A Guided Tour of Emacs: A Friendly Introduction for Newbie Software Engineers

Welcome to the world of Emacs! The goal of this article is to take you on a guided tour of Emacs, the powerful and extensible text editor loved by programmers around the globe. Whether you're new to software engineering or simply new to Emacs, this guide will help you get started and harness the full potential of this versatile tool. Let's dive in!

What is Emacs?

Emacs is a highly customizable text editor and more. It was created by Richard Stallman and his team at the Free Software Foundation (FSF) Emacs offers a unique combination of text editing, programming, and customization features that make it a favourite among software engineers.

Meet Richard Stallman:

Richard Stallman is a renowned computer programmer and software freedom activist. He initiated the development of the GNU operating system, which includes Emacs. Stallman's vision of software freedom and his contributions to the open-source movement have had a profound impact on the software industry.

Emacs common commands

Opening and Saving Files: To open a file from within Emacs, use the command C-x C-f (hold Ctrl and press x, then Ctrl and press f) to prompt for a file name. Type the file name and press Enter to open it.

To save your work, use C-x C-s (Ctrl+x, Ctrl+s). This command saves the current buffer to the associated file.

Understanding Buffers: In Emacs, a buffer is a container that holds text. Each buffer represents a file or some other type of data. To switch between buffers, use C-x b and type the buffer name. You can create new buffers, switch between them, and close them as needed.
Cutting, Pasting, and Copying: To cut an entire line, use C-k (Ctrl+k). This command removes the entire line at the current cursor position and stores it in the kill ring.

To paste the cut or copied content, position the cursor at the desired location and use C-y (Ctrl+y). This command retrieves the most recently killed or copied text and inserts it at the cursor position.
Searching Forward and Backward: To search forward for a specific string, use C-s (Ctrl+s) followed by the search term. Emacs will highlight the next occurrence of the search term. Press C-s again to find subsequent occurrences.

To search backwards, use C-r (Ctrl+r) followed by the search term. Emacs will highlight the previous occurrence of the search term. Press C-r again to find earlier occurrences.
Undoing Actions: Made a mistake? Emacs has got you covered with its undo feature. Use C-x u (Ctrl+x+u) to undo the last command.
Quitting Emacs: To exit Emacs, use C-x C-c (Ctrl+x, Ctrl+c). Emacs will prompt you to save any unsaved changes before closing.

Quitting Emacs: To exit Emacs, use C-x C-c (Ctrl+x, Ctrl+c). Emacs will prompt you to save any unsaved changes before closing.

Conclusion: Emacs is a powerful text editor that offers an array of features designed to enhance your coding experience. By mastering the basics of opening and saving files, cutting and pasting lines, searching for text, undoing actions, and quitting Emacs, you'll be well on your way to becoming a proficient Emacs user.

To find out more about Emacs, kindly go through a guided tour on Emacs.

Remember, practice makes perfect, so don't hesitate to experiment with different commands and functionalities within Emacs.

Happy coding!