From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Edward Dodge Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.help Subject: Re: OT -- An extremely dumb curiosity question? Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 23:49:15 -0700 Organization: Qwest Communications Corporation Message-ID: References: NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii X-Trace: sea.gmane.org 1171438841 12042 80.91.229.12 (14 Feb 2007 07:40:41 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@sea.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 14 Feb 2007 07:40:41 +0000 (UTC) To: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org Original-X-From: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Wed Feb 14 08:40:33 2007 Return-path: Envelope-to: geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.50) id 1HHEkj-0005NI-Dd for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Wed, 14 Feb 2007 08:40:33 +0100 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1] helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1HHEki-0005YD-SE for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Wed, 14 Feb 2007 02:40:32 -0500 Original-Path: shelby.stanford.edu!newsfeed.stanford.edu!newsfeed.berkeley.edu!ucberkeley!feed.news.qwest.net!mpls-nntp-03.inet.qwest.net!news.qwest.net!not-for-mail Original-Newsgroups: gnu.emacs.help User-Agent: Gnus/5.1002 (Gnus v5.10.2) Emacs/22.0.50 (darwin) Original-Lines: 68 Original-NNTP-Posting-Host: 74cbb690.news.qwest.net Original-X-Trace: DXC=m^m; ZI`>8\E\i2S_D1manFF85SKJoGf>D3oGPR4_NASB<10Lm]nFK@c=_>JihH[M Original-X-Complaints-To: abuse@qwest.net Original-Xref: shelby.stanford.edu gnu.emacs.help:145578 X-BeenThere: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: Users list for the GNU Emacs text editor List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.help:41183 Archived-At: > Hi; > > What are all you people doing with emacs ? Virtually everything. Here are my favorites: 1) USENET (Gnus) 2) e-mail (Gnus) 3) file management (dired) 4) LISP development (SLIME) 5) Notes & Journals (text/flyspell-mode) 6) General scripting and markup in Perl/sh/html/LaTeX 7) & Sometimes IRC (ERC) > the point of my question is i use emacs to write an occasional bash > script or a small c program. i screw around with beginners level > lisp and watch things not work. but as i read the posts on the > mailing list it is obvious emacs is being used for much much more. There are four key things to remember about Emacs: 1) EMACS IS A CLASSIC. It has withstood the test of time. It has been here for years and it will be here for years hence. What you learn today will help you in the future. 2) EMACS IS FREE. You aren't on somebody else's $$$-upgrade treadmill with Emacs. And because of the GNU liscence this versatile editor is one of the most ubiquitous computer tools out there. 3) EMACS RUNS ON EVERYTHING. I first learned to use it in 1998 at work, when I was on an old RS6000. Since then I've used it on a Sun, an HP, a PC with Linux, a PC with Windows, "Classic" Mac OS, and now I use it on a Mac with OSX. 4) EMACS IS AN INGENIOUS TOOL. You are only limited by your imagination and your desire. Sure the learning curve is steep, but reasons 1), 2), & 3) make sure you aren't always aiming at a moving target. > Sometimes it seems it has replaced the Gnome or KDE desktop. > Outside of programming, I am having trouble imagining why people > would use it. Do you use it full screen all the time; only in a > terminal or a virtual terminal? Is it the only program you have > running at start up with everything else being done by command line? I learned the Emacs text-editing commands and their associated bind-keys well, including a few bindkeys for dired. And I keep Emacs open all the time in its own window, not in the terminal. In fact, using Emacs on OSX keeps me out of the terminal for all but the most complicated command-line sequences. > I ask here because none of my friends have any idea what I am > talking about. Welcome to the club! ;) > This is a casual chatty question not to be taken too seriously, but > if some of you are taking a break from your real work, I would be > really interested in knowing just what people really do with it. > Emacs I mean. Good question. Hope you got some good ideas here in gnu.emacs.help. -- Edward Dodge