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Re: Newbie question re ediff


From: B. T. Raven
Subject: Re: Newbie question re ediff
Date: Fri, 9 Feb 2007 18:13:23 -0600

"mkeller" <mckellercran@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:mailman.4256.1171057558.2155.help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org...
>
> Hi all,
>
> This comes from a emacs novice. I've searched the old posts and found
> several querries related to mine, but all the answers are over my
head...
> thus, please answer like you're talking to a "emacs challenged" person
when
> replying :).
>
> I use emacs version 21-3 for programming in R (ESS). I'm running on
Windows
> XP. I would really like to use the "ediff" or "diff" functions but
cannot
> figure out how to do this. If I simply go to Tools -> Compare I get
this:
>
> "No such file or directory, diff"
>
> After reading previous querries & responses on this forum, I installed
> diffutils-2.8.7-1.exe and placed those utilities in the folder:
C:\Program
> Files\GnuWin32.
>
> Now someone on a previous response said you need to change your _emacs
file
> "appropriately," but I have no idea how to do that. Do I need to change
the
> _emacs file so that emacs knows where to find the diff program? If so,
how
> do I do that? If not, what do I need to do to use diff within emacs?
>
> Appologies for the level of this question, and thanks in advance,
>
> Matt
> --
> View this message in context:
http://www.nabble.com/Newbie-question-re-ediff-tf3202866.html#a8893751
> Sent from the Emacs - Help mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
>
>
>

It looks to me like you are typing in "diff" as a file or buffer name.  In
my w32 build (21.3 on msw98) the menu shows Tools > Compare(Ediff) > Two
files, two buffers, etc in a drop down list. In two buffers, if I accept
the default, it compares *scratch* with itself and generates 2 buffers, A
and B, in an Ediff frame, showing no differences. I don't think you needed
diffutils. I don't find anything named that under my emacs subdirectory,
only under cygwin, which I don't use to run emacs. Ediff is like dired and
probably many other parts of emacs: the code for it is loaded when you
invoke the command.
The .emacs (or _emacs) will be found in your HOME directory. If you don't
have one then add
set HOME ..\emacs (or wherever; it doesn't have to be with /bin, /lisp,
and the rest of the emacs files so it could be anywhere in a non networked
machine, even the root directory (the default in w32 if you don't set it
up somewhere else). Just C-xC-f .emacs, write something in it like:
(+ 1 1) and then write to wherever your home directory is with C-xC-w.
Emacs will suggest ~/ if it thinks it knows where your home directory is.
To put something more useful into .emacs, save a few Custom settings for
future sessions (under Options > Customize Emacs > Specific Option >
Customize variable > [Tab]).

Ed



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