Looking for a buffer-cycling library

Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Tim Johnson]

I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 

Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
over"

Ideally it would work just like 'buffer-next or 'previous-buffer,
but I would still be able to access _all_ buffers from 'buffer-menu.

It would have to work in terminal mode and my best imagined use
would be from a netbook without split windows.

Recommendations are welcome.
thanks
-- 
Tim 
tim at tee jay forty nine dot com or akwebsoft dot com
http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Alexis]

Tim Johnson writes:

> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
> buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 
>
> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
> over"
>
> Ideally it would work just like 'buffer-next or 'previous-buffer,
> but I would still be able to access _all_ buffers from 'buffer-menu.
>
> It would have to work in terminal mode and my best imagined use
> would be from a netbook without split windows.
>
> Recommendations are welcome.

Might something like this be what you're after?

--- BEGIN ---
(defun get-buffers-with-files ()
  (let ((wanted '())) 
    (dolist (b (buffer-list))
      (if (buffer-file-name b)
          (setq wanted (append wanted (list b)))))
    wanted))

(add-hook 'buffer-list-update-hook #'(lambda ()
                                       (setq buffers-with-files (get-buffers-with-files))))

(defun next-buffer-with-file ()
  (interactive)
  (setq buffers-with-files (append (cdr buffers-with-files) (list (car buffers-with-files))))
  (switch-to-buffer (car buffers-with-files)))

(defun previous-buffer-with-file ()
  (interactive)
  (setq buffers-with-files (append (last buffers-with-files) (butlast buffers-with-files)))
  (switch-to-buffer (car buffers-with-files)))
--- END ---


Alexis.

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Tim Johnson]

* Alexis <flexibeast@gmail.com> [141114 16:48]:
> 
> Tim Johnson writes:
> 
> > I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
> > buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 
> >
> > Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
> > over"
> >
> > Ideally it would work just like 'buffer-next or 'previous-buffer,
> > but I would still be able to access _all_ buffers from 'buffer-menu.
> >
> > It would have to work in terminal mode and my best imagined use
> > would be from a netbook without split windows.
> >
> > Recommendations are welcome.
> 
> Might something like this be what you're after?
> 
> --- BEGIN ---
> (defun get-buffers-with-files ()
>   (let ((wanted '())) 
>     (dolist (b (buffer-list))
>       (if (buffer-file-name b)
>           (setq wanted (append wanted (list b)))))
>     wanted))
> 
> (add-hook 'buffer-list-update-hook #'(lambda ()
>                                        (setq buffers-with-files (get-buffers-with-files))))
> 
> (defun next-buffer-with-file ()
>   (interactive)
>   (setq buffers-with-files (append (cdr buffers-with-files) (list (car buffers-with-files))))
>   (switch-to-buffer (car buffers-with-files)))
> 
> (defun previous-buffer-with-file ()
>   (interactive)
>   (setq buffers-with-files (append (last buffers-with-files) (butlast buffers-with-files)))
>   (switch-to-buffer (car buffers-with-files)))
> --- END ---
  Looks good Alex, I will have to grok it further tomorrow.

  As far as a quick hack, I've seen some good stuff at
  http://stackoverflow.com/questions/14323516/make-emacs-next-buffer-skip-messages-buffer

  but I thought that a full-blown library might introduce me to some
  other goodies I haven't thought off.

  thanks a lot
-- 
Tim 
tim at tee jay forty nine dot com or akwebsoft dot com
http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Alexis]

Tim Johnson writes:

>   I will have to grok it further tomorrow.

:-)

>   As far as a quick hack, I've seen some good stuff at
>   http://stackoverflow.com/questions/14323516/make-emacs-next-buffer-skip-messages-buffer

*nod*

>   but I thought that a full-blown library might introduce me to some
>   other goodies I haven't thought off.

Fair enough.

>   thanks a lot

You're welcome! :-)


Alexis.

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Tim Johnson]

* Tim Johnson <tim@akwebsoft.com> [141114 14:18]:
> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
> buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 
> 
> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
> over"
> 
> Ideally it would work just like 'buffer-next or 'previous-buffer,
> but I would still be able to access _all_ buffers from 'buffer-menu.
> 
> It would have to work in terminal mode and my best imagined use
> would be from a netbook without split windows.
> 
> Recommendations are welcome.
  Thanks for all the recommendations and code thus far.
  BTW: icicles has been on my "tolearn" list for some time...
-- 
Tim 
tim at tee jay forty nine dot com or akwebsoft dot com
http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com

RE: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Drew Adams]

> BTW: icicles has been on my "tolearn" list for some time...

On mine too. ;-)

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Tim Johnson]

* Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com> [141115 09:13]:
> > BTW: icicles has been on my "tolearn" list for some time...
> 
> On mine too. ;-)
  Drew, you have made a sale. I've been circling around icicles and
  alacarte for some time now. 

  For my immediate needs, icicles is more than I need, but I have no
  doubt that I will be using other features in the future and I
  won't be in terminal mode forever.

  If (I mean 'when') I have questions, I will pose them under a new
  subject with 'icicles included so that others interested in the
  same have a keyword match.

  thanks
-- 
Tim 
tim at tee jay forty nine dot com or akwebsoft dot com
http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com

RE: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Drew Adams]

> > > BTW: icicles has been on my "tolearn" list for some time...
> >
> > On mine too. ;-)
>
>   Drew, you have made a sale.

Please, no - I'm not selling anything.  If it helps you, good.

>   I've been circling around icicles and alacarte for some time now.
> 
>   For my immediate needs, icicles is more than I need, but I have no
>   doubt that I will be using other features in the future and I
>   won't be in terminal mode forever.
> 
>   If (I mean 'when') I have questions, I will pose them under a new
>   subject with 'icicles included so that others interested in the
>   same have a keyword match.

OK.  And for bug reports: `M-x icicle-send-bug-report'.

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Tim Johnson]

* Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com> [141115 11:41]:
> > > > BTW: icicles has been on my "tolearn" list for some time...
> > >
> > > On mine too. ;-)
> >
> >   Drew, you have made a sale.
> 
> Please, no - I'm not selling anything.  If it helps you, good.
  Oh, I know ... just a metaphor
 
> >   I've been circling around icicles and alacarte for some time now.
> > 
> >   For my immediate needs, icicles is more than I need, but I have no
> >   doubt that I will be using other features in the future and I
> >   won't be in terminal mode forever.
> > 
> >   If (I mean 'when') I have questions, I will pose them under a new
> >   subject with 'icicles included so that others interested in the
> >   same have a keyword match.
> 
> OK.  And for bug reports: `M-x icicle-send-bug-report'.
  Understood. And thanks.   

-- 
Tim 
tim at tee jay forty nine dot com or akwebsoft dot com
http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Joost Kremers]

Tim Johnson wrote:
> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
> buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 
>
> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
> over"

I use (a slightly modified version of) swbuff.el for this. It allows you
to specify regexes for buffer names that should be excluded.

Going through `M-x list-packages` I notice there's a similar package
cycbuf, which looks interesting. You might want to check that out as well.


-- 
Joost Kremers                                   joostkremers@fastmail.fm
Selbst in die Unterwelt dringt durch Spalten Licht
EN:SiS(9)

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Marcin Borkowski]

On 2014-11-15, at 12:31, Joost Kremers wrote:

> Tim Johnson wrote:
>> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
>> buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 
>>
>> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
>> over"

Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?

Hth,

-- 
Marcin Borkowski
http://octd.wmi.amu.edu.pl/en/Marcin_Borkowski
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science
Adam Mickiewicz University

RE: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Drew Adams]

> >> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore
> >> any buffer not loaded from or written to a file.  Example -
> >> any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped over"
> 
> Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?

Icicles does let you "ignore any buffer not loaded from or
written to a file".

To do that, just use a positive prefix arg with `icicle-buffer':
`M-1 C-x b'.  That limits the candidates to names of buffers
visiting files & directories.

(Or define your own command that binds `current-prefix-arg' to
a positive integer and invokes `icicle-buffer'.)

You can also exclude or include particular buffer names using
these user options (customize them or bind them in your own
commands):

 `icicle-buffer-match-regexp'    - Regexp buffer names must match
 `icicle-buffer-no-match-regexp' - Regexp names must not match
 `icicle-buffer-predicate'       - Predicate names must satisfy
 `icicle-buffer-extras'          - Extra buffer names to display

For example, to change the default behavior to show only buffers
associated with files (so no need to use a prefix arg, and exclude
also directories), set `icicle-buffer-predicate' to this:
(lambda (bf) (buffer-file-name bf))

However, the OP also wants to use terminal mode.  Icicles can be
used in terminal mode, but it no doubt calls for customizing some
minibuffer key bindings, as some of the default bindings are for
keys that terminals do not support.  (I don't use terminal mode
anymore, and I don't make much effort to support it for Icicles,
but I do know that some people use Icicles with terminal mode.)

---

Here is the (long) doc for command `icicle-buffer' (`C-x b' in
Icicle mode, by default):

,----
| icicle-buffer is an interactive Lisp function in `icicles-cmd1.el'.
| 
| It is bound to menu-bar buffer Icicles icicle-buffer, C-x b, menu-bar
| buffer select-named-buffer.
| 
| (icicle-buffer)
| 
| Switch to a different buffer, whose content contains a regexp match.
| By default, Icicle mode remaps all key sequences that are normally
| bound to `switch-to-buffer' to `icicle-buffer'.  If you do not want
| this remapping, then customize option `icicle-top-level-key-bindings'.
| 
| Completion candidates are two-part multi-completions, with the second
| part optional.  If both parts are present they are separated by
| `icicle-list-join-string' ("^G^J", by default).
| 
| The first part is matched as a regexp against a buffer name.
| The second part is matched as a regexp against buffer content.
| Candidates that do not match are filtered out.
| 
| When matching buffer content, Icicles just looks for a single match.
| Visiting the buffer does not move to that match or to any other match.
| Matching is used only to filter candidate buffers.
| 
| However, if your input includes a content-matching part and it
| matches, that part is automatically added to the Isearch regexp
| history, `regexp-search-ring' whenever you hit `S-TAB' to complete.
| This means that when you visit the buffer you can immediately search
| for matches using `C-M-s' or `C-M-r'.
| 
| Your minibuffer input can match a buffer name or buffer content, or
| both.  Use `C-M-j' (equivalent here to `C-q C-g C-j') to input the
| default separator.
| 
| For example:
| 
| To match `foo' against buffer names, use input `foo'.
| To match `bar' against buffer contents, use input `C-M-j bar'.
| To match both, use input `foo C-M-j bar'.
| 
| Only the matching buffer names are shown in `*Completions*', and only
| the chosen buffer name is returned.  The actual content matches are
| unimportant anyway: content matching is used only to filter
| candidates.
| 
| This is a buffer-switching command.  If you instead want to navigate
| to text searched for in buffers then use `icicle-search'.
| 
| The buffer-name portion of completion candidates is as follows,
| depending on the prefix arg:
| 
| * No prefix arg: all buffers
| * Numeric arg > 0: buffers visiting files or directories (Dired)
| * Numeric arg < 0: buffers associated with the selected frame
| * Numeric arg = 0: buffers with the same mode as the current buffer
| * Plain prefix arg (`C-u'): buffers with the same mode as current,
|   or with a mode that the current mode is derived from
| * Double plain (`C-u C-u'): visible buffers (possibly iconified)
| * Triple plain (`C-u C-u C-u'): invisible buffers
| 
| Those are the default prefix-argument behaviors, but you can change
| them using option `icicle-buffer-prefix-arg-filtering'.
| 
| For Emacs 23 and later, the default values (via `M-n') are the
| (buffer-name components of the) first four completion candidates
| (respecting the prefix argument).
| 
| You can use these additional keys during completion:
| 
| * `C-x F'     Toggle including cached file names as candidates (option
|               `icicle-buffer-include-cached-files-nflag').
| * `C-x R'     Toggle including recent file names as candidates (option
|               `icicle-buffer-include-recent-files-nflag').
| * `C-x m'     Visit a bookmarked buffer (only if you use Bookmark+).
| * `C-x M -'   Remove buffers in a given mode.  Repeatable.
| * `C-x M +'   Keep only buffers in a given mode.
| * `C-x C-m -' Remove candidate buffers whose mode is derived from a
|               given mode.  Repeatable.  (`C-m' = `RET'.)
| * `C-x C-m +' Keep only buffers in a mode derived from a given mode.
| * `C-x v -'   Remove buffers that are visible (maybe iconified).
| * `C-x v +'   Keep only buffers that are visible (maybe iconified).
| * `<S-delete>'  Kill the buffer named by a completion candidate.
| 
| Those are default key bindings, but you can change them using option
| `icicle-buffer-candidate-key-bindings'.
| 
| These options, when non-nil, control candidate matching and filtering:
| 
|  `icicle-buffer-extras'             - Extra buffer names to display
|  `icicle-buffer-ignore-space-prefix-flag' - Ignore space-prefix names
|  `icicle-buffer-include-cached-files-nflag' - Include cached files
|  `icicle-buffer-include-recent-files-nflag' - Include recent files
|  `icicle-buffer-match-regexp'       - Regexp buffer names must match
|  `icicle-buffer-no-match-regexp'    - Regexp names must not match
|  `icicle-buffer-predicate'          - Predicate names must satisfy
|  `icicle-buffer-sort'               - Sort function for candidates
|  `icicle-buffer-skip-functions'     - Exclude from content searching
|  `icicle-file-skip-functions'       - Same, but cached/recent files
| 
| For example, to change the default behavior to show only buffers that
| are associated with files, set `icicle-buffer-predicate' to this:
| 
|  (lambda (bufname) (buffer-file-name (get-buffer bufname)))
| 
| Option `icicle-buffer-require-match-flag' can be used to override
| option `icicle-require-match-flag'.
| 
| Option `icicle-buffers-ido-like' non-nil gives this command a more
| Ido-like behavior.
| 
| See also command `icicle-buffer-no-search', which is `icicle-buffer'
| without the multi-completion behavior that searches buffer content.
| 
| See also command `icicle-buffer-config', which lets you choose a
| configuration of user options for commands such as `icicle-buffer'.
| 
| Note: The prefix arg is tested, even when this is called
| noninteractively.  Lisp code can bind `current-prefix-arg' to control
| the behavior.
| 
| Read input, then act on it.
| 
| Input-candidate completion and cycling are available.  While cycling,
| these keys with prefix `C-' are active:
| 
| `C-mouse-2', `C-return' - Act on current completion candidate only
| `C-down', `C-wheel-down' - Move to next completion candidate and act
| `C-up', `C-wheel-up' - Move to previous completion candidate and act
| `C-next'  - Move to next apropos-completion candidate and act
| `C-prior' - Move to previous apropos-completion candidate and act
| `C-end'   - Move to next prefix-completion candidate and act
| `C-home'  - Move to previous prefix-completion candidate and act
| `C-!'     - Act on *all* candidates, successively (careful!)
| 
| When candidate action and cycling are combined (e.g. `C-next'), user
| option `icicle-act-before-cycle-flag' determines which occurs first.
| 
| With prefix `C-M-' instead of `C-', the same keys (`C-M-mouse-2',
| `C-M-RET', `C-M-down', and so on) provide help about candidates.
| 
| Use `mouse-2', `RET', or `S-RET' to finally choose a candidate, or
| `C-g' to quit.
| 
| This is an Icicles command - see command `icicle-mode'.
`----

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Marcin Borkowski]

On 2014-11-15, at 18:17, Drew Adams wrote:

>> >> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore
>> >> any buffer not loaded from or written to a file.  Example -
>> >> any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped over"
>> 
>> Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?
>
> Icicles does let you "ignore any buffer not loaded from or
> written to a file".
>
> To do that, just use a positive prefix arg with `icicle-buffer':
> `M-1 C-x b'.  That limits the candidates to names of buffers
> visiting files & directories.

Wow.  Just wow.

In fact, I was thinking about feeding Icicles a regex like ^[^*].  Now I
can see there's no need to.

I'll put "throwing Ido out and embracing Icicles" higher on my priority
list.

> Here is the (long) doc for command `icicle-buffer' (`C-x b' in
> Icicle mode, by default):
> [...]

Incredible.

Regards,

-- 
Marcin Borkowski
http://octd.wmi.amu.edu.pl/en/Marcin_Borkowski
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science
Adam Mickiewicz University

RE: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Drew Adams]

TL;DRers: Skip it, unless you care.

> >> >> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore
> >> >> any buffer not loaded from or written to a file.  Example -
> >> >> any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped over"
> >>
> >> Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?
> >
> > Icicles does let you "ignore any buffer not loaded from or
> > written to a file".
> >
> > To do that, just use a positive prefix arg with `icicle-buffer':
> > `M-1 C-x b'.  That limits the candidates to names of buffers
> > visiting files & directories.
> 
> Wow.  Just wow.
> 
> In fact, I was thinking about feeding Icicles a regex like
> ^[^*].  Now I can see there's no need to.
> 
> I'll put "throwing Ido out and embracing Icicles" higher on my
> priority list.
> 
> > Here is the (long) doc for command `icicle-buffer' (`C-x b' in
> > Icicle mode, by default): [...]
> 
> Incredible.

Well, the doc is not the product. ;-)  The proof of the
pudding is in the eating.  So before we get carried away,
let me just say this -

Icicles is no panacea.  I wouldn't be without it, personally,
but there are those who like it and those who do not.  Some
things are still clunky in Icicles, and there are of course
bugs.

---

Maybe the most important thing to point out here is that you
need not swallow it whole.  Here are three ways to not have
it take over your Emacs ;-):

1. Icicles will not bind top-level commands (for instance,
it will not remap `C-x b' to `icicle-buffer' when in Icicle
mode) if you customize option `icicle-top-level-key-bindings'
to set it to `nil'.

By default, in Icicle mode Icicles does remap lots of
top-level vanilla commands to Icicles (multi-)commands.
But you need not let it - it is trivial to say "Hands off
my keys!".  (It need not be an all-or-nothing choice, of
course.)

2. It *is* possible to relegate Icicles completion to
particular commands, or to exclude it from particular
commands.  That's not the Icicles way. ;-)  But it is
possible.  More on this below.

3. There are a gazillion user options, to let you tune
Icicles to get the behavior you want.  In addition,
because one completion behavior does *not* fit all
contexts, you can easily change behavior on the fly.

The latter feature is quite important, as what makes
sense for discovery and exploring help is not necessarily
the best behavior for locating a file containing something
somewhere on your giant file system.

You are in charge.  You have a better idea than Emacs what
your context is, what you can expect in terms of matching
behavior, number of candidates, etc.  Not DWIM but Do What
You Want.

Sometimes you want Icicles to take time to tell you stuff
about a completion candidate, and sometimes you don't.
Sometimes you want it to take time to automatically refresh
the set of current candidates to match your updated input,
and sometimes you prefer to tell it when to refresh (on
demand).  And so on.

Tip: `M-?' during minibuffer input tells you what you can
change on the fly, how, and what your current settings are.
This is true for any minibuffer input, not just during
completion.

---

Before coming back to #2, which is about using Icicles
only here and there, for particular commands, let me say
that it is a   * f e a t u r e *   that Icicles completion
is available everywhere.  That's the idea behind the design.

In Icicle mode, which is a global minor mode, Icicles
*redefines* standard completion functions `completing-read',
`read-file-name', `read-from-minibuffer',...

You either appreciate this or you don't. ;-)  In this
respect, Icicles differs from other completion packages
(Ido, Helm, ..., Foobar).  By default, when you turn on
Icicle mode you do bite off a big chunk of something
different from vanilla Emacs.

You can choose to forego mapping Icicles top-level
commands to standard keys.  But the standard completion
functions used everywhere in Emacs commands are usurped
by Icicles when you are in Icicle mode.

What's the difference between co-opting keys for
Icicles top-level commands (which is optional) and
co-opting lower-level functions used by the top-level
commands bound to those keys (which is not optional)?

The difference is that even though the standard
completion functions are co-opted, if you stick to the
minibuffer keys that vanilla Emacs uses (`TAB', `RET',
etc.) then there is little difference from vanilla
Emacs behavior.  Even in Icicle mode.

IOW, if you choose to keep the standard binding of
`C-x b' to `switch-to-buffer' then its completion
behavior in Icicle mode is pretty much what you get
with vanilla Emacs.

It is when you use additional minibuffer keys (e.g.,
`S-TAB') that you get Icicles completion behavior.

OK, there are a few exceptions to the vanilla-behavior
claim: `SPC', `?', and `^J' (newline) self-insert
during Icicles completion (why not?), and `down' and
`up' arrows cycle completion candidates.  But the most
important vanilla keys are respected.  (And all of the
keys are customizable.) 

In sum, if you *want* Icicles completion everywhere then
you're in luck, out of the box, as soon as you turn on
`icicle-mode'.

You don't need to write (or find) and bind new commands
that call a special completion function such as
`foobar-mode-completing-read'.  Commands that use the
standard completion functions give you Icicles completion
for free.  No configuration needed to get something like
`foobar-mode-everywhere' or `foobar-mode-ubiquitous'.
No need to say which kinds of objects you want foobar-mode
completion for.

---

But what if you don't want that?  That's #2.

As mentioned, you can turn off Icicle mode: `M-x icy-mode'.
That's the answer?  Yup.  Toggle on/off.  No big deal.

And if you want to turn Icicle mode on or off for just
certain commands or certain parts of your code then you
can use these two macros: `icicle-with-icy-mode-OFF',
`icicle-with-icy-mode-ON'.

So if you want to leave Icicle mode OFF in general,
but you want Icicles completion for your own command
`my-choose-a-foo', then do something like this:

(defun my-choose-a-foo (afoo)
  (interactive
    (list
      (icicle-with-icy-mode-ON
        (completing-read "Choose a foo: " all-foos))))
  (message "Chosen foo: `%s'" afoo))

Similarly, if you want Icicle mode ON in general, but
you want it OFF for some particular code, wrap that
code with `icicle-with-icy-mode-OFF'.

HTH.

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Joost Kremers]

Marcin Borkowski wrote:
>
> On 2014-11-15, at 12:31, Joost Kremers wrote:
>
>> Tim Johnson wrote:
>>> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore any
>>> buffer not loaded from or written to a file. 
>>>
>>> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be "jumped
>>> over"
>
> Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?

Because, AFAIU, with Icicles you still need to type `C-x b` to switch
buffers. swbuff displays a list of buffers and allows you to cycle
through them. I've bound the relevant cycling commands to `C-TAB` and
`S-C-TAB`, so I can just press the control key and hit TAB a number of
times to get to the buffer I want.

I usually don't have too many open files, so most of the time I only
need to hit TAB a few times. Buffer switching is much faster that way
than by pressing `C-x b` and typing part of the buffer name.

I've recently bound `ido-switch-buffer` to `s-g`, making it a bit
quicker than `C-x b`, but I notice I still prefer to use C-TAB.


-- 
Joost Kremers                                   joostkremers@fastmail.fm
Selbst in die Unterwelt dringt durch Spalten Licht
EN:SiS(9)

RE: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Drew Adams]

> >>> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore
> >>> any buffer not loaded from or written to a file.
> >>>
> >>> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be
> >>> "jumped over"
> >
> > Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?
> 
> Because, AFAIU, with Icicles you still need to type `C-x b` to
> switch buffers.

Correct.  Or whatever key you bind to `icicle-buffer'.

> swbuff displays a list of buffers and allows you to cycle
> through them.

Yep.  I used `swbuff.el' for a while, long, long ago.
(http://www.emacswiki.org/SwBuff)

If there is no control over what the "list of buffers" is, or if it
is long, then cycling is less interesting (IMO).  The OP asked for
file buffers only.  And yes, `swbuff.el' does provide an option,
`swbuff-exclude-buffer-regexps' that filters the list.  Still, the
list can be long, and that filtering is a customization, not
on-the-fly.

FWIW, for cycling when there are few buffers and I don't need
to match names etc., I use `next-buffer-repeat' and
`previous-buffer-repeat', which are just repeatable versions of
the standard `next-buffer' and `previous-buffer' (repeatable in
the sense of being able to repeat the last key hit on a prefix
key: `C-x C-right C-right C-right' or `C-x right right right'.

(Those commands are here:
http://www.emacswiki.org/emacs-en/download/misc-cmds.el)

I filed an Emacs enhancement request to add a user option that
excludes or includes, from `(next|previous)-buffer' cycling,
any buffers whose names match a user-defined regexp.  IOW, to
provide an equivalent to `swbuff-exclude-buffer-regexps' for
vanilla Emacs.  (That would automatically apply also to
`next-buffer-repeat' and `previous-buffer-repeat'.)

That enhancement request is here:
http://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=19070)

> I've bound the relevant cycling commands to `C-TAB` and
> `S-C-TAB`, so I can just press the control key and hit TAB
> a number of times to get to the buffer I want.

See above.

> I usually don't have too many open files,

I often have lots of buffers, including lots of open files.

> so most of the time I only need to hit TAB a few times. Buffer
> switching is much faster that way than by pressing `C-x b` and
> typing part of the buffer name.

Agreed.  If you don't have a lot to cycle through, cycling
can be faster than narrowing by name-matching.

An advantage of Icicles (and similar approaches) in this regard
is that you can either cycle or name-match - or both.  Typically,
typing just a few chars narrows the candidate set to a few that
you can then cycle among.

FWIW: I started down the road to cycling things with Do Re Mi.
You can use it to cycle among various things or increment various
things (hence the name).  But in the cycling cases I have, Icicles
generally gives better behavior, because it lets you combine
cycling with matching (completion).

One of the things I admonish new Icicles users about is this
(in the section about cycling):

 Do not become a cycling drone!

 Input some text to narrow the set of candidates, before cycling
 among them to choose one.  This is a good habit to adopt,
 generally, in Icicles.  Most of the power of Icicles comes in
 your ability to filter a set of candidates.  This is especially
 true when it comes to regexp filtering (see "Apropos Completions").

 Cycling and filtering work hand in hand.  If the set of
 candidates is small to begin with, then just cycling might be
 quick enough - that is the case if you move among a small set
 of buffers, for instance.  But with Icicles you can profitably
 use cycling on even a very large set of candidates - by filtering
 the set first.

(http://www.emacswiki.org/Icicles_-_Cycling_Completions)

> I've recently bound `ido-switch-buffer` to `s-g`, making it a bit
> quicker than `C-x b`, but I notice I still prefer to use C-TAB.

Re: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Marcin Borkowski]

On 2014-11-16, at 18:08, Drew Adams wrote:

>> >>> I'm looking for a buffer cycling mechanism that will ignore
>> >>> any buffer not loaded from or written to a file.
>> >>>
>> >>> Example - any buffer whose name begins with '*' would be
>> >>> "jumped over"
>> >
>> > Just my 2 cents: why not use Icicles?
>> 
>> Because, AFAIU, with Icicles you still need to type `C-x b` to
>> switch buffers.

Fair enough.  You are aware that you can rebind command in Emacs, right?
;-) ;-) ;-)

>> I usually don't have too many open files,
>
> I often have lots of buffers, including lots of open files.

I second that.  My workflow involves seldom quitting Emacs (my current
emacs-uptime is almost 4 days, and it is so short only because my old
netbook hang on Wednesday and I had to reboot - quite often it reaches a
dozen days or so), and I almost never kill buffers - I usually just bury
them (I even have a special keybinding for that, C-u C-z C-b - see
http://mbork.pl/2014-04-04_Fast_buffer_switching_and_friends).  So
cycling alone is not an option for me.

> An advantage of Icicles (and similar approaches) in this regard
> is that you can either cycle or name-match - or both.  Typically,
> typing just a few chars narrows the candidate set to a few that
> you can then cycle among.

This is similar to Ido, which I'm (still) using.

> FWIW: I started down the road to cycling things with Do Re Mi.
> You can use it to cycle among various things or increment various
> things (hence the name).  But in the cycling cases I have, Icicles
> generally gives better behavior, because it lets you combine
> cycling with matching (completion).
>
> One of the things I admonish new Icicles users about is this
> (in the section about cycling):
>
>  Do not become a cycling drone!

Good advice!

>  Cycling and filtering work hand in hand.  If the set of
>  candidates is small to begin with, then just cycling might be
>  quick enough - that is the case if you move among a small set
>  of buffers, for instance.  But with Icicles you can profitably
>  use cycling on even a very large set of candidates - by filtering
>  the set first.

In Ido, I often use C-SPC, which takes what I've typed so far, restricts
the set of candidates to all the matches and lets my type again.  This
way, I can e.g. type one part of the filename, then C-SPC, then another
part, then cycle.  AFAIR, in Icicles you can do the same, with the
difference that keybindings are (probably) different, and the mechanism
is more general.

Best,

-- 
Marcin Borkowski
http://octd.wmi.amu.edu.pl/en/Marcin_Borkowski
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science
Adam Mickiewicz University

RE: Looking for a buffer-cycling library

[Drew Adams]

> In Ido, I often use C-SPC, which takes what I've typed so far,
> restricts the set of candidates to all the matches and lets my
> type again.  This way, I can e.g. type one part of the filename,
> then C-SPC, then another part, then cycle.
>
> AFAIR, in Icicles you can do the same, with the difference
> that keybindings are (probably) different, and the mechanism
> is more general.

Yes.  The Icicles key for this is `S-SPC'.  I call this feature
"progressive completion".  It is typically a lot easier, and
quicker, to incrementally apply simple patterns to match than
it is to try to come up with a single complex pattern that is
equivalent.

http://www.emacswiki.org/Icicles_-_Progressive_Completion

http://www.emacswiki.org/Icicles_-_Nutshell_View#ProgressiveCompletion

A related feature for narrowing choices is what I call "chipping
away the non-elephant": matching candidates that you want to
exclude instead of include.

http://www.emacswiki.org/Icicles_-_Nutshell_View#ChippingAway