emacs

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Guix shell now inside Emacs
2 months ago
- GNU Guix is an advanced package manager and distribution, inspired by Nix and using GNU Guile.
- The `guix shell` command creates temporary software environments with specified packages.
- The author contributed `M-x guix-shell` to the emacs-guix package, allowing users to run Guix shells inside Emacs.
- Emacs users can use `guix-shell` to avoid starting a new Emacs instance for each project.
- Commands like `guix shell python` or `guix shell python python-numpy` can be executed via Emacs.
- Users can export a `manifest.scm` file from a Guix shell session for future use.
- The interface could be improved, possibly with a transient menu like Magit.
Handling environment variables in Emacs on OS X and Linux
2 months ago
- The article addresses how to handle environment variables in Emacs on OSX and Linux, especially when Emacs is launched from Finder or Dock rather than a shell.
- The author avoids the `exec-path-from-shell` package due to startup slowness and preference to avoid subprocess invocation, instead adopting a method similar to Doom Emacs.
- Code is added to `early-init.el` to load environment variables from a generated file (`env`) located in the user Emacs directory, parsing each line to set environment variables.
- A script called `emacs-refresh-env` is created to generate the `env` file by running `zsh -ic env`, filtering out unwanted variables (e.g., shell bookkeeping, Tmux/Alacritty noise) and sorting the output.
- The trade-off is that the `env` file must be regenerated after any environment variable changes, so the script is integrated into an `update-all` script to run periodically.
Ad-Hoc Emacs Packages with Nix
2 months ago
- Nix can be used as an Emacs package manager to manage packages from MELPA or nixpkgs.
- Users can create ad-hoc packages for software not in MELPA, like inform7-mode, using trivialBuild.
- Nix handles commit pinning, security (SHA-256 hashes), and dependencies for custom packages.
- Examples of custom packaged modes include cabal-mode, xcompose-mode, eat, and lean4-mode.
- For packages needing non-ELisp files (like JSON), melpaBuild is used instead of trivialBuild.
- Nix offers a cleaner alternative to git submodules or Makefiles for vendoring Emacs packages.
My Emacs Configuration (Dired)
2 months ago
- Dired is an Emacs file browser that treats files as buffer elements, enabling navigation and operations with Emacs habits.
- Invoking Dired: via C-x p d (project directories), C-x C-j (current directory), C-x C-d (default), or setting Emacs as default file manager.
- File operations: mark files with various methods (m, * s, * ., % m, t, U), copy/move/remove, and flag for deletion with d, % &, % d.
- WDired mode makes Dired buffer writable, allowing filename editing via search/replace, macros, and permission changes.
- Copy/move between two Dired windows is enabled by setting `dired-dwim-target` t.
- Search: C-s for filenames (with `dired-isearch-filenames` t), plus find-name-dired and find-grep-dired for content searches.
- External programs: open files with external viewers via `dired-open-extensions`, and run shell commands with ! (sync) or & (async) using wildcards ?, *, `?`.
- Dired and photos: thumbnails via C-t t and C-t o, image manipulation with custom commands and GraphicsMagick.
- Configuration uses packages: delight, dired-rsync, dired-subtree, nerd-icons-dired, dired-x, etc., with custom keybindings and hooks.
- Extensive variable settings for compression, destination dirs, display options, sorting, and faces customization for Solarized Light theme.
Emacs Is a Lispboard
2 months ago
- Emacs is conceptually a 'Lispboard'—a working environment with an embedded Lisp interpreter, not just a text editor, operating system, or IDE.
- The ideal working environment merges multiple tools (terminal, email, code editor) into a single, integrated window with shared shortcuts, configurations, and interactivity.
- Emacs allows scripting, prototyping, and building workflows directly in Elisp without relying on external binaries, creating a self-contained habitat.
- With cross-platform bytecode compilation, Emacs provides a virtual machine that runs identically on different operating systems.
- Emacs is not a text editor, OS, or IDE, but a Lisp interpreter and framework that reimplements many programs, integrated via a shared event bus.
- The web browser is Emacs's true rival, offering a cross-platform virtual machine but with siloed tabs and limited user ownership, unlike Emacs's integrated and customizable environment.
- Using Emacs is not nostalgic; it provides a unique, replaceable way to work and live within software, with lifelong customization potential.
Escape IntelliJ: Scala and Kotlin LSPs on Emacs Eglot
2 months ago
- Emacs 29 made Eglot the built-in LSP client; it's lightweight but minimal, requiring Elisp for workarounds.
- Author shares production-ready Eglot config for Scala, Kotlin, and Java, with hooks and keybindings.
- Customizations include JVM tuning for Metals, inlay hints, YAML schema mapping, and fixing Kotlin LSP bugs (empty newText, jar URI translation).
- Intercepts JSON-RPC via advice-add to patch server behavior, e.g., removing empty textEdit, disabling Metals semantic refresh.
- Uses Nix flakes and direnv for reproducible development environments per project.
- Concludes that Eglot's minimalism is empowerable via Emacs Lisp hacking.
Malleable Computing, Emacs, and You
2 months ago
- The author automated the manual process of copying GitHub issues into Org Agenda using Emacs, leveraging existing tools like the `gh` CLI, Elisp packages (Transient, vtable, ox-gfm), and Pandoc.
- The implementation, called `fj`, consists of approximately 400 lines of Elisp code and was built in about a day, demonstrating the rapid prototyping capabilities of malleable computing.
- Malleable software allows users to adapt tools by combining existing libraries and programs, contrasting with supply-provided software where producers control features and development scope.
- Building for oneself (N=1) with malleable techniques reduces the overhead of error handling, documentation, and testing, making it feasible to create custom tools quickly.
- The resulting tool enables the user to browse GitHub issues, copy them to Org files, create new issues using Org syntax, and open issues in a web browser, all from within Emacs.
Things that made me come back to Emacs
2 months ago
- The author returned to Emacs after trying Neovim, primarily due to better workflows and specific Emacs features.
- The switch to Neovim was motivated by AI agentic workflows requiring terminal-based environments, leading to terminal+tmux setup.
- Emacs TUI had shortcut issues, prompting the Neovim trial, but Emacs features like Org-Mode, Dired, Embark, and Magit were missed.
- Current setup is TUI Emacs in terminal+tmux, with GUI Emacs improved by ghostel for embedded terminal and smoother AI agents.
Human Emacs
2 months ago
- Emacs project currently rejects LLM-based contributions as a precaution while awaiting GNU's final policy.
- Concerns that GNU's upcoming policy may not uphold high ethical standards and could allow LLM-generated code.
- Intent to develop and use an LLM-free version of Emacs regardless of GNU's decision, potentially involving a fork.
- Discussion and support for this initiative occur via mailing list and Libera Chat's #human-emacs channel.
In Emacs, Everything Looks Like a Service
2 months ago
- Emacs is not an operating system but orchestrates applications and utilities above the OS kernel, enabling users to 'live only in Emacs' by fulfilling many computing needs through client modes.
- The client-server model partitions tasks between a service (provider) and a client (requester), with Emacs providing built-in and third-party libraries for implementing clients, handling UI, client-edge communication, and local databases.
- Emacs Lisp (Elisp) is a dynamic language allowing high improvisation, enabling complex orchestration of behaviors, from Elisp functions to shell commands, with examples like building a weather client using wttr.in via HTTP requests and JSON processing.
- Emacs abstracts APIs at a high level, making it easy to build clients with minimal code, as shown by the 67-line wttr.el example, or by integrating command-line utilities like a Python script as a 'service' for simpler implementations.
Emacs and AI, the combination you've been missing
2 months ago
- The author describes frustration with switching between Emacs and AI tools like Claude for coding assistance.
- An epiphany occurs about integrating AI directly into Emacs using Claude to write custom plugins, despite the author's limited knowledge of Elisp.
- Claude successfully generates a functional Emacs plugin, demonstrating that AI can help customize Emacs to create an ideal development environment.
New contributors to GNU Emacs over time
2 months ago
- The author investigated first-time contributors to Emacs by analyzing Git commit history, tracking unique author identities over time.
- A cumulative plot revealed a noticeable increase in new contributors around 2010, suggesting a shift in contribution patterns or project management.
- Possible reasons for the change include migration from CVS to Bazaar and then Git, or adjustments in how patches are attributed to authors.
Two new experimental MELPA channels
3 months ago
- MELPA introduced two new experimental channels: MELPA Snapshots and MELPA Releases, which will eventually replace the traditional MELPA unstable and stable channels.
- The new snapshots channel uses version strings in the format RELEASE.0.YYYYMMDD.COUNT to avoid the issue where snapshot versions incorrectly appear greater than release versions.
- MELPA now consults both git/mercurial tags and library headers to determine the latest release, increasing package coverage in the releases channel to 6207 packages.
- Package maintainers are advised to align version tags with library header bumps to ensure consistent release identification across different ELPAs.
- Users switching to the new snapshots channel must remove and reinstall packages due to version string changes, using specific configuration updates.
- MyELPA is introduced as a simplified project for publishing personal ELPAs, reducing the need to add all packages to MELPA and easing maintainer workload.
- Financial support for MELPA and related projects is requested from users who benefit from the work.
Simple, beautiful Emacs modeline: modusregel
3 months ago
- Modusregel is a clean, elegant mode line package for Emacs, compatible with both GUI and terminal interfaces.
- It features smart major mode name prettification, support for Tree-Sitter variants, and built-in indicators for Eglot and Flymake.
- Designed for performance with lightweight, dependency-free Emacs Lisp code.
- Includes minimalist Unicode icons for buffer states like modified, read-only, remote, and LSP active.
- Installation via package managers like Elpaca, with configurable global or window-local mode line settings.
- Licensed under GNU GPL v3+ for code and GNU FDL v1.3+ for documentation.
- Adheres to AI policy requiring human oversight in contributions and prohibits autonomous AI agents.
- Follows a code of conduct promoting inclusivity, respect, and collaboration inspired by GNU ideals.
- Project encourages community contributions via email contact and public backlog/kanban boards.
- Compatible with keycast package for displaying key bindings in the mode line, with example configurations provided.
Underappreciated Builtin: Grand Unified Debugger
3 months ago
- The Grand Unified Debugger (GUD) in Emacs is an underappreciated built-in feature that supports multiple debuggers like GDB, LLDB, Perl, Java, Python, and others.
- A demo using GDB with a Fibonacci program shows how to set breakpoints via fringe clicks, use toolbar buttons (Run, Next Line, Step Line, Up/Down Stack), and manage breakpoints in a dedicated window.
- GUD provides features like an I/O window for output, variable inspection by hovering, a locals window, and variable watching for automatic updates when values change.

emacs

Guix shell now inside Emacs

Handling environment variables in Emacs on OS X and Linux

Ad-Hoc Emacs Packages with Nix

My Emacs Configuration (Dired)

Emacs Is a Lispboard

Escape IntelliJ: Scala and Kotlin LSPs on Emacs Eglot

Malleable Computing, Emacs, and You

Things that made me come back to Emacs

Human Emacs

In Emacs, Everything Looks Like a Service

Emacs and AI, the combination you've been missing

New contributors to GNU Emacs over time

Two new experimental MELPA channels

Simple, beautiful Emacs modeline: modusregel

Underappreciated Builtin: Grand Unified Debugger