[lug] emacs

[JEFF PFOHL]

While I don't have time to write a "HOWTO" on emacs at the moment (and
am not sure I'm qualified) I'm a fan of emacs and thought I'd share a
little as to why:

1. I use it as my editor and as my mail client. So any commands
   learned for one purpose apply to the other

2. there are many ways to perform the same command. If you have xemacs
   you can use the pull down menus, if you are logged in from a vt100
   (for instance) you can use some key bindings.

2b. there are at LEAST 2 key bindings for each command. One which is
  sort of cryptic and the other which uses something similar to basic
  english. So I can hit "[ctrl] k" to delete a whole line or I can
  type "[esc]x kill-line"

2c. while it seems like you need to remember the last one in basic
   english emacs actually gives you possible completions. So type
   "[esc]x k" and hit the space bar. You get lots of possible
   completions so you can search if the command doesn't jump into your
   head.

3. there is a tutorial for self exploration

4. it runs on all flavors of UNIX, Windows NT and VMS. I therefore can
   feel confident, that even if I'm on a strange system, I can find
   (or download) a familiar editor and get right to work.


Finally almost everyone learns software by need. I don't know all the
commands, I bet I know less than 1/2 of them. But at this point in
time I know all the commands I have ever needed.

-- 
				JEFF PFOHL
			 	E-MAIL: pfohl at sandia.gov
				PHONE : (505) 844-7033  work
					(505) 299-9516  home
        				(505) 844-6729  fax
				http://nucalf.physics.fsu.edu/pfohl

"My grandfather once told me that there are two kinds of people: 
 Those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to 
 try to be in the first group; there was much less competition."

 - Indira Ghandi, the late Prime Minister of India