emacs(1)

Emacs is a powerful text editor that goes far beyond basic file editing—it's a complete computing environment with built-in support for email, news, debugging, version control, and scripting via Emacs Lisp. It features a modular design that allows users to extend functionality without recompiling.

Emacs operates in modes that provide context-specific keybindings and commands. Major modes handle different file types (Python, C, Markdown, etc.), while minor modes add optional features like spell-checking or line numbering. The editor uses a kill ring for clipboard management and provides both interactive and batch processing capabilities.

Open myfile.txt in Emacs (creates a new window or uses existing Emacs session)

emacs myfile.txt

Open myfile.txt in Emacs running in the current terminal window

emacs -nw myfile.txt

Open myfile.txt and position cursor at line 42, column 10

emacs +42:10 myfile.txt

Start Emacs in terminal mode without loading your custom configuration

emacs -q -nw

Run Emacs in batch mode to execute a Lisp expression, then exit immediately

emacs -eval '(message "Hello World")' -batch

Load a custom configuration file before opening myfile.txt

emacs -l ~/.emacs.d/custom-config.el myfile.txt

Run Emacs in batch mode to call a custom function for automated processing

emacs -batch -l process-file.el -f my-batch-function

Start Emacs as a background server for faster subsequent client connections

emacs --daemon