copy/paste with other programs

copy/paste with other programs

[Oliver Sturm]

Hey there,

I'm probably being stupid :-) Still, here's my problem: I'm using Emacs
21.3.2 on Linux and I find myself unable to use the copying/pasting
features with other apps. Specifically, it doesn't seem to be possible to
paste anything copied from Evolution into an Emacs window and vice
versa... but many other apps don't work, either. It doesn't seem to make
any difference whether I just use the X clipboard or the Emacs yank
command or whatever... just doesn't work. Why's that?


               Oliver Sturm
-- 
Dahlhoff IT-Solutions - Buellenkothenweg 37a - 40229 Duesseldorf
Tel.: 0211-22959012   - Fax: 0211-22959016   - http://www.dahlhoff.biz
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Re: copy/paste with other programs

[roodwriter]

Oliver Sturm wrote:

> Hey there,
> 
> I'm probably being stupid :-) Still, here's my problem: I'm using Emacs
> 21.3.2 on Linux and I find myself unable to use the copying/pasting
> features with other apps. Specifically, it doesn't seem to be possible to
> paste anything copied from Evolution into an Emacs window and vice
> versa... but many other apps don't work, either. It doesn't seem to make
> any difference whether I just use the X clipboard or the Emacs yank
> command or whatever... just doesn't work. Why's that?
> 
> 
>                Oliver Sturm


I've never been totally clear on this, but there is a setting in the 
"killing" group in the customization buffers called "X Select Enable 
Clipboard." I think, but I'm not sure, that this is the setting that does 
this.

Feel free to correct me anyone.

--Rod

-- 
Author of "Linux for Non-Geeks--Clear-eyed Answered for Practical Consumers" 
and "Boring Stories from Uncle Rod." Both are available at 
http://www.rodwriterpublishing.com/index.html

To reply by e-mail, take the extra "o" out of the name.

Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Oliver Sturm]

On Tue, 04 Nov 2003 14:33:46 -0500, roodwriter@core.com wrote:

> I've never been totally clear on this, but there is a setting in the 
> "killing" group in the customization buffers called "X Select Enable 
> Clipboard." I think, but I'm not sure, that this is the setting that does 
> this.

Thanks, that seems like a good idea. Funny enough, I just tried this out
on another system, which is in part more up to date. I have only Emacs
21.3.1 here, but a much newer Evolution version (1.4.5). Things seem to
work fine here, but I'm sure that's not the way it used to be... still, I
don't know which update made it work! Oh well... I'll try it on the other
system (which didn't work) tomorrow. 



               Oliver Sturm
-- 
Fa. Manfred Dahlhoff - Buellenkothenweg 37a - 40229 Duesseldorf
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Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Dan Anderson]

Just a note on integrating Evolution and e-macs.  Evolution doesn't hard
wrap mail messages all the time.  That means if you try to cut and paste
the following:

This
is
a
sentence.

You might get something like:

This is a sentence.

I understand why it happens but it can be kind of inconvenient.

-Dan

Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Oliver Sturm]

On Tue, 04 Nov 2003 14:33:46 -0500, roodwriter@core.com wrote:

> I've never been totally clear on this, but there is a setting in the
> "killing" group in the customization buffers called "X Select Enable
> Clipboard." I think, but I'm not sure, that this is the setting that does
> this.

Ok, I tried this, but it didn't make any change to the interaction between
Emacs and this version of Evolution (1.2.4). Maybe it's all Evolution's
fault after all... I thought I had seen the same problematic behavior with
other applications and Emacs in the past, but I couldn't find another app
now that shows this. Seems like I'll have to update Evolution to get this
to work. Thanks for your help!


               Oliver Sturm
-- 
Dahlhoff IT-Solutions - Buellenkothenweg 37a - 40229 Duesseldorf
Tel.: 0211-22959012   - Fax: 0211-22959016   - http://www.dahlhoff.biz
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Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Eric Marsden]

>>>>> "os" == Oliver Sturm <o.sturm@dahlhoff.biz> writes:

  os> I'm probably being stupid :-) Still, here's my problem: I'm using Emacs
  os> 21.3.2 on Linux and I find myself unable to use the copying/pasting
  os> features with other apps. Specifically, it doesn't seem to be possible to
  os> paste anything copied from Evolution into an Emacs window and vice
  os> versa... but many other apps don't work, either. It doesn't seem to make
  os> any difference whether I just use the X clipboard or the Emacs yank
  os> command or whatever... just doesn't work. Why's that?

the rationale for Emacs' behaviour is at

   <URL:http://pdx.freedesktop.org/Standards/clipboards-spec/clipboards.txt>

-- 
Eric Marsden                          <URL:http://www.laas.fr/~emarsden/>

Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Oliver Sturm]

On Wed, 05 Nov 2003 18:56:07 +0100, Eric Marsden wrote:

> the rationale for Emacs' behaviour is at
> 
> <URL:http://pdx.freedesktop.org/Standards/clipboards-spec/clipboards.txt>

Very nice text, thanks for that. Still, copying something from Evolution
1.2 lets me paste it into an xterm window with the middle button, but not
into an Emacs buffer. Instead, it pastes the last thing I copied from
Emacs itself, probably CLIPBOARD instead of PRIMARY. The text says
explicitely

   middle mouse button should paste PRIMARY, never CLIPBOARD

but that's not what Emacs seems to do. Or where am I wrong?


               Oliver Sturm
-- 
Dahlhoff IT-Solutions - Buellenkothenweg 37a - 40229 Duesseldorf
Tel.: 0211-22959012   - Fax: 0211-22959016   - http://www.dahlhoff.biz
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Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Eric Marsden]

>>>>> "os" == Oliver Sturm <o.sturm@dahlhoff.biz> writes:

  os> Very nice text, thanks for that. Still, copying something from Evolution
  os> 1.2 lets me paste it into an xterm window with the middle button, but not
  os> into an Emacs buffer. Instead, it pastes the last thing I copied from
  os> Emacs itself, probably CLIPBOARD instead of PRIMARY. The text says
  os> explicitely
  os> 
  os> middle mouse button should paste PRIMARY, never CLIPBOARD
  os> 
  os> but that's not what Emacs seems to do. Or where am I wrong?

it behaves as expected for me with Emacs 21.2 and 21.3. Check the
value of the variable interprogram-paste-function: it should be
x-cut-buffer-or-selection-value, which checks the PRIMARY selection
first as COMPOUND_TEXT, then as STRING. Also check that
x-select-enable-clipboard is nil.

Try selecting text in Evolution then evaluating

   M-: (x-get-selection 'PRIMARY 'COMPOUND_TEXT)

If that returns the selected text but Emacs middle-click doesn't, I
think it's due to some non-default setting of yours.

-- 
Eric Marsden                          <URL:http://www.laas.fr/~emarsden/>

Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Oliver Sturm]

On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 18:23:52 +0100, Eric Marsden wrote:

> it behaves as expected for me with Emacs 21.2 and 21.3. Check the value of
> the variable interprogram-paste-function: it should be
> x-cut-buffer-or-selection-value, which checks the PRIMARY selection first
> as COMPOUND_TEXT, then as STRING. 

It is x-cut-buffer-or-selection-value.

> Also check that
> x-select-enable-clipboard is nil.

It is.

> Try selecting text in Evolution then evaluating
> 
>    M-: (x-get-selection 'PRIMARY 'COMPOUND_TEXT)
> 
> If that returns the selected text but Emacs middle-click doesn't, I think
> it's due to some non-default setting of yours.

It returns the same text that I get when using the middle button, which is
definitely not the text selected in Evolution. If I hit the middle button
over a shell window or gvim or whatever immediately afterwards, I get the
correct text, only Emacs doesn't show it.

Hey, don't worry too much about this. I have already found that although I
can't see the reason for this, it works with the other combination of
software versions for Emacs and Evolution I wrote about. So I'll just
upgrade the system I'm using now sometime and things will probably be fine
:-)

Of course, if you are curious and you have further ideas, I'll be happy to
test some more.


               Oliver Sturm
-- 
Dahlhoff IT-Solutions - Buellenkothenweg 37a - 40229 Duesseldorf
Tel.: 0211-22959012   - Fax: 0211-22959016   - http://www.dahlhoff.biz
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Re: copy/paste with other programs

[Ian Zimmerman]

Oliver> It returns the same text that I get when using the middle
Oliver> button, which is definitely not the text selected in
Oliver> Evolution. If I hit the middle button over a shell window or
Oliver> gvim or whatever immediately afterwards, I get the correct text,
Oliver> only Emacs doesn't show it.

I had seen this with Mozilla some time back.  Reported on g.e.bugs, was
told by RMS to debug with gdb (if I remember correctly, or something
else similarly time & energy consuming), gave up.  Meanwhile I have
switched from Mozilla classic to Firebird, and I don't see this anymore.

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