This is ../../info/eshell, produced by makeinfo version 4.11 from eshell.texi. This manual is for Eshell, the Emacs shell. Copyright (C) 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being "A GNU Manual", and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License". (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: "You have the freedom to copy and modify this GNU manual. Buying copies from the FSF supports it in developing GNU and promoting software freedom." INFO-DIR-SECTION Emacs START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY * Eshell: (eshell). A command shell implemented in Emacs Lisp. END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY  File: eshell, Node: Top, Next: What is Eshell?, Prev: (dir), Up: (dir) Eshell ****** Eshell is a shell-like command interpretor implemented in Emacs Lisp. It invokes no external processes except for those requested by the user. It is intended to be a functional replacement for command shells such as `bash', `zsh', `rc', or `4dos'; since Emacs itself is capable of handling the sort of tasks accomplished by those tools. This manual is for Eshell, the Emacs shell. Copyright (C) 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being "A GNU Manual", and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License". (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: "You have the freedom to copy and modify this GNU manual. Buying copies from the FSF supports it in developing GNU and promoting software freedom." * Menu: * What is Eshell?:: A brief introduction to the Emacs Shell. * Command basics:: The basics of command usage. * Commands:: * Arguments:: * Input/Output:: * Process control:: * Extension modules:: * Extras and Goodies:: * Bugs and ideas:: Known problems, and future ideas. * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation. * Concept Index:: * Function and Variable Index:: * Key Index::  File: eshell, Node: What is Eshell?, Next: Command basics, Prev: Top, Up: Top 1 What is Eshell? ***************** Eshell is a "command shell" written in Emacs Lisp. Everything it does, it uses Emacs' facilities to do. This means that Eshell is as portable as Emacs itself. It also means that cooperation with Lisp code is natural and seamless. What is a command shell? To properly understand the role of a shell, it's necessary to visualize what a computer does for you. Basically, a computer is a tool; in order to use that tool, you must tell it what to do--or give it "commands." These commands take many forms, such as clicking with a mouse on certain parts of the screen. But that is only one form of command input. By far the most versatile way to express what you want the computer to do is by using an abbreviated language called "script". In script, instead of telling the computer, "list my files, please", one writes a standard abbreviated command word--`ls'. Typing `ls' in a command shell is a script way of telling the computer to list your files.(1) The real flexibility of this approach is apparent only when you realize that there are many, many different ways to list files. Perhaps you want them sorted by name, sorted by date, in reverse order, or grouped by type. Most graphical browsers have simple ways to express this. But what about showing only a few files, or only files that meet a certain criteria? In very complex and specific situations, the request becomes too difficult to express using a mouse or pointing device. It is just these kinds of requests that are easily solved using a command shell. For example, what if you want to list every Word file on your hard drive, larger than 100 kilobytes in size, and which hasn't been looked at in over six months? That is a good candidate list for deletion, when you go to clean up your hard drive. But have you ever tried asking your computer for such a list? There is no way to do it! At least, not without using a command shell. The role of a command shell is to give you more control over what your computer does for you. Not everyone needs this amount of control, and it does come at a cost: Learning the necessary script commands to express what you want done. A complicated query, such as the example above, takes time to learn. But if you find yourself using your computer frequently enough, it is more than worthwhile in the long run. Any tool you use often deserves the time spent learning to master it. (2) * Menu: * Contributors to Eshell:: People who have helped out! ---------- Footnotes ---------- (1) This is comparable to viewing the contents of a folder using a graphical display. (2) For the understandably curious, here is what that command looks like: But don't let it fool you; once you know what's going on, it's easier than it looks: `ls -lt **/*.doc(Lk+50aM+5)'.  File: eshell, Node: Contributors to Eshell, Up: What is Eshell? 1.1 Contributors to Eshell ========================== Contributions to Eshell are welcome. I have limited time to work on this project, but I will gladly add any code you contribute to me to this package. The following persons have made contributions to Eshell. * Eli Zaretskii made it possible for Eshell to run without requiring asynchronous subprocess support. This is important for MS-DOS, which does not have such support. * Miles Bader contributed many fixes during the port to Emacs 21. * Stefan Monnier fixed the things which bothered him, which of course made things better for all. * Gerd Moellmann also helped to contribute bug fixes during the initial integration with Emacs 21. * Alex Schroeder contributed code for interactively querying the user before overwriting files. * Sudish Joseph helped with some XEmacs compatibility issues. Apart from these, a lot of people have sent suggestions, ideas, requests, bug reports and encouragement. Thanks a lot! Without you there would be no new releases of Eshell.  File: eshell, Node: Command basics, Next: Commands, Prev: What is Eshell?, Up: Top 2 Basic overview **************** A command shell is a means of entering verbally-formed commands. This is really all that it does, and every feature described in this manual is a means to that end. Therefore, it's important to take firm hold on exactly what a command is, and how it fits in the overall picture of things. * Menu: * Commands verbs:: Commands always begin with a verb. * Command arguments:: Some verbs require arguments.  File: eshell, Node: Commands verbs, Next: Command arguments, Up: Command basics 2.1 Commands verbs ================== Commands are expressed using "script", a special shorthand language computers can understand with no trouble. Script is an extremely simple language; oddly enough, this is what makes it look so complicated! Whereas normal languages use a variety of embellishments, the form of a script command is always: VERB [ARGUMENTS] The verb expresses what you want your computer to do. There are a fixed number of verbs, although this number is usually quite large. On the author's computer, it reaches almost 1400 in number. But of course, only a handful of these are really necessary. Sometimes, the verb is all that's written. A verb is always a single word, usually related to the task it performs. `reboot' is a good example. Entering that on GNU/Linux will reboot the computer--assuming you have sufficient privileges. Other verbs require more information. These are usually very capable verbs, and must be told specifically what to do. The extra information is given in the form of "arguments". For example, the `echo' verb prints back whatever arguments you type. It requires these arguments to know what to echo. A proper use of `echo' looks like this: echo This is an example of using echo! This script command causes the computer to echo back: "This is an example of using echo!" Although command verbs are always simple words, like `reboot' or `echo', arguments may have a wide variety of forms. There are textual arguments, numerical arguments--even Lisp arguments. Distinguishing these different types of arguments requires special typing, for the computer to know exactly what you mean.  File: eshell, Node: Command arguments, Prev: Commands verbs, Up: Command basics 2.2 Command arguments ===================== Eshell recognizes several different kinds of command arguments: 1. Strings (also called textual arguments) 2. Numbers (floating point or integer) 3. Lisp lists 4. Lisp symbols 5. Emacs buffers 6. Emacs process handles Most users need to worry only about the first two. The third, Lisp lists, occur very frequently, but almost always behind the scenes. Strings are the most common type of argument, and consist of nearly any character. Special characters--those used by Eshell specifically--must be preceded by a backslash (`\'). When in doubt, it is safe to add backslashes anywhere and everywhere. Here is a more complicated `echo' example: echo A\ Multi-word\ Argument\ With\ A\ \$\ dollar Beyond this, things get a bit more complicated. While not beyond the reach of someone wishing to learn, it is definitely beyond the scope of this manual to present it all in a simplistic manner. Get comfortable with Eshell as a basic command invocation tool, and learn more about the commands on your system; then come back when it all sits more familiarly on your mind. Have fun!  File: eshell, Node: Commands, Next: Arguments, Prev: Command basics, Up: Top 3 Commands ********** * Menu: * Invocation:: * Completion:: * Aliases:: * History:: * Scripts:: * Built-ins:: Essentially, a command shell is all about invoking commands--and everything that entails. So understanding how Eshell invokes commands is the key to comprehending how it all works.  File: eshell, Node: Invocation, Next: Completion, Up: Commands 3.1 Invocation ============== Unlike regular system shells, Eshell never invokes kernel functions directly, such as `exec(3)'. Instead, it uses the Lisp functions available in the Emacs Lisp library. It does this by transforming the command you specify into a callable Lisp form.(1) This transformation, from the string of text typed at the command prompt, to the ultimate invocation of either a Lisp function or external command, follows these steps: 1. Parse the command string into separate arguments. 2. ---------- Footnotes ---------- (1) To see the Lisp form that will be invoked, type: `eshell-parse-command "echo hello"'  File: eshell, Node: Completion, Next: Aliases, Prev: Invocation, Up: Commands 3.2 Completion ==============  File: eshell, Node: Aliases, Next: History, Prev: Completion, Up: Commands 3.3 Aliases ===========  File: eshell, Node: History, Next: Scripts, Prev: Aliases, Up: Commands 3.4 History =========== Eshell knows a few built-in variables: `$+' This variable always contains the current working directory. `$-' This variable always contains the previous working directory (the current working directory from before the last `cd' command). `$_' It refers to the last argument of the last command. `$$' This is the result of the last command. In case of an external command, it is `t' or `nil'. `$?' This variable contains the exit code of the last command (0 or 1 for Lisp functions, based on successful completion).  File: eshell, Node: Scripts, Next: Built-ins, Prev: History, Up: Commands 3.5 Scripts ===========  File: eshell, Node: Built-ins, Prev: Scripts, Up: Commands 3.6 Built-in commands ===================== Several commands are built-in in Eshell. In order to call the external variant of a built-in command `foo', you could call `*foo'. Usually, this should not be necessary. You can check what will be applied by the `which' command: ~ $ which ls eshell/ls is a compiled Lisp function in `em-ls.el' ~ $ which *ls /bin/ls Some of the built-in commands have a special behaviour in Eshell: `cd' This command changes the current working directory. Usually, it is invoked as `cd foo' where `foo' is the new working directory. But `cd' knows about a few special arguments: When it receives no argument at all, it changes to the home directory. Giving the command `cd -' changes back to the previous working directory (this is the same as `cd $-'). The command `cd =' shows the directory stack. Each line is numbered. With `cd =foo', Eshell searches the directory stack for a directory matching the regular expression `foo' and changes to that directory. With `cd -42', you can access the directory stack by number. `history' The `history' command shows all commands kept in the history ring as numbered list. If the history ring contains `eshell-history-size' commands, those numbers change after every command invocation, therefore the `history' command shall be applied before using the expansion mechanism with history numbers. The n-th entry of the history ring can be applied with the `!n' command. If `n' is negative, the entry is counted from the end of the history ring. `!foo' expands to the last command beginning with `foo', and `!?foo' to the last command containing `foo'. The n-th argument of the last command beginning with `foo' is accessible by `!foo:n'. `su' `sudo' `su' and `sudo' work as expected: they apply the following commands (`su'), or the command being an argument (`sudo') under the permissions of somebody else. This does not work only on the local host, but even on a remote one, when `default-directory' is a remote file name. The necessary proxy configuration of Tramp is performed automatically, *note Multi-hops: (tramp)Multi-hops. Example: ~ $ cd /ssh:otherhost:/etc /ssh:user@otherhost:/etc $ sudo find-file shadow  File: eshell, Node: Arguments, Next: Input/Output, Prev: Commands, Up: Top 4 Arguments *********** * Menu: * The Parser:: * Variables:: * Substitution:: * Globbing:: * Predicates::  File: eshell, Node: The Parser, Next: Variables, Up: Arguments 4.1 The Parser ==============  File: eshell, Node: Variables, Next: Substitution, Prev: The Parser, Up: Arguments 4.2 Variables =============  File: eshell, Node: Substitution, Next: Globbing, Prev: Variables, Up: Arguments 4.3 Substitution ================  File: eshell, Node: Globbing, Next: Predicates, Prev: Substitution, Up: Arguments 4.4 Globbing ============  File: eshell, Node: Predicates, Prev: Globbing, Up: Arguments 4.5 Predicates ==============  File: eshell, Node: Input/Output, Next: Process control, Prev: Arguments, Up: Top 5 Input/Output **************  File: eshell, Node: Process control, Next: Extension modules, Prev: Input/Output, Up: Top 6 Process control *****************  File: eshell, Node: Extension modules, Next: Extras and Goodies, Prev: Process control, Up: Top 7 Extension modules ******************* * Menu: * Writing a module:: * Module testing:: * Directory handling:: * Key rebinding:: * Smart scrolling:: * Terminal emulation:: * Built-in UNIX commands::  File: eshell, Node: Writing a module, Next: Module testing, Up: Extension modules 7.1 Writing a module ====================  File: eshell, Node: Module testing, Next: Directory handling, Prev: Writing a module, Up: Extension modules 7.2 Module testing ==================  File: eshell, Node: Directory handling, Next: Key rebinding, Prev: Module testing, Up: Extension modules 7.3 Directory handling ======================  File: eshell, Node: Key rebinding, Next: Smart scrolling, Prev: Directory handling, Up: Extension modules 7.4 Key rebinding =================  File: eshell, Node: Smart scrolling, Next: Terminal emulation, Prev: Key rebinding, Up: Extension modules 7.5 Smart scrolling ===================  File: eshell, Node: Terminal emulation, Next: Built-in UNIX commands, Prev: Smart scrolling, Up: Extension modules 7.6 Terminal emulation ======================  File: eshell, Node: Built-in UNIX commands, Prev: Terminal emulation, Up: Extension modules 7.7 Built-in UNIX commands ==========================  File: eshell, Node: Extras and Goodies, Next: Bugs and ideas, Prev: Extension modules, Up: Top 8 Extras and Goodies ********************  File: eshell, Node: Bugs and ideas, Next: GNU Free Documentation License, Prev: Extras and Goodies, Up: Top 9 Bugs and ideas **************** If you find a bug or misfeature, don't hesitate to let me know! Send email to . Feature requests should also be sent there. I prefer discussing one thing at a time. If you find several unrelated bugs, please report them separately. If you have ideas for improvements, or if you have written some extensions to this package, I would like to hear from you. I hope you find this package useful! * Menu: * Known problems::  File: eshell, Node: Known problems, Up: Bugs and ideas 9.1 Known problems ================== Below is complete list of known problems with Eshell version 2.4.2, which is the version included with Emacs 22. Documentation incomplete Differentiate between aliases and functions Allow for a bash-compatible syntax, such as: alias arg=blah function arg () { blah $* } `for i in 1 2 3 { grep -q a b && *echo has it } | wc -l' outputs result after prompt In fact, piping to a process from a looping construct doesn't work in general. If I change the call to `eshell-copy-handles' in `eshell-rewrite-for-command' to use `eshell-protect', it seems to work, but the output occurs after the prompt is displayed. The whole structured command thing is too complicated at present. Error with `bc' in `eshell-test' On some XEmacs system, the subprocess interaction test fails inexplicably, although `bc' works fine at the command prompt. Eshell does not delete `*Help*' buffers in XEmacs 21.1.8+ In XEmacs 21.1.8, the `*Help*' buffer has been renamed such that multiple instances of the `*Help*' buffer can exist. Pcomplete sometimes gets stuck You press , but no completions appear, even though the directory has matching files. This behavior is rare. `grep python $' doesn't work, but using `*grep' does This happens because the `grep' Lisp function returns immediately, and then the asynchronous `grep' process expects to examine the temporary file, which has since been deleted. Problem with C-r repeating text If the text _before point_ reads "./run", and you type `C-r r u n', it will repeat the line for every character typed. Backspace doesn't scroll back after continuing (in smart mode) Hitting space during a process invocation, such as `make', will cause it to track the bottom of the output; but backspace no longer scrolls back. It's not possible to fully `unload-feature' Eshell Menu support was removed, but never put back Using C-p and C-n with rebind gets into a locked state This happened a few times in Emacs 21, but has been unreproducible since. If an interactive process is currently running, `M-!' doesn't work Use a timer instead of `sleep-for' when killing child processes Piping to a Lisp function is not supported Make it so that the Lisp command on the right of the pipe is repeatedly called with the input strings as arguments. This will require changing `eshell-do-pipeline' to handle non-process targets. Input redirection is not supported See the above entry. Problem running `less' without arguments on Windows The result in the Eshell buffer is: Spawning child process: invalid argument Also a new `less' buffer was created with nothing in it... (presumably this holds the output of `less'). If `less.exe' is invoked from the Eshell command line, the expected output is written to the buffer. Note that this happens on NT-Emacs 20.6.1 on Windows 2000. The term.el package and the supplied shell both use the `cmdproxy' program for running shells. Implement `-r', `-n' and `-s' switches for `cp' Make `M-5 M-x eshell' switch to "*eshell<5>*", creating if need be `mv DIR FILE.tar' does not remove directories This is because the tar option -remove-files doesn't do so. Should it be Eshell's job? Bind `standard-output' and `standard-error' This would be so that if a Lisp function calls `print', everything will happen as it should (albeit slowly). When an extension module fails to load, `cd /' gives a Lisp error If a globbing pattern returns one match, should it be a list? Make sure syntax table is correct in Eshell mode So that `M-DEL' acts in a predictable manner, etc. Allow all Eshell buffers to share the same history and list-dir There is a problem with script commands that output to `/dev/null' If a script file, somewhere in the middle, uses `> /dev/null', output from all subsequent commands is swallowed. Split up parsing of text after `$' in `esh-var.el' Make it similar to the way that `esh-arg.el' is structured. Then add parsing of `$[?\n]'. After pressing `M-RET', redisplay before running the next command Argument predicates and modifiers should work anywhere in a path /usr/local/src/editors/vim $ vi **/CVS(/)/Root(.) Invalid regexp: "Unmatched ( or \\(" With `zsh', the glob above expands to all files named `Root' in directories named `CVS'. Typing `echo ${locate locate}/bin' results in a Lisp error Perhaps it should interpolate all permutations, and make that the globbing result, since otherwise hitting return here will result in "(list of filenames)/bin", which is never valuable. Thus, one could `cat' only C backup files by using `ls ${identity *.c}~'. In that case, having an alias command name `glob' for `identity' would be useful. Once symbolic mode is supported for `umask', implement `chmod' in Lisp Create `eshell-expand-file-name' This would use a data table to transform things such as `~+', `...', etc. Abstract `em-smart.el' into `smart-scroll.el' It only really needs: to be hooked onto the output filter and the pre-command hook, and to have the input-end and input-start markers. And to know whether the last output group was "successful." Allow for fully persisting the state of Eshell This would include: variables, history, buffer, input, dir stack, etc. Implement D as an argument predicate It means that files beginning with a dot should be included in the glob match. A comma in a predicate list should mean OR At the moment, this is not supported. Error if a glob doesn't expand due to a predicate An error should be generated only if `eshell-error-if-no-glob' is non-`nil'. `(+ RET SPC TAB' does not cause `indent-according-to-mode' to occur Create `eshell-auto-accumulate-list' This is a list of commands for which, if the user presses `RET', the text is staged as the next Eshell command, rather than being sent to the current interactive process. Display file and line number if an error occurs in a script `wait' doesn't work with process ids at the moment Enable the direct-to-process input code in `em-term.el' Problem with repeating `echo ${find /tmp}' With smart display active, if `RET' is held down, after a while it can't keep up anymore and starts outputting blank lines. It only happens if an asynchronous process is involved... I think the problem is that `eshell-send-input' is resetting the input target location, so that if the asynchronous process is not done by the time the next `RET' is received, the input processor thinks that the input is meant for the process; which, when smart display is enabled, will be the text of the last command line! That is a bug in itself. In holding down `RET' while an asynchronous process is running, there will be a point in between termination of the process, and the running of `eshell-post-command-hook', which would cause `eshell-send-input' to call `eshell-copy-old-input', and then process that text as a command to be run after the process. Perhaps there should be a way of killing pending input between the death of the process, and the `post-command-hook'. Allow for a more aggressive smart display mode Perhaps toggled by a command, that makes each output block a smart display block. Create more meta variables `$!' The reason for the failure of the last disk command, or the text of the last Lisp error. `$=' A special associate array, which can take references of the form `$=[REGEXP]'. It indexes into the directory ring. Eshell scripts can't execute in the background Support zsh's "Parameter Expansion" syntax, i.e. `${NAME:-VAL}' Write an `info' alias that can take arguments So that the user can enter `info chmod', for example. Create a mode `eshell-browse' It would treat the Eshell buffer as a outline. Collapsing the outline hides all of the output text. Collapsing again would show only the first command run in each directory Allow other revisions of a file to be referenced using `file{rev}' This would be expanded by `eshell-expand-file-name' (see above). Print "You have new mail" when the "Mail" icon is turned on Implement `M-|' for Eshell Implement input redirection If it's a Lisp function, input redirection implies `xargs' (in a way...). If input redirection is added, also update the `file-name-quote-list', and the delimiter list. Allow `#' as a generic syntax With the handling of _word_ specified by an `eshell-special-alist'. In `eshell-veal-using-options', allow a `:complete' tag It would be used to provide completion rules for that command. Then the macro will automagically define the completion function. For `eshell-command-on-region', apply redirections to the result So that `+ > 'blah' would cause the result of the `+' (using input from the current region) to be inserting into the symbol `blah'. If an external command is being invoked, the input is sent as standard input, as if a `cat |' had been invoked. If a Lisp command, or an alias, is invoked, then if the line has no newline characters, it is divided by whitespace and passed as arguments to the Lisp function. Otherwise, it is divided at the newline characters. Thus, invoking `+' on a series of numbers will add them; `min' would display the smallest figure, etc. Write `eshell-script-mode' as a minor mode It would provide syntax, abbrev, highlighting and indenting support like `emacs-lisp-mode' and `shell-mode'. In the history mechanism, finish the `bash'-style support This means `!n', `!#', `!:%', and `!:1-' as separate from `!:1*'. Support the -n command line option for `history' Implement `fc' in Lisp Specifying a frame as a redirection target should imply the currently active window's buffer Implement `>FUNC-OR-FUNC-LIST' This would allow for an "output translators", that take a function to modify output with, and a target. Devise a syntax that works well with pipes, and can accommodate multiple functions (i.e., `>'(upcase regexp-quote)' or `>'upcase'). Allow Eshell to read/write to/from standard input and output This would be optional, rather than always using the Eshell buffer. This would allow it to be run from the command line (perhaps). Write a `help' command It would call subcommands with `--help', or `-h' or `/?', as appropriate. Implement `stty' in Lisp Support `rc''s matching operator, e.g. `~ (LIST) REGEXP' Implement `bg' and `fg' as editors of `eshell-process-list' Using `bg' on a process that is already in the background does nothing. Specifying redirection targets replaces (or adds) to the list current being used. Have `jobs' print only the processes for the current shell How can Eshell learn if a background process has requested input? Support `2>&1' and `>&' and `2>' and `|&' The syntax table for parsing these should be customizable, such that the user could change it to use rc syntax: `>[2=1]'. Allow `$_[-1]', which would indicate the last element of the array Make `$x[*]' equal to listing out the full contents of `x' Return them as a list, so that `$_[*]' is all the arguments of the last command. Copy ANSI code handling from `term.el' into `em-term.el' Make it possible for the user to send char-by-char to the underlying process. Ultimately, I should be able to move away from using term.el altogether, since everything but the ANSI code handling is already part of Eshell. Then, things would work correctly on MS-Windows as well (which doesn't have `/bin/sh', although `term.el' tries to use it). Make the shell spawning commands be visual That is, make (`su', `bash', `telnet', `rlogin', `rsh', etc.) be part of `eshell-visual-commands'. The only exception is if the shell is being used to invoke a single command. Then, the behavior should be based on what that command is. Create a smart viewing command named `open' This would search for some way to open its argument (similar to opening a file in the Windows Explorer). Alias `read' to be the same as `open', only read-only Write a `tail' command which uses `view-file' It would move point to the end of the buffer, and then turns on auto-revert mode in that buffer at frequent intervals--and a `head' alias which assumes an upper limit of `eshell-maximum-line-length' characters per line. Make `dgrep' load `dired', mark everything, then invoke `dired-do-search' Write mesh.c This would run Emacs with the appropriate arguments to invoke Eshell only. That way, it could be listed as a login shell. Use an intangible `PS2' string for multi-line input prompts Auto-detect when a command is visual, by checking `TERMCAP' usage The first keypress after `M-x watson' triggers `eshell-send-input' Make `/' electric So that it automatically expands and corrects pathnames. Or make pathname completion for Pcomplete auto-expand `/u/i/std' to `/usr/include/std'. Write the `pushd' stack to disk along with `last-dir-ring' Add options to `eshell/cat' which would allow it to sort and uniq Implement `wc' in Lisp Add support for counting sentences, paragraphs, pages, etc. Once piping is added, implement `sort' and `uniq' in Lisp Implement `touch' in Lisp Implement `comm' in Lisp Implement an `epatch' command in Lisp This would call `ediff-patch-file', or `ediff-patch-buffer', depending on its argument. Have an option such that `ls -l' generates a dired buffer Write a version of `xargs' based on command rewriting That is, `find X | xargs Y' would be indicated using `Y ${find X}'. Maybe `eshell-do-pipelines' could be changed to perform this on-thy-fly rewriting. Write an alias for `less' that brings up a `view-mode' buffer Such that the user can press and , and then to return to Eshell. It would be equivalent to: `X > #; view-buffer #'. Make `eshell-mode' as much a full citizen as `shell-mode' Everywhere in Emacs where `shell-mode' is specially noticed, add `eshell-mode' there. Permit the umask to be selectively set on a `cp' target Problem using `M-x eshell' after using `eshell-command' If the first thing that I do after entering Emacs is to run `eshell-command' and invoke `ls', and then use `M-x eshell', it doesn't display anything. `M-RET' during a long command (using smart display) doesn't work Since it keeps the cursor up where the command was invoked.  File: eshell, Node: GNU Free Documentation License, Next: Concept Index, Prev: Bugs and ideas, Up: Top Appendix A GNU Free Documentation License ***************************************** Version 1.3, 3 November 2008 Copyright (C) 2000, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2008, 2009 Free Software Foundation, Inc. `http://fsf.org/' Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this license document, but changing it is not allowed. 0. PREAMBLE The purpose of this License is to make a manual, textbook, or other functional and useful document "free" in the sense of freedom: to assure everyone the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it, with or without modifying it, either commercially or noncommercially. Secondarily, this License preserves for the author and publisher a way to get credit for their work, while not being considered responsible for modifications made by others. This License is a kind of "copyleft", which means that derivative works of the document must themselves be free in the same sense. It complements the GNU General Public License, which is a copyleft license designed for free software. We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for free software, because free software needs free documentation: a free program should come with manuals providing the same freedoms that the software does. But this License is not limited to software manuals; it can be used for any textual work, regardless of subject matter or whether it is published as a printed book. We recommend this License principally for works whose purpose is instruction or reference. 1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS This License applies to any manual or other work, in any medium, that contains a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it can be distributed under the terms of this License. Such a notice grants a world-wide, royalty-free license, unlimited in duration, to use that work under the conditions stated herein. The "Document", below, refers to any such manual or work. Any member of the public is a licensee, and is addressed as "you". You accept the license if you copy, modify or distribute the work in a way requiring permission under copyright law. A "Modified Version" of the Document means any work containing the Document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with modifications and/or translated into another language. A "Secondary Section" is a named appendix or a front-matter section of the Document that deals exclusively with the relationship of the publishers or authors of the Document to the Document's overall subject (or to related matters) and contains nothing that could fall directly within that overall subject. (Thus, if the Document is in part a textbook of mathematics, a Secondary Section may not explain any mathematics.) The relationship could be a matter of historical connection with the subject or with related matters, or of legal, commercial, philosophical, ethical or political position regarding them. The "Invariant Sections" are certain Secondary Sections whose titles are designated, as being those of Invariant Sections, in the notice that says that the Document is released under this License. If a section does not fit the above definition of Secondary then it is not allowed to be designated as Invariant. The Document may contain zero Invariant Sections. If the Document does not identify any Invariant Sections then there are none. The "Cover Texts" are certain short passages of text that are listed, as Front-Cover Texts or Back-Cover Texts, in the notice that says that the Document is released under this License. A Front-Cover Text may be at most 5 words, and a Back-Cover Text may be at most 25 words. A "Transparent" copy of the Document means a machine-readable copy, represented in a format whose specification is available to the general public, that is suitable for revising the document straightforwardly with generic text editors or (for images composed of pixels) generic paint programs or (for drawings) some widely available drawing editor, and that is suitable for input to text formatters or for automatic translation to a variety of formats suitable for input to text formatters. A copy made in an otherwise Transparent file format whose markup, or absence of markup, has been arranged to thwart or discourage subsequent modification by readers is not Transparent. An image format is not Transparent if used for any substantial amount of text. A copy that is not "Transparent" is called "Opaque". Examples of suitable formats for Transparent copies include plain ASCII without markup, Texinfo input format, LaTeX input format, SGML or XML using a publicly available DTD, and standard-conforming simple HTML, PostScript or PDF designed for human modification. Examples of transparent image formats include PNG, XCF and JPG. Opaque formats include proprietary formats that can be read and edited only by proprietary word processors, SGML or XML for which the DTD and/or processing tools are not generally available, and the machine-generated HTML, PostScript or PDF produced by some word processors for output purposes only. The "Title Page" means, for a printed book, the title page itself, plus such following pages as are needed to hold, legibly, the material this License requires to appear in the title page. For works in formats which do not have any title page as such, "Title Page" means the text near the most prominent appearance of the work's title, preceding the beginning of the body of the text. The "publisher" means any person or entity that distributes copies of the Document to the public. A section "Entitled XYZ" means a named subunit of the Document whose title either is precisely XYZ or contains XYZ in parentheses following text that translates XYZ in another language. (Here XYZ stands for a specific section name mentioned below, such as "Acknowledgements", "Dedications", "Endorsements", or "History".) To "Preserve the Title" of such a section when you modify the Document means that it remains a section "Entitled XYZ" according to this definition. The Document may include Warranty Disclaimers next to the notice which states that this License applies to the Document. These Warranty Disclaimers are considered to be included by reference in this License, but only as regards disclaiming warranties: any other implication that these Warranty Disclaimers may have is void and has no effect on the meaning of this License. 2. VERBATIM COPYING You may copy and distribute the Document in any medium, either commercially or noncommercially, provided that this License, the copyright notices, and the license notice saying this License applies to the Document are reproduced in all copies, and that you add no other conditions whatsoever to those of this License. You may not use technical measures to obstruct or control the reading or further copying of the copies you make or distribute. However, you may accept compensation in exchange for copies. If you distribute a large enough number of copies you must also follow the conditions in section 3. You may also lend copies, under the same conditions stated above, and you may publicly display copies. 3. COPYING IN QUANTITY If you publish printed copies (or copies in media that commonly have printed covers) of the Document, numbering more than 100, and the Document's license notice requires Cover Texts, you must enclose the copies in covers that carry, clearly and legibly, all these Cover Texts: Front-Cover Texts on the front cover, and Back-Cover Texts on the back cover. Both covers must also clearly and legibly identify you as the publisher of these copies. The front cover must present the full title with all words of the title equally prominent and visible. You may add other material on the covers in addition. Copying with changes limited to the covers, as long as they preserve the title of the Document and satisfy these conditions, can be treated as verbatim copying in other respects. If the required texts for either cover are too voluminous to fit legibly, you should put the first ones listed (as many as fit reasonably) on the actual cover, and continue the rest onto adjacent pages. If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document numbering more than 100, you must either include a machine-readable Transparent copy along with each Opaque copy, or state in or with each Opaque copy a computer-network location from which the general network-using public has access to download using public-standard network protocols a complete Transparent copy of the Document, free of added material. If you use the latter option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you begin distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that this Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated location until at least one year after the last time you distribute an Opaque copy (directly or through your agents or retailers) of that edition to the public. It is requested, but not required, that you contact the authors of the Document well before redistributing any large number of copies, to give them a chance to provide you with an updated version of the Document. 4. MODIFICATIONS You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release the Modified Version under precisely this License, with the Modified Version filling the role of the Document, thus licensing distribution and modification of the Modified Version to whoever possesses a copy of it. In addition, you must do these things in the Modified Version: A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title distinct from that of the Document, and from those of previous versions (which should, if there were any, be listed in the History section of the Document). You may use the same title as a previous version if the original publisher of that version gives permission. B. List on the Title Page, as authors, one or more persons or entities responsible for authorship of the modifications in the Modified Version, together with at least five of the principal authors of the Document (all of its principal authors, if it has fewer than five), unless they release you from this requirement. C. State on the Title page the name of the publisher of the Modified Version, as the publisher. D. Preserve all the copyright notices of the Document. E. Add an appropriate copyright notice for your modifications adjacent to the other copyright notices. F. Include, immediately after the copyright notices, a license notice giving the public permission to use the Modified Version under the terms of this License, in the form shown in the Addendum below. G. Preserve in that license notice the full lists of Invariant Sections and required Cover Texts given in the Document's license notice. H. Include an unaltered copy of this License. I. Preserve the section Entitled "History", Preserve its Title, and add to it an item stating at least the title, year, new authors, and publisher of the Modified Version as given on the Title Page. If there is no section Entitled "History" in the Document, create one stating the title, year, authors, and publisher of the Document as given on its Title Page, then add an item describing the Modified Version as stated in the previous sentence. J. Preserve the network location, if any, given in the Document for public access to a Transparent copy of the Document, and likewise the network locations given in the Document for previous versions it was based on. These may be placed in the "History" section. You may omit a network location for a work that was published at least four years before the Document itself, or if the original publisher of the version it refers to gives permission. K. For any section Entitled "Acknowledgements" or "Dedications", Preserve the Title of the section, and preserve in the section all the substance and tone of each of the contributor acknowledgements and/or dedications given therein. L. Preserve all the Invariant Sections of the Document, unaltered in their text and in their titles. Section numbers or the equivalent are not considered part of the section titles. M. Delete any section Entitled "Endorsements". Such a section may not be included in the Modified Version. N. Do not retitle any existing section to be Entitled "Endorsements" or to conflict in title with any Invariant Section. O. Preserve any Warranty Disclaimers. If the Modified Version includes new front-matter sections or appendices that qualify as Secondary Sections and contain no material copied from the Document, you may at your option designate some or all of these sections as invariant. To do this, add their titles to the list of Invariant Sections in the Modified Version's license notice. These titles must be distinct from any other section titles. You may add a section Entitled "Endorsements", provided it contains nothing but endorsements of your Modified Version by various parties--for example, statements of peer review or that the text has been approved by an organization as the authoritative definition of a standard. You may add a passage of up to five words as a Front-Cover Text, and a passage of up to 25 words as a Back-Cover Text, to the end of the list of Cover Texts in the Modified Version. Only one passage of Front-Cover Text and one of Back-Cover Text may be added by (or through arrangements made by) any one entity. If the Document already includes a cover text for the same cover, previously added by you or by arrangement made by the same entity you are acting on behalf of, you may not add another; but you may replace the old one, on explicit permission from the previous publisher that added the old one. The author(s) and publisher(s) of the Document do not by this License give permission to use their names for publicity for or to assert or imply endorsement of any Modified Version. 5. COMBINING DOCUMENTS You may combine the Document with other documents released under this License, under the terms defined in section 4 above for modified versions, provided that you include in the combination all of the Invariant Sections of all of the original documents, unmodified, and list them all as Invariant Sections of your combined work in its license notice, and that you preserve all their Warranty Disclaimers. The combined work need only contain one copy of this License, and multiple identical Invariant Sections may be replaced with a single copy. If there are multiple Invariant Sections with the same name but different contents, make the title of each such section unique by adding at the end of it, in parentheses, the name of the original author or publisher of that section if known, or else a unique number. Make the same adjustment to the section titles in the list of Invariant Sections in the license notice of the combined work. In the combination, you must combine any sections Entitled "History" in the various original documents, forming one section Entitled "History"; likewise combine any sections Entitled "Acknowledgements", and any sections Entitled "Dedications". You must delete all sections Entitled "Endorsements." 6. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS You may make a collection consisting of the Document and other documents released under this License, and replace the individual copies of this License in the various documents with a single copy that is included in the collection, provided that you follow the rules of this License for verbatim copying of each of the documents in all other respects. You may extract a single document from such a collection, and distribute it individually under this License, provided you insert a copy of this License into the extracted document, and follow this License in all other respects regarding verbatim copying of that document. 7. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS A compilation of the Document or its derivatives with other separate and independent documents or works, in or on a volume of a storage or distribution medium, is called an "aggregate" if the copyright resulting from the compilation is not used to limit the legal rights of the compilation's users beyond what the individual works permit. When the Document is included in an aggregate, this License does not apply to the other works in the aggregate which are not themselves derivative works of the Document. If the Cover Text requirement of section 3 is applicable to these copies of the Document, then if the Document is less than one half of the entire aggregate, the Document's Cover Texts may be placed on covers that bracket the Document within the aggregate, or the electronic equivalent of covers if the Document is in electronic form. Otherwise they must appear on printed covers that bracket the whole aggregate. 8. TRANSLATION Translation is considered a kind of modification, so you may distribute translations of the Document under the terms of section 4. Replacing Invariant Sections with translations requires special permission from their copyright holders, but you may include translations of some or all Invariant Sections in addition to the original versions of these Invariant Sections. You may include a translation of this License, and all the license notices in the Document, and any Warranty Disclaimers, provided that you also include the original English version of this License and the original versions of those notices and disclaimers. In case of a disagreement between the translation and the original version of this License or a notice or disclaimer, the original version will prevail. If a section in the Document is Entitled "Acknowledgements", "Dedications", or "History", the requirement (section 4) to Preserve its Title (section 1) will typically require changing the actual title. 9. TERMINATION You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Document except as expressly provided under this License. Any attempt otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute it is void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this License. However, if you cease all violation of this License, then your license from a particular copyright holder is reinstated (a) provisionally, unless and until the copyright holder explicitly and finally terminates your license, and (b) permanently, if the copyright holder fails to notify you of the violation by some reasonable means prior to 60 days after the cessation. Moreover, your license from a particular copyright holder is reinstated permanently if the copyright holder notifies you of the violation by some reasonable means, this is the first time you have received notice of violation of this License (for any work) from that copyright holder, and you cure the violation prior to 30 days after your receipt of the notice. Termination of your rights under this section does not terminate the licenses of parties who have received copies or rights from you under this License. If your rights have been terminated and not permanently reinstated, receipt of a copy of some or all of the same material does not give you any rights to use it. 10. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE The Free Software Foundation may publish new, revised versions of the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time. Such new versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to address new problems or concerns. See `http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/'. Each version of the License is given a distinguishing version number. If the Document specifies that a particular numbered version of this License "or any later version" applies to it, you have the option of following the terms and conditions either of that specified version or of any later version that has been published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation. If the Document does not specify a version number of this License, you may choose any version ever published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation. If the Document specifies that a proxy can decide which future versions of this License can be used, that proxy's public statement of acceptance of a version permanently authorizes you to choose that version for the Document. 11. RELICENSING "Massive Multiauthor Collaboration Site" (or "MMC Site") means any World Wide Web server that publishes copyrightable works and also provides prominent facilities for anybody to edit those works. A public wiki that anybody can edit is an example of such a server. A "Massive Multiauthor Collaboration" (or "MMC") contained in the site means any set of copyrightable works thus published on the MMC site. "CC-BY-SA" means the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license published by Creative Commons Corporation, a not-for-profit corporation with a principal place of business in San Francisco, California, as well as future copyleft versions of that license published by that same organization. "Incorporate" means to publish or republish a Document, in whole or in part, as part of another Document. An MMC is "eligible for relicensing" if it is licensed under this License, and if all works that were first published under this License somewhere other than this MMC, and subsequently incorporated in whole or in part into the MMC, (1) had no cover texts or invariant sections, and (2) were thus incorporated prior to November 1, 2008. The operator of an MMC Site may republish an MMC contained in the site under CC-BY-SA on the same site at any time before August 1, 2009, provided the MMC is eligible for relicensing. ADDENDUM: How to use this License for your documents ==================================================== To use this License in a document you have written, include a copy of the License in the document and put the following copyright and license notices just after the title page: Copyright (C) YEAR YOUR NAME. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''. If you have Invariant Sections, Front-Cover Texts and Back-Cover Texts, replace the "with...Texts." line with this: with the Invariant Sections being LIST THEIR TITLES, with the Front-Cover Texts being LIST, and with the Back-Cover Texts being LIST. If you have Invariant Sections without Cover Texts, or some other combination of the three, merge those two alternatives to suit the situation. If your document contains nontrivial examples of program code, we recommend releasing these examples in parallel under your choice of free software license, such as the GNU General Public License, to permit their use in free software.  File: eshell, Node: Concept Index, Next: Function and Variable Index, Prev: GNU Free Documentation License, Up: Top Concept Index ************* [index] * Menu: * author, how to reach: Bugs and ideas. (line 6) * authors: Contributors to Eshell. (line 6) * bugs, how to report them: Bugs and ideas. (line 6) * bugs, known: Known problems. (line 6) * contributors: Contributors to Eshell. (line 6) * email to the author: Bugs and ideas. (line 6) * Eshell, what it is: What is Eshell?. (line 6) * FAQ: Bugs and ideas. (line 6) * known bugs: Known problems. (line 6) * problems, list of common: Bugs and ideas. (line 6) * reporting bugs and ideas: Bugs and ideas. (line 6) * what is Eshell?: What is Eshell?. (line 6)  File: eshell, Node: Function and Variable Index, Next: Key Index, Prev: Concept Index, Up: Top Function and Variable Index *************************** [index] * Menu: * $$: History. (line 19) * $+: History. (line 9) * $-: History. (line 12) * $?: History. (line 23) * $_: History. (line 16) * cd: Built-ins. (line 19) * history: Built-ins. (line 39) * su: Built-ins. (line 54) * sudo: Built-ins. (line 55)  File: eshell, Node: Key Index, Prev: Function and Variable Index, Up: Top Key Index ********* [index] * Menu:  Tag Table: Node: Top1029 Node: What is Eshell?2736 Ref: What is Eshell?-Footnote-15385 Ref: What is Eshell?-Footnote-25475 Node: Contributors to Eshell5668 Node: Command basics6822 Node: Commands verbs7378 Node: Command arguments9142 Node: Commands10393 Node: Invocation10776 Ref: Invocation-Footnote-111402 Node: Completion11495 Node: Aliases11611 Node: History11718 Node: Scripts12385 Node: Built-ins12491 Node: Arguments14967 Node: The Parser15158 Node: Variables15258 Node: Substitution15377 Node: Globbing15500 Node: Predicates15616 Node: Input/Output15715 Node: Process control15835 Node: Extension modules15969 Node: Writing a module16274 Node: Module testing16405 Node: Directory handling16559 Node: Key rebinding16718 Node: Smart scrolling16868 Node: Terminal emulation17022 Node: Built-in UNIX commands17191 Node: Extras and Goodies17344 Node: Bugs and ideas17489 Node: Known problems18084 Node: GNU Free Documentation License33233 Node: Concept Index58410 Node: Function and Variable Index59590 Node: Key Index60428  End Tag Table