8 The Editor

8.12 Using Lisp-specific commands

One of the main benefits of using the built-in editor is the large number of keyboard and menu commands available which can work directly on Lisp code defined in the environment. As well as providing editing facilities which work intelligently in a buffer containing Lisp code, there are commands which let you load, evaluate or compile the code in any part of a buffer easily and quickly.

In addition, a high degree of integration exists between other environment tools and the editor. This allows you, for example, to find the source code definition of an object being examined in a browser, or to flag symbols in editor buffers for specific actions, such as tracing or lambda list printing.

This section provides an introduction to the Lisp-specific facilities that are available using menu commands. For a full description of the extended editor commands, please refer to the Common LispWorks Guide to the Editor.

All of the commands described below are available in the Definitions and Expression menus, which operate on the current definitions or expression. In the definitions and changed definitions views, the notion of a definition is trivial, but in the text view, the notion of a definition and expression depends on the exact location of the cursor, as described below.

An expression is the symbol over which the cursor is positioned (or the one immediately before it if it is not on a symbol), and a definition is the definition in which that symbol occurs.

(defun test ()
  (test2))

In the function shown above, if the cursor were placed on the letter "e" oftest2, the expression would be the symboltest2, and the definition would betest.

In this section, the term "current definition(s)" is used to denote either the definition under the cursor (in the text view), or the selected definitions (in either the definitions or the changed definitions views).

8.12.1 - Evaluating code
8.12.2 - Compiling code
8.12.3 - Tracing symbols and functions
8.12.4 - Packages
8.12.5 - Indentation of forms
8.12.6 - Other facilities

Common LispWorks User Guide, Liquid Common Lisp Version 5.0 - 18 OCT 1996

Generated with Harlequin WebMaker