find-file, default path

find-file, default path

[Jan Guido Donath]

hi, 

is it possible to pass find-file a default path?
i do have all my files in a certain directory, but find-file aka C-x C-f
always starts where the emacs bins are located.

greets, 

guido

Re: find-file, default path

[Joe Corneli]

Since `find-file' takes an argument, all you have to do is build the
argument using the default path and then pass the argument to
`find-file'.  The way to make this easy is to use `read-file-name'.
E.g. some variant on

(defun find-file-home-directory ()
  (interactive)
  (find-file (read-file-name "File: " "/Users/arided/")))

BTW, I think after you find a file that isn't in the bin dir,
`find-file' will have a new default path.

Re: find-file, default path

[Alex Schroeder]

Jan Guido Donath schrieb:
> is it possible to pass find-file a default path?
> i do have all my files in a certain directory, but find-file aka C-x C-f
> always starts where the emacs bins are located.

Just start emacs from a different directory or with a different "working
directory".

Alex.

Re: find-file, default path

[Lennart Borgman]

Alex Schroeder wrote:

>Jan Guido Donath schrieb:
>  
>
>>is it possible to pass find-file a default path?
>>i do have all my files in a certain directory, but find-file aka C-x C-f
>>always starts where the emacs bins are located.
>>    
>>
>
>Just start emacs from a different directory or with a different "working
>directory".
>  
>
Or set `default-directory' in your .emacs:

   (setq default-directory "/my/files/directory/")

`default-directory' will later change to the dir of the file you are 
editing.

Re: find-file, default path

[Kevin Rodgers]

Jan Guido Donath wrote:
 > is it possible to pass find-file a default path?
 > i do have all my files in a certain directory, but find-file aka C-x C-f
 > always starts where the emacs bins are located.

No, find-file always prompts with the current directory.  When you have
visited one of the files in your certain directory, it will prompt with
that directory.

If typing that directory name even once is too much, try setting an
environment variable to it so you can reference it: C-x C-f $CERTAIN_DIR 
<tab>

Or try putting this in your ~/.emacs file: (cd 
"/path/to/a/certain/directory")

-- 
Kevin Rodgers

find-file + bookmarks = true? (was: find-file, default path)

[Mathias Dahl]

Kevin Rodgers <ihs_4664@yahoo.com> writes:

> If typing that directory name even once is too much, try setting an
> environment variable to it so you can reference it: C-x C-f
> $CERTAIN_DIR <tab>

Slightly off-topic, but for a while I have been wondering if there is
a way to combine `find-file' with bookmarks.

Just for the record I know about C-x r b and all, but many times per
day (yes, I seem to never learn) I find myself using `find-file' to
open some file, and in the instant the prompt appears I remember that
I have a bookmark to the directory where the file I want is.

I have been thinking about writing my own hack to do some kind of
integration between the two functions but have been too lazy... :)

Anyone else doing the same thinking? It would have been really cool to
have something like this. Maybe some "magical" character that
`find-file' reacts to and switch to using bookmarks, or something like
that.

Re: find-file + bookmarks = true? (was: find-file, default path)

[Emilio Lopes]

Mathias Dahl <brakjoller <at> gmail.com> writes:

> Kevin Rodgers <ihs_4664 <at> yahoo.com> writes:
> 
> > If typing that directory name even once is too much, try setting an
> > environment variable to it so you can reference it: C-x C-f
> > $CERTAIN_DIR <tab>
> 
> [...]
> Anyone else doing the same thinking? It would have been really cool to
> have something like this. Maybe some "magical" character that
> `find-file' reacts to and switch to using bookmarks, or something like
> that.

I like the "named dirs" feature of ZSH (http://www.zsh.org).  You can given a
directory a name using the `hash' command, like this:

   % hash -d emacs-cvs=/home/ecl/Emacs/emacs-cvs

Later you can switch to that directory by using:

   % cd ~emacs-cvs

But note that bookmarks can have more complicated names, which might contain
spaces.

Maybe also of interest:

;; From http://www.emacswiki.org/cgi-bin/wiki.pl/GraphicalBookmarkJump
(defun iswitchb-bookmark-jump (bname)
  "*Switch to bookmark interactively using `iswitchb'."
  (interactive 
   (list
    (flet
        ((iswitchb-make-buflist (default)
                                (require 'bookmark)
                                (setq iswitchb-buflist (bookmark-all-names))))
           (iswitchb-read-buffer "Jump to bookmark: "))))
  (bookmark-jump bname))

Re: find-file, default path

[Jan Guido Donath]

Am 19.07.2005 schrieb Joe Corneli:

> (defun find-file-home-directory ()
>   (interactive)
>   (find-file (read-file-name "File: " "/Users/arided/")))

That was what I was looking for!
Thanks!

Guido