Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!rutgers!mcnc!xanth!kyle From: kyle@xanth.UUCP (Kyle Jones) Newsgroups: comp.emacs Subject: Re: gnumacs bindings Message-ID: <2506@xanth.UUCP> Date: Mon, 21-Sep-87 14:20:19 EDT Article-I.D.: xanth.2506 Posted: Mon Sep 21 14:20:19 1987 Date-Received: Wed, 23-Sep-87 01:54:47 EDT References: <3590005@hpindda.HP.COM> <8709181153.AA08300@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> <636@unmvax.unm.edu> Lines: 22 In <636@unmvax.unm.edu>, mike@turing.unm.edu.unm.edu (Michael I. Bushnell) sez: > Emacs is strapped for keys. Stallman uses this argument as well but I don't buy it. Here at ODU we have both DEL and BS bound to delete-backward-char, and we still have a help key: C-\. C-\ is not normally bound to anything, so we lose no "functionally". Also C-\ is typed the same way on all our terminals: you hold down the CONTROL key and type a '\'. The Emacs lisp code does have C-h hard coded into in a few places but those were easily ferreted out. Most of the problem was solved by modifying help.el and the changing the value of help-char. Finding and changing all references to C-h into the User's Manual a tiny bit more challenging. C-h may be mnemonic but I simply could not tolerate hitting a key labelled BACKSPACE three times in succession and getting a screenful of text in return. God knows I tried. RMS points out that, "Deletion of text is not the same thing as backspacing followed by failure to overprint." I agree, but having the BACKSPACE key erase text is a lot closer to it's proper function than printing a help screen! kyle jones old dominion university, norfolk, va usa