Jow Forums How can I learn emacs?

Jow Forums How can I learn emacs?
I'm absolute beginner and never touched this software but I want to learn it

Attached: emacs.png (512x512, 149K)

Other urls found in this thread:

github.com/purcell/emacs.d
youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9KxKa8NpFxIcNQa9js7dQQIHc81b0-Xg
stallman.org/stallman-computing.html
twitter.com/SFWRedditGifs

Try the elm package to learn the basics of emacs-lisp. All the config files are written in elisp so that is a good place to start. You could also open erc and /join #emacs in case you have any questions.
Something simple like setting up your email with gnus might be a good exercise.

I wouldn't install evil for vim keybindings straight away because the bindings don't fit exactly over emacs. I think there are packages to make the bindings more seamless but I haven't tried them.

Also emacs thread.

Thanks for the writeup!

>Try the elm package
What 'elm' package?

whoops meant ielm

if you want to learn something and your first plan of action is to ask Jow Forums, then you should probably give up now

The same way you learn anything else
Time, effort and practice

>1) get into using it at the level of normal editor
Even this will be hard. Terrible keybindings, ancient scrolling and constantly splitting buffer to show you some crap just to not close it and limited power of mouse will make this not pleasant
>2) hunt through configs of other people to fix horrible defaults
this will make you to craft ~100 lines of configuration... JUST TO FIX CRAP DEFAULTS
>3) start using Org mode as your main note taking tool
I will admit this is a nicer part of Emacs. Org mode has 4 parts:
- markup language, slightly richer than markdown with an option of latex inlines and blocks, all sorts of figures and so on.
- interactive editing: the good part, section wrapping, navigation, entering code blocks in their native mode, automatic table formatting and so on. the bad part of it is that it's so integrated into the org mode that porting it to e.g. markdown editing is painful programming work
- dynamic executions: yep, you can execute the code blocks, generate output into document and even use output as input to other block. This concept is called literal programming. Jupyter notebook is far more pleasant to work with though.
- agenda, tasks and planning: never got into this personally
>4) per-language configuration
Speaks for itself. Some languages have excellent tools and integration, some not so much.
>5) getting into Lisp
Lisp languages are interesting. If you are into language and compilers design then Lisps are the pinnacle of simplistic grammar and structure that leads to naturally looking metaprogramming. I would say it's THE language to pick up to first meet the macros and extending syntax with it. Since you spend no time designing grammar, parser and lexer you get right into language features when crafting your own Lisp, thus it's also interesting beginner project.
There are however multiple implementations of Lisp in wild. Emacs Lisp is the worst (serious) one I've seen, it's snail slow and I blame that for Emacs feeling slow overall.

/thread

Emacs' keybindings/hotkeys are designed for users who know how to touch type. You need to practice touch typing first.

Emacs is not just an editor. It's a text-based operating system. Which means you can do everything on it as long as it's text-based related.

I use this config:
github.com/purcell/emacs.d
There is an emacs tutorial 'C-h t', for basic commands. C-h can be thought of as the "help command."

Fuck off

learn lisp

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>not using vi

Fuck off, pleb. You're better off using Atom or some shit like that.

It's the current year
There's no reason to start off with emacs or vim seriously now that much better, more intuitive, and good out of the box tools are available.

Use Vim. Anything Emacs can do that Vim can't can be better done by external programs. Bash + Vim masterrace.

So I started learning org-ref today.

Holy shit, I don't think I've been this impressed by a program in years.

You can literally drag a drop a .pdf on top of your org file and it automatically generates the entry on your .bib . Fuck.

My dad printed me off a keybind cheatsheet, you just seen to learn the basics:
ctrl+a jump to begging of line
ctrl+e jump to end of line
ctrl+k kill and copy line
ctrl+y paste line
ctrl+x ctrl+s save file (just hold down ctrl for both keys)
ctrl+s search (press ctrl+s for next)
alt+right shift+> jump to end of file
alt+right shift+< jump to beginning of file
ctrl+g cancel whatever command
shift+up/down keys to highlight
alt+w to copy
ctrl+y to paste
ctrl+x+c to close

for the rest just use alt+x and then type shit like:
undo, compile, indent-region, comment-region, etc

Oh and don't forget the best commands:
ctrl+x 1 to close buffers
ctrl+x o to switch buffers

Ctrl+X 1 closes the buffer you are not in

Install spacemac (vim mode) and then just start using it, it's so eazy that pretty much everything is instinctive.

Uh, try again sweety

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>alt+right shift

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Spacemacs or DOOM desu.
I started with spacemacs, got annoyed in like a month, made my own config, got bored of having to invent my own framework and then switched to DOOM and am very happy with it.
SM is a good introduction. But I wouldn't use it seriously anymore.

>Emacs is not just an editor. It's a text-based operating system. Which means you can do everything on it as long as it's text-based related.
Actually, it can show graphics too.
It's pretty weird that people think emacs is a CLI editor.

enjoy your cargo-cult of actually not working more efficient

I use spacemacs.
It's a very drastic conversion, giving you a hybrid between vim and emacs and an opinionated set of layers and configs.

It's not the pure emacs experience though, but it's a solid editor. Also, first thing you should do is use org, it's great!

Watch Mike Zamansky's Using Emacs playlist on YouTube: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9KxKa8NpFxIcNQa9js7dQQIHc81b0-Xg

Just follow through in order and you'll be rms in gno time.

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Start by going through the tutorial. It will teach you about basics and how to look up built-in help.

Uh oh, I installed prelude and now nothing fucking autoloads, how to fix?

Start by doing some lifting with your pinky or you gonna break it alongside your left Ctrl.

rm -rf ~/.emacs.d

You don't and learn a real editor such as Vim instead.

How do I learn vim then?

Run vimtutor from console

1. install vim
2. start vim
3. type :help
4. read

Emacs can become Vim if you want, Vim can't become emacs. Also if you like Vim bindings just use spacemacs

Don't learn emacs learn Unix instead.
You see, back in the day computers would boot into an interpreter and old hackers would boot the computer into a lisp interpreter. Those old lisp hackers lost their computers when Unix and its shell started taking over the industry and that pissed them off, so they ported their tools over from the lisp running machines to Unix. By using emacs you are doing it the "lispers way" and not the "unix way". All those lispers hated unix.

Oh yeah this is SO true. There's this old Lisp hacker called Richard Stallman, he absolutely hates Linux, opensource software and Unix in general.

Yup, says so right on his website. Thanks for reminding me

>I was never a fan of unix.
stallman.org/stallman-computing.html
He has another paper where he says he hated the idea of cloning unix but it was easiest.

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He likes the philosophy of it not system, there's a difference. You said he should learn Unix. Are you using real Unix on daily basis on desktop or laptop?

He likes the political philosophy of free software.
He does not like unix (he never leaves his comfy lisp machine known as emacs)
There's an old saying "emacs is a great OS, too bad it dosn't have a bootloader"

Also there was another lisper that called Unix and C a virus that swept over academia. I think the article was "worse is better"
yes, I use real Unix, I consider BSD to be real Unix (but not certified UNIX) and I use Illumos which is real SysV Unix.

#emacs and #emacs-beginners on freenode

ed > vi > emacs > nano

The saying goes "emacs is a great os, too bad it doesn't have a good editor". Because of all the things emacs can do. I don't like default emacs key bindings, being sysadmin i like efficiency of Vim and it's most probably installed everywhere. But I switched to spacemacs, which is emacs with Vim key bindings and its based as fuck. Try it.

Now that I'm mostly on the move, is Illumos a possibility on newer laptop? Currently I use Manjaro and just virtualise shit I need over KVM.

>is Illumos a possibility on newer laptop?
Nope. Illumos devs maintain that it's a server OS so they don't support ACPI events for laptops. You will not get lidclose sleep and other functions, but it does have power management.
it's great on desktops and servers though.

Hmmm, too bad I have newest xps for work.
Do you think it will work good with new Ryzen? Sorry I didn't had time or reason for research but that's why I asked do you use real Unix, so if it's not too bothersome I would like to hear some things first hand.
Also what are you using it for, how's situation with software etc.

>he has to learn a text editor
What a way to waste time on something tiresome and useless

it's probably a blank canvas problem, which means asking experienced users where to start is the right way.
Question is: Has OP tried to learn it without help?

Spacemacs is the way to go here bub. It has more sane defaults and learning the keybindings is intuitive. Just hit the spacebar. SPC+w to window related things. SPC+b to do buffer related things. You get the picture.

This guy fucks. Fanboysam aside, spacemacs is the shit. You get best of both worlds efficiency of Vim and extensibility and power of Vim. Future is now

/Thread

>quality can't become utter shit
Glad we agree on something.

Why do you want to use illumos?

I'd use GNU/Linux if it's a work computer desu, more likely to work smoothly with newer hardware as well

>Why do you want to use illumos?
ZFS/BE's
SMF
dtrace
Zones