2.1 Advanced Info Commands

Here are some more Info commands that make it easier to move around.

g goes to a node by name

If you know a node's name, you can go there by typing g, the name, and <RET>. Thus, gTop<RET> would go to the node called `Top' in this file. (This is equivalent to t, see Help-Int.) gAdvanced<RET> would come back here. g in Emacs runs the command Info-goto-node.

Unlike m, g does not allow the use of abbreviations. But it does allow completion, so you can type <TAB> to complete a partial node name.

To go to a node in another file, you can include the file name in the node name by putting it at the front, in parentheses. Thus, g(dir)Top<RET> would go to the Info Directory node, which is the node `Top' in the Info file dir. Likewise, g(emacs)Top<RET> goes to the top node of the Emacs manual.

The node name `*' specifies the whole file. So you can look at all of the current file by typing g*<RET> or all of any other file with g(filename)<RET>.

1–9 choose a menu subtopic by its number

If you begrudge each character of type-in which your system requires, you might like to use the commands 1, 2, 3, 4, ..., 9. They are short for the m command together with a name of a menu subtopic. 1 goes through the first item in the current node's menu; 2 goes through the second item, etc. In the stand-alone reader, 0 goes through the last menu item; this is so you need not count how many entries are there. In Emacs, the digit keys run the command Info-nth-menu-item.

If your display supports multiple fonts, colors or underlining, and you are using Emacs' Info mode to read Info files, the third, sixth and ninth menu items have a `*' that stands out, either in color or in some other attribute, such as underline; this makes it easy to see at a glance which number to use for an item.

Some terminals don't support either multiple fonts, colors or underlining. If you need to actually count items, it is better to use m instead, and specify the name, or use <TAB> to quickly move between menu items.

e makes Info document editable

The Info command e changes from Info mode to an ordinary Emacs editing mode, so that you can edit the text of the current node. Type C-c C-c to switch back to Info. The e command is allowed only if the variable Info-enable-edit is non-nil.

The e command only works in Emacs, where it runs the command Info-edit. The stand-alone Info reader doesn't allow you to edit the Info file, so typing e there goes to the end of the current node.

M-n creates a new independent Info buffer in Emacs

If you are reading Info in Emacs, you can select a new independent Info buffer in another window by typing M-n. The new buffer starts out as an exact copy of the old one, but you will be able to move independently between nodes in the two buffers. (In Info mode, M-n runs the Emacs command clone-buffer.)

In Emacs Info, you can also produce new Info buffers by giving a numeric prefix argument to the m and g commands. C-u m and C-u g go to a new node in exactly the same way that m and g do, but they do so in a new Info buffer which they select in another window.