block based selection

block based selection

[Uwe Mayer]

Hi,

how do you change the way emacs selects regions of text? Currently it works
line based, but I need to select a rectangular region from within a text.
Can anyone help me with how to change the selection mode?

Thanks
Uwe     

Re: block based selection

[Albert Reiner]

[Uwe Mayer <merkosh@hadiko.de>, Fri, 15 Apr 2005 16:04:55 +0200]:
> line based, but I need to select a rectangular region from within a text.

C-x r C-h

HTH,

Albert.

Re: block based selection

[Neon Absentius]

On Fri, Apr 15, 2005 at 04:04:55PM +0200, Uwe Mayer wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> how do you change the way emacs selects regions of text? Currently it works
> line based, but I need to select a rectangular region from within a text.
> Can anyone help me with how to change the selection mode?

Technically speaking, Emacs doesn't really select a region, it just
remembers two positions, point and mark, on the buffer. There are
commands that operate on the whole region between point and mark, such
as the usual kill, yank etc, but also there are command that operate
on the rectangle defined by the point and mark. Such commands usually
start with C-r, for example
                                                                                                                                              
 C-r C-k  kill rectangle
 C-r C-y  yank rectangle
                                                                                                                                               
Have a look at the info page:
  
(info "(emacs)Rectangles") <--- hit C-x C-e here. 

> 
> Thanks
> Uwe     
> _______________________________________________
> Help-gnu-emacs mailing list
> Help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org
> http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/help-gnu-emacs

-- 
Charity in capitalism is like urinating to extinguish a forest fire.
    -- Neon Absentius
absent a.in.cirle sdf period lonestar period org
SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org

Re: block based selection

[EScott]

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help-gnu-emacs-bounces+escott=nyiso.com@gnu.org wrote on 04/15/2005 
10:04:55 AM:

> Hi,
> 
> how do you change the way emacs selects regions of text? Currently it 
works
> line based, but I need to select a rectangular region from within a 
text.
> Can anyone help me with how to change the selection mode?
> 
> Thanks
> Uwe 

What you are looking for is rectangle editing. 

Define a rectangle in the usual way (mark upper left corner, then move to 
bottom right plus one).

Then use the commands
kill-rectangle
delete-rectangle
yank-rectangle
clear-rectangle
open-rectangle

HTH

EricS

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> Help-gnu-emacs mailing list
> Help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org
> http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/help-gnu-emacs

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Re: block based selection

[Quokka]

Neon Absentius wrote:
> On Fri, Apr 15, 2005 at 04:04:55PM +0200, Uwe Mayer wrote:
> 
>>Hi,
>>
>>how do you change the way emacs selects regions of text? Currently it works
>>line based, but I need to select a rectangular region from within a text.
>>Can anyone help me with how to change the selection mode?
> 

If you use cua mode it has a rectange editing mode.

In cvs emacs this is in cua-rect.el.

I find it easier to use than the "standard" rectange functions.

Paul

Re: block based selection

[Mathias Dahl]

Neon Absentius <absent@sdf.lonestar.org> writes:

>
> Technically speaking, Emacs doesn't really select a region, it just
> remembers two positions, point and mark, on the buffer. There are
> commands that operate on the whole region between point and mark, such
> as the usual kill, yank etc, but also there are command that operate
> on the rectangle defined by the point and mark. Such commands usually
> start with C-r, for example
>                                                                                                                                               
>  C-r C-k  kill rectangle
>  C-r C-y  yank rectangle

They start with C-x r, not C-r

/Mathias

Re: block based selection

[Alan Wehmann]

I'm surprised that noone has yet suggested that you investigate the
rectangle functions.  For example:

C-x r r runs `copy-rectangle-to-register'

`copy-rectangle-to-register' is an interactive compiled Lisp function
  -- loaded from "/opt/build/xemacs-21.4.15/lisp/register.elc"
(copy-rectangle-to-register REGISTER START END &optional DELETE-FLAG)

Documentation:
Copy rectangular region into register REGISTER.
With prefix arg, delete as well.
Called from program, takes four args: REGISTER, START, END and DELETE-FLAG.
START and END are buffer positions giving two corners of rectangle.

I happen to be using XEmacs, but these functions are common to XEmacs
and Emacs.

Others are documented in the Info files, for example.

Uwe Mayer <merkosh@hadiko.de> writes:

> Hi,
>
> how do you change the way emacs selects regions of text? Currently it works
> line based, but I need to select a rectangular region from within a text.
> Can anyone help me with how to change the selection mode?
>
> Thanks
> Uwe     

-- 
Alan Wehmann
wehmann(nospam)@fnal.gov