An article about Emacs for TUGboat

[Marcin Borkowski <mbork@mbork.pl>]

Hi all,

I was asked by one of the editors of TUGboat (the journal of the TeX
Users' Group) to write an article about using Emacs for TeX.  I am now
in the process of writing this paper.  My idea is to first explain the
basic concepts of Emacs, and then proceed to AUCTeX and various ways of
customizing Emacs.  I would be very glad if some more experienced Emacs
(and TeX) user could read my paper and suggest any enhancements.

For the record, I want to explain Emacs using four main concepts:

1. Buffers.  Like in Unix "everything is a file", in Emacs "everything
is a buffer".  What in other editors is implemented using various things
(dialog windows, text input boxes, non-editable text areas, file
selection widgets, tree-like outlines etc.) is all buffers in Emacs.

2. Commands.  Commands are pieces of Lisp which perform various tasks,
from inserting a character in a buffer to playing tetris.  By writing
commands, the user can extend Emacs, or in fact build their own editor
(or other application, like an email client!) on top of it.

3. Keybindings.  In Emacs, every key can be bound to a command.

4. Modes.  This is how Emacs knows which key is bound to which command
in which buffer, thus making the previous three work well together and
enabling a smooth user experience.

I understand this is an oversimplification - it must be in a 5-10-page
paper - but I think this more or less catches the spirit of Emacs.  Does
anyone think I should add (or subtract;-)) something?

Also, are there any volunteers to proofread the first draft of my paper?
(It should be ready in about a week, and I have to submit it in about
a month.)

TIA,

--
Marcin Borkowski