define-macro-file(2)

NAME

define-macro-file - Define macro file location

SYNOPSIS

define-macro-file "file-name" ["macro-name" "macro2-name" ...]

DESCRIPTION

Macros are loaded as late as possible using an on-demand mechanism, this speeds up the load time of MicroEmacs '99, it also keeps the startup file clean since macros are not defined within the start-up file. Only when the user first executes a macro defined via define-macro-file is the file loaded, the macro becomes defined and is executed. Subsequent calls to the macro will not reload the file as the macro will now be fully defined.

define-macro-file binds macros (macro-name ...) to a file name (file-name). This operation informs MicroEmacs '99 which file should be loaded when macro-name is first executed. The macro-name arguments may be omitted if the file contains only one exported macro which has the same name as file-name.

Alternatively the macro file may contain many macros all of which can be defined by a single call to define-macro-file, listing all macros on the same line after the file-name. If a macro-name is given then the default macro file-name is not created, if a macro of that name does exist it must be added to the macro-name list.

EXAMPLE

The following definitions are found in the me.emf start-up file:-

define-macro-file search replace-all-string query-replace-all-string 
define-macro-file format clean sort-lines-ignore-case tabs-to-spaces ... 
define-macro-file misc symbol ascii-time check-line-length alarm 
define-macro-file spell spell-word spell-buffer spell-edit-word find-word 
define-macro-file tools compile grep diff diff-changes 
define-macro-file games Metris Patience Triangle Mahjongg Match-It 
define-macro-file print print print-setup 
define-macro-file hkdir file-browser 
define-macro-file fattrib file-attrib 
define-macro-file osd osd-main 
define-macro-file user user-setup 
define-macro-file addrbook address-book 
define-macro-file cal 
define-macro-file calc 
define-macro-file draw 

Hilighting a number of entries as examples; macro file calc is defined with no macro definition, the macro is assumed to be calc. The file tools.emf contains multiple macros compile, grep, diff and diff-changes; all can be defined by a single define-macro-file entry.

NOTES

• Macro files are searched for in the current directory and along the $search-path(5).
• The macro file is not loaded unless a binding has been defined using define-macro-file.
• Any other macros that exist in the file-name macro file become defined when the entry point macro is loaded and are available for use. This is potentially useful as a single entry macro may be defined using define-macro-file, when invoked other helper macros become available.

SEE ALSO

add-file-hook(2), define-macro(2), $search-path(5), start-up(3).

(c) Copyright JASSPA 1999
Last Modified: 1998/08/25
Generated On: 1999/12/01