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(elisp)Minibuffer Misc

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Minibuffer Miscellany
=====================

   This section describes some basic functions and variables related to
minibuffers.

 - Command: exit-minibuffer
     This command exits the active minibuffer.  It is normally bound to
     keys in minibuffer local keymaps.

 - Command: self-insert-and-exit
     This command exits the active minibuffer after inserting the last
     character typed on the keyboard (found in `last-command-char';
     Note: Command Loop Info).

 - Command: previous-history-element n
     This command replaces the minibuffer contents with the value of the
     Nth previous (older) history element.

 - Command: next-history-element n
     This command replaces the minibuffer contents with the value of the
     Nth more recent history element.

 - Command: previous-matching-history-element pattern n
     This command replaces the minibuffer contents with the value of the
     Nth previous (older) history element that matches PATTERN (a
     regular expression).

 - Command: next-matching-history-element pattern n
     This command replaces the minibuffer contents with the value of the
     Nth next (newer) history element that matches PATTERN (a regular
     expression).

 - Function: minibuffer-prompt
     This function returns the prompt string of the currently active
     minibuffer.  If no minibuffer is active, it returns `nil'.

 - Function: minibuffer-prompt-end
     This function, available starting in Emacs 21, returns the current
     position of the end of the minibuffer prompt, if a minibuffer is
     current.  Otherwise, it returns the minimum valid buffer position.

 - Function: minibuffer-contents
     This function, available starting in Emacs 21, returns the editable
     contents of the minibuffer (that is, everything except the prompt)
     as a string, if a minibuffer is current.  Otherwise, it returns the
     entire contents of the current buffer.

 - Function: minibuffer-contents-no-properties
     This is like `minibuffer-contents', except that it does not copy
     text properties, just the characters themselves.  Note: Text
     Properties.

 - Function: delete-minibuffer-contents
     This function, available starting in Emacs 21, erases the editable
     contents of the minibuffer (that is, everything except the
     prompt), if a minibuffer is current.  Otherwise, it erases the
     entire buffer.

 - Function: minubuffer-prompt-width
     This function returns the current display-width of the minibuffer
     prompt, if a minibuffer is current.  Otherwise, it returns zero.

 - Variable: minibuffer-setup-hook
     This is a normal hook that is run whenever the minibuffer is
     entered.  Note: Hooks.

 - Variable: minibuffer-exit-hook
     This is a normal hook that is run whenever the minibuffer is
     exited.  Note: Hooks.

 - Variable: minibuffer-help-form
     The current value of this variable is used to rebind `help-form'
     locally inside the minibuffer (Note: Help Functions).

 - Function: active-minibuffer-window
     This function returns the currently active minibuffer window, or
     `nil' if none is currently active.

 - Function: minibuffer-window &optional frame
     This function returns the minibuffer window used for frame FRAME.
     If FRAME is `nil', that stands for the current frame.  Note that
     the minibuffer window used by a frame need not be part of that
     frame--a frame that has no minibuffer of its own necessarily uses
     some other frame's minibuffer window.

 - Function: window-minibuffer-p window
     This function returns non-`nil' if WINDOW is a minibuffer window.

   It is not correct to determine whether a given window is a
minibuffer by comparing it with the result of `(minibuffer-window)',
because there can be more than one minibuffer window if there is more
than one frame.

 - Function: minibuffer-window-active-p window
     This function returns non-`nil' if WINDOW, assumed to be a
     minibuffer window, is currently active.

 - Variable: minibuffer-scroll-window
     If the value of this variable is non-`nil', it should be a window
     object.  When the function `scroll-other-window' is called in the
     minibuffer, it scrolls this window.

   Finally, some functions and variables deal with recursive minibuffers
(Note: Recursive Editing):

 - Function: minibuffer-depth
     This function returns the current depth of activations of the
     minibuffer, a nonnegative integer.  If no minibuffers are active,
     it returns zero.

 - User Option: enable-recursive-minibuffers
     If this variable is non-`nil', you can invoke commands (such as
     `find-file') that use minibuffers even while the minibuffer window
     is active.  Such invocation produces a recursive editing level for
     a new minibuffer.  The outer-level minibuffer is invisible while
     you are editing the inner one.

     If this variable is `nil', you cannot invoke minibuffer commands
     when the minibuffer window is active, not even if you switch to
     another window to do it.

   If a command name has a property `enable-recursive-minibuffers' that
is non-`nil', then the command can use the minibuffer to read arguments
even if it is invoked from the minibuffer.  The minibuffer command
`next-matching-history-element' (normally `M-s' in the minibuffer) uses
this feature.