EmacsWiki: Mini Buffer (original) (raw)
The minibuffer is a special buffer for entering commands or input arguments to commands. It appears either in a separate, standalone frame or at the bottom of each frame.
Sometimes, the area where you input commands is used to display informative messages without requesting input (i.e., not just a prompt). When this area is used this way, it is called the EchoArea, not the minibuffer.
In many respects, the minibuffer is a buffer like any other: You can edit the text you are inputting there. Most editing KeySequences are available for this, including SearchingTheMinibuffer. It’s also possible to resize the minibuffer.
Everything you enter in the minibuffer using ‘RET’ (commands, input arguments) is added to a MinibufferHistory. There are generally different histories for the names of different object types that you enter: files, buffers, commands… You can retrieve names from the currently used history to edit and reuse.
To cancel whatever you’re doing in the minibuffer, use ‘C-g’. To cancel minibuffer if your focus is in another window, try the command ‘abort-recursive-edit’ which by default is bound to ` C-]’.
The built-in command ‘switch-to-minibuffer’ returns focus to the minibuffer no matter which window is currently selected. This avoids repeatedly using ‘C-x o’ (‘other-window’).