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1 | \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*- |
2 | @c %**start of header | |
3 | @setfilename ../../info/remember | |
4 | @settitle Remember Manual | |
15f3eb73 | 5 | @syncodeindex fn cp |
5dc584b5 | 6 | @c %**end of header |
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7 | |
8 | @copying | |
9 | This manual is for Remember Mode, version 1.9 | |
10 | ||
ab422c4d | 11 | Copyright @copyright{} 2001, 2004--2005, 2007--2013 |
dcb8ac09 | 12 | Free Software Foundation, Inc. |
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13 | |
14 | @quotation | |
15 | Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document | |
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16 | under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or |
17 | any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no | |
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18 | Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual'', |
19 | and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license | |
20 | is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''. | |
21 | ||
22 | (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and | |
6bf430d1 | 23 | modify this GNU manual.'' |
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24 | @end quotation |
25 | @end copying | |
26 | ||
0c973505 | 27 | @dircategory Emacs misc features |
5dc584b5 | 28 | @direntry |
62e034c2 | 29 | * Remember: (remember). Simple information manager for Emacs. |
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30 | @end direntry |
31 | ||
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32 | @titlepage |
33 | @title Guide to Remember Mode | |
34 | @subtitle a simple information manager | |
35 | @subtitle for Emacs and XEmacs | |
36 | ||
37 | @c The following two commands | |
38 | @c start the copyright page. | |
39 | @page | |
40 | @vskip 0pt plus 1filll | |
41 | @insertcopying | |
42 | @end titlepage | |
43 | ||
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44 | @contents |
45 | ||
46 | @ifnottex | |
563a450c | 47 | @node Top |
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48 | @top Remember |
49 | ||
50 | @insertcopying | |
51 | @end ifnottex | |
52 | ||
53 | @menu | |
54 | * Preface:: About the documentation. | |
55 | * Introduction:: What is Remember Mode? | |
56 | * Installation:: How to install Remember. | |
57 | * Implementation:: How Remember came into existence. | |
58 | * Quick Start:: Get started using Remember. | |
15f3eb73 | 59 | * Function Reference:: Interactive functions in remember.el. |
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60 | * Keystrokes:: Keystrokes bound in Remember Mode. |
61 | * Backends:: Backends for saving notes. | |
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62 | * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation. |
63 | * Concept Index:: Search for terms. | |
64 | ||
65 | @detailmenu | |
66 | --- The Detailed Node Listing --- | |
67 | ||
68 | Backends | |
69 | ||
70 | * Text File:: Saving to a text file. | |
bec9b2f5 | 71 | * Diary:: Saving to a Diary file. |
15f3eb73 | 72 | * Mailbox:: Saving to a mailbox. |
bec9b2f5 | 73 | * Org:: Saving to an Org Mode file. |
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74 | |
75 | @end detailmenu | |
76 | @end menu | |
77 | ||
563a450c | 78 | @node Preface |
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79 | @chapter Preface |
80 | ||
81 | This document describes remember-el, which was written by John Wiegley, | |
82 | was once maintained by Sacha Chua, and is now maintained by the Emacs | |
83 | developers. | |
84 | ||
85 | This document is a work in progress, and your contribution will be | |
86 | greatly appreciated. | |
87 | ||
563a450c | 88 | @node Introduction |
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89 | @chapter Introduction |
90 | ||
91 | Todo lists, schedules, phone databases... everything we use databases | |
92 | for is really just a way to extend the power of our memory, to be able | |
93 | to remember what our conscious mind may not currently have access to. | |
94 | ||
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95 | There are many different databases out there---and good ones---which |
96 | this mode is not trying to replace. Rather, it's how that data gets | |
97 | there that's the question. Most of the time, we just want to say | |
98 | "Remember so-and-so's phone number, or that I have to buy dinner for the | |
1df7defd | 99 | cats tonight." That's the FACT@. How it's stored is really the |
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100 | computer's problem. But at this point in time, it's most definitely |
101 | also the user's problem, and sometimes so laboriously so that people | |
102 | just let data slip, rather than expend the effort to record it. | |
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103 | |
104 | ``Remember'' is a mode for remembering data. It uses whatever | |
105 | back-end is appropriate to record and correlate the data, but its main | |
106 | intention is to allow you to express as @emph{little} structure as | |
107 | possible up front. If you later want to express more powerful | |
108 | relationships between your data, or state assumptions that were at | |
109 | first too implicit to be recognized, you can ``study'' the data later | |
110 | and rearrange it. But the initial ``just remember this'' impulse | |
111 | should be as close to simply throwing the data at Emacs as possible. | |
112 | ||
113 | Have you ever noticed that having a laptop to write on doesn't | |
114 | @emph{actually} increase the amount of quality material that you turn | |
115 | out, in the long run? Perhaps it's because the time we save | |
116 | electronically in one way, we're losing electronically in another; the | |
117 | tool should never dominate one's focus. As the mystic Faridu'd-Din | |
118 | `Attar wrote: ``Be occupied as little as possible with things of the | |
119 | outer world but much with things of the inner world; then right action | |
120 | will overcome inaction.'' | |
121 | ||
122 | If Emacs could become a more intelligent data store, where brainstorming | |
123 | would focus on the @emph{ideas} involved---rather than the structuring | |
124 | and format of those ideas, or having to stop your current flow of work | |
125 | in order to record them---it would map much more closely to how the mind | |
126 | (well, at least mine) works, and hence would eliminate that very | |
127 | manual-ness which computers from the very beginning have been championed | |
128 | as being able to reduce. | |
129 | ||
563a450c | 130 | @node Installation |
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131 | @chapter Installation |
132 | ||
133 | Installing Remember Mode is as simple as adding the following lines to | |
134 | your Emacs configuration file (usually @file{~/.emacs.d/init.el} or | |
135 | @file{~/.emacs}). | |
136 | ||
137 | @lisp | |
138 | (add-to-list 'load-path "/path/to/remember") | |
139 | (require 'remember) | |
140 | @end lisp | |
141 | ||
563a450c | 142 | @node Implementation |
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143 | @chapter Implementation |
144 | ||
145 | Hyperbole, as a data presentation tool, always struck me as being very | |
146 | powerful, but it seemed to require a lot of ``front-end'' work before | |
147 | that data was really available. The problem with BBDB, or keeping up | |
148 | a Bibl-mode file, is that you have to use different functions to | |
149 | record the data, and it always takes time to stop what you're doing, | |
150 | format the data in the manner expected by that particular data | |
151 | interface, and then resume your work. | |
152 | ||
153 | With ``remember'', you just hit @kbd{M-x remember} (you'd probably | |
154 | want to bind this to an easily accessible keystroke, like @kbd{C-x | |
155 | M-r}), slam in your text however you like, and then hit @kbd{C-c C-c}. | |
156 | It will file the data away for later retrieval, and possibly indexing. | |
157 | ||
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158 | Indexing is to data what ``studying'' is in the real world. What you do |
159 | when you study (or lucubrate, for some of us) is to realize certain | |
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160 | relationships implicit in the data, so that you can make use of those |
161 | relationships. Expressing that a certain quote you remembered was a | |
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162 | literary quote, and that you want the ability to pull up all quotes of a |
163 | literary nature, is what studying does. This is a more labor intensive | |
164 | task than the original remembering of the data, and it's typical in real | |
165 | life to set aside a special period of time for doing this work. | |
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166 | |
167 | ``Remember'' works in the same way. When you enter data, either by | |
168 | typing it into a buffer, or using the contents of the selected region, | |
169 | it will store that data---unindexed, uninterpreted---in a data pool. | |
170 | It will also try to remember as much context information as possible | |
171 | (any text properties that were set, where you copied it from, when, | |
65e7ca35 | 172 | how, etc.). Later, you can walk through your accumulated set of data |
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173 | (both organized, and unorganized) and easily begin moving things |
174 | around, and making annotations that will express the full meaning of | |
175 | that data, as far as you know it. | |
176 | ||
177 | Obviously this latter stage is more user-interface intensive, and it | |
178 | would be nice if ``remember'' could do it as elegantly as possible, | |
179 | rather than requiring a billion keystrokes to reorganize your | |
180 | hierarchy. Well, as the future arrives, hopefully experience and user | |
181 | feedback will help to make this as intuitive a tool as possible. | |
182 | ||
563a450c | 183 | @node Quick Start |
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184 | @chapter Quick Start |
185 | ||
186 | @itemize | |
187 | ||
188 | @item | |
189 | Load @file{remember.el}. | |
190 | ||
191 | @item | |
192 | Type @kbd{M-x remember}. The @samp{*Remember*} buffer should be | |
193 | displayed. | |
194 | ||
195 | @item | |
196 | Type in what you want to remember. The first line will be treated as | |
197 | the headline, and the rest of the buffer will contain the body of the | |
198 | note. | |
199 | ||
200 | @item | |
6159985a | 201 | Type @kbd{C-c C-c} (@code{remember-finalize}) to save the note and close |
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202 | the @samp{*Remember*} buffer. |
203 | @end itemize | |
204 | ||
6159985a | 205 | By default, @code{remember-finalize} saves the note in @file{~/.notes}. |
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206 | You can edit it now to see the remembered and timestamped note. You |
207 | can edit this file however you want. New entries will always be added | |
208 | to the end. | |
209 | ||
210 | To remember a region of text, use the universal prefix. @kbd{C-u M-x | |
211 | remember} displays a @samp{*Remember*} buffer with the region as the | |
212 | initial contents. | |
213 | ||
214 | As a simple beginning, you can start by using the Text File backend, | |
215 | keeping your @file{~/.notes} file in outline-mode format, with a final | |
216 | entry called @samp{* Raw data}. Remembered data will be added to the | |
217 | end of the file. Every so often, you can move the data that gets | |
218 | appended there into other files, or reorganize your document. | |
219 | ||
220 | You can also store remembered data in other backends. | |
221 | (@pxref{Backends}) | |
222 | ||
223 | Here is one way to map the remember functions in your @file{.emacs} to | |
224 | very accessible keystrokes facilities using the mode: | |
225 | ||
226 | @lisp | |
227 | (autoload 'remember ``remember'' nil t) | |
228 | (autoload 'remember-region ``remember'' nil t) | |
229 | ||
230 | (define-key global-map (kbd "<f9> r") 'remember) | |
231 | (define-key global-map (kbd "<f9> R") 'remember-region) | |
232 | @end lisp | |
233 | ||
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234 | By default, remember uses the first annotation returned by |
235 | @code{remember-annotation-functions}. To include all of the annotations, | |
236 | set @code{remember-run-all-annotation-functions-flag} to non-nil. | |
237 | ||
238 | @defopt remember-run-all-annotation-functions-flag | |
239 | Non-nil means use all annotations returned by | |
240 | @code{remember-annotation-functions}. | |
241 | @end defopt | |
242 | ||
243 | You can write custom functions that use a different set of | |
244 | remember-annotation-functions. For example: | |
245 | ||
246 | @lisp | |
247 | (defun my/remember-with-filename () | |
248 | "Always use the filename." | |
249 | (interactive) | |
250 | (let ((remember-annotation-functions '(buffer-file-name))) | |
251 | (call-interactively 'remember))) | |
252 | @end lisp | |
253 | ||
563a450c | 254 | @node Function Reference |
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255 | @chapter Function Reference |
256 | ||
257 | @file{remember.el} defines the following interactive functions: | |
258 | ||
259 | @defun remember initial | |
260 | Remember an arbitrary piece of data. With a prefix, it will use the | |
261 | region as @var{initial}. | |
262 | @end defun | |
263 | ||
264 | @defun remember-region beg end | |
265 | If called from within the remember buffer, @var{beg} and @var{end} are | |
266 | ignored, and the entire buffer will be remembered. If called from any | |
267 | other buffer, that region, plus any context information specific to | |
268 | that region, will be remembered. | |
269 | @end defun | |
270 | ||
271 | @defun remember-clipboard | |
272 | Remember the contents of the current clipboard. This is most useful | |
273 | for remembering things from Netscape or other X Windows applications. | |
274 | @end defun | |
275 | ||
6159985a | 276 | @defun remember-finalize |
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277 | Remember the contents of the current buffer. |
278 | @end defun | |
279 | ||
280 | @defun remember-mode | |
281 | This enters the major mode for output from @command{remember}. This | |
282 | buffer is used to collect data that you want remember. Just hit | |
283 | @kbd{C-c C-c} when you're done entering, and it will go ahead and file | |
284 | the data for latter retrieval, and possible indexing. | |
285 | @end defun | |
286 | ||
563a450c | 287 | @node Keystrokes |
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288 | @chapter Keystroke Reference |
289 | ||
290 | @file{remember.el} defines the following keybindings by default: | |
291 | ||
292 | @table @kbd | |
293 | ||
6159985a | 294 | @item C-c C-c (`remember-finalize') |
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295 | Remember the contents of the current buffer. |
296 | ||
297 | @item C-c C-k (`remember-destroy') | |
298 | Destroy the current *Remember* buffer. | |
299 | ||
6159985a | 300 | @item C-x C-s (`remember-finalize') |
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301 | Remember the contents of the current buffer. |
302 | ||
303 | @end table | |
304 | ||
563a450c | 305 | @node Backends |
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306 | @chapter Backends |
307 | ||
308 | You can save remembered notes to a variety of backends. | |
309 | ||
310 | @menu | |
311 | * Text File:: Saving to a text file. | |
bec9b2f5 | 312 | * Diary:: Saving to a Diary file. |
15f3eb73 | 313 | * Mailbox:: Saving to a mailbox. |
bec9b2f5 | 314 | * Org:: Saving to an Org Mode file. |
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315 | @end menu |
316 | ||
563a450c | 317 | @node Text File |
15f3eb73 | 318 | @section Saving to a Text File |
bec9b2f5 | 319 | @cindex text file, saving to |
15f3eb73 | 320 | |
bec9b2f5 | 321 | @subheading Insinuation |
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322 | |
323 | @lisp | |
324 | (setq remember-handler-functions '(remember-append-to-file)) | |
325 | @end lisp | |
326 | ||
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327 | @subheading Options |
328 | ||
15f3eb73 | 329 | @defopt remember-data-file |
bec9b2f5 | 330 | The file in which to store unprocessed data. |
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331 | @end defopt |
332 | ||
333 | @defopt remember-leader-text | |
bec9b2f5 | 334 | The text used to begin each remember item. |
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335 | @end defopt |
336 | ||
563a450c | 337 | @node Diary |
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338 | @section Saving to a Diary file |
339 | @cindex diary, integration | |
15f3eb73 | 340 | |
bec9b2f5 | 341 | @subheading Insinuation |
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342 | |
343 | @lisp | |
bec9b2f5 | 344 | (add-to-list 'remember-handler-functions 'remember-diary-extract-entries) |
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345 | @end lisp |
346 | ||
bec9b2f5 | 347 | @subheading Options |
15f3eb73 | 348 | |
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349 | @defopt remember-diary-file |
350 | File for extracted diary entries. | |
3728bf03 | 351 | If this is nil, then @code{diary-file} will be used instead." |
bec9b2f5 | 352 | @end defopt |
15f3eb73 | 353 | |
563a450c | 354 | @node Mailbox |
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355 | @section Saving to a Mailbox |
356 | @cindex mailbox, saving to | |
15f3eb73 | 357 | |
bec9b2f5 | 358 | @subheading Insinuation |
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359 | |
360 | @lisp | |
bec9b2f5 | 361 | (add-to-list 'remember-handler-functions 'remember-store-in-mailbox) |
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362 | @end lisp |
363 | ||
bec9b2f5 | 364 | @subheading Options |
15f3eb73 | 365 | |
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366 | @defopt remember-mailbox |
367 | The file in which to store remember data as mail. | |
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368 | @end defopt |
369 | ||
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370 | @defopt remember-default-priority |
371 | The default priority for remembered mail messages. | |
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372 | @end defopt |
373 | ||
563a450c | 374 | @node Org |
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375 | @section Saving to an Org Mode file |
376 | @cindex org mode, integration | |
377 | ||
0fd2c9a3 GM |
378 | @ignore |
379 | From org.texi: | |
380 | Up to version 6.36 Org used a special setup | |
381 | for @file{remember.el}. @file{org-remember.el} is still part of Org mode for | |
382 | backward compatibility with existing setups. You can find the documentation | |
383 | for org-remember at @url{http://orgmode.org/org-remember.pdf}. | |
384 | @end ignore | |
bec9b2f5 | 385 | For instructions on how to integrate Remember with Org Mode, |
0fd2c9a3 | 386 | consult @ref{Capture, , , org}. |
15f3eb73 | 387 | |
563a450c | 388 | @node GNU Free Documentation License |
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389 | @appendix GNU Free Documentation License |
390 | @include doclicense.texi | |
391 | ||
563a450c | 392 | @node Concept Index |
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393 | @unnumbered Index |
394 | ||
395 | @printindex cp | |
396 | ||
397 | @bye |