From:	"Art S. Kagel" <kagel AT bloomberg DOT com>
Newsgroups:	comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject:	Re: EMACS
Date:	Fri, 1 Aug 1997 07:59:58 -0400
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To:	djgpp AT delorie DOT com
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On 28 Jul 1997, Majisun wrote:

> What is EMACS?  An IDE?
 
The Emacs manual calls Emacs "the Extensible, Customizable, Self-Documenting
Display Editor".  But it is more.  It is a text editor, a word processor, yes
an IDE, the ultimate programmers's editor, news reader, mail reader, etcetera, 
etcetera, etcetera.  

It is extensible because all of its commands are written in ELISP, Emacs'
version of the LISP programming language, and anyone can write new commands.
It is customizable because most commands accept configuration variables which
modify their behavior and anyway the ELISP source is always available to be
customized for you special needs (for example someone wrote an ELISP module to
better interface with screen reader software for the blind).  It is
self-documenting because when you do add new commands, or rebind the keystrokes
which execute a command, Emacs generates help documentation on the fly for this
new behavior.  Emacs even tells you the keystrokes needed to shortcut a command
that you have entered manually so you can learn for next time.

Emacs is multi-windowed and can let you view and edit multiple files
simultaneously.  Contains mouse support.  It is large and powerful and can let
you do anything you need to do.  You can execute you compiler from within Emacs
and it will trap error messages and move you to the corresponding source lines.
On some platforms (sadly not DOS) Emacs can execute your debugger in a window.
The Table of Contents in the printed manual is fifteen pages long!

Some say that Emaccs is hard to learn.  I differ.  You can learn to use it by
investing an hour in the built in tutorial.  You will, however, spend the rest
of your life learning to take advantage of all of the power that it gives you
and discovering new and better ways to do what you were alreading doing the
hard way yesterday.  You will quickly begin customizing and programming new
commands. 

I hope that this gives you a good overview.

Art S. Kagel, kagel AT bloomberg DOT com

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