | |
570 | ||
571 | To use it, put something like this in your @file{.emacs} file. [The | |
572 | call to @code{set-visited-file-name} is to avoid font-locking triggered | |
573 | by automatic major mode selection.] | |
574 | ||
575 | @lisp | |
576 | (autoload 'woman-decode-region "woman") | |
577 | ||
578 | (add-to-list 'format-alist | |
579 | '(man "Unix man-page source format" "\\.\\(TH\\|ig\\) " | |
580 | woman-decode-region nil nil | |
581 | (lambda (arg) | |
582 | set-visited-file-name | |
583 | (file-name-sans-extension buffer-file-name)))) | |
584 | @end lisp | |
585 | ||
586 | @c =================================================================== | |
587 | ||
588 | @node Browsing, Customization, Finding, Top | |
589 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
590 | @chapter Browsing Man Pages | |
591 | @cindex using, browsing man pages | |
592 | @cindex browsing man pages | |
593 | @cindex man pages, browsing | |
594 | ||
595 | Once a man page has been found and formatted, WoMan provides a browsing | |
596 | interface that is essentially the same as that provided by the standard | |
597 | Emacs @code{man} command (and much of the code is inherited from the | |
598 | @code{man} library, which WoMan currently requires). Many WoMan | |
599 | facilities can be accessed from the WoMan major mode menu as well as via | |
600 | key bindings, etc. | |
601 | ||
602 | WoMan does not produce any page breaks or page numbers, and in fact does | |
603 | not paginate the man page at all, since this is not appropriate for | |
604 | continuous online browsing. It produces a document header line that is | |
605 | constructed from the standard man page header and footer. Apart from | |
606 | that, the appearance of the formatted man page should be almost | |
607 | identical to what would be produced by @code{man}, with consecutive | |
608 | blank lines squeezed to a single blank line. | |
609 | ||
610 | @menu | |
611 | * Fonts:: Fonts and Faces | |
612 | * Navigation:: Navigation | |
613 | * References:: Following References | |
614 | * Changing:: Changing the Current Man Page | |
615 | * Convenience:: Convenience Key Bindings | |
616 | * Imenu:: Imenu Support; Contents Menu | |
617 | @end menu | |
618 | ||
619 | @node Fonts, Navigation, Browsing, Browsing | |
620 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
621 | @section Fonts and Faces | |
622 | @cindex fonts | |
623 | @cindex faces | |
624 | ||
625 | Fonts used by @code{roff} are handled by WoMan as faces, the details of | |
626 | which are customizable. @xref{Faces, , Faces}. WoMan supports both the | |
627 | italic and bold fonts normally used in man pages, together with a single | |
628 | face to represent all unknown fonts (which are occasionally used in | |
629 | ``non-standard'' man pages, usually to represent a ``typewriter'' font) | |
630 | and a face to indicate additional symbols introduced by WoMan. This | |
631 | currently means the characters ^ and _ used to indicate super- and | |
632 | sub-scripts, which are not displayed well by WoMan. | |
633 | ||
634 | ||
635 | @node Navigation, References, Fonts, Browsing | |
636 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
637 | @section Navigation | |
638 | @cindex navigation | |
639 | ||
640 | Man (and hence WoMan) mode can be thought of as a superset of view mode. | |
641 | The buffer cannot be edited, so keys that would normally self-insert are | |
642 | used for navigation. The WoMan key bindings are a minor modification of | |
643 | the @code{man} key bindings. | |
644 | ||
645 | @table @kbd | |
646 | @item @key{SPC} | |
647 | @kindex SPC | |
648 | @findex scroll-up | |
649 | Scroll the man page up the window (@code{scroll-up}). | |
650 | ||
651 | @item @key{DEL} | |
652 | @kindex DEL | |
653 | @findex scroll-down | |
654 | Scroll the man page down the window (@code{scroll-down}). | |
655 | ||
656 | @item n | |
657 | @kindex n | |
658 | @findex Man-next-section | |
659 | Move point to the Nth next section---default 1 (@code{Man-next-section}). | |
660 | ||
661 | @item p | |
662 | @kindex p | |
663 | @findex Man-previous-section | |
664 | Move point to Nth previous section---default 1 | |
665 | (@code{Man-previous-section}). | |
666 | ||
667 | @item g | |
668 | @kindex g | |
669 | @findex Man-goto-section | |
670 | Move point to the specified section (@code{Man-goto-section}). | |
671 | ||
672 | @item s | |
673 | @kindex s | |
674 | @findex Man-goto-see-also-section | |
675 | Move point to the ``SEE ALSO'' section | |
676 | (@code{Man-goto-see-also-section}). Actually the section moved to is | |
677 | described by @code{Man-see-also-regexp}. | |
678 | @end table | |
679 | ||
680 | ||
681 | @node References, Changing, Navigation, Browsing | |
682 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
683 | @section Following References | |
684 | @cindex following references | |
685 | @cindex references | |
686 | ||
687 | Man pages usually contain a ``SEE ALSO'' section containing references | |
688 | to other man pages. If these man pages are installed then WoMan can | |
689 | easily be directed to follow the reference, i.e.@: to find and format the | |
690 | man page. When the mouse is passed over a correctly formatted reference | |
691 | it is highlighted, in which case clicking the middle button | |
692 | @kbd{Mouse-2} will cause WoMan to follow the reference. Alternatively, | |
693 | when point is over such a reference the key @key{RET} will follow the | |
694 | reference. | |
695 | ||
696 | Any word in the buffer can be used as a reference by clicking | |
697 | @kbd{Mouse-2} over it provided the Meta key is also used (although in | |
698 | general such a ``reference'' will not lead to a man page). | |
699 | Alternatively, the key @kbd{r} allows completion to be used to select a | |
700 | reference to follow, based on the word at point as default. | |
701 | ||
702 | @table @kbd | |
703 | @item @kbd{Mouse-2} | |
704 | @kindex Mouse-2 | |
705 | @findex woman-mouse-2 | |
706 | Run WoMan with word under mouse as topic (@code{woman-mouse-2}). The | |
707 | word must be mouse-highlighted unless @code{woman-mouse-2} is used with | |
708 | the Meta key. | |
709 | ||
710 | @item @key{RET} | |
711 | @kindex RET | |
712 | @findex man-follow | |
713 | Get the man page for the topic under (or nearest to) point | |
714 | (@code{man-follow}). | |
715 | ||
716 | @item r | |
717 | @kindex r | |
718 | @findex Man-follow-manual-reference | |
719 | Get one of the man pages referred to in the ``SEE ALSO'' section | |
720 | (@code{Man-follow-manual-reference}). Specify which reference to use; | |
721 | default is based on word at point. | |
722 | @end table | |
723 | ||
724 | ||
725 | @node Changing, Convenience, References, Browsing | |
726 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
727 | @section Changing the Current Man Page | |
728 | @cindex changing current man page | |
729 | @cindex current man page, changing | |
730 | ||
731 | The man page currently being browsed by WoMan can be changed in several | |
732 | ways. The command @code{woman} can be invoked to format another man | |
733 | page, or the current WoMan buffer can be buried or killed. WoMan | |
734 | maintains a ring of formatted man pages, and it is possible to move | |
735 | forwards and backwards in this ring by moving to the next or previous | |
736 | man page. It is sometimes useful to reformat the current page, for | |
737 | example after the right margin (the wrap column) or some other | |
738 | formatting parameter has been changed. | |
739 | ||
740 | Buffers formatted by Man and WoMan are completely unrelated, even though | |
741 | some of the commands to manipulate them are superficially the same (and | |
742 | share code). | |
743 | ||
744 | @table @kbd | |
745 | @item m | |
746 | @kindex m | |
747 | @findex man | |
748 | Run the command @code{man} to get a Un*x manual page and put it in a | |
749 | buffer. This command is the top-level command in the man package. It | |
750 | runs a Un*x command to retrieve and clean a man page in the background | |
751 | and places the results in a Man mode (man page browsing) buffer. If a | |
752 | man buffer already exists for this man page, it will display | |
753 | immediately. This works exactly the same if WoMan is loaded, except | |
754 | that the formatting time is displayed in the mini-buffer. | |
755 | ||
756 | @item w | |
757 | @kindex w | |
758 | @findex woman | |
759 | Run the command @code{woman} exactly as if the extended command or menu | |
760 | item had been used. | |
761 | ||
762 | @item q | |
763 | @kindex q | |
764 | @findex Man-quit | |
765 | Bury the buffer containing the current man page (@code{Man-quit}), | |
766 | i.e.@: move it to the bottom of the buffer stack. | |
767 | ||
768 | @item k | |
769 | @kindex k | |
770 | @findex Man-kill | |
771 | Kill the buffer containing the current man page (@code{Man-kill}), | |
772 | i.e.@: delete it completely so that it can be retrieved only by formatting | |
773 | the page again. | |
774 | ||
775 | @item M-p | |
776 | @kindex M-p | |
777 | @findex WoMan-previous-manpage | |
778 | Find the previous WoMan buffer (@code{WoMan-previous-manpage}). | |
779 | ||
780 | @item M-n | |
781 | @kindex M-n | |
782 | @findex WoMan-next-manpage | |
783 | Find the next WoMan buffer (@code{WoMan-next-manpage}). | |
784 | ||
785 | @item R | |
786 | @kindex R | |
787 | @findex woman-reformat-last-file | |
788 | Call WoMan to reformat the last man page formatted by WoMan | |
789 | (@code{woman-reformat-last-file}), e.g.@: after changing the fill column. | |
790 | @end table | |
791 | ||
792 | ||
793 | @node Convenience, Imenu, Changing, Browsing | |
794 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
795 | @section Convenience Key Bindings | |
796 | @cindex convenience key bindings | |
797 | @cindex key bindings, convenience | |
798 | ||
799 | @table @kbd | |
800 | @item - | |
801 | @kindex - | |
802 | @findex negative-argument | |
803 | Begin a negative numeric argument for the next command | |
804 | (@code{negative-argument}). | |
805 | ||
806 | @item 0 .. 9 | |
807 | @kindex 0 .. 9 | |
808 | @findex digit-argument | |
809 | Part of the numeric argument for the next command | |
810 | (@code{digit-argument}). | |
811 | ||
812 | @item < | |
813 | @kindex < | |
814 | @itemx . | |
815 | @kindex . | |
816 | @findex beginning-of-buffer | |
817 | Move point to the beginning of the buffer; leave mark at previous | |
818 | position (@code{beginning-of-buffer}). | |
819 | ||
820 | @item > | |
821 | @kindex > | |
822 | @findex end-of-buffer | |
823 | Move point to the end of the buffer; leave mark at previous position | |
824 | (@code{end-of-buffer}). | |
825 | ||
826 | @item ? | |
827 | @kindex ? | |
828 | @findex describe-mode | |
829 | Display documentation of current major mode and minor modes | |
830 | (@code{describe-mode}). The major mode description comes first, | |
831 | followed by the minor modes, each on a separate page. | |
832 | @end table | |
833 | ||
834 | ||
835 | @node Imenu, , Convenience, Browsing | |
836 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
837 | @section Imenu Support; Contents Menu | |
838 | @cindex imenu support | |
839 | @cindex contents menu | |
840 | ||
841 | The WoMan menu provides an option to make a contents menu for the | |
842 | current man page (using @code{imenu}). Alternatively, if you customize | |
843 | the option @code{woman-imenu} to @code{t} then WoMan will do it | |
844 | automatically for every man page. The menu title is set by the option | |
845 | @code{woman-imenu-title}, which is ``CONTENTS'' by default. The menu | |
846 | shows manual sections and subsections by default, but you can change | |
847 | this by customizing @code{woman-imenu-generic-expression}. | |
848 | ||
849 | WoMan is configured not to replace spaces in an imenu | |
850 | @code{*Completion*} buffer. For further documentation on the use of | |
851 | imenu, such as menu sorting, see the source file @file{imenu.el}, which | |
852 | is distributed with GNU Emacs. | |
853 | ||
854 | @c =================================================================== | |
855 | ||
856 | @node Customization, Log, Browsing, Top | |
857 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
858 | @chapter Customization | |
859 | @cindex customization | |
860 | ||
861 | All WoMan user options are customizable, and it is recommended to | |
862 | change them only via the standard Emacs customization facilities. | |
863 | WoMan defines a top-level customization group called @code{WoMan} | |
864 | under the parent group @code{Help}. It can be accessed either via the | |
865 | standard Emacs facilities, e.g.@: via the @samp{Help->Customize} | |
866 | submenu, or via the WoMan major mode menu. | |
867 | ||
868 | The top-level WoMan group contains only a few general options and three | |
869 | subgroups. The hooks are provided only for special purposes that, for | |
870 | example, require code to be executed, and should be changed only via | |
871 | @code{Customization} or the function @code{add-hook}. Most | |
872 | customization should be possible via existing user options. | |
873 | ||
874 | @vtable @code | |
875 | @item woman-show-log | |
876 | A boolean value that defaults to @code{nil}. If non-@code{nil} then show the | |
877 | @code{*WoMan-Log*} buffer if appropriate, i.e.@: if any warning messages | |
878 | are written to it. @xref{Log, , The *WoMan-Log* Buffer}. | |
879 | ||
880 | @item woman-pre-format-hook | |
881 | A hook run immediately before formatting a buffer. It might, for | |
882 | example, be used for face customization. @xref{Faces, , Faces}, | |
883 | however. | |
884 | ||
885 | @item woman-post-format-hook | |
886 | A hook run immediately after formatting a buffer. It might, for | |
887 | example, be used for installing a dynamic menu using @code{imenu}. | |
888 | (However. in this case it is better to use the built-in WoMan | |
889 | @code{imenu} support. @xref{Imenu, , Imenu Support; Contents Menu}.) | |
890 | @end vtable | |
891 | ||
892 | @heading Customization Subgroups | |
893 | ||
894 | @table @code | |
895 | @item WoMan Interface | |
896 | These options control the process of locating the appropriate file to | |
897 | browse, and the appearance of the browsing interface. | |
898 | ||
899 | @item WoMan Formatting | |
900 | These options control the layout that WoMan uses to format the man page. | |
901 | ||
902 | @item WoMan Faces | |
903 | These options control the display faces that WoMan uses to format the | |
904 | man page. | |
905 | @end table | |
906 | ||
907 | @menu | |
908 | * Interface Options:: | |
909 | * Formatting Options:: | |
910 | * Faces:: | |
911 | * Special symbols:: | |
912 | @end menu | |
913 | ||
914 | @node Interface Options, Formatting Options, Customization, Customization | |
915 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
916 | @section Interface Options | |
917 | @cindex interface options | |
918 | ||
919 | These options control the process of locating the appropriate file to | |
920 | browse, and the appearance of the browsing interface. | |
921 | ||
922 | @vtable @code | |
923 | @item woman-man.conf-path | |
924 | A list of strings representing directories to search and/or files to try | |
925 | for a man configuration file. The default is | |
926 | ||
927 | @lisp | |
928 | ("/etc" "/usr/local/lib") | |
929 | @end lisp | |
930 | ||
931 | @noindent | |
932 | [for GNU/Linux and Cygwin respectively.] A trailing separator (@file{/} | |
933 | for UNIX etc.) on directories is optional and the filename matched if a | |
934 | directory is specified is the first to match the regexp | |
935 | @code{man.*\.conf}. If the environment variable @code{MANPATH} is not | |
936 | set but a configuration file is found then it is parsed instead (or as | |
937 | well) to provide a default value for @code{woman-manpath}. | |
938 | ||
939 | @item woman-manpath | |
940 | A list of strings representing @emph{directory trees} to search for Unix | |
941 | manual files. Each element should be the name of a directory that | |
942 | contains subdirectories of the form @file{man?}, or more precisely | |
943 | subdirectories selected by the value of @code{woman-manpath-man-regexp}. | |
944 | Non-directory and unreadable files are ignored. This can also contain | |
945 | conses, with the car indicating a @code{PATH} variable component mapped | |
946 | to the directory tree given in the cdr. | |
947 | ||
948 | @cindex @code{MANPATH}, environment variable | |
949 | If not set then the environment variable @code{MANPATH} is used. If no | |
950 | such environment variable is found, the default list is determined by | |
951 | consulting the man configuration file if found. By default this is | |
952 | expected to be either @file{/etc/man.config} or | |
953 | @file{/usr/local/lib/man.conf}, which is controlled by the user option | |
954 | @code{woman-man.conf-path}. An empty substring of @code{MANPATH} | |
955 | denotes the default list. Otherwise, the default value of this variable | |
956 | is | |
957 | ||
958 | @lisp | |
959 | ("/usr/man" "/usr/local/man") | |
960 | @end lisp | |
961 | ||
962 | Any environment variables (names of which must have the Unix-style form | |
963 | @code{$NAME}, e.g.@: @code{$HOME}, @code{$EMACSDATA}, @code{$EMACS_DIR}, | |
964 | regardless of platform) are evaluated first but each element must | |
965 | evaluate to a @emph{single} directory name. Trailing @file{/}s are | |
966 | ignored. (Specific directories in @code{woman-path} are also searched.) | |
967 | ||
968 | On Microsoft platforms I recommend including drive letters explicitly, | |
969 | e.g. | |
970 | ||
971 | @lisp | |
972 | ("C:/Cygwin/usr/man" "C:/usr/man" "C:/usr/local/man") | |
973 | @end lisp | |
974 | ||
975 | @cindex directory separator character | |
976 | @cindex @code{MANPATH}, directory separator | |
977 | The @code{MANPATH} environment variable may be set using DOS | |
978 | semi-colon-separated or Unix-style colon-separated syntax (but not | |
979 | mixed). | |
980 | ||
981 | @item woman-manpath-man-regexp | |
982 | A regular expression to match man directories @emph{under} the | |
983 | @code{woman-manpath} directories. These normally have names of the form | |
984 | @file{man?}. Its default value is @code{"[Mm][Aa][Nn]"}, which is | |
985 | case-insensitive mainly for the benefit of Microsoft platforms. Its | |
986 | purpose is to avoid directories such as @file{cat?}, @file{.}, | |
987 | @file{..}, etc. | |
988 | ||
989 | @item woman-path | |
990 | A list of strings representing @emph{specific directories} to search for | |
991 | Unix manual files. For example | |
992 | ||
993 | @lisp | |
994 | ("/emacs/etc") | |
995 | @end lisp | |
996 | ||
997 | These directories are searched in addition to the directory trees | |
998 | specified in @code{woman-manpath}. Each element should be a directory | |
999 | string or @code{nil}, which represents the current directory when the | |
1000 | path is expanded and cached. However, the last component (only) of each | |
1001 | directory string is treated as a regexp (Emacs, not shell) and the | |
1002 | string is expanded into a list of matching directories. Non-directory | |
1003 | and unreadable files are ignored. The default value on MS-DOS is | |
1004 | ||
1005 | @lisp | |
1006 | ("$DJDIR/info" "$DJDIR/man/cat[1-9onlp]") | |
1007 | @end lisp | |
1008 | ||
1009 | @noindent | |
1010 | and on other platforms is @code{nil}. | |
1011 | ||
1012 | Any environment variables (names of which must have the Unix-style form | |
1013 | @code{$NAME}, e.g.@: @code{$HOME}, @code{$EMACSDATA}, @code{$EMACS_DIR}, | |
1014 | regardless of platform) are evaluated first but each element must | |
1015 | evaluate to a @emph{single} directory name (regexp, see above). For | |
1016 | example | |
1017 | ||
1018 | @lisp | |
1019 | ("$EMACSDATA") | |
1020 | @end lisp | |
1021 | ||
1022 | @noindent | |
1023 | or equivalently | |
1024 | ||
1025 | @lisp | |
1026 | ("$EMACS_DIR/etc") | |
1027 | @end lisp | |
1028 | ||
1029 | @noindent | |
1030 | Trailing @file{/}s are discarded. (The directory trees in | |
1031 | @code{woman-manpath} are also searched.) On Microsoft platforms I | |
1032 | recommend including drive letters explicitly. | |
1033 | ||
1034 | @item woman-cache-level | |
1035 | A positive integer representing the level of topic caching: | |
1036 | ||
1037 | @enumerate | |
1038 | @item | |
1039 | cache only the topic and directory lists (uses minimal memory, but not | |
1040 | recommended); | |
1041 | @item | |
1042 | cache also the directories for each topic (faster, without using much | |
1043 | more memory); | |
1044 | @item | |
1045 | cache also the actual filenames for each topic (fastest, but uses twice | |
1046 | as much memory). | |
1047 | @end enumerate | |
1048 | ||
1049 | The default value is currently 2, a good general compromise. If the | |
1050 | @code{woman} command is slow to find files then try 3, which may be | |
1051 | particularly beneficial with large remote-mounted man directories. Run | |
1052 | the @code{woman} command with a prefix argument or delete the cache file | |
1053 | @code{woman-cache-filename} for a change to take effect. (Values < 1 | |
1054 | behave like 1; values > 3 behave like 3.) | |
1055 | ||
1056 | @item woman-cache-filename | |
1057 | Either a string representing the full pathname of the WoMan directory | |
1058 | and topic cache file, or @code{nil}. It is used to save and restore the | |
1059 | cache between Emacs sessions. This is especially useful with | |
1060 | remote-mounted man page files! The default value of @code{nil} | |
1061 | suppresses this action. The ``standard'' non-@code{nil} filename is | |
1062 | @file{~/.wmncach.el}. Remember that a prefix argument forces the | |
1063 | @code{woman} command to update and re-write the cache. | |
1064 | ||
1065 | @item woman-dired-keys | |
1066 | A list of @code{dired} mode keys to be defined to run WoMan on the | |
1067 | current file, e.g.@: @code{("w" "W")} or any non-@code{nil} atom to | |
1068 | automatically define @kbd{w} and @kbd{W} if they are unbound, or | |
1069 | @code{nil} to do nothing. Default is @code{t}. | |
1070 | ||
1071 | @item woman-imenu-generic-expression | |
1072 | Imenu support for Sections and Subsections: an alist with elements of | |
1073 | the form @code{(MENU-TITLE REGEXP INDEX)}---see the documentation for | |
1074 | @code{imenu-generic-expression}. Default value is | |
1075 | ||
1076 | @lisp | |
1077 | ((nil "\n\\([A-Z].*\\)" 1) ; SECTION, but not TITLE | |
1078 | ("*Subsections*" "^ \\([A-Z].*\\)" 1)) | |
1079 | @end lisp | |
1080 | ||
1081 | @item woman-imenu | |
1082 | A boolean value that defaults to @code{nil}. If non-@code{nil} then WoMan adds | |
1083 | a Contents menu to the menubar by calling @code{imenu-add-to-menubar}. | |
1084 | ||
1085 | @item woman-imenu-title | |
1086 | A string representing the title to use if WoMan adds a Contents menu to | |
1087 | the menubar. Default is @code{"CONTENTS"}. | |
1088 | ||
1089 | @item woman-use-topic-at-point | |
1090 | A boolean value that defaults to @code{nil}. If non-@code{nil} then | |
1091 | the @code{woman} command uses the word at point as the topic, | |
1092 | @emph{without interactive confirmation}, if it exists as a topic. | |
1093 | ||
1094 | @item woman-use-topic-at-point-default | |
1095 | A boolean value representing the default value for | |
1096 | @code{woman-use-topic-at-point}. The default value is @code{nil}. | |
1097 | [The variable @code{woman-use-topic-at-point} may be @code{let}-bound | |
1098 | when @code{woman} is loaded, in which case its global value does not | |
1099 | get defined. The function @code{woman-file-name} sets it to this | |
1100 | value if it is unbound.] | |
1101 | ||
1102 | @item woman-uncompressed-file-regexp | |
1103 | A regular match expression used to select man source files (ignoring any | |
1104 | compression extension). The default value is | |
1105 | @code{"\\.\\([0-9lmnt]\\w*\\)"} [which means a filename extension is | |
1106 | required]. | |
1107 | ||
1108 | @emph{Do not change this unless you are sure you know what you are doing!} | |
1109 | ||
1110 | The SysV standard man pages use two character suffixes, and this is | |
1111 | becoming more common in the GNU world. For example, the man pages in | |
1112 | the @code{ncurses} package include @file{toe.1m}, @file{form.3x}, etc. | |
1113 | ||
1114 | @strong{Please note:} an optional compression regexp will be appended, | |
1115 | so this regexp @emph{must not} end with any kind of string terminator | |
1116 | such as @code{$} or @code{\\'}. | |
1117 | ||
1118 | @item woman-file-compression-regexp | |
1119 | A regular match expression used to match compressed man file extensions | |
1120 | for which decompressors are available and handled by auto-compression | |
1121 | mode. It should begin with @code{\\.} and end with @code{\\'} and | |
1122 | @emph{must not} be optional. The default value is | |
4c964351 UM |
1123 | @code{"\\.\\(g?z\\|bz2\\|xz\\)\\'"}, which matches the @code{gzip}, |
1124 | @code{bzip2}, and @code{xz} compression extensions. | |
4009494e GM |
1125 | |
1126 | @emph{Do not change this unless you are sure you know what you are doing!} | |
1127 | ||
1128 | [It should be compatible with the @code{car} of | |
1129 | @code{jka-compr-file-name-handler-entry}, but that is unduly | |
1130 | complicated, includes an inappropriate extension (@file{.tgz}) and is | |
1131 | not loaded by default!] | |
1132 | ||
1133 | @item woman-use-own-frame | |
1134 | If non-@code{nil} then use a dedicated frame for displaying WoMan windows. | |
1135 | This is useful only when WoMan is run under a window system such as X or | |
1136 | Microsoft Windows that supports real multiple frames, in which case the | |
1137 | default value is non-@code{nil}. | |
1138 | @end vtable | |
1139 | ||
1140 | ||
1141 | @node Formatting Options, Faces, Interface Options, Customization | |
1142 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1143 | @section Formatting Options | |
1144 | @cindex formatting options | |
1145 | ||
1146 | These options control the layout that WoMan uses to format the man page. | |
1147 | ||
1148 | @vtable @code | |
1149 | @item woman-fill-column | |
1150 | An integer specifying the right margin for formatted text. Default is | |
1151 | 65. | |
1152 | ||
1153 | @item woman-fill-frame | |
1154 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then most of the frame width is used, | |
1155 | overriding the value of @code{woman-fill-column}. Default is @code{nil}. | |
1156 | ||
1157 | @item woman-default-indent | |
1158 | An integer specifying the default prevailing indent for the @code{-man} | |
1159 | macros. Default is 5. Set this variable to 7 to emulate GNU/Linux man | |
1160 | formatting. | |
1161 | ||
1162 | @item woman-bold-headings | |
1163 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then embolden section and subsection | |
1164 | headings. Default is @code{t}. [Heading emboldening is @emph{not} standard | |
1165 | @code{man} behavior.] | |
1166 | ||
1167 | @item woman-ignore | |
135305ed | 1168 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then unrecognized requests etc. are |
4009494e GM |
1169 | ignored. Default is @code{t}. This gives the standard @code{roff} behavior. |
1170 | If @code{nil} then they are left in the buffer, which may aid debugging. | |
1171 | ||
1172 | @item woman-preserve-ascii | |
1173 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then preserve @acronym{ASCII} characters in the | |
1174 | WoMan buffer. Otherwise, non-@acronym{ASCII} characters (that display as | |
1175 | @acronym{ASCII}) may remain, which is irrelevant unless the buffer is to be | |
1176 | saved to a file. Default is @code{nil}. | |
1177 | ||
1178 | @item woman-emulation | |
1179 | WoMan emulation, currently either @code{nroff} or @code{troff}. Default | |
1180 | is @code{nroff}. @code{troff} emulation is experimental and largely | |
1181 | untested. | |
1182 | @end vtable | |
1183 | ||
1184 | ||
1185 | @node Faces, Special symbols, Formatting Options, Customization | |
1186 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1187 | @section Faces | |
1188 | @cindex faces | |
1189 | ||
1190 | These options control the display faces that WoMan uses to format the | |
1191 | man page. | |
1192 | ||
1193 | @vtable @code | |
1194 | @item woman-fontify | |
1195 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then WoMan assumes that face support is | |
1196 | available. It defaults to a non-@code{nil} value if the display supports | |
1197 | either colors or different fonts. | |
1198 | ||
1199 | @item woman-italic-face | |
1200 | Face for italic font in man pages. Default: italic, underlined, | |
1201 | foreground red. This is overkill! @code{troff} uses just italic; | |
1202 | @code{nroff} uses just underline. You should probably select either | |
1203 | italic or underline as you prefer, but not both, although italic and | |
1204 | underline work together perfectly well! | |
1205 | ||
1206 | @item woman-bold-face | |
1207 | Face for bold font in man pages. Default: bold, foreground blue. | |
1208 | ||
1209 | @item woman-unknown-face | |
1210 | Face for all unknown fonts in man pages. Default: foreground brown. | |
1211 | Brown is a good compromise: it is distinguishable from the default but | |
1212 | not enough so as to make font errors look terrible. (Files that use | |
1213 | non-standard fonts seem to do so badly or in idiosyncratic ways!) | |
1214 | ||
1215 | @item woman-addition-face | |
1216 | Face for all additions made by WoMan to man pages. | |
1217 | Default: foreground orange. | |
1218 | @end vtable | |
1219 | ||
1220 | ||
1221 | @node Special symbols, , Faces, Customization | |
1222 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1223 | @section Special symbols | |
1224 | @cindex special symbols | |
1225 | ||
1226 | This section currently applies @emph{only} to Microsoft Windows. | |
1227 | ||
1228 | WoMan provides partial experimental support for special symbols, | |
1229 | initially only for MS-Windows and only for MS-Windows fonts. This | |
1230 | includes both non-@acronym{ASCII} characters from the main text font and use | |
1231 | of a separate symbol font. Later, support will be added for other font | |
1232 | types (e.g.@: @code{bdf} fonts) and for the X Window System. In Emacs | |
1233 | 20.7, the current support works partially under Windows 9x but may not | |
1234 | work on any other platform. | |
1235 | ||
1236 | @vtable @code | |
1237 | @item woman-use-extended-font | |
1238 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then WoMan may use non-@acronym{ASCII} characters | |
1239 | from the default font. Default is @code{t}. | |
1240 | ||
1241 | @item woman-use-symbol-font | |
1242 | A boolean value. If non-@code{nil} then WoMan may use the symbol font. | |
1243 | Default is @code{nil}, mainly because it may change the line spacing (at | |
1244 | least in NTEmacs 20). | |
1245 | ||
1246 | @item woman-symbol-font | |
1247 | A string describing the symbol font to use for special characters. | |
1248 | It should be compatible with, and the same size as, the default text font. | |
1249 | Under MS-Windows, the default is | |
1250 | ||
1251 | @lisp | |
1252 | "-*-Symbol-normal-r-*-*-*-*-96-96-p-*-ms-symbol" | |
1253 | @end lisp | |
1254 | @end vtable | |
1255 | ||
1256 | ||
1257 | @c =================================================================== | |
1258 | ||
1259 | @node Log, Technical, Customization, Top | |
1260 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1261 | @chapter The *WoMan-Log* Buffer | |
1262 | @cindex log buffer | |
1263 | @cindex buffer, log | |
1264 | ||
1265 | This is modeled on the Emacs byte-compiler. It logs all files | |
1266 | formatted by WoMan and the time taken. If WoMan finds anything that it | |
1267 | cannot handle then it writes a warning to this buffer. If the variable | |
1268 | @code{woman-show-log} is non-@code{nil} (by default it is @code{nil}) then | |
1269 | WoMan automatically displays this buffer. @xref{Interface Options, , | |
1270 | Interface Options}. Many WoMan warnings can be completely ignored, | |
1271 | because they are reporting the fact that WoMan has ignored requests that | |
1272 | it is correct for WoMan to ignore. In some future version this level of | |
1273 | paranoia may be reduced, but not until WoMan is deemed more reliable. | |
1274 | At present, all warnings should be treated with some suspicion. | |
1275 | Uninterpreted escape sequences are also logged (in some cases). | |
1276 | ||
1277 | By resetting the variable @code{woman-ignore} to @code{nil} (by default | |
1278 | it is @code{t}), uninterpreted @code{roff} requests can optionally be | |
1279 | left in the formatted buffer to indicate precisely where they occurred. | |
1280 | @xref{Interface Options, , Interface Options}. | |
1281 | ||
1282 | @c =================================================================== | |
1283 | ||
1284 | @node Technical, Bugs, Log, Top | |
1285 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1286 | @chapter Technical Details | |
1287 | @cindex technical details | |
1288 | @cindex horizontal spacing | |
1289 | @cindex spacing, horizontal and vertical | |
1290 | @cindex vertical spacing | |
1291 | @cindex resolution | |
1292 | ||
1293 | @heading Horizontal and vertical spacing and resolution | |
1294 | ||
1295 | WoMan currently assumes 10 characters per inch horizontally, hence a | |
1296 | horizontal resolution of 24 basic units, and 5 lines per inch | |
1297 | vertically, hence a vertical resolution of 48 basic units. | |
1298 | (@code{nroff} uses 240 per inch.) | |
1299 | ||
1300 | @heading Vertical spacing and blank lines | |
1301 | ||
1302 | The number of consecutive blank lines in the formatted buffer should be | |
1303 | either 0 or 1. A blank line should leave a space like .sp 1. | |
1304 | Current policy is to output vertical space only immediately before text | |
1305 | is output. | |
1306 | ||
1307 | @c =================================================================== | |
1308 | ||
1309 | @node Bugs, Acknowledgements, Technical, Top | |
1310 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1311 | @chapter Reporting Bugs | |
1312 | @cindex reporting bugs | |
1313 | @cindex bugs, reporting | |
1314 | ||
1315 | If WoMan fails completely, or formats a file incorrectly (i.e.@: | |
1316 | obviously wrongly or significantly differently from @code{man}) or | |
1317 | inelegantly, then please | |
1318 | ||
1319 | @enumerate | |
1320 | @item | |
f19bc38d GM |
1321 | try the latest version of @file{woman.el} from the Emacs repository |
1322 | on @uref{http://savannah.gnu.org/projects/emacs/}. If it still fails, please | |
4009494e GM |
1323 | |
1324 | @item | |
1325 | send a bug report to @email{bug-gnu-emacs@@gnu.org} and to | |
1326 | @email{F.J.Wright@@qmw.ac.uk}. Please include the entry from the | |
1327 | @code{*WoMan-Log*} buffer relating to the problem file, together with | |
1328 | a brief description of the problem. Please indicate where you got the | |
1329 | man source file from, but do not send it unless asked to send it. | |
1330 | @end enumerate | |
1331 | ||
1332 | @c =================================================================== | |
1333 | ||
1334 | @node Acknowledgements, GNU Free Documentation License, Bugs, Top | |
1335 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1336 | @chapter Acknowledgements | |
1337 | @cindex acknowledgements | |
1338 | ||
1339 | For Heather, Kathryn and Madelyn, the women in my life (although they | |
1340 | will probably never use it)! | |
1341 | ||
1342 | I also thank the following for helpful suggestions, bug reports, code | |
1343 | fragments, general interest, etc.: | |
1344 | ||
1345 | @quotation | |
1346 | Jari Aalto, @email{jari.aalto@@cs.tpu.fi}@* | |
1347 | Dean Andrews, @email{dean@@dra.com}@* | |
1348 | Juanma Barranquero, @email{barranquero@@laley-actualidad.es}@* | |
1349 | Karl Berry, @email{kb@@cs.umb.edu}@* | |
1350 | Jim Chapman, @email{jchapman@@netcomuk.co.uk}@* | |
1351 | Frederic Corne, @email{frederic.corne@@erli.fr}@* | |
1352 | Peter Craft, @email{craft@@alacritech.com}@* | |
1353 | Charles Curley, @email{ccurley@@trib.com}@* | |
1354 | Jim Davidson, @email{jdavidso@@teknowledge.com}@* | |
1355 | Kevin D'Elia, @email{Kevin.DElia@@mci.com}@* | |
1356 | John Fitch, @email{jpff@@maths.bath.ac.uk}@* | |
1357 | Hans Frosch, @email{jwfrosch@@rish.b17c.ingr.com}@* | |
1358 | Guy Gascoigne-Piggford, @email{ggp@@informix.com}@* | |
1359 | Brian Gorka, @email{gorkab@@sanchez.com}@* | |
1360 | Nicolai Henriksen, @email{nhe@@lyngso-industri.dk}@* | |
1361 | Thomas Herchenroeder, @email{the@@software-ag.de}@* | |
1362 | Alexander Hinds, @email{ahinds@@thegrid.net}@* | |
1363 | Stefan Hornburg, @email{sth@@hacon.de}@* | |
1364 | Theodore Jump, @email{tjump@@cais.com}@* | |
1365 | Paul Kinnucan, @email{paulk@@mathworks.com}@* | |
1366 | Jonas Linde, @email{jonas@@init.se}@* | |
1367 | Andrew McRae, @email{andrewm@@optimation.co.nz}@* | |
1368 | Howard Melman, @email{howard@@silverstream.com}@* | |
1369 | Dennis Pixton, @email{dennis@@math.binghamton.edu}@* | |
1370 | T. V. Raman, @email{raman@@Adobe.com}@* | |
1371 | Bruce Ravel, @email{bruce.ravel@@nist.gov}@* | |
1372 | Benjamin Riefenstahl, @email{benny@@crocodial.de}@* | |
1373 | Kevin Ruland, @email{kruland@@seistl.com}@* | |
1374 | Tom Schutter, @email{tom@@platte.com}@* | |
1375 | Wei-Xue Shi, @email{wxshi@@ma.neweb.ne.jp}@* | |
1376 | Fabio Somenzi, @email{fabio@@joplin.colorado.edu}@* | |
1377 | Karel Sprenger, @email{ks@@ic.uva.nl}@* | |
1378 | Chris Szurgot, @email{szurgot@@itribe.net}@* | |
1379 | Paul A. Thompson, @email{pat@@po.cwru.edu}@* | |
1380 | Arrigo Triulzi, @email{arrigo@@maths.qmw.ac.uk}@* | |
1381 | Geoff Voelker, @email{voelker@@cs.washington.edu}@* | |
1382 | Eli Zaretskii, @email{eliz@@is.elta.co.il} | |
1383 | @end quotation | |
1384 | ||
1385 | @c =================================================================== | |
1386 | ||
1387 | @comment END OF MANUAL TEXT | |
1388 | @page | |
1389 | ||
1390 | ||
1391 | @node GNU Free Documentation License, Command Index, Acknowledgements, Top | |
1392 | @appendix GNU Free Documentation License | |
1393 | @include doclicense.texi | |
1394 | ||
1395 | @node Command Index, Variable Index, GNU Free Documentation License, Top | |
1396 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1397 | @unnumbered Command Index | |
1398 | ||
1399 | @printindex fn | |
1400 | ||
1401 | @node Variable Index, Keystroke Index, Command Index, Top | |
1402 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1403 | @unnumbered Variable Index | |
1404 | ||
1405 | @printindex vr | |
1406 | ||
1407 | @c Without a page throw here, the page length seems to get reset to the | |
1408 | @c depth of the index that fits on the page after the previous index. | |
1409 | @c This must be a bug! | |
1410 | ||
1411 | @page | |
1412 | ||
1413 | @node Keystroke Index, Concept Index, Variable Index, Top | |
1414 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1415 | @unnumbered Keystroke Index | |
1416 | ||
1417 | @printindex ky | |
1418 | ||
1419 | @c Without a page throw here, the page length seems to get reset to the | |
1420 | @c depth of the index that fits on the page after the previous index. | |
1421 | @c This must be a bug! | |
1422 | ||
1423 | @page | |
1424 | ||
1425 | @node Concept Index, , Keystroke Index, Top | |
1426 | @comment node-name, next, previous, up | |
1427 | @unnumbered Concept Index | |
1428 | ||
1429 | @printindex cp | |
1430 | ||
1431 | @bye |