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authorLuc Teirlinck <teirllm@auburn.edu>2003-07-03 01:59:39 +0000
committerLuc Teirlinck <teirllm@auburn.edu>2003-07-03 01:59:39 +0000
commit73d6a2617f7f2aaa90edd013620085a8860294ec (patch)
treed78058c528c77adbcf94e23832bbaad7629ef8ad /man/info.texi
parenta04e00f552b1d73bfcea0d21dcd2980c477900f7 (diff)
downloademacs-73d6a2617f7f2aaa90edd013620085a8860294ec.tar.gz
(Help): Mention existence of Emacs and stand-alone Info at the very
beginning of the tutorial. (Help-Inv): New node. (Help-]): New node. (Help-M): Systematically point out the differences between default Emacs and stand-alone versions. Delete second menu. (Help-Xref): Systematically point out the differences between default Emacs and stand-alone versions. (Help-Int): Change `l' example. (Expert Info): Fix typos. (Emacs Info Variables): Mention `Info-hide-note-references' and new default for `Info-scroll-prefer-subnodes'.
Diffstat (limited to 'man/info.texi')
-rw-r--r--man/info.texi246
1 files changed, 184 insertions, 62 deletions
diff --git a/man/info.texi b/man/info.texi
index 3d8c0f5224b..6a195113b5f 100644
--- a/man/info.texi
+++ b/man/info.texi
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
@syncodeindex vr cp
@syncodeindex ky cp
@comment %**end of header
-@comment $Id: info.texi,v 1.26 2002/10/02 23:24:31 karl Exp $
+@comment $Id: info.texi,v 1.27 2002/11/06 00:45:03 karl Exp $
@copying
This file describes how to use Info, the on-line, menu-driven GNU
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
@end titlepage
@ifnottex
-@node Top
+@node Top, Getting Started, (dir), (dir)
@top Info: An Introduction
The GNU Project distributes most of its on-line manuals in the
@@ -125,13 +125,14 @@ the screen.
* Help:: How to use Info
* Help-P:: Returning to the Previous node
* Help-^L:: The Space, DEL, B and ^L commands.
+* Help-Inv:: Invisible text in Emacs Info.
* Help-M:: Menus
* Help-Xref:: Following cross-references
* Help-Int:: Some intermediate Info commands
* Help-Q:: Quitting Info
@end menu
-@node Help-Small-Screen
+@node Help-Small-Screen, Help, Getting Started, Getting Started
@section Starting Info on a Small Screen
@ifnotinfo
@@ -213,6 +214,10 @@ the course.
You are talking to the program Info, for reading documentation.
+ There are two ways to use Info: from within Emacs or as a
+stand-alone reader that you can invoke from a shell using the command
+@command{info}.
+
@cindex node, in Info documents
Right now you are looking at one @dfn{Node} of Information.
A node contains text describing a specific topic at a specific
@@ -283,9 +288,9 @@ coming up.
link, to get to the node @samp{Help-^L} and learn more.
@end format
-@node Help-^L, Help-M, Help-P, Getting Started
+@node Help-^L, Help-Inv, Help-P, Getting Started
@comment node-name, next, previous, up
-@section The Space, DEL, B and ^L commands.
+@section The Space, DEL, B and ^L commands
This node's mode line tells you that you are now at node
@samp{Help-^L}, and the header line tells you that @kbd{p} would get
@@ -409,30 +414,103 @@ the same size screen, it would be impossible to warn you anyway.
@format
>> Now type @kbd{n}, or click the middle mouse button on the @samp{Next} link,
- to see the description of the @kbd{m} command.
+ to visit the next node.
@end format
-@node Help-M, Help-Xref, Help-^L, Getting Started
+@node Help-Inv, Help-M, Help-^L, Getting Started
+@comment node-name, next, previous, up
+@section Invisible text in Emacs Info
+
+ Before discussing menus, we need to make some remarks that are only
+relevant to users reading Info using Emacs. Users of the stand-alone
+version can skip this node by typing @kbd{]} now.
+
+@cindex invisible text in Emacs
+ In Emacs, certain text that appears in the stand-alone version is
+normally hidden, technically because it has the @samp{invisibility}
+property. Invisible text is really a part of the text. It becomes
+visible (by default) after killing and yanking, it appears in printed
+output, it gets saved to file just like any other text, and so on.
+Thus it is useful to know it is there.
+
+@findex vis-mode
+You can make invisible text visible by using the command @kbd{M-x
+vis-mode}. @code{vis-mode} is a minor mode, so using it a second time
+will make the text invisible again. Use this command and watch its
+effect on the ``menu'' below and the top line of this node.
+
+If you prefer to @emph{always} see the invisible text, you can set
+@code{Info-hide-note-references} to @code{nil}. Enabling
+@code{vis-mode} permanently is not a real alternative, because Emacs
+Info also uses (although less extensively) another text property that
+can change the text being displayed, the @samp{display} property.
+Only the invisibility property is affected by @code{vis-mode}. When,
+in this tutorial, we refer to the @samp{Emacs} behavior, we mean the
+@emph{default} Emacs behavior.
+
+Now type @kbd{]}, to learn about the @kbd{]} and @kbd{[} commands.
+
+@menu
+* ]: Help-]. Node telling about ].
+* stuff: Help-]. Same node.
+* Help-]:: Yet again, same node.
+@end menu
+
+@node Help-], , , Help-Inv
+@subsection The @kbd{]} and @kbd{[} commands.
+
+If you type @kbd{n} now, you get an error message saying that this
+node has no next node. Similarly, if you type @kbd{p}, the error
+message tells you that there is no previous node. (The exact message
+depends on the Info reader you use.) This is because @kbd{n} and
+@kbd{p} carry you to the next and previous node @emph{at the same
+level}. The present node is contained in a menu (see next) of the
+node you came from, and hence is considered to be at a lower level.
+It is the only node in the previous node's menu (even though it was
+listed three times). Hence it has no next or previous node that
+@kbd{n} or @kbd{p} could move to.
+
+If you systematically move through a manual by typing @kbd{n}, you run
+the risk of skipping many nodes. You do not run this risk if you
+systematically use @kbd{@key{SPC}}, because, when you scroll to the
+bottom of a node and type another @kbd{@key{SPC}}, then this carries
+you to the following node in the manual @emph{regardless of level}.
+If you immediately want to go to that node, without having to scroll
+to the bottom of the screen first, you can type @kbd{]}.
+
+Similarly, @kbd{@key{BACKSPACE}} carries you to the preceding node
+regardless of level, after you scrolled to the beginning of the
+present node. If you want to go to the preceding node immediately,
+you can type @kbd{[}.
+
+For instance, typing this sequence will come back here in three steps:
+@kbd{[ n [}. To do the same backward, type @kbd{] p ]}.
+
+Now type @kbd{]} to go to the next node and learn about menus.
+
+@node Help-M, Help-Xref, Help-Inv, Getting Started
@comment node-name, next, previous, up
@section Menus and the @kbd{m} command
@cindex menus in an Info document
@cindex Info menus
- With only the @kbd{n} (next) and @kbd{p} (previous) commands for
-moving between nodes, nodes are restricted to a linear sequence.
-Menus allow a branching structure. A menu is a list of other nodes
-you can move to. It is actually just part of the text of the node
-formatted specially so that Info can interpret it. The beginning of a
-menu is always identified by a line which starts with @samp{* Menu:}.
-A node contains a menu if and only if it has a line in it which starts
-that way. The only menu you can use at any moment is the one in the
-node you are in. To use a menu in any other node, you must move to
-that node first.
+ With only the @kbd{n} (next), @kbd{p} (previous), @kbd{@key{SPC}},
+@kbd{@key{BACKSPACE}}, @kbd{]} and @kbd{[} commands for moving between
+nodes, nodes are restricted to a linear sequence. Menus allow a
+branching structure. A menu is a list of other nodes you can move to.
+It is actually just part of the text of the node formatted specially
+so that Info can interpret it. The beginning of a menu is always
+identified by a line which starts with @w{@samp{* Menu:}}. A node
+contains a menu if and only if it has a line in it which starts that
+way. The only menu you can use at any moment is the one in the node
+you are in. To use a menu in any other node, you must move to that
+node first.
After the start of the menu, each line that starts with a @samp{*}
-identifies one subtopic. The line usually contains a brief name
-for the subtopic (followed by a @samp{:}), the name of the node that talks
-about that subtopic, and optionally some further description of the
+identifies one subtopic. The line usually contains a brief name for
+the subtopic (followed by a @samp{:}, normally hidden in Emacs), the
+name of the node that talks about that subtopic (again, normally
+hidden in Emacs), and optionally some further description of the
subtopic. Lines in the menu that do not start with a @samp{*} have no
special meaning---they are only for the human reader's benefit and do
not define additional subtopics. Here is an example:
@@ -444,7 +522,11 @@ not define additional subtopics. Here is an example:
The subtopic name is Foo, and the node describing it is @samp{Node
about FOO}. The rest of the line is just for the reader's
Information. [[ But this line is not a real menu item, simply because
-there is no line above it which starts with @samp{* Menu:}.]]
+there is no line above it which starts with @w{@samp{* Menu:}}. Also,
+in a real menu item, the @samp{*} would appear at the very start of
+the line. This is why the ``normally hidden'' text in Emacs, namely
+@samp{: Node about FOO.}, is actually visible in this example, even
+when @code{vis-mode} is off.]]
When you use a menu to go to another node (in a way that will be
described soon), what you specify is the subtopic name, the first
@@ -463,7 +545,7 @@ abbreviation for this:
@noindent
This means that the subtopic name and node name are the same; they are
-both @samp{Foo}.
+both @samp{Foo}. (The @samp{::} is normally hidden in Emacs.)
@format
>> Now use @key{SPC} to find the menu in this node, then come back to
@@ -488,16 +570,18 @@ another command. The @kbd{m} command is different: it needs to know
the @dfn{name of the subtopic}. Once you have typed @kbd{m}, Info
tries to read the subtopic name.
- Now look for the line containing many dashes near the bottom of the
-screen. There is one more line beneath that one, but usually it is
-blank. When it is blank, Info is ready for a command, such as @kbd{n}
-or @kbd{b} or @key{SPC} or @kbd{m}. If that line contains text ending
-in a colon, it means Info is reading more input for the last command.
-You can't type an Info command then, because Info is trying to read
-input, not commands. You must either give the input and finish the
-command you started, or type @kbd{Control-g} to cancel the command.
-When you have done one of those things, the input entry line becomes
-blank again. Then you can type Info commands again.
+ Now, in the stand-alone Info, look for the line containing many
+dashes near the bottom of the screen. (This is the stand-alone
+equivalent for the mode line in Emacs.) There is one more line
+beneath that one, but usually it is blank. (In Emacs, this is the
+echo area.) When it is blank, Info is ready for a command, such as
+@kbd{n} or @kbd{b} or @key{SPC} or @kbd{m}. If that line contains
+text ending in a colon, it means Info is reading more input for the
+last command. You can't type an Info command then, because Info is
+trying to read input, not commands. You must either give the input
+and finish the command you started, or type @kbd{Control-g} to cancel
+the command. When you have done one of those things, the input entry
+line becomes blank again. Then you can type Info commands again.
@findex Info-menu
The command to go to a subnode via a menu is @kbd{m}. After you type
@@ -535,6 +619,8 @@ three ways of going to one place, Help-FOO:
* Help-FOO:: And yet another!
@end menu
+(Turn @code{vis-mode} on if you are using Emacs.)
+
@format
>> Now type just an @kbd{m} and see what happens:
@end format
@@ -610,14 +696,6 @@ node's header line it acts like @kbd{n}, @kbd{p}, or @kbd{u}, etc. At
end of the node's text @kbd{Mouse-2} moves to the next node, or up if
there's no next node.
- Here is another way to get to Help-FOO, a menu. You can ignore this
-if you want, or else try it by typing @key{TAB} and then @key{RET}, or
-clicking @kbd{Mouse-2} on it (but then please come back to here).
-
-@menu
-* Help-FOO::
-@end menu
-
@format
>> Type @kbd{n} to see more commands.
@end format
@@ -656,7 +734,8 @@ pointer shown in the header line (provided that you have a mouse).
In Info documentation, you will see many @dfn{cross references}.
Cross references look like this: @xref{Help-Cross, Cross}. That text
is a real, live cross reference, whose name is @samp{Cross} and which
-points to the node named @samp{Help-Cross}.
+points to the node named @samp{Help-Cross}. (The node name is hidden
+in Emacs. Do @kbd{M-x vis-mode} to show or hide it.)
@kindex f @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-follow-reference
@@ -699,6 +778,47 @@ to cancel the @kbd{f}.
The @key{TAB} and @kbd{M-@key{TAB}} key, which move between menu
items in a menu, also move between cross references outside of menus.
+ Sometimes a cross reference (or a node) can lead to another file (in
+other words another ``manual''), or, on occasion, even a file on a
+remote machine (although Info files distributed with Emacs or the
+stand-alone Info avoid using remote links). Such a cross reference
+looks like this: @xref{Overview,,,texinfo}. (After following this
+link, type @kbd{l} to get back to this node.) Here the name
+@samp{texinfo} between parentheses (shown in the stand-alone version)
+refers to the file name. This file name appears in cross references
+and node names if it differs from the current file. In Emacs, the
+file name is hidden (along with other text). (Use @kbd{M-x vis-mode}
+to show or hide it.)
+
+ The remainder of this node applies only to the Emacs version. If
+you use the stand-alone version, you can type @kbd{n} immediately.
+
+ To some users, switching manuals is a much bigger switch than
+switching sections. These users like to know that they are going to
+be switching to another manual (and which one) before actually doing
+so, especially given that, if one does not notice, Info commands like
+@kbd{t} (see the next node) can have confusing results.
+
+ If you put your mouse over the cross reference and if the cross
+reference leads to a different manual, then the information appearing
+in a separate box (tool tip) or in the echo area, will mention the
+file the cross reference will carry you to (between parentheses).
+This is also true for menu subtopic names. If you have a mouse, just
+leave it over the @samp{Overview} cross reference above and watch what
+happens.
+
+ If you always like to have that information available without having
+to move your mouse over the cross reference, set
+@code{Info-hide-note-references} to a value other than t (@pxref{Emacs
+Info Variables}). You might also want to do that if you have a lot of
+cross references to files on remote machines and have non-permanent or
+slow access, since otherwise you might not be able to distinguish
+between local and remote links.
+
+@format
+>> Now type @kbd{n} to learn more commands.
+@end format
+
@node Help-Int, Help-Q, Help-Xref, Getting Started
@comment node-name, next, previous, up
@section Some intermediate Info commands
@@ -728,23 +848,17 @@ records the nodes where you have been in a special history list. The
@kbd{l} command revisits nodes in the history list; each successive
@kbd{l} command moves one step back through the history.
- If you have been following directions, an @kbd{l} command now will get
-you back to @samp{Help-M}. Another @kbd{l} command would undo the
-@kbd{u} and get you back to @samp{Help-FOO}. Another @kbd{l} would undo
-the @kbd{m} and get you back to @samp{Help-M}.
-
In Emacs, @kbd{l} runs the command @code{Info-last}.
@format
->> Try typing three @kbd{l}'s, pausing in between to see what each
- @kbd{l} does. Then follow directions again and you will end up
- back here.
+>> Try typing @kbd{p p n} and then three @kbd{l}'s, pausing in between
+to see what each @kbd{l} does. You should wind up right back here.
@end format
Note the difference between @kbd{l} and @kbd{p}: @kbd{l} moves to
where @emph{you} last were, whereas @kbd{p} always moves to the node
which the header says is the @samp{Previous} node (from this node, the
-@samp{Prev} link leads to @samp{Help-M}).
+@samp{Prev} link leads to @samp{Help-Xref}).
@kindex d @r{(Info mode)}
@findex Info-directory
@@ -796,10 +910,10 @@ Texinfo file. (However, in most cases, writing a Texinfo file is
better, since you can use it to make a printed manual or produce other
formats, such as HTML and DocBook, as well as for generating Info
files.) @xref{Top,, Overview of Texinfo, texinfo, Texinfo: The GNU
-Documentation Format}.)
+Documentation Format}.
@menu
-* Advanced:: Advanced Info commands: g, s, e, and 1 - 5.
+* Advanced:: Advanced Info commands: g, e, and 1 - 9.
* Info Search:: How to search Info documents for specific subjects.
* Add:: Describes how to add new nodes to the hierarchy.
Also tells what nodes look like.
@@ -1049,15 +1163,15 @@ The @kbd{m} command searches the current node's menu for the topic which it
reads from the terminal.
@cindex menu and menu entry format
- A menu begins with a line starting with @samp{* Menu:}. The rest of the
-line is a comment. After the starting line, every line that begins
-with a @samp{* } lists a single topic. The name of the topic--what
-the user must type at the @kbd{m}'s command prompt to select this
-topic---comes right after the star and space, and is followed by a
-colon, spaces and tabs, and the name of the node which discusses that
-topic. The node name, like node names following @samp{Next}, @samp{Previous}
-and @samp{Up}, may be terminated with a tab, comma, or newline; it may also
-be terminated with a period.
+ A menu begins with a line starting with @w{@samp{* Menu:}}. The
+rest of the line is a comment. After the starting line, every line
+that begins with a @samp{* } lists a single topic. The name of the
+topic--what the user must type at the @kbd{m}'s command prompt to
+select this topic---comes right after the star and space, and is
+followed by a colon, spaces and tabs, and the name of the node which
+discusses that topic. The node name, like node names following
+@samp{Next}, @samp{Previous} and @samp{Up}, may be terminated with a
+tab, comma, or newline; it may also be terminated with a period.
If the node name and topic name are the same, then rather than
giving the name twice, the abbreviation @samp{* @var{name}::} may be
@@ -1278,6 +1392,14 @@ the @samp{Next}, @samp{Prev}, and @samp{Up} links. A header line does
not scroll with the rest of the buffer, making these links always
visible.
+@item Info-hide-note-references
+As explained in earlier nodes, the Emacs version of Info normally
+hides some text in menus and cross-references. You can completely
+disable this feature, by setting this option to @code{nil}. Setting
+it to a value that is neither @code{nil} nor @code{t} produces an
+intermediate behavior, hiding a limited amount of text, but showing
+all text that could potentially be useful.
+
@item Info-scroll-prefer-subnodes
If set to a non-@code{nil} value, @key{SPC} and @key{BACKSPACE} (or
@key{DEL}) keys in a menu visit subnodes of the current node before
@@ -1286,7 +1408,7 @@ node's menu appears on the screen, the next @key{SPC} moves to a
subnode indicated by the following menu item. Setting this option to
@code{nil} results in behavior similar to the stand-alone Info reader
program, which visits the first subnode from the menu only when you
-hit the end of the current node. The default is @code{t}.
+hit the end of the current node. The default is @code{nil}.
@item Info-enable-active-nodes
When set to a non-@code{nil} value, allows Info to execute Lisp code