GNU Emacs

Software Overview

GNU Emacs is an open source text editor for Linux, Windows, and OS X platforms. It allows you to edit plain text files, test programs, manage files, and even play games, such as Tetris.

Emacs is a simple text editor that is often used for editing source code, shells, directory listings, web pages, and email messages. The program operates through keystroke commands to help you edit and automate tasks for quicker and more efficient work. Besides editing text, Emacs functions as an IDE, giving you tools for compiling, running, and testing programs. Emacs can also function as a file manager, allowing you to organize, edit, and delete files. The program enables you to play games, such as Tetris and Towers of Hanoi, within the program.

One of the most prominent features of Emacs is that it gives you the ability to customize the program to your needs. It allows you to save macros to automate your repetitive tasks. You can also alter and extend almost any feature within the program through the Emacs Lisp (Elisp) language. You can modify Emacs functions and customize the appearance, such as fonts and color schemes. Emacs also provides helpful tutorials that will help you get acclimated to its commands and capabilities.

GNU Emacs is a popular text editor among Unix users and is similar to vi text editors, such as gVim. If you have programming knowledge and want to customize your text editor for quicker and more efficient work, GNU Emacs may be a good fit for you.

Supported File Types

Primary file extension

Other file extensions used by GNU Emacs 24

Updated: April 15, 2014