Accessing remote Emacs from a Mac terminal emulator

Accessing remote Emacs from a Mac terminal emulator

[MBR]

I need to log into a shell on a remote server and then invoke Emacs from 
the command line.  Up until recently my local machine was a Windows 
laptop.  I was running 'putty' locally.  Putty's front end is a terminal 
emulator,  and it speaks ssh out its back end.

I recently switched to a Mac, so to accomplish the same task I've been 
running the Mac terminal emulator (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app) 
and at the local command line I run:

    ssh -p port username@domainname

After I log into the remote machine's shell, I start up Emacs, just as 
I've been doing for ages.  Almost everything works just as it used to, 
BUT when I need to type a keystroke with the Meta modifier (i.e. use the 
ALT modifier key) the modifier isn't recognized.

Although I can get the same effect by using the ESC key, that's often a 
real pain.  For example, if I want to move forward a word at a time, 
I'll usually type ALT+f, and then release the "f" key and type it again 
several times without ever releasing the ALT key.  To do the same thing 
with the ESC key, I've got to press ESC, release ESC, press F, release 
F, repeat until the cursor's where I want it.

Clearly putty sends something in the SSH protocol that lets the remote 
Emacs know when the ALT key is pressed.  I don't know if it's the Mac 
terminal emulator or the Mac implementation of SSH that's failing to 
pass that information along.

Does anyone here have any idea what I need to do to allow the 
information about the state of the ALT modifier key to be passed to the 
server where Emacs is running?

    Mark R.

Re: Accessing remote Emacs from a Mac terminal emulator

[Jai Dayal]

I use a mac. To enable the Alt key as meta, do the following:

In the terminal (your Terminal.app) go:
Preferences --> Keyboard, and then check the box for "Use option as meta
key".

Jai


On Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 5:42 PM, MBR <mbr@arlsoft.com> wrote:

> I need to log into a shell on a remote server and then invoke Emacs from
> the command line.  Up until recently my local machine was a Windows laptop.
>  I was running 'putty' locally.  Putty's front end is a terminal emulator,
>  and it speaks ssh out its back end.
>
> I recently switched to a Mac, so to accomplish the same task I've been
> running the Mac terminal emulator (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app)
> and at the local command line I run:
>
>    ssh -p port username@domainname
>
> After I log into the remote machine's shell, I start up Emacs, just as
> I've been doing for ages.  Almost everything works just as it used to, BUT
> when I need to type a keystroke with the Meta modifier (i.e. use the ALT
> modifier key) the modifier isn't recognized.
>
> Although I can get the same effect by using the ESC key, that's often a
> real pain.  For example, if I want to move forward a word at a time, I'll
> usually type ALT+f, and then release the "f" key and type it again several
> times without ever releasing the ALT key.  To do the same thing with the
> ESC key, I've got to press ESC, release ESC, press F, release F, repeat
> until the cursor's where I want it.
>
> Clearly putty sends something in the SSH protocol that lets the remote
> Emacs know when the ALT key is pressed.  I don't know if it's the Mac
> terminal emulator or the Mac implementation of SSH that's failing to pass
> that information along.
>
> Does anyone here have any idea what I need to do to allow the information
> about the state of the ALT modifier key to be passed to the server where
> Emacs is running?
>
>    Mark R.
>
>
>

Re: Accessing remote Emacs from a Mac terminal emulator

[Jai Dayal]

Option is what you want, anyways, because Alt is obtained from pressing
Shift+Option, so that's why it didn't show up in your Google searches :)


On Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 5:47 PM, Jai Dayal <dayalsoap@gmail.com> wrote:

> I use a mac. To enable the Alt key as meta, do the following:
>
> In the terminal (your Terminal.app) go:
> Preferences --> Keyboard, and then check the box for "Use option as meta
> key".
>
> Jai
>
>
> On Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 5:42 PM, MBR <mbr@arlsoft.com> wrote:
>
>> I need to log into a shell on a remote server and then invoke Emacs from
>> the command line.  Up until recently my local machine was a Windows laptop.
>>  I was running 'putty' locally.  Putty's front end is a terminal emulator,
>>  and it speaks ssh out its back end.
>>
>> I recently switched to a Mac, so to accomplish the same task I've been
>> running the Mac terminal emulator (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app)
>> and at the local command line I run:
>>
>>    ssh -p port username@domainname
>>
>> After I log into the remote machine's shell, I start up Emacs, just as
>> I've been doing for ages.  Almost everything works just as it used to, BUT
>> when I need to type a keystroke with the Meta modifier (i.e. use the ALT
>> modifier key) the modifier isn't recognized.
>>
>> Although I can get the same effect by using the ESC key, that's often a
>> real pain.  For example, if I want to move forward a word at a time, I'll
>> usually type ALT+f, and then release the "f" key and type it again several
>> times without ever releasing the ALT key.  To do the same thing with the
>> ESC key, I've got to press ESC, release ESC, press F, release F, repeat
>> until the cursor's where I want it.
>>
>> Clearly putty sends something in the SSH protocol that lets the remote
>> Emacs know when the ALT key is pressed.  I don't know if it's the Mac
>> terminal emulator or the Mac implementation of SSH that's failing to pass
>> that information along.
>>
>> Does anyone here have any idea what I need to do to allow the information
>> about the state of the ALT modifier key to be passed to the server where
>> Emacs is running?
>>
>>    Mark R.
>>
>>
>>
>

Re: Accessing remote Emacs from a Mac terminal emulator

[MBR]

Thanks a lot.

For anyone else who wants to try this, the complete path to the checkbox is:

        Terminal > Preferences > Settings > Keyboard > Use option as
        meta key

    Mark

On 3/20/14 5:49 PM, Jai Dayal wrote:
> Option is what you want, anyways, because Alt is obtained from 
> pressing Shift+Option, so that's why it didn't show up in your Google 
> searches :)
>
>
> On Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 5:47 PM, Jai Dayal <dayalsoap@gmail.com 
> <mailto:dayalsoap@gmail.com>> wrote:
>
>     I use a mac. To enable the Alt key as meta, do the following:
>
>     In the terminal (your Terminal.app) go:
>     Preferences --> Keyboard, and then check the box for "Use option
>     as meta key".
>
>     Jai
>
>
>     On Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 5:42 PM, MBR <mbr@arlsoft.com
>     <mailto:mbr@arlsoft.com>> wrote:
>
>         I need to log into a shell on a remote server and then invoke
>         Emacs from the command line.  Up until recently my local
>         machine was a Windows laptop.  I was running 'putty' locally.
>          Putty's front end is a terminal emulator,  and it speaks ssh
>         out its back end.
>
>         I recently switched to a Mac, so to accomplish the same task
>         I've been running the Mac terminal emulator
>         (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app) and at the local
>         command line I run:
>
>            ssh -p port username@domainname
>
>         After I log into the remote machine's shell, I start up Emacs,
>         just as I've been doing for ages.  Almost everything works
>         just as it used to, BUT when I need to type a keystroke with
>         the Meta modifier (i.e. use the ALT modifier key) the modifier
>         isn't recognized.
>
>         Although I can get the same effect by using the ESC key,
>         that's often a real pain.  For example, if I want to move
>         forward a word at a time, I'll usually type ALT+f, and then
>         release the "f" key and type it again several times without
>         ever releasing the ALT key.  To do the same thing with the ESC
>         key, I've got to press ESC, release ESC, press F, release F,
>         repeat until the cursor's where I want it.
>
>         Clearly putty sends something in the SSH protocol that lets
>         the remote Emacs know when the ALT key is pressed.  I don't
>         know if it's the Mac terminal emulator or the Mac
>         implementation of SSH that's failing to pass that information
>         along.
>
>         Does anyone here have any idea what I need to do to allow the
>         information about the state of the ALT modifier key to be
>         passed to the server where Emacs is running?
>
>            Mark R.
>
>
>
>