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7.1 File Names

Most of the Emacs commands that operate on a file require you to specify a file name. For example, you might specify the file name initially when you enter Emacs :

sxemacs myfile RET

After you hit RET, you will enter SXEmacs with "myfile" read into the current buffer. If you do not specify the filename when entering Emacs, you can use the Open... option from the File menu. You will be prompted for a filename in the echo area:

Find file: /usr/workspace/

Type in a file name which you want to open after the "/" and hit RET. The specified file will be read into the current buffer. The "/usr/workspace" might be the default directory. When Emacs prompts you for a file, it uses the default-directory unless you specify a directory. You can see what the default directory of the current buffer is by using the Describe Variable option from the Help menu. When Emacs prompts you for the variable name to describe, type default-directory. If you wish to open a file in some other directory, use DEL or the BackSpace key to go back and type the path name of the new directory.

You can create a new directory by typing M-x make-directory. This command will prompt you for a directory name:

Create directory: /usr/workspace/

After you type a directory name and press RET, a new directory with the specified name will be created. If you do not wish to create a new directory, then simply press C-g to quit the command. Similarly, you can also remove a directory by using the command remove-directory. The command M-x pwd will print the current buffer’s default directory. For more information on file names, See File Names in SXEmacs User’s Manual.


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