Emacs keybindings in GNU screen's copy-scrollback mode
[![terminal.jpg](/space/terminal.jpg)](http://www.gnu.org/software/screen/)[![gnu.jpg](/space/gnu.jpg)](http://gnu.org/software/emacs/)[![X_logo.png](/space/X_logo.png)](/space/synchronizing GNU screen's paste buffer and the X selection)

When I'm working, I pretty much
live inside [Emacs](http://gnu.org/software/emacs/). It's my IDE, debugger, text
editor, email composer, spreadsheet, file manager, and all-around scratch pad.

I've burned Emacs' key bindings into my brain, so I go to great lengths to set
them in every program I use. That way, I don't have to context switch my
fingers' muscle memory when I task switch from coding to email, to IM, to the
web. Task switches may be a fact of life, but other unnecessary mental context
switches are evil incarnate.

I recently started using [GNU screen](http://www.gnu.org/software/screen/)'s
[copy/scrollback mode](http://www.delorie.com/gnu/docs/screen/screen_73.html) so
that I could copy from terminals with the keyboard. I use these commands in [my
.screenrc](http://ryan.barrett.name/dotfiles/screenrc) to set up Emacs key
bindings in screen's copy/scrollback mode:

    # emacs keybindings for navigation in copy mode
    markkeys ^B=Y:^F=V:h=^B:l=^F:0=^A:$=^E

    # C-space sets mark. markkeys does it in screen 4.0 and higher, but 3.9x
    # needs the bindkey command. (note the ^@ escape sequence for C-space.)
    markkeys ' '=^@
    # bindkey -m ^@ stuff ' '

    # page up and page down
    bindkey -m -k kP stuff Y
    bindkey -m -k kN stuff V

    # failed attempt to make C-space work in i-search too
    # bindkey -m ^@ eval "stuff \033" "stuff ^@" 

    # special hack for C-e, since it should go *past*
    # the last char. -m means this is for copy mode only.
    bindkey -m ^e stuff "$^f"

    # C-g and other keys just quit copy mode. Esc does nothing.
    markkeys \033=\015=^G=^D=h=j=k=l=H=M=L=G=g=y=c=v=a=x=b=e=B=E=w
    markkeys @=\033

    # control arrows move by words. (set B, e, and w to F keys so that i can
    # use them to move by words, but they themselves still quit copy mode.)
    markkeys B=[:E=]:b={:e=}:w=>
    bindkey -m ^[Od stuff {  #"[[}"
    bindkey -m ^[Oc stuff ]  #"}]^f"

See also:
  * [synchronizing GNU screen's paste buffer and the X selection](/space/synchronizing GNU screen's paste buffer and the X selection)
  * [why I don't run shells inside Emacs](/space/why I don't run shells inside Emacs)
  * [control arrow keys in rxvt, tcsh, and emacs](/space/control arrow keys in rxvt, tcsh, and emacs)
  * [emacs keybindings in firefox](/space/emacs keybindings in firefox)
  * [emacs keybindings with number keys](/space/emacs keybindings with number keys)
  * [emacs page up page down](/space/emacs page up page down)