create-frame(2)

[Home] [Commands] [Variables] [Macro-Dev] [Glossary]

NAME

create-frame - Create a new frame

SYNOPSIS

n create-frame (C-x 5 1, C-x 5 2)

INTODUCTION

A frame in MicroEmacs is the screen canvas on which all of the windows are attached. MicroEmacs allows the creation of new frames, creating a new blank canvas, which may be populated with new windows. Frames may be swapped and the window layout for a given frame is preserved until the frame is displayed again. There are two types of frame:

Internal

An internal frame uses the same display window (or console) hiding any other frames. On creation, any existing frame is hidden and a new frame blank takes its place. Internal frames are supported on all platforms.

External

An external frame creates a new display window allowing both the original frame and new frame to be visible in different windows. External frames are only available on windowing platforms such as X-Windows and Microsoft Windows. External frames may include internal frames which are paged.

This is shown in the following diagram:

         +-----------------+           +-----------------+ 
         |                 +-+         |                 +-+ 
         |                 | +-+       |                 | | 
         |                 | | |       |                 | | 
         |                 | | |       |                 | | 
         +-+---------------+ | |       +-+---------------+ | 
           +-+---------------+ |         +-----------------+ 
             +-----------------+ 

          Three Internal Frames        External Frame with 
                                       two internal frames

The user may move to the next frame using next-frame(2) which swaps the current frame for the next frame. External frames may also be accessed via the window manager by selecting the window.

A frame may be subsequently deleted with delete-frame(2).

DESCRIPTION

create-frame creates a new frame for the current MicroEmacs session, the new frame is assigned a unique identity $frame-id(5) which exists for the life of the frame.

The numeric argument n defines the type of frame to be created. An argument of 2 creates an external frame, an internal frame is created with an argument of 1. Where no argument is specified an external frame is created by default on systems which support them otherwise an internal frame is created.

NOTES

MicroEmacs is not multi-threaded and only one frame may be active at any one time (the complexity of being able to run a command in one frame while editing in another would rapidly lead it away from the 'Micro' status). Therefore if a command is left active (such as a search) in one frame and the focus is changed to another frame the input is sent to the frame with the active command and the message [NOT FOCUS] appears in the message-line of the frame with the focus.