Table E-19. Lisp commands (Chapter 9)
Keystrokes
Command name
Action
C-M-b
backward-sexp
Move backward by one S-expression.
C-M-f
forward-sexp
Move forward by one S-expression.
C-M-t
transpose-sexps
Transpose the two S-expressions around the cursor.
C-M-@
mark-sexp
Set mark to the end of the current S-expression; set the cursor to the beginning.
C-M-k
kill-sexp
Delete the S-expression following the cursor.
(none)
backward-kill-sexp
Delete the S-expression preceding the cursor.
C-M-n
forward-list
Move forward by one list.
C-M-p
backward-list
Move backward by one list.
C-M-d
down-list
Move forward and down one parenthesis level.
(none)
up-list
Move forward out of one parenthesis level.
C-M-u
backward-up-list
Move backward out of one parenthesis level.
C-M-a
beginning-of-defun
Move to the beginning of the current function.
C-M-e
end-of-defun
Move to the end of the current function.
C-M-h
mark-defun
Put the cursor at the beginning of the function, put the mark at the end.
Table E-20. VC commands (Chapter 12)
Keystrokes
Command name
Action
C-x v v
vc-next-action
Go to the next logical version control state.
C-x v d
vc-directory
Show all registered files beneath a directory.
C-x v =
vc-diff
Generate a version difference report.
C-x v u
vc-revert-buffer
Throw away changes since the last checked-in revision.
C-x v ~
vc-version-other-window
Retrieve a given revision in another window.
C-x v l
vc-print-log
Display a file's change comments and history.
C-x v i
vc-register
Register a file for version control.
C-x v h
vc-insert-headers
Insert version control headers in a file.
C-x v r
vc-retrieve-snapshot
Check out a named project snapshot.
C-x v s
vc-create-snapshot
Create a named project snapshot.
C-x v c
vc-cancel-version
Throw away a saved revision.
C-x v a
vc-update-change-log
Update a GNU-style ChangeLog file.
Table E-21. Ediff commands (Chapter 12)
Keystrokes
Command name
Action
Space or n
ediff-next-difference
Move to the next difference between the files.
Del or p
ediff-previous-difference
Move to the preceding difference between the files.
j
ediff-jump-to-difference
Go to the difference specified as a numeric prefix argument.
a
ediff-copy-A-to-B
Copy the version of the current difference found in buffer A to buffer B.
b
ediff-copy-B-to-A
Copy the version of the current difference found in buffer B to buffer A.
r a or r b
ediff-restore-diff
Restore the current difference in buffer A (or B) to the way it was before copying from the other buffer.
A or B
ediff-toggle-read-only
Switch the specified buffer into (or out of) read-only mode.
g a or g b
ediff-jump-to-difference-at-point
Recenter the comparison buffers on the difference nearest to your current location (point) in the specified buffer.
!
ediff-update-diffs
Recalculate and redisplay the highlighted regions; useful if you've manually made extensive changes to a buffer.
w a or w b
ediff-save-buffer
Save the specified buffer to disk.
z
ediff-suspend
Close the Ediff control window, but leave the session active so you can resume it later.
q
ediff-quit
Close the Ediff window and end this comparison session.
Table E-22. CUA mode commands (Chapter 13)
Keystrokes
Command name
Action
C-c C-x C-x
cua-exchange-point-and-mark
Exchange location of cursor and mark.
C-x or C-w or S-Delete
kill-region
Delete the region.
C-v or C-y or S-Insert
cua-paste
Paste most recently killed or copied text.
C-c
copy-region-as-kill
Copy the region.
M-v
cua-repeat-replace-region
After highlighting and replacing a string, find the next string and replace it the same way.
M-y
cua-paste-pop
After C-v, pastes earlier deletion.
C-z or C-x u
cua-undo
Undoes the last change.
C-x C-z
iconify-frame
Minimize the current frame (what C-z does outside CUA mode).
Table E-23. Help commands (Chapter 14)
Keystrokes
Command name
Question answered
C-h k Help 
describe-key
What command does this keystroke sequence run, and what does it do?
C-h f Help
describe-function
What does this function do?
C-h v Help
describe-variable
What does this variable mean, and what is its value?
C-h m Help
describe-mode
Tell me about the modes the current buffer is in.
C-h b Help
describe-bindings
What are all the key bindings for this buffer?
C-h a Help
apropos-command
What commands include this word?
(none) Help
apropos-variable
What variables include this regular expression?
(none) Help
apropos
What functions and variables involve this regular expression?
Table E-24. Documentation help commands (Chapter 14)
Keystrokes
Command name
Action
C-h t Help
help-with-tutorial
Run the Emacs tutorial.
C-h i
info
Start the Info documentation reader. If prefaced with C-u, reads an Info file of your choice.
C-h r Help
info-emacs-manual
Open the Emacs manual.
C-h K Help
Info-goto-emacs-key-command-node
Start Info documentation reader at the node that discusses this key sequence.
(none) Help
emacs-index-search
Search the index of the Emacs user manual.
C-h p
finder-by-keyword
Invoke a menu that lets you get information about Emacs Lisp packages available on your system.
Table E-25. Important modes
Mode
Function
fundamental-mode
The default mode
text-mode
Major mode for writing text (Chapter 2)
outline-mode
Major mode for writing outlines (Chapter 7)
picture-mode
Major mode for creating ASCII drawings using the keyboard (Chapter 7)
html-mode
Major mode for writing HTML (Chapter 8)
sgml-mode
Major mode for writing SGML and XML (Chapter 8)
latex-mode
Major mode for formatting files for TEX and LATEX (Chapter 8)
c-mode, c++-mode
Major mode for writing C and C++, and Java programs (Chapter 9)
java-mode
Major mode for writing Java programs (Chapter 9)
perl-mode, cperl-mode
Major modes for writing Perl programs (Chapter 9)
sql-mode
Major mode for interacting with databases using SQL (Chapter 9)
emacs-lisp-mode
Major mode for writing Emacs Lisp functions (Chapter 9 and Chapter 11)
lisp-mode
Major mode for writing Lisp programs (Chapter 9 and Chapter 11)
lisp-interaction-mode
Major mode for writing and evaluating Lisp expressions ( Chapter 9 andChapter 11)
auto-fill-mode
Minor mode that enables word wrap (Chapter 2)
overwrite-mode
Minor mode that replaces characters as you type instead of inserting them (Chapter 2)
flyspell-mode
Minor mode for flyspell spell-checker (Chapter 3)
flyspell-prog-mode
Minor mode for spell-checking programs with flyspell (Chapter 3)
abbrev-mode
Minor mode for word abbreviations (Chapter 3)
artist-mode
Minor mode for creating ASCII drawings using the mouse (Chapter 7)
font-lock-mode
Minor mode for highlighting text in colors and fonts (Chapter 9)
vc-mode
Minor mode for using version control systems (Chapter 12)