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1 @c This is part of the Emacs manual.
2 @c Copyright (C) 1985-1987, 1993-1995, 1997, 1999-2011
3 @c Free Software Foundation, Inc.
4 @c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions.
5 @node Programs, Building, Text, Top
6 @chapter Editing Programs
7 @cindex Lisp editing
8 @cindex C editing
9 @cindex program editing
10
11 Emacs provides many features to facilitate editing programs. Some
12 of these features can
13
14 @itemize @bullet
15 @item
16 Find or move over top-level definitions (@pxref{Defuns}).
17 @item
18 Apply the usual indentation conventions of the language
19 (@pxref{Program Indent}).
20 @item
21 Balance parentheses (@pxref{Parentheses}).
22 @item
23 Insert, kill or align comments (@pxref{Comments}).
24 @item
25 Highlight program syntax (@pxref{Font Lock}).
26 @end itemize
27
28 This chapter describes these features and many more.
29
30 @menu
31 * Program Modes:: Major modes for editing programs.
32 * Defuns:: Commands to operate on major top-level parts
33 of a program.
34 * Program Indent:: Adjusting indentation to show the nesting.
35 * Parentheses:: Commands that operate on parentheses.
36 * Comments:: Inserting, killing, and aligning comments.
37 * Documentation:: Getting documentation of functions you plan to call.
38 * Hideshow:: Displaying blocks selectively.
39 * Symbol Completion:: Completion on symbol names of your program or language.
40 * Glasses:: Making identifiersLikeThis more readable.
41 * Semantic:: Suite of editing tools based on source code parsing.
42 * Misc for Programs:: Other Emacs features useful for editing programs.
43 * C Modes:: Special commands of C, C++, Objective-C,
44 Java, and Pike modes.
45 * Asm Mode:: Asm mode and its special features.
46 @ifnottex
47 * Fortran:: Fortran mode and its special features.
48 @end ifnottex
49 @end menu
50
51 @node Program Modes
52 @section Major Modes for Programming Languages
53 @cindex modes for programming languages
54
55 Emacs has specialized major modes for various programming languages.
56 @xref{Major Modes}. A programming language major mode typically
57 specifies the syntax of expressions, the customary rules for
58 indentation, how to do syntax highlighting for the language, and how
59 to find the beginning or end of a function definition. It often
60 customizes or provides facilities for compiling and debugging programs
61 as well.
62
63 Ideally, Emacs should provide a major mode for each programming
64 language that you might want to edit; if it doesn't have a mode for
65 your favorite language, you can contribute one. But often the mode
66 for one language can serve for other syntactically similar languages.
67 The major mode for language @var{l} is called @code{@var{l}-mode},
68 and you can select it by typing @kbd{M-x @var{l}-mode @key{RET}}.
69 @xref{Choosing Modes}.
70
71 @cindex Perl mode
72 @cindex Icon mode
73 @cindex Makefile mode
74 @cindex Tcl mode
75 @cindex CPerl mode
76 @cindex DSSSL mode
77 @cindex Octave mode
78 @cindex Metafont mode
79 @cindex Modula2 mode
80 @cindex Prolog mode
81 @cindex Python mode
82 @cindex Ruby mode
83 @cindex Simula mode
84 @cindex VHDL mode
85 @cindex M4 mode
86 @cindex Shell-script mode
87 @cindex Delphi mode
88 @cindex PostScript mode
89 @cindex Conf mode
90 @cindex DNS mode
91 @cindex Javascript mode
92 The existing programming language major modes include Lisp, Scheme
93 (a variant of Lisp) and the Scheme-based DSSSL expression language,
94 Ada, ASM, AWK, C, C++, Delphi (Object Pascal), Fortran, Icon, IDL
95 (CORBA), IDLWAVE, Java, Javascript, Metafont (@TeX{}'s companion for
96 font creation), Modula2, Objective-C, Octave, Pascal, Perl, Pike,
97 PostScript, Prolog, Python, Ruby, Simula, Tcl, and VHDL. An
98 alternative mode for Perl is called CPerl mode. Modes are available
99 for the scripting languages of the common GNU and Unix shells, VMS
100 DCL, and MS-DOS/MS-Windows @samp{BAT} files. There are also major
101 modes for editing makefiles, DNS master files, and various sorts of
102 configuration files.
103
104 @kindex DEL @r{(programming modes)}
105 @findex c-electric-backspace
106 In most programming languages, indentation should vary from line to
107 line to illustrate the structure of the program. So the major modes
108 for programming languages arrange for @key{TAB} to update the
109 indentation of the current line (@pxref{Program Indent}). They also
110 rebind @key{DEL} to treat a tab as if it were the equivalent number of
111 spaces; this lets you delete one column of indentation without
112 worrying whether the whitespace consists of spaces or tabs. Use
113 @kbd{C-b C-d} to delete a tab character before point, in these modes.
114
115 Separate manuals are available for the modes for Ada (@pxref{Top, , Ada
116 Mode, ada-mode, Ada Mode}), C/C++/Objective C/Java/Corba IDL/Pike/AWK
117 (@pxref{Top, , CC Mode, ccmode, CC Mode}) and the IDLWAVE modes
118 (@pxref{Top, , IDLWAVE, idlwave, IDLWAVE User Manual}). For Fortran
119 mode, see
120 @iftex
121 @ref{Fortran,,, emacs-xtra, Specialized Emacs Features}.
122 @end iftex
123 @ifnottex
124 @ref{Fortran}.
125 @end ifnottex
126
127 @cindex mode hook
128 @vindex c-mode-hook
129 @vindex lisp-mode-hook
130 @vindex emacs-lisp-mode-hook
131 @vindex lisp-interaction-mode-hook
132 @vindex scheme-mode-hook
133 Turning on a major mode runs a normal hook called the @dfn{mode
134 hook}, which is the value of a Lisp variable. Each major mode has a
135 mode hook, and the hook's name is always made from the mode command's
136 name by adding @samp{-hook}. For example, turning on C mode runs the
137 hook @code{c-mode-hook}, while turning on Lisp mode runs the hook
138 @code{lisp-mode-hook}. The purpose of the mode hook is to give you a
139 place to set up customizations for that major mode. @xref{Hooks}.
140
141 @node Defuns
142 @section Top-Level Definitions, or Defuns
143
144 In Emacs, a major definition at the top level in the buffer, such as
145 a function, is called a @dfn{defun}. The name comes from Lisp, but in
146 Emacs we use it for all languages.
147
148 @menu
149 * Left Margin Paren:: An open-paren or similar opening delimiter
150 starts a defun if it is at the left margin.
151 * Moving by Defuns:: Commands to move over or mark a major definition.
152 * Imenu:: Making buffer indexes as menus.
153 * Which Function:: Which Function mode shows which function you are in.
154 @end menu
155
156 @node Left Margin Paren
157 @subsection Left Margin Convention
158
159 @cindex open-parenthesis in leftmost column
160 @cindex ( in leftmost column
161 Many programming-language modes assume by default that any opening
162 delimiter found at the left margin is the start of a top-level
163 definition, or defun. Therefore, @strong{don't put an opening
164 delimiter at the left margin unless it should have that significance}.
165 For instance, never put an open-parenthesis at the left margin in a
166 Lisp file unless it is the start of a top-level list.
167
168 The convention speeds up many Emacs operations, which would
169 otherwise have to scan back to the beginning of the buffer to analyze
170 the syntax of the code.
171
172 If you don't follow this convention, not only will you have trouble
173 when you explicitly use the commands for motion by defuns; other
174 features that use them will also give you trouble. This includes the
175 indentation commands (@pxref{Program Indent}) and Font Lock mode
176 (@pxref{Font Lock}).
177
178 The most likely problem case is when you want an opening delimiter
179 at the start of a line inside a string. To avoid trouble, put an
180 escape character (@samp{\}, in C and Emacs Lisp, @samp{/} in some
181 other Lisp dialects) before the opening delimiter. This will not
182 affect the contents of the string, but will prevent that opening
183 delimiter from starting a defun. Here's an example:
184
185 @example
186 (insert "Foo:
187 \(bar)
188 ")
189 @end example
190
191 To help you catch violations of this convention, Font Lock mode
192 highlights confusing opening delimiters (those that ought to be
193 quoted) in bold red.
194
195 If you need to override this convention, you can do so by setting
196 this user option:
197
198 @defvar open-paren-in-column-0-is-defun-start
199 If this user option is set to @code{t} (the default), opening
200 parentheses or braces at column zero always start defuns. When it's
201 @code{nil}, defuns are found by searching for parens or braces at the
202 outermost level.
203 @end defvar
204
205 Usually, you should leave this option at its default value of
206 @code{t}. If your buffer contains parentheses or braces in column
207 zero which don't start defuns, and it is somehow impractical to remove
208 these parentheses or braces, it might be helpful to set the option to
209 @code{nil}. Be aware that this might make scrolling and display in
210 large buffers quite sluggish. Furthermore, the parentheses and braces
211 must be correctly matched throughout the buffer for it to work
212 properly.
213
214 @node Moving by Defuns
215 @subsection Moving by Defuns
216 @cindex defuns
217
218 These commands move point or set up the region based on top-level
219 major definitions, also called @dfn{defuns}.
220
221 @table @kbd
222 @item C-M-a
223 Move to beginning of current or preceding defun
224 (@code{beginning-of-defun}).
225 @item C-M-e
226 Move to end of current or following defun (@code{end-of-defun}).
227 @item C-M-h
228 Put region around whole current or following defun (@code{mark-defun}).
229 @end table
230
231 @cindex move to beginning or end of function
232 @cindex function, move to beginning or end
233 @kindex C-M-a
234 @kindex C-M-e
235 @kindex C-M-h
236 @findex beginning-of-defun
237 @findex end-of-defun
238 @findex mark-defun
239 The commands to move to the beginning and end of the current defun
240 are @kbd{C-M-a} (@code{beginning-of-defun}) and @kbd{C-M-e}
241 (@code{end-of-defun}). If you repeat one of these commands, or use a
242 positive numeric argument, each repetition moves to the next defun in
243 the direction of motion.
244
245 @kbd{C-M-a} with a negative argument @minus{}@var{n} moves forward
246 @var{n} times to the next beginning of a defun. This is not exactly
247 the same place that @kbd{C-M-e} with argument @var{n} would move to;
248 the end of this defun is not usually exactly the same place as the
249 beginning of the following defun. (Whitespace, comments, and perhaps
250 declarations can separate them.) Likewise, @kbd{C-M-e} with a
251 negative argument moves back to an end of a defun, which is not quite
252 the same as @kbd{C-M-a} with a positive argument.
253
254 @kindex C-M-h @r{(C mode)}
255 @findex c-mark-function
256 To operate on the current defun, use @kbd{C-M-h}
257 (@code{mark-defun}), which sets the mark at the end of the current
258 defun and puts point at its beginning. @xref{Marking Objects}. This
259 is the easiest way to get ready to kill the defun in order to move it
260 to a different place in the file. If you use the command while point
261 is between defuns, it uses the following defun. If you use the
262 command while the mark is already active, it sets the mark but does
263 not move point; furthermore, each successive use of @kbd{C-M-h}
264 extends the end of the region to include one more defun.
265
266 In C mode, @kbd{C-M-h} runs the function @code{c-mark-function},
267 which is almost the same as @code{mark-defun}; the difference is that
268 it backs up over the argument declarations, function name and returned
269 data type so that the entire C function is inside the region. This is
270 an example of how major modes adjust the standard key bindings so that
271 they do their standard jobs in a way better fitting a particular
272 language. Other major modes may replace any or all of these key
273 bindings for that purpose.
274
275 @node Imenu
276 @subsection Imenu
277 @cindex index of buffer definitions
278 @cindex buffer definitions index
279
280 The Imenu facility offers a way to find the major definitions in
281 a file by name. It is also useful in text formatter major modes,
282 where it treats each chapter, section, etc., as a definition.
283 (@xref{Tags}, for a more powerful feature that handles multiple files
284 together.)
285
286 @findex imenu
287 If you type @kbd{M-x imenu}, it reads the name of a definition using
288 the minibuffer, then moves point to that definition. You can use
289 completion to specify the name; the command always displays the whole
290 list of valid names.
291
292 @findex imenu-add-menubar-index
293 Alternatively, you can bind the command @code{imenu} to a mouse
294 click. Then it displays mouse menus for you to select a definition
295 name. You can also add the buffer's index to the menu bar by calling
296 @code{imenu-add-menubar-index}. If you want to have this menu bar
297 item available for all buffers in a certain major mode, you can do
298 this by adding @code{imenu-add-menubar-index} to its mode hook. But
299 if you have done that, you will have to wait a little while each time
300 you visit a file in that mode, while Emacs finds all the definitions
301 in that buffer.
302
303 @vindex imenu-auto-rescan
304 When you change the contents of a buffer, if you add or delete
305 definitions, you can update the buffer's index based on the
306 new contents by invoking the @samp{*Rescan*} item in the menu.
307 Rescanning happens automatically if you set @code{imenu-auto-rescan} to
308 a non-@code{nil} value. There is no need to rescan because of small
309 changes in the text.
310
311 @vindex imenu-sort-function
312 You can customize the way the menus are sorted by setting the
313 variable @code{imenu-sort-function}. By default, names are ordered as
314 they occur in the buffer; if you want alphabetic sorting, use the
315 symbol @code{imenu--sort-by-name} as the value. You can also
316 define your own comparison function by writing Lisp code.
317
318 Imenu provides the information to guide Which Function mode
319 @ifnottex
320 (@pxref{Which Function}).
321 @end ifnottex
322 @iftex
323 (see below).
324 @end iftex
325 The Speedbar can also use it (@pxref{Speedbar}).
326
327 @node Which Function
328 @subsection Which Function Mode
329 @cindex current function name in mode line
330
331 Which Function mode is a minor mode that displays the current
332 function name in the mode line, updating it as you move around in a
333 buffer.
334
335 @findex which-function-mode
336 @vindex which-func-modes
337 To either enable or disable Which Function mode, use the command
338 @kbd{M-x which-function-mode}. This command applies to all buffers,
339 both existing ones and those yet to be created. However, it takes
340 effect only in certain major modes, those listed in the value of
341 @code{which-func-modes}. If the value of @code{which-func-modes} is
342 @code{t} rather than a list of modes, then Which Function mode applies
343 to all major modes that know how to support it---in other words, all
344 the major modes that support Imenu.
345
346 @node Program Indent
347 @section Indentation for Programs
348 @cindex indentation for programs
349
350 The best way to keep a program properly indented is to use Emacs to
351 reindent it as you change it. Emacs has commands to indent either a
352 single line, a specified number of lines, or all of the lines inside a
353 single parenthetical grouping.
354
355 @menu
356 * Basic Indent:: Indenting a single line.
357 * Multi-line Indent:: Commands to reindent many lines at once.
358 * Lisp Indent:: Specifying how each Lisp function should be indented.
359 * C Indent:: Extra features for indenting C and related modes.
360 * Custom C Indent:: Controlling indentation style for C and related modes.
361 @end menu
362
363 @cindex pretty-printer
364 Emacs also provides a Lisp pretty-printer in the library @code{pp}.
365 This program reformats a Lisp object with indentation chosen to look nice.
366
367 @node Basic Indent
368 @subsection Basic Program Indentation Commands
369
370 The basic indentation commands indent a single line according to the
371 usual conventions of the language you are editing.
372
373 @table @kbd
374 @item @key{TAB}
375 Adjust indentation of current line.
376 @item C-j
377 Insert a newline, then adjust indentation of following line
378 (@code{newline-and-indent}).
379 @end table
380
381 @kindex TAB @r{(programming modes)}
382 @findex c-indent-command
383 @findex indent-line-function
384 @findex indent-for-tab-command
385 The basic indentation command is @key{TAB}. In any
386 programming-language major mode, @key{TAB} gives the current line the
387 correct indentation as determined from the previous lines. It does
388 this by inserting or deleting whitespace at the beginning of the
389 current line. If point was inside the whitespace at the beginning of
390 the line, @key{TAB} puts it at the end of that whitespace; otherwise,
391 @key{TAB} keeps point fixed with respect to the characters around it.
392 If the region is active (@pxref{Mark}), @key{TAB} indents every line
393 within the region instead of just the current line. The function that
394 @key{TAB} runs depends on the major mode; for instance, it is
395 @code{c-indent-line-or-region} in C mode. Each function is aware of
396 the syntax and conventions for its particular language.
397
398 Use @kbd{C-q @key{TAB}} to insert a tab character at point.
399
400 @kindex C-j
401 @findex newline-and-indent
402 When entering lines of new code, use @kbd{C-j}
403 (@code{newline-and-indent}), which inserts a newline and then adjusts
404 indentation after it. (It also deletes any trailing whitespace which
405 remains before the new newline.) For instance, @kbd{C-j} at the end
406 of a line creates a blank line with appropriate indentation. In
407 programming language modes, it is equivalent to @key{RET} @key{TAB}.
408
409 When Emacs indents a line that starts within a parenthetical
410 grouping, it usually places the start of the line under the preceding
411 line within the group, or under the text after the parenthesis. If
412 you manually give one of these lines a nonstandard indentation, the
413 lines below will tend to follow it. This behavior is convenient in
414 cases where you have overridden the standard result of @key{TAB}
415 indentation (e.g., for aesthetic purposes).
416
417 Many programming-language modes assume that an open-parenthesis,
418 open-brace or other opening delimiter at the left margin is the start
419 of a function. This assumption speeds up indentation commands. If
420 the text you are editing contains opening delimiters in column zero
421 that aren't the beginning of a functions---even if these delimiters
422 occur inside strings or comments---then you must set
423 @code{open-paren-in-column-0-is-defun-start}. @xref{Left Margin
424 Paren}.
425
426 Normally, Emacs indents lines using an ``optimal'' mix of tab and
427 space characters. If you want Emacs to use spaces only, set
428 @code{indent-tabs-mode} (@pxref{Just Spaces}).
429
430 @node Multi-line Indent
431 @subsection Indenting Several Lines
432
433 Sometimes, you may want to reindent several lines of code at a time.
434 One way to do this is to use the mark; when the mark is active and the
435 region is non-empty, @key{TAB} indents every line within the region.
436 In addition, Emacs provides several other commands for indenting large
437 chunks of code:
438
439 @table @kbd
440 @item C-M-q
441 Reindent all the lines within one parenthetical grouping.
442 @item C-M-\
443 Reindent all lines in the region (@code{indent-region}).
444 @item C-u @key{TAB}
445 Shift an entire parenthetical grouping rigidly sideways so that its
446 first line is properly indented.
447 @item M-x indent-code-rigidly
448 Shift all the lines in the region rigidly sideways, but do not alter
449 lines that start inside comments and strings.
450 @end table
451
452 @kindex C-M-q
453 @findex indent-pp-sexp
454 To reindent the contents of a single parenthetical grouping,
455 position point before the beginning of the grouping and type
456 @kbd{C-M-q}. This changes the relative indentation within the
457 grouping, without affecting its overall indentation (i.e., the
458 indentation of the line where the grouping starts). The function that
459 @kbd{C-M-q} runs depends on the major mode; it is
460 @code{indent-pp-sexp} in Lisp mode, @code{c-indent-exp} in C mode,
461 etc. To correct the overall indentation as well, type @key{TAB}
462 first.
463
464 @kbd{C-M-\} (@code{indent-region}) applies @key{TAB} to the region.
465 This is useful when Transient Mark mode is disabled (@pxref{Persistent
466 Mark}), because in that case @key{TAB} does not act on the region.
467
468 @kindex C-u TAB
469 If you like the relative indentation within a grouping but not the
470 indentation of its first line, move point to that first line and type
471 @kbd{C-u @key{TAB}}. In Lisp, C, and some other major modes,
472 @key{TAB} with a numeric argument reindents the current line as usual,
473 then reindents by the same amount all the lines in the parenthetical
474 grouping starting on the current line. It is clever, though, and does
475 not alter lines that start inside strings. Neither does it alter C
476 preprocessor lines when in C mode, but it does reindent any
477 continuation lines that may be attached to them.
478
479 @findex indent-code-rigidly
480 The command @kbd{M-x indent-code-rigidly} rigidly shifts all the
481 lines in the region sideways, like @code{indent-rigidly} does
482 (@pxref{Indentation Commands}). It doesn't alter the indentation of
483 lines that start inside a string, unless the region also starts inside
484 that string. The prefix arg specifies the number of columns to
485 indent.
486
487 @node Lisp Indent
488 @subsection Customizing Lisp Indentation
489 @cindex customizing Lisp indentation
490
491 The indentation pattern for a Lisp expression can depend on the function
492 called by the expression. For each Lisp function, you can choose among
493 several predefined patterns of indentation, or define an arbitrary one with
494 a Lisp program.
495
496 The standard pattern of indentation is as follows: the second line of the
497 expression is indented under the first argument, if that is on the same
498 line as the beginning of the expression; otherwise, the second line is
499 indented underneath the function name. Each following line is indented
500 under the previous line whose nesting depth is the same.
501
502 @vindex lisp-indent-offset
503 If the variable @code{lisp-indent-offset} is non-@code{nil}, it overrides
504 the usual indentation pattern for the second line of an expression, so that
505 such lines are always indented @code{lisp-indent-offset} more columns than
506 the containing list.
507
508 @vindex lisp-body-indent
509 Certain functions override the standard pattern. Functions whose
510 names start with @code{def} treat the second lines as the start of
511 a @dfn{body}, by indenting the second line @code{lisp-body-indent}
512 additional columns beyond the open-parenthesis that starts the
513 expression.
514
515 @cindex @code{lisp-indent-function} property
516 You can override the standard pattern in various ways for individual
517 functions, according to the @code{lisp-indent-function} property of
518 the function name. Normally you would use this for macro definitions
519 and specify it using the @code{declare} construct (@pxref{Defining
520 Macros,,, elisp, the Emacs Lisp Reference Manual}).
521
522 @node C Indent
523 @subsection Commands for C Indentation
524
525 Here are special features for indentation in C mode and related modes:
526
527 @table @code
528 @item C-c C-q
529 @kindex C-c C-q @r{(C mode)}
530 @findex c-indent-defun
531 Reindent the current top-level function definition or aggregate type
532 declaration (@code{c-indent-defun}).
533
534 @item C-M-q
535 @kindex C-M-q @r{(C mode)}
536 @findex c-indent-exp
537 Reindent each line in the balanced expression that follows point
538 (@code{c-indent-exp}). A prefix argument inhibits warning messages
539 about invalid syntax.
540
541 @item @key{TAB}
542 @findex c-indent-command
543 Reindent the current line, and/or in some cases insert a tab character
544 (@code{c-indent-command}).
545
546 @vindex c-tab-always-indent
547 If @code{c-tab-always-indent} is @code{t}, this command always reindents
548 the current line and does nothing else. This is the default.
549
550 If that variable is @code{nil}, this command reindents the current line
551 only if point is at the left margin or in the line's indentation;
552 otherwise, it inserts a tab (or the equivalent number of spaces,
553 if @code{indent-tabs-mode} is @code{nil}).
554
555 Any other value (not @code{nil} or @code{t}) means always reindent the
556 line, and also insert a tab if within a comment or a string.
557 @end table
558
559 To reindent the whole current buffer, type @kbd{C-x h C-M-\}. This
560 first selects the whole buffer as the region, then reindents that
561 region.
562
563 To reindent the current block, use @kbd{C-M-u C-M-q}. This moves
564 to the front of the block and then reindents it all.
565
566 @node Custom C Indent
567 @subsection Customizing C Indentation
568 @cindex style (for indentation)
569
570 C mode and related modes use a flexible mechanism for customizing
571 indentation. C mode indents a source line in two steps: first it
572 classifies the line syntactically according to its contents and
573 context; second, it determines the indentation offset associated by
574 your selected @dfn{style} with the syntactic construct and adds this
575 onto the indentation of the @dfn{anchor statement}.
576
577 @table @kbd
578 @item C-c . @key{RET} @var{style} @key{RET}
579 Select a predefined style @var{style} (@code{c-set-style}).
580 @end table
581
582 A @dfn{style} is a named collection of customizations that can be
583 used in C mode and the related modes. @ref{Styles,,, ccmode, The CC
584 Mode Manual}, for a complete description. Emacs comes with several
585 predefined styles, including @code{gnu}, @code{k&r}, @code{bsd},
586 @code{stroustrup}, @code{linux}, @code{python}, @code{java},
587 @code{whitesmith}, @code{ellemtel}, and @code{awk}. Some of these
588 styles are primarily intended for one language, but any of them can be
589 used with any of the languages supported by these modes. To find out
590 what a style looks like, select it and reindent some code, e.g., by
591 typing @key{C-M-q} at the start of a function definition.
592
593 @kindex C-c . @r{(C mode)}
594 @findex c-set-style
595 To choose a style for the current buffer, use the command @w{@kbd{C-c
596 .}}. Specify a style name as an argument (case is not significant).
597 This command affects the current buffer only, and it affects only
598 future invocations of the indentation commands; it does not reindent
599 the code already in the buffer. To reindent the whole buffer in the
600 new style, you can type @kbd{C-x h C-M-\}.
601
602 @vindex c-default-style
603 You can also set the variable @code{c-default-style} to specify the
604 default style for various major modes. Its value should be either the
605 style's name (a string) or an alist, in which each element specifies
606 one major mode and which indentation style to use for it. For
607 example,
608
609 @example
610 (setq c-default-style
611 '((java-mode . "java")
612 (awk-mode . "awk")
613 (other . "gnu")))
614 @end example
615
616 @noindent
617 specifies explicit choices for Java and AWK modes, and the default
618 @samp{gnu} style for the other C-like modes. (These settings are
619 actually the defaults.) This variable takes effect when you select
620 one of the C-like major modes; thus, if you specify a new default
621 style for Java mode, you can make it take effect in an existing Java
622 mode buffer by typing @kbd{M-x java-mode} there.
623
624 The @code{gnu} style specifies the formatting recommended by the GNU
625 Project for C; it is the default, so as to encourage use of our
626 recommended style.
627
628 @xref{Indentation Engine Basics,,, ccmode, the CC Mode Manual}, and
629 @ref{Customizing Indentation,,, ccmode, the CC Mode Manual}, for more
630 information on customizing indentation for C and related modes,
631 including how to override parts of an existing style and how to define
632 your own styles.
633
634 @node Parentheses
635 @section Commands for Editing with Parentheses
636
637 @findex check-parens
638 @cindex unbalanced parentheses and quotes
639 This section describes the commands and features that take advantage
640 of the parenthesis structure in a program, or help you keep it
641 balanced.
642
643 When talking about these facilities, the term ``parenthesis'' also
644 includes braces, brackets, or whatever delimiters are defined to match
645 in pairs. The major mode controls which delimiters are significant,
646 through the syntax table (@pxref{Syntax}). In Lisp, only parentheses
647 count; in C, these commands apply to braces and brackets too.
648
649 You can use @kbd{M-x check-parens} to find any unbalanced
650 parentheses and unbalanced string quotes in the buffer.
651
652 @menu
653 * Expressions:: Expressions with balanced parentheses.
654 * Moving by Parens:: Commands for moving up, down and across
655 in the structure of parentheses.
656 * Matching:: Insertion of a close-delimiter flashes matching open.
657 @end menu
658
659 @node Expressions
660 @subsection Expressions with Balanced Parentheses
661
662 @cindex sexp
663 @cindex expression
664 @cindex balanced expression
665 These commands deal with balanced expressions, also called
666 @dfn{sexps}@footnote{The word ``sexp'' is used to refer to an
667 expression in Lisp.}.
668
669 @table @kbd
670 @item C-M-f
671 Move forward over a balanced expression (@code{forward-sexp}).
672 @item C-M-b
673 Move backward over a balanced expression (@code{backward-sexp}).
674 @item C-M-k
675 Kill balanced expression forward (@code{kill-sexp}).
676 @item C-M-t
677 Transpose expressions (@code{transpose-sexps}).
678 @item C-M-@@
679 @itemx C-M-@key{SPC}
680 Put mark after following expression (@code{mark-sexp}).
681 @end table
682
683 Each programming language major mode customizes the definition of
684 balanced expressions to suit that language. Balanced expressions
685 typically include symbols, numbers, and string constants, as well as
686 any pair of matching delimiters and their contents. Some languages
687 have obscure forms of expression syntax that nobody has bothered to
688 implement in Emacs.
689
690 @cindex Control-Meta
691 By convention, the keys for these commands are all Control-Meta
692 characters. They usually act on expressions just as the corresponding
693 Meta characters act on words. For instance, the command @kbd{C-M-b}
694 moves backward over a balanced expression, just as @kbd{M-b} moves
695 back over a word.
696
697 @kindex C-M-f
698 @kindex C-M-b
699 @findex forward-sexp
700 @findex backward-sexp
701 To move forward over a balanced expression, use @kbd{C-M-f}
702 (@code{forward-sexp}). If the first significant character after point
703 is an opening delimiter (@samp{(} in Lisp; @samp{(}, @samp{[} or
704 @samp{@{} in C), @kbd{C-M-f} moves past the matching closing
705 delimiter. If the character begins a symbol, string, or number,
706 @kbd{C-M-f} moves over that.
707
708 The command @kbd{C-M-b} (@code{backward-sexp}) moves backward over a
709 balanced expression. The detailed rules are like those above for
710 @kbd{C-M-f}, but with directions reversed. If there are prefix
711 characters (single-quote, backquote and comma, in Lisp) preceding the
712 expression, @kbd{C-M-b} moves back over them as well. The balanced
713 expression commands move across comments as if they were whitespace,
714 in most modes.
715
716 @kbd{C-M-f} or @kbd{C-M-b} with an argument repeats that operation the
717 specified number of times; with a negative argument, it moves in the
718 opposite direction.
719
720 @cindex killing expressions
721 @kindex C-M-k
722 @findex kill-sexp
723 Killing a whole balanced expression can be done with @kbd{C-M-k}
724 (@code{kill-sexp}). @kbd{C-M-k} kills the characters that @kbd{C-M-f}
725 would move over.
726
727 @cindex transposition of expressions
728 @kindex C-M-t
729 @findex transpose-sexps
730 A somewhat random-sounding command which is nevertheless handy is
731 @kbd{C-M-t} (@code{transpose-sexps}), which drags the previous
732 balanced expression across the next one. An argument serves as a
733 repeat count, moving the previous expression over that many following
734 ones. A negative argument drags the previous balanced expression
735 backwards across those before it (thus canceling out the effect of
736 @kbd{C-M-t} with a positive argument). An argument of zero, rather
737 than doing nothing, transposes the balanced expressions ending at or
738 after point and the mark.
739
740 @kindex C-M-@@
741 @kindex C-M-@key{SPC}
742 @findex mark-sexp
743 To set the region around the next balanced expression in the buffer,
744 use @kbd{C-M-@key{SPC}} (@code{mark-sexp}), which sets mark at the
745 same place that @kbd{C-M-f} would move to. @kbd{C-M-@key{SPC}} treats
746 numeric arguments in the same way as @kbd{C-M-f}; in particular, a
747 negative argument puts the mark at the beginning of the previous
748 balanced expression. The alias @kbd{C-M-@@} is equivalent to
749 @kbd{C-M-@key{SPC}}. While the mark is active, each successive use of
750 @kbd{C-M-@key{SPC}} extends the region by shifting the mark by one
751 sexp.
752
753 In languages that use infix operators, such as C, it is not possible
754 to recognize all balanced expressions as such because there can be
755 multiple possibilities at a given position. For example, C mode does
756 not treat @samp{foo + bar} as a single expression, even though it
757 @emph{is} one C expression; instead, it recognizes @samp{foo} as one
758 expression and @samp{bar} as another, with the @samp{+} as punctuation
759 between them. Both @samp{foo + bar} and @samp{foo} are legitimate
760 choices for ``the expression following point'' when point is at the
761 @samp{f}, so the expression commands must perforce choose one or the
762 other to operate on. Note that @samp{(foo + bar)} is recognized as a
763 single expression in C mode, because of the parentheses.
764
765 @node Moving by Parens
766 @subsection Moving in the Parenthesis Structure
767
768 @cindex parenthetical groupings
769 @cindex parentheses, moving across
770 @cindex matching parenthesis and braces, moving to
771 @cindex braces, moving across
772 @cindex list commands
773
774 The Emacs commands for handling parenthetical groupings see nothing
775 except parentheses (or whatever characters must balance in the
776 language you are working with). They ignore strings and comments
777 (including any parentheses within them) and ignore parentheses quoted
778 by an escape character. They are mainly intended for editing
779 programs, but can be useful for editing any text that has parentheses.
780 They are sometimes called ``list'' commands because in Lisp these
781 groupings are lists.
782
783 These commands assume that the starting point is not inside a string
784 or a comment. Sometimes you can invoke them usefully from one of
785 these places (for example, when you have a parenthesised clause in a
786 comment) but this is unreliable.
787
788 @table @kbd
789 @item C-M-n
790 Move forward over a parenthetical group (@code{forward-list}).
791 @item C-M-p
792 Move backward over a parenthetical group (@code{backward-list}).
793 @item C-M-u
794 Move up in parenthesis structure (@code{backward-up-list}).
795 @item C-M-d
796 Move down in parenthesis structure (@code{down-list}).
797 @end table
798
799 @kindex C-M-n
800 @kindex C-M-p
801 @findex forward-list
802 @findex backward-list
803 The ``list'' commands @kbd{C-M-n} (@code{forward-list}) and
804 @kbd{C-M-p} (@code{backward-list}) move forward or backward over one
805 (or @var{n}) parenthetical groupings.
806
807 @kindex C-M-u
808 @findex backward-up-list
809 @kbd{C-M-n} and @kbd{C-M-p} try to stay at the same level in the
810 parenthesis structure. To move @emph{up} one (or @var{n}) levels, use
811 @kbd{C-M-u} (@code{backward-up-list}). @kbd{C-M-u} moves backward up
812 past one unmatched opening delimiter. A positive argument serves as a
813 repeat count; a negative argument reverses the direction of motion, so
814 that the command moves forward and up one or more levels.
815
816 @kindex C-M-d
817 @findex down-list
818 To move @emph{down} in the parenthesis structure, use @kbd{C-M-d}
819 (@code{down-list}). In Lisp mode, where @samp{(} is the only opening
820 delimiter, this is nearly the same as searching for a @samp{(}. An
821 argument specifies the number of levels to go down.
822
823 @node Matching
824 @subsection Automatic Display Of Matching Parentheses
825 @cindex matching parentheses
826 @cindex parentheses, displaying matches
827
828 The Emacs parenthesis-matching feature is designed to show
829 automatically how parentheses (and other matching delimiters) match in
830 the text. Whenever you type a self-inserting character that is a
831 closing delimiter, the cursor moves momentarily to the location of the
832 matching opening delimiter, provided that is on the screen. If it is
833 not on the screen, Emacs displays some of the text near it in the echo
834 area. Either way, you can tell which grouping you are closing off.
835
836 If the opening delimiter and closing delimiter are mismatched---such
837 as in @samp{[x)}---a warning message is displayed in the echo area.
838
839 @vindex blink-matching-paren
840 @vindex blink-matching-paren-distance
841 @vindex blink-matching-delay
842 Three variables control parenthesis match display:
843
844 @code{blink-matching-paren} turns the feature on or off: @code{nil}
845 disables it, but the default is @code{t} to enable match display.
846
847 @code{blink-matching-delay} says how many seconds to leave the
848 cursor on the matching opening delimiter, before bringing it back to
849 the real location of point; the default is 1, but on some systems it
850 is useful to specify a fraction of a second.
851
852 @code{blink-matching-paren-distance} specifies how many characters
853 back to search to find the matching opening delimiter. If the match
854 is not found in that distance, scanning stops, and nothing is displayed.
855 This is to prevent the scan for the matching delimiter from wasting
856 lots of time when there is no match. The default is 102400.
857
858 @cindex Show Paren mode
859 @cindex highlighting matching parentheses
860 @findex show-paren-mode
861 Show Paren mode provides a more powerful kind of automatic matching.
862 Whenever point is before an opening delimiter or after a closing
863 delimiter, both that delimiter and its opposite delimiter are
864 highlighted. Use the command @kbd{M-x show-paren-mode} to enable or
865 disable this mode.
866
867 Show Paren mode uses the faces @code{show-paren-match} and
868 @code{show-paren-mismatch} to highlight parentheses; you can customize
869 them to control how highlighting looks. @xref{Face Customization}.
870
871 @node Comments
872 @section Manipulating Comments
873 @cindex comments
874
875 Because comments are such an important part of programming, Emacs
876 provides special commands for editing and inserting comments. It can
877 also do spell checking on comments with Flyspell Prog mode
878 (@pxref{Spelling}).
879
880 @menu
881 * Comment Commands:: Inserting, killing, and aligning comments.
882 * Multi-Line Comments:: Commands for adding and editing multi-line comments.
883 * Options for Comments::Customizing the comment features.
884 @end menu
885
886 @node Comment Commands
887 @subsection Comment Commands
888 @cindex indentation for comments
889 @cindex alignment for comments
890
891 The commands in this table insert, kill and align comments:
892
893 @table @asis
894 @item @kbd{M-;}
895 Insert or realign comment on current line; alternatively, comment or
896 uncomment the region (@code{comment-dwim}).
897 @item @kbd{C-u M-;}
898 Kill comment on current line (@code{comment-kill}).
899 @item @kbd{C-x ;}
900 Set comment column (@code{comment-set-column}).
901 @item @kbd{C-M-j}
902 @itemx @kbd{M-j}
903 Like @key{RET} followed by inserting and aligning a comment
904 (@code{comment-indent-new-line}). @xref{Multi-Line Comments}.
905 @item @kbd{M-x comment-region}
906 @itemx @kbd{C-c C-c} (in C-like modes)
907 Add or remove comment delimiters on all the lines in the region.
908 @end table
909
910 @kindex M-;
911 @findex comment-dwim
912 The command to create or align a comment is @kbd{M-;}
913 (@code{comment-dwim}). The word ``dwim'' is an acronym for ``Do What
914 I Mean''; it indicates that this command can be used for many
915 different jobs relating to comments, depending on the situation where
916 you use it.
917
918 When a region is active, @kbd{M-;} either adds or removes comment
919 delimiters on each line of the region. @xref{Mark}. If every line in
920 the region is a comment, it removes comment delimiters from each;
921 otherwise, it adds comment delimiters to each. You can also use the
922 commands @code{comment-region} and @code{uncomment-region} to
923 explicitly comment or uncomment the text in the region
924 (@pxref{Multi-Line Comments}). If you supply a prefix argument to
925 @kbd{M-;} when a region is active, that specifies how many comment
926 delimiters to add or how many to delete.
927
928 If the region is not active, @kbd{M-;} inserts a new comment if
929 there is no comment already on the line. The new comment is normally
930 aligned at a specific column called the @dfn{comment column}; if the
931 text of the line extends past the comment column, @kbd{M-;} aligns the
932 comment start string to a suitable boundary (usually, at least one
933 space is inserted). The comment begins with the string Emacs thinks
934 comments should start with (the value of @code{comment-start}; see
935 below). Emacs places point after that string, so you can insert the
936 text of the comment right away. If the major mode has specified a
937 string to terminate comments, @kbd{M-;} inserts that string after
938 point, to keep the syntax valid.
939
940 You can also use @kbd{M-;} to align an existing comment. If a line
941 already contains the comment-start string, @kbd{M-;} realigns it to
942 the conventional alignment and moves point after it. (Exception:
943 comments starting in column 0 are not moved.) Even when an existing
944 comment is properly aligned, @kbd{M-;} is still useful for moving
945 directly to the start of the text inside the comment.
946
947 @findex comment-kill
948 @kindex C-u M-;
949 @kbd{C-u M-;} kills any comment on the current line, along with the
950 whitespace before it. To reinsert the comment on another line, move
951 to the end of that line, do @kbd{C-y}, and then do @kbd{M-;} to
952 realign it.
953
954 Note that @kbd{C-u M-;} is not a distinct key; it is @kbd{M-;}
955 (@code{comment-dwim}) with a prefix argument. That command is
956 programmed so that when it receives a prefix argument it calls
957 @code{comment-kill}. However, @code{comment-kill} is a valid command
958 in its own right, and you can bind it directly to a key if you wish.
959
960 Some major modes have special rules for aligning certain kinds of
961 comments in certain contexts. For example, in Lisp code, comments which
962 start with two semicolons are indented as if they were lines of code,
963 instead of at the comment column. Comments which start with three
964 semicolons are supposed to start at the left margin and are often used
965 for sectioning purposes. Emacs understands
966 these conventions by indenting a double-semicolon comment using @key{TAB},
967 and by not changing the indentation of a triple-semicolon comment at all.
968
969 @example
970 ;; This function is just an example.
971 ;;; Here either two or three semicolons are appropriate.
972 (defun foo (x)
973 ;;; And now, the first part of the function:
974 ;; The following line adds one.
975 (1+ x)) ; This line adds one.
976 @end example
977
978 For C-like modes, you can configure the exact effect of @kbd{M-;} by
979 setting the variables @code{c-indent-comment-alist} and
980 @code{c-indent-comments-syntactically-p}. For example, on a line
981 ending in a closing brace, @kbd{M-;} puts the comment one space after
982 the brace rather than at @code{comment-column}. For full details see
983 @ref{Comment Commands,,, ccmode, The CC Mode Manual}.
984
985 @node Multi-Line Comments
986 @subsection Multiple Lines of Comments
987
988 @kindex C-M-j
989 @kindex M-j
990 @cindex blank lines in programs
991 @findex comment-indent-new-line
992
993 If you are typing a comment and wish to continue it on another line,
994 you can use the command @kbd{C-M-j} or @kbd{M-j}
995 (@code{comment-indent-new-line}). If @code{comment-multi-line}
996 (@pxref{Options for Comments}) is non-@code{nil}, it moves to a new
997 line within the comment. Otherwise it closes the comment and starts a
998 new comment on a new line. When Auto Fill mode is on, going past the
999 fill column while typing a comment causes the comment to be continued
1000 in just this fashion.
1001
1002 @kindex C-c C-c (C mode)
1003 @findex comment-region
1004 To turn existing lines into comment lines, use the @kbd{M-x
1005 comment-region} command (or type @kbd{C-c C-c} in C-like modes). It
1006 adds comment delimiters to the lines that start in the region, thus
1007 commenting them out. With a negative argument, it does the
1008 opposite---it deletes comment delimiters from the lines in the region.
1009
1010 With a positive argument, @code{comment-region} duplicates the last
1011 character of the comment start sequence it adds; the argument
1012 specifies how many copies of the character to insert. Thus, in Lisp
1013 mode, @kbd{C-u 2 M-x comment-region} adds @samp{;;} to each line.
1014 Duplicating the comment delimiter is a way of calling attention to the
1015 comment. It can also affect how the comment is aligned or indented.
1016 In Lisp, for proper indentation, you should use an argument of two or
1017 three, if between defuns; if within a defun, it must be three.
1018
1019 You can configure C Mode such that when you type a @samp{/} at the
1020 start of a line in a multi-line block comment, this closes the
1021 comment. Enable the @code{comment-close-slash} clean-up for this.
1022 @xref{Clean-ups,,, ccmode, The CC Mode Manual}.
1023
1024 @node Options for Comments
1025 @subsection Options Controlling Comments
1026
1027 @vindex comment-column
1028 @kindex C-x ;
1029 @findex comment-set-column
1030 The @dfn{comment column}, the column at which Emacs tries to place
1031 comments, is stored in the variable @code{comment-column}. You can
1032 set it to a number explicitly. Alternatively, the command @kbd{C-x ;}
1033 (@code{comment-set-column}) sets the comment column to the column
1034 point is at. @kbd{C-u C-x ;} sets the comment column to match the
1035 last comment before point in the buffer, and then does a @kbd{M-;} to
1036 align the current line's comment under the previous one.
1037
1038 The variable @code{comment-column} is per-buffer: setting the variable
1039 in the normal fashion affects only the current buffer, but there is a
1040 default value which you can change with @code{setq-default}.
1041 @xref{Locals}. Many major modes initialize this variable for the
1042 current buffer.
1043
1044 @vindex comment-start-skip
1045 The comment commands recognize comments based on the regular
1046 expression that is the value of the variable @code{comment-start-skip}.
1047 Make sure this regexp does not match the null string. It may match more
1048 than the comment starting delimiter in the strictest sense of the word;
1049 for example, in C mode the value of the variable is
1050 @c This stops M-q from breaking the line inside that @code.
1051 @code{@w{"/\\*+ *\\|//+ *"}}, which matches extra stars and spaces
1052 after the @samp{/*} itself, and accepts C++ style comments also.
1053 (Note that @samp{\\} is needed in Lisp syntax to include a @samp{\} in
1054 the string, which is needed to deny the first star its special meaning
1055 in regexp syntax. @xref{Regexp Backslash}.)
1056
1057 @vindex comment-start
1058 @vindex comment-end
1059 When a comment command makes a new comment, it inserts the value of
1060 @code{comment-start} to begin it. The value of @code{comment-end} is
1061 inserted after point, so that it will follow the text that you will
1062 insert into the comment. When @code{comment-end} is non-empty, it
1063 should start with a space. For example, in C mode,
1064 @code{comment-start} has the value @w{@code{"/* "}} and
1065 @code{comment-end} has the value @w{@code{" */"}}.
1066
1067 @vindex comment-padding
1068 The variable @code{comment-padding} specifies how many spaces
1069 @code{comment-region} should insert on each line between the comment
1070 delimiter and the line's original text. The default is 1, to insert
1071 one space. @code{nil} means 0. Alternatively, @code{comment-padding}
1072 can hold the actual string to insert.
1073
1074 @vindex comment-multi-line
1075 The variable @code{comment-multi-line} controls how @kbd{C-M-j}
1076 (@code{indent-new-comment-line}) behaves when used inside a comment.
1077 Specifically, when @code{comment-multi-line} is @code{nil}, the
1078 command inserts a comment terminator, begins a new line, and finally
1079 inserts a comment starter. Otherwise it does not insert the
1080 terminator and starter, so it effectively continues the current
1081 comment across multiple lines. In languages that allow multi-line
1082 comments, the choice of value for this variable is a matter of taste.
1083 The default for this variable depends on the major mode.
1084
1085 @vindex comment-indent-function
1086 The variable @code{comment-indent-function} should contain a function
1087 that will be called to compute the alignment for a newly inserted
1088 comment or for aligning an existing comment. It is set differently by
1089 various major modes. The function is called with no arguments, but with
1090 point at the beginning of the comment, or at the end of a line if a new
1091 comment is to be inserted. It should return the column in which the
1092 comment ought to start. For example, in Lisp mode, the indent hook
1093 function bases its decision on how many semicolons begin an existing
1094 comment, and on the code in the preceding lines.
1095
1096 @node Documentation
1097 @section Documentation Lookup
1098
1099 Emacs provides several features you can use to look up the
1100 documentation of functions, variables and commands that you plan to
1101 use in your program.
1102
1103 @menu
1104 * Info Lookup:: Looking up library functions and commands
1105 in Info files.
1106 * Man Page:: Looking up man pages of library functions and commands.
1107 * Lisp Doc:: Looking up Emacs Lisp functions, etc.
1108 @end menu
1109
1110 @node Info Lookup
1111 @subsection Info Documentation Lookup
1112
1113 @findex info-lookup-symbol
1114 @findex info-lookup-file
1115 @kindex C-h S
1116 For major modes that apply to languages which have documentation in
1117 Info, you can use @kbd{C-h S} (@code{info-lookup-symbol}) to view the
1118 Info documentation for a symbol used in the program. You specify the
1119 symbol with the minibuffer; the default is the symbol appearing in the
1120 buffer at point. For example, in C mode this looks for the symbol in
1121 the C Library Manual. The command only works if the appropriate
1122 manual's Info files are installed.
1123
1124 The major mode determines where to look for documentation for the
1125 symbol---which Info files to look in, and which indices to search.
1126 You can also use @kbd{M-x info-lookup-file} to look for documentation
1127 for a file name.
1128
1129 If you use @kbd{C-h S} in a major mode that does not support it,
1130 it asks you to specify the ``symbol help mode.'' You should enter
1131 a command such as @code{c-mode} that would select a major
1132 mode which @kbd{C-h S} does support.
1133
1134 @node Man Page
1135 @subsection Man Page Lookup
1136
1137 @cindex manual page
1138 On Unix, the main form of on-line documentation was the @dfn{manual
1139 page} or @dfn{man page}. In the GNU operating system, we aim to
1140 replace man pages with better-organized manuals that you can browse
1141 with Info (@pxref{Misc Help}). This process is not finished, so it is
1142 still useful to read manual pages.
1143
1144 @findex manual-entry
1145 You can read the man page for an operating system command, library
1146 function, or system call, with the @kbd{M-x man} command. It
1147 runs the @code{man} program to format the man page; if the system
1148 permits, it runs @code{man} asynchronously, so that you can keep on
1149 editing while the page is being formatted. (On MS-DOS and MS-Windows
1150 3, you cannot edit while Emacs waits for @code{man} to finish.) The
1151 result goes in a buffer named @samp{*Man @var{topic}*}. These buffers
1152 use a special major mode, Man mode, that facilitates scrolling and
1153 jumping to other manual pages. For details, type @kbd{C-h m} while in
1154 a man page buffer.
1155
1156 @cindex sections of manual pages
1157 Each man page belongs to one of ten or more @dfn{sections}, each
1158 named by a digit or by a digit and a letter. Sometimes there are
1159 multiple man pages with the same name in different sections. To read
1160 a man page from a specific section, type
1161 @samp{@var{topic}(@var{section})} or @samp{@var{section} @var{topic}}
1162 when @kbd{M-x manual-entry} prompts for the topic. For example, to
1163 read the man page for the C library function @code{chmod} (as opposed
1164 to a command of the same name), type @kbd{M-x manual-entry @key{RET}
1165 chmod(2) @key{RET}}. (@code{chmod} is a system call, so it is in
1166 section @samp{2}.)
1167
1168 @vindex Man-switches
1169 If you do not specify a section, the results depend on how the
1170 @code{man} program works on your system. Some of them display only
1171 the first man page they find. Others display all man pages that have
1172 the specified name, so you can move between them with the @kbd{M-n}
1173 and @kbd{M-p} keys@footnote{On some systems, the @code{man} program
1174 accepts a @samp{-a} command-line option which tells it to display all
1175 the man pages for the specified topic. If you want this behavior, you
1176 can add this option to the value of the variable @code{Man-switches}.}.
1177 The mode line shows how many manual pages are present in the Man buffer.
1178
1179 @vindex Man-fontify-manpage-flag
1180 By default, Emacs highlights the text in man pages. For a long man
1181 page, highlighting can take substantial time. You can turn off
1182 highlighting of man pages by setting the variable
1183 @code{Man-fontify-manpage-flag} to @code{nil}.
1184
1185 @findex Man-fontify-manpage
1186 If you insert the text of a man page into an Emacs buffer in some
1187 other fashion, you can use the command @kbd{M-x Man-fontify-manpage} to
1188 perform the same conversions that @kbd{M-x manual-entry} does.
1189
1190 @findex woman
1191 @cindex manual pages, on MS-DOS/MS-Windows
1192 An alternative way of reading manual pages is the @kbd{M-x woman}
1193 command@footnote{The name of the command, @code{woman}, is an acronym
1194 for ``w/o (without) man,'' since it doesn't use the @code{man}
1195 program.}. Unlike @kbd{M-x man}, it does not run any external
1196 programs to format and display the man pages; instead it does the job
1197 in Emacs Lisp, so it works on systems such as MS-Windows, where the
1198 @code{man} program (and other programs it uses) are not generally
1199 available.
1200
1201 @kbd{M-x woman} prompts for a name of a manual page, and provides
1202 completion based on the list of manual pages that are installed on
1203 your machine; the list of available manual pages is computed
1204 automatically the first time you invoke @code{woman}. The word at
1205 point in the current buffer is used to suggest the default for the
1206 name of the manual page.
1207
1208 With a numeric argument, @kbd{M-x woman} recomputes the list of the
1209 manual pages used for completion. This is useful if you add or delete
1210 manual pages.
1211
1212 If you type a name of a manual page and @kbd{M-x woman} finds that
1213 several manual pages by the same name exist in different sections, it
1214 pops up a window with possible candidates asking you to choose one of
1215 them.
1216
1217 For more information about setting up and using @kbd{M-x woman}, see
1218 @ref{Top, WoMan, Browse UN*X Manual Pages WithOut Man, woman, The WoMan
1219 Manual}.
1220
1221 @node Lisp Doc
1222 @subsection Emacs Lisp Documentation Lookup
1223
1224 As you edit Lisp code to be run in Emacs, you can use the commands
1225 @kbd{C-h f} (@code{describe-function}) and @kbd{C-h v}
1226 (@code{describe-variable}) to view documentation of functions and
1227 variables that you want to use. These commands use the minibuffer to
1228 read the name of a function or variable to document, and display the
1229 documentation in a window. Their default arguments are based on the
1230 code in the neighborhood of point. For @kbd{C-h f}, the default is
1231 the function called in the innermost list containing point. @kbd{C-h
1232 v} uses the symbol name around or adjacent to point as its default.
1233
1234 @cindex Eldoc mode
1235 @findex eldoc-mode
1236 A more automatic but less powerful method is Eldoc mode. This minor
1237 mode constantly displays in the echo area the argument list for the
1238 function being called at point. (In other words, it finds the
1239 function call that point is contained in, and displays the argument
1240 list of that function.) If point is over a documented variable, it
1241 shows the first line of the variable's docstring. Eldoc mode applies
1242 in Emacs Lisp and Lisp Interaction modes, and perhaps a few others
1243 that provide special support for looking up doc strings. Use the
1244 command @kbd{M-x eldoc-mode} to enable or disable this feature.
1245
1246 @node Hideshow
1247 @section Hideshow minor mode
1248
1249 @findex hs-minor-mode
1250 Hideshow minor mode provides selective display of portions of a
1251 program, known as @dfn{blocks}. You can use @kbd{M-x hs-minor-mode}
1252 to enable or disable this mode, or add @code{hs-minor-mode} to the
1253 mode hook for certain major modes in order to enable it automatically
1254 for those modes.
1255
1256 Just what constitutes a block depends on the major mode. In C mode
1257 or C++ mode, they are delimited by braces, while in Lisp mode and
1258 similar modes they are delimited by parentheses. Multi-line comments
1259 also count as blocks.
1260
1261 @findex hs-hide-all
1262 @findex hs-hide-block
1263 @findex hs-show-all
1264 @findex hs-show-block
1265 @findex hs-show-region
1266 @findex hs-hide-level
1267 @findex hs-minor-mode
1268 @kindex C-c @@ C-h
1269 @kindex C-c @@ C-s
1270 @kindex C-c @@ C-M-h
1271 @kindex C-c @@ C-M-s
1272 @kindex C-c @@ C-r
1273 @kindex C-c @@ C-l
1274 @kindex S-Mouse-2
1275 @table @kbd
1276 @item C-c @@ C-h
1277 Hide the current block (@code{hs-hide-block}).
1278 @item C-c @@ C-s
1279 Show the current block (@code{hs-show-block}).
1280 @item C-c @@ C-c
1281 Either hide or show the current block (@code{hs-toggle-hiding}).
1282 @item S-Mouse-2
1283 Either hide or show the block you click on (@code{hs-mouse-toggle-hiding}).
1284 @item C-c @@ C-M-h
1285 Hide all top-level blocks (@code{hs-hide-all}).
1286 @item C-c @@ C-M-s
1287 Show everything in the buffer (@code{hs-show-all}).
1288 @item C-c @@ C-l
1289 Hide all blocks @var{n} levels below this block
1290 (@code{hs-hide-level}).
1291 @end table
1292
1293 @vindex hs-hide-comments-when-hiding-all
1294 @vindex hs-isearch-open
1295 @vindex hs-special-modes-alist
1296 These variables exist for customizing Hideshow mode.
1297
1298 @table @code
1299 @item hs-hide-comments-when-hiding-all
1300 Non-@code{nil} says that @kbd{hs-hide-all} should hide comments too.
1301
1302 @item hs-isearch-open
1303 Specifies what kind of hidden blocks incremental search should make
1304 visible. The value should be one of these four symbols:
1305
1306 @table @code
1307 @item code
1308 Open only code blocks.
1309 @item comment
1310 Open only comments.
1311 @item t
1312 Open both code blocks and comments.
1313 @item nil
1314 Open neither code blocks nor comments.
1315 @end table
1316
1317 @item hs-special-modes-alist
1318 A list of elements, each specifying how to initialize Hideshow
1319 variables for one major mode. See the variable's documentation string
1320 for more information.
1321 @end table
1322
1323 @node Symbol Completion
1324 @section Completion for Symbol Names
1325 @cindex completion (symbol names)
1326
1327 In Emacs, completion is something you normally do in the minibuffer
1328 (@pxref{Completion}). But one kind of completion is available in all
1329 buffers: completion for symbol names.
1330
1331 @kindex M-TAB
1332 The character @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} runs a command to complete the
1333 partial symbol before point against the set of meaningful symbol
1334 names. This command inserts at point any additional characters that
1335 it can determine from the partial name.
1336
1337 If your window manager defines @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} to switch windows,
1338 you can type @kbd{@key{ESC} @key{TAB}} or @kbd{C-M-i} instead.
1339 However, most window managers let you customize these shortcuts, so
1340 you can change any that interfere with the way you use Emacs.
1341
1342 If the partial name in the buffer has multiple possible completions
1343 that differ in the very next character, so that it is impossible to
1344 complete even one more character, @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} displays a list of
1345 all possible completions in another window.
1346
1347 @cindex tags-based completion
1348 @cindex Info index completion
1349 @findex complete-symbol
1350 In most programming language major modes, @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} runs the
1351 command @code{complete-symbol}, which provides two kinds of completion.
1352 Normally it does completion based on a tags table (@pxref{Tags}); with a
1353 numeric argument (regardless of the value), it does completion based on
1354 the names listed in the Info file indexes for your language. Thus, to
1355 complete the name of a symbol defined in your own program, use
1356 @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} with no argument; to complete the name of a standard
1357 library function, use @kbd{C-u M-@key{TAB}}. Of course, Info-based
1358 completion works only if there is an Info file for the standard library
1359 functions of your language, and only if it is installed at your site.
1360
1361 @cindex Lisp symbol completion
1362 @cindex completion (Lisp symbols)
1363 @findex lisp-complete-symbol
1364 In Emacs-Lisp mode, the name space for completion normally consists of
1365 nontrivial symbols present in Emacs---those that have function
1366 definitions, values or properties. However, if there is an
1367 open-parenthesis immediately before the beginning of the partial symbol,
1368 only symbols with function definitions are considered as completions.
1369 The command which implements this is @code{lisp-complete-symbol}.
1370
1371 In Text mode and related modes, @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} completes words
1372 based on the spell-checker's dictionary. @xref{Spelling}.
1373
1374 @node Glasses
1375 @section Glasses minor mode
1376 @cindex Glasses mode
1377 @cindex identifiers, making long ones readable
1378 @cindex StudlyCaps, making them readable
1379 @findex glasses-mode
1380
1381 Glasses minor mode makes @samp{unreadableIdentifiersLikeThis}
1382 readable by altering the way they display. It knows two different
1383 ways to do this: by displaying underscores between a lower-case letter
1384 and the following capital letter, and by emboldening the capital
1385 letters. It does not alter the buffer text, only the way they
1386 display, so you can use it even on read-only buffers. You can use the
1387 command @kbd{M-x glasses-mode} to enable or disable the mode in the
1388 current buffer; you can also add @code{glasses-mode} to the mode hook
1389 of the programming language major modes in which you normally want
1390 to use Glasses mode.
1391
1392 @node Semantic
1393 @section Semantic
1394 @cindex Semantic package
1395
1396 Semantic is a package that provides language-aware editing commands
1397 based on @code{source code parsers}. This section provides a brief
1398 description of Semantic;
1399 @ifnottex
1400 for full details, see @ref{Top, Semantic,, semantic, Semantic}.
1401 @end ifnottex
1402 @iftex
1403 for full details, type @kbd{C-h i} (@code{info}) and then select the
1404 Semantic manual.
1405 @end iftex
1406
1407 Most of the ``language aware'' features in Emacs, such as font lock
1408 (@pxref{Font Lock}), rely on ``rules of thumb''@footnote{Regular
1409 expressions and syntax tables.} that usually give good results but are
1410 never completely exact. In contrast, the parsers used by Semantic
1411 have an exact understanding of programming language syntax. This
1412 allows Semantic to provide search, navigation, and completion commands
1413 that are powerful and precise.
1414
1415 To begin using Semantic, type @kbd{M-x semantic-mode} or click on
1416 the menu item named @samp{Source Code Parsers (Semantic)} in the
1417 @samp{Tools} menu. This enables Semantic mode, a global minor mode.
1418
1419 When Semantic mode is enabled, Emacs automatically attempts to
1420 parses each file you visit. Currently, Semantic understands C, C++,
1421 Scheme, Javascript, Java, HTML, and Make. Within each parsed buffer,
1422 the following commands are available:
1423
1424 @table @kbd
1425 @item C-c , j
1426 @kindex C-c , j
1427 Prompt for the name of a function defined in the current file, and
1428 move point there (@code{semantic-complete-jump-local}).
1429
1430 @item C-c , J
1431 @kindex C-c , J
1432 Prompt for the name of a function defined in any file Emacs has
1433 parsed, and move point there (@code{semantic-complete-jump}).
1434
1435 @item C-c , @key{SPC}
1436 @kindex C-c , @key{SPC}
1437 Display a list of possible completions for the symbol at point
1438 (@code{semantic-complete-analyze-inline}). This also activates a set
1439 of special keybindings for choosing a completion: @key{RET} accepts
1440 the current completion, @kbd{M-n} and @kbd{M-p} cycle through possible
1441 completions, @key{TAB} completes as far as possible and then cycles,
1442 and @kbd{C-g} or any other key aborts completion.
1443
1444 @item C-c , l
1445 @kindex C-c , l
1446 Display a list of the possible completions of the symbol at point, in
1447 another window (@code{semantic-analyze-possible-completions}).
1448 @end table
1449
1450 @noindent
1451 In addition to the above commands, the Semantic package provides a
1452 variety of other ways to make use of parser information. For
1453 instance, you can use it to display a list of completions when Emacs
1454 is idle.
1455 @ifnottex
1456 @xref{Top, Semantic,, semantic, Semantic}, for details.
1457 @end ifnottex
1458
1459 @node Misc for Programs
1460 @section Other Features Useful for Editing Programs
1461
1462 A number of Emacs commands that aren't designed specifically for
1463 editing programs are useful for that nonetheless.
1464
1465 The Emacs commands that operate on words, sentences and paragraphs
1466 are useful for editing code. Most symbols names contain words
1467 (@pxref{Words}); sentences can be found in strings and comments
1468 (@pxref{Sentences}). Paragraphs in the strict sense can be found in
1469 program code (in long comments), but the paragraph commands are useful
1470 in other places too, because programming language major modes define
1471 paragraphs to begin and end at blank lines (@pxref{Paragraphs}).
1472 Judicious use of blank lines to make the program clearer will also
1473 provide useful chunks of text for the paragraph commands to work on.
1474 Auto Fill mode, if enabled in a programming language major mode,
1475 indents the new lines which it creates.
1476
1477 The selective display feature is useful for looking at the overall
1478 structure of a function (@pxref{Selective Display}). This feature
1479 hides the lines that are indented more than a specified amount.
1480 Programming modes often support Outline minor mode (@pxref{Outline
1481 Mode}). The Foldout package provides folding-editor features
1482 (@pxref{Foldout}).
1483
1484 The ``automatic typing'' features may be useful for writing programs.
1485 @xref{Top,,Autotyping, autotype, Autotyping}.
1486
1487 @node C Modes
1488 @section C and Related Modes
1489 @cindex C mode
1490 @cindex Java mode
1491 @cindex Pike mode
1492 @cindex IDL mode
1493 @cindex CORBA IDL mode
1494 @cindex Objective C mode
1495 @cindex C++ mode
1496 @cindex AWK mode
1497 @cindex mode, Java
1498 @cindex mode, C
1499 @cindex mode, C++
1500 @cindex mode, Objective C
1501 @cindex mode, CORBA IDL
1502 @cindex mode, Pike
1503 @cindex mode, AWK
1504
1505 This section gives a brief description of the special features
1506 available in C, C++, Objective-C, Java, CORBA IDL, Pike and AWK modes.
1507 (These are called ``C mode and related modes.'') @xref{Top, , CC Mode,
1508 ccmode, CC Mode}, for a more extensive description of these modes
1509 and their special features.
1510
1511 @menu
1512 * Motion in C:: Commands to move by C statements, etc.
1513 * Electric C:: Colon and other chars can automatically reindent.
1514 * Hungry Delete:: A more powerful DEL command.
1515 * Other C Commands:: Filling comments, viewing expansion of macros,
1516 and other neat features.
1517 @end menu
1518
1519 @node Motion in C
1520 @subsection C Mode Motion Commands
1521
1522 This section describes commands for moving point, in C mode and
1523 related modes.
1524
1525 @table @code
1526 @item M-x c-beginning-of-defun
1527 @itemx M-x c-end-of-defun
1528 @findex c-beginning-of-defun
1529 @findex c-end-of-defun
1530 Move point to the beginning or end of the current function or
1531 top-level definition. These are found by searching for the least
1532 enclosing braces. (By contrast, @code{beginning-of-defun} and
1533 @code{end-of-defun} search for braces in column zero.) If you are
1534 editing code where the opening brace of a function isn't placed in
1535 column zero, you may wish to bind @code{C-M-a} and @code{C-M-e} to
1536 these commands. @xref{Moving by Defuns}.
1537
1538 @item C-c C-u
1539 @kindex C-c C-u @r{(C mode)}
1540 @findex c-up-conditional
1541 Move point back to the containing preprocessor conditional, leaving the
1542 mark behind. A prefix argument acts as a repeat count. With a negative
1543 argument, move point forward to the end of the containing
1544 preprocessor conditional.
1545
1546 @samp{#elif} is equivalent to @samp{#else} followed by @samp{#if}, so
1547 the function will stop at a @samp{#elif} when going backward, but not
1548 when going forward.
1549
1550 @item C-c C-p
1551 @kindex C-c C-p @r{(C mode)}
1552 @findex c-backward-conditional
1553 Move point back over a preprocessor conditional, leaving the mark
1554 behind. A prefix argument acts as a repeat count. With a negative
1555 argument, move forward.
1556
1557 @item C-c C-n
1558 @kindex C-c C-n @r{(C mode)}
1559 @findex c-forward-conditional
1560 Move point forward across a preprocessor conditional, leaving the mark
1561 behind. A prefix argument acts as a repeat count. With a negative
1562 argument, move backward.
1563
1564 @item M-a
1565 @kindex M-a (C mode)
1566 @findex c-beginning-of-statement
1567 Move point to the beginning of the innermost C statement
1568 (@code{c-beginning-of-statement}). If point is already at the beginning
1569 of a statement, move to the beginning of the preceding statement. With
1570 prefix argument @var{n}, move back @var{n} @minus{} 1 statements.
1571
1572 In comments or in strings which span more than one line, this command
1573 moves by sentences instead of statements.
1574
1575 @item M-e
1576 @kindex M-e (C mode)
1577 @findex c-end-of-statement
1578 Move point to the end of the innermost C statement or sentence; like
1579 @kbd{M-a} except that it moves in the other direction
1580 (@code{c-end-of-statement}).
1581 @end table
1582
1583 @node Electric C
1584 @subsection Electric C Characters
1585
1586 In C mode and related modes, certain printing characters are
1587 @dfn{electric}---in addition to inserting themselves, they also
1588 reindent the current line, and optionally also insert newlines. The
1589 ``electric'' characters are @kbd{@{}, @kbd{@}}, @kbd{:}, @kbd{#},
1590 @kbd{;}, @kbd{,}, @kbd{<}, @kbd{>}, @kbd{/}, @kbd{*}, @kbd{(}, and
1591 @kbd{)}.
1592
1593 You might find electric indentation inconvenient if you are editing
1594 chaotically indented code. If you are new to CC Mode, you might find
1595 it disconcerting. You can toggle electric action with the command
1596 @kbd{C-c C-l}; when it is enabled, @samp{/l} appears in the mode line
1597 after the mode name:
1598
1599 @table @kbd
1600 @item C-c C-l
1601 @kindex C-c C-l @r{(C mode)}
1602 @findex c-toggle-electric-state
1603 Toggle electric action (@code{c-toggle-electric-state}). With a
1604 prefix argument, this command enables electric action if the argument
1605 is positive, disables it if it is negative.
1606 @end table
1607
1608 Electric characters insert newlines only when, in addition to the
1609 electric state, the @dfn{auto-newline} feature is enabled (indicated
1610 by @samp{/la} in the mode line after the mode name). You can turn
1611 this feature on or off with the command @kbd{C-c C-a}:
1612
1613 @table @kbd
1614 @item C-c C-a
1615 @kindex C-c C-a @r{(C mode)}
1616 @findex c-toggle-auto-newline
1617 Toggle the auto-newline feature (@code{c-toggle-auto-newline}). With a
1618 prefix argument, this command turns the auto-newline feature on if the
1619 argument is positive, and off if it is negative.
1620 @end table
1621
1622 Usually the CC Mode style configures the exact circumstances in
1623 which Emacs inserts auto-newlines. You can also configure this
1624 directly. @xref{Custom Auto-newlines,,, ccmode, The CC Mode Manual}.
1625
1626 @node Hungry Delete
1627 @subsection Hungry Delete Feature in C
1628 @cindex hungry deletion (C Mode)
1629
1630 If you want to delete an entire block of whitespace at point, you
1631 can use @dfn{hungry deletion}. This deletes all the contiguous
1632 whitespace either before point or after point in a single operation.
1633 @dfn{Whitespace} here includes tabs and newlines, but not comments or
1634 preprocessor commands.
1635
1636 @table @kbd
1637 @item C-c C-@key{DEL}
1638 @itemx C-c @key{DEL}
1639 @findex c-hungry-delete-backwards
1640 @kindex C-c C-@key{DEL} (C Mode)
1641 @kindex C-c @key{DEL} (C Mode)
1642 @code{c-hungry-delete-backwards}---Delete the entire block of whitespace
1643 preceding point.
1644
1645 @item C-c C-d
1646 @itemx C-c C-@key{DELETE}
1647 @itemx C-c @key{DELETE}
1648 @findex c-hungry-delete-forward
1649 @kindex C-c C-d (C Mode)
1650 @kindex C-c C-@key{DELETE} (C Mode)
1651 @kindex C-c @key{DELETE} (C Mode)
1652 @code{c-hungry-delete-forward}---Delete the entire block of whitespace
1653 following point.
1654 @end table
1655
1656 As an alternative to the above commands, you can enable @dfn{hungry
1657 delete mode}. When this feature is enabled (indicated by @samp{/h} in
1658 the mode line after the mode name), a single @key{DEL} deletes all
1659 preceding whitespace, not just one space, and a single @kbd{C-c C-d}
1660 (but @emph{not} plain @key{DELETE}) deletes all following whitespace.
1661
1662 @table @kbd
1663 @item M-x c-toggle-hungry-state
1664 @findex c-toggle-hungry-state
1665 Toggle the hungry-delete feature
1666 (@code{c-toggle-hungry-state})@footnote{This command had the binding
1667 @kbd{C-c C-d} in earlier versions of Emacs. @kbd{C-c C-d} is now
1668 bound to @code{c-hungry-delete-forward}.}. With a prefix argument,
1669 this command turns the hungry-delete feature on if the argument is
1670 positive, and off if it is negative.
1671 @end table
1672
1673 @vindex c-hungry-delete-key
1674 The variable @code{c-hungry-delete-key} controls whether the
1675 hungry-delete feature is enabled.
1676
1677 @node Other C Commands
1678 @subsection Other Commands for C Mode
1679
1680 @table @kbd
1681 @item C-c C-w
1682 @itemx M-x subword-mode
1683 @findex subword-mode
1684 Enable (or disable) @dfn{subword mode}. In subword mode, Emacs's word
1685 commands recognize upper case letters in
1686 @samp{StudlyCapsIdentifiers} as word boundaries. This is indicated by
1687 the flag @samp{/w} on the mode line after the mode name
1688 (e.g. @samp{C/law}). You can even use @kbd{M-x subword-mode} in
1689 non-CC Mode buffers.
1690
1691 In the GNU project, we recommend using underscores to separate words
1692 within an identifier in C or C++, rather than using case distinctions.
1693
1694 @item M-x c-context-line-break
1695 @findex c-context-line-break
1696 This command inserts a line break and indents the new line in a manner
1697 appropriate to the context. In normal code, it does the work of
1698 @kbd{C-j} (@code{newline-and-indent}), in a C preprocessor line it
1699 additionally inserts a @samp{\} at the line break, and within comments
1700 it's like @kbd{M-j} (@code{c-indent-new-comment-line}).
1701
1702 @code{c-context-line-break} isn't bound to a key by default, but it
1703 needs a binding to be useful. The following code will bind it to
1704 @kbd{C-j}. We use @code{c-initialization-hook} here to make sure
1705 the keymap is loaded before we try to change it.
1706
1707 @smallexample
1708 (defun my-bind-clb ()
1709 (define-key c-mode-base-map "\C-j" 'c-context-line-break))
1710 (add-hook 'c-initialization-hook 'my-bind-clb)
1711 @end smallexample
1712
1713 @item C-M-h
1714 Put mark at the end of a function definition, and put point at the
1715 beginning (@code{c-mark-function}).
1716
1717 @item M-q
1718 @kindex M-q @r{(C mode)}
1719 @findex c-fill-paragraph
1720 Fill a paragraph, handling C and C++ comments (@code{c-fill-paragraph}).
1721 If any part of the current line is a comment or within a comment, this
1722 command fills the comment or the paragraph of it that point is in,
1723 preserving the comment indentation and comment delimiters.
1724
1725 @item C-c C-e
1726 @cindex macro expansion in C
1727 @cindex expansion of C macros
1728 @findex c-macro-expand
1729 @kindex C-c C-e @r{(C mode)}
1730 Run the C preprocessor on the text in the region, and show the result,
1731 which includes the expansion of all the macro calls
1732 (@code{c-macro-expand}). The buffer text before the region is also
1733 included in preprocessing, for the sake of macros defined there, but the
1734 output from this part isn't shown.
1735
1736 When you are debugging C code that uses macros, sometimes it is hard to
1737 figure out precisely how the macros expand. With this command, you
1738 don't have to figure it out; you can see the expansions.
1739
1740 @item C-c C-\
1741 @findex c-backslash-region
1742 @kindex C-c C-\ @r{(C mode)}
1743 Insert or align @samp{\} characters at the ends of the lines of the
1744 region (@code{c-backslash-region}). This is useful after writing or
1745 editing a C macro definition.
1746
1747 If a line already ends in @samp{\}, this command adjusts the amount of
1748 whitespace before it. Otherwise, it inserts a new @samp{\}. However,
1749 the last line in the region is treated specially; no @samp{\} is
1750 inserted on that line, and any @samp{\} there is deleted.
1751
1752 @item M-x cpp-highlight-buffer
1753 @cindex preprocessor highlighting
1754 @findex cpp-highlight-buffer
1755 Highlight parts of the text according to its preprocessor conditionals.
1756 This command displays another buffer named @samp{*CPP Edit*}, which
1757 serves as a graphic menu for selecting how to display particular kinds
1758 of conditionals and their contents. After changing various settings,
1759 click on @samp{[A]pply these settings} (or go to that buffer and type
1760 @kbd{a}) to rehighlight the C mode buffer accordingly.
1761
1762 @item C-c C-s
1763 @findex c-show-syntactic-information
1764 @kindex C-c C-s @r{(C mode)}
1765 Display the syntactic information about the current source line
1766 (@code{c-show-syntactic-information}). This information directs how
1767 the line is indented.
1768
1769 @item M-x cwarn-mode
1770 @itemx M-x global-cwarn-mode
1771 @findex cwarn-mode
1772 @findex global-cwarn-mode
1773 @vindex global-cwarn-mode
1774 @cindex CWarn mode
1775 @cindex suspicious constructions in C, C++
1776 CWarn minor mode highlights certain suspicious C and C++ constructions:
1777
1778 @itemize @bullet{}
1779 @item
1780 Assignments inside expressions.
1781 @item
1782 Semicolon following immediately after @samp{if}, @samp{for}, and @samp{while}
1783 (except after a @samp{do @dots{} while} statement);
1784 @item
1785 C++ functions with reference parameters.
1786 @end itemize
1787
1788 @noindent
1789 You can enable the mode for one buffer with the command @kbd{M-x
1790 cwarn-mode}, or for all suitable buffers with the command @kbd{M-x
1791 global-cwarn-mode} or by customizing the variable
1792 @code{global-cwarn-mode}. You must also enable Font Lock mode to make
1793 it work.
1794
1795 @item M-x hide-ifdef-mode
1796 @findex hide-ifdef-mode
1797 @cindex Hide-ifdef mode
1798 @vindex hide-ifdef-shadow
1799 Hide-ifdef minor mode hides selected code within @samp{#if} and
1800 @samp{#ifdef} preprocessor blocks. If you change the variable
1801 @code{hide-ifdef-shadow} to @code{t}, Hide-ifdef minor mode
1802 ``shadows'' preprocessor blocks by displaying them with a less
1803 prominent face, instead of hiding them entirely. See the
1804 documentation string of @code{hide-ifdef-mode} for more information.
1805
1806 @item M-x ff-find-related-file
1807 @cindex related files
1808 @findex ff-find-related-file
1809 @vindex ff-related-file-alist
1810 Find a file ``related'' in a special way to the file visited by the
1811 current buffer. Typically this will be the header file corresponding
1812 to a C/C++ source file, or vice versa. The variable
1813 @code{ff-related-file-alist} specifies how to compute related file
1814 names.
1815 @end table
1816
1817 @node Asm Mode
1818 @section Asm Mode
1819
1820 @cindex Asm mode
1821 @cindex assembler mode
1822 Asm mode is a major mode for editing files of assembler code. It
1823 defines these commands:
1824
1825 @table @kbd
1826 @item @key{TAB}
1827 @code{tab-to-tab-stop}.
1828 @item C-j
1829 Insert a newline and then indent using @code{tab-to-tab-stop}.
1830 @item :
1831 Insert a colon and then remove the indentation from before the label
1832 preceding colon. Then do @code{tab-to-tab-stop}.
1833 @item ;
1834 Insert or align a comment.
1835 @end table
1836
1837 The variable @code{asm-comment-char} specifies which character
1838 starts comments in assembler syntax.
1839
1840 @ifnottex
1841 @include fortran-xtra.texi
1842 @end ifnottex