Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!lll-tis!ames!nrl-cmf!cmcl2!yale!Ram-Ashwin
From: Ram-Ashwin@cs.yale.edu (Ashwin Ram)
Newsgroups: comp.emacs
Subject: MODE-LINE as string; updating the mode-line display
Message-ID: <21549@yale-celray.yale.UUCP>
Date: 18 Jan 88 19:42:13 GMT
Sender: root@yale.UUCP
Reply-To: Ram-Ashwin@cs.yale.edu (Ashwin Ram)
Organization: Computer Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-2158
Lines: 33


Is there any way to get the current mode line as a string?  I know about
mode-line-format, but I need the mode line, as it currently appears in that
window, in the form of an ordinary string.


A related query -- is there a function that forces the mode-line to be
redisplayed, if some component of it has been changed?  I swiped some code
from time.el to do this:

(defun force-mode-line-update ()
   "This is swiped from time.el and really should be part of GNU Emacs."
  ;; Force redisplay of all buffers' mode lines to be considered.
  (save-excursion (set-buffer (other-buffer)))
  (set-buffer-modified-p (buffer-modified-p))
  ;; Do redisplay right now, if no input pending.
  (sit-for 0))

but I wonder if there is a standard function that either I'm missing or is
missing :-).


Thanks in advance.

-- Ashwin Ram --

ARPA:    Ram-Ashwin@cs.yale.edu
UUCP:    {decvax,ucbvax,harvard,...}!yale!Ram-Ashwin
BITNET:  Ram@yalecs


ARPA:    Ram-Ashwin@cs.yale.edu
UUCP:    {decvax,ucbvax,harvard,...}!yale!Ram-Ashwin
BITNET:  Ram@yalecs