Can someone help me make sense of list-buffer (aka Ctrlx - Ctrlb) behavior in emacs 25?
The behavior I'm used to seeing is that it opens the buffer list in another Emacs window (virtual Emacs window), splitting out a second window to do so, if necessary. In some versions it hasn't always been very deterministic which other window it used (if I had more than 2 up), but I could at least count on it not using the one the cursor was in.
I recently installed 25.0.50.1 to get around a remote file open bug (worked!), and now it isn't always doing this. Very often it opens the buffer list in the same window my cursor was in. Often it works the way it used to. I can't figure out any rhyme or reason behind which it choses to do.
Can someone enlighten me as to the algorithm it is using now? It makes managing multiple emacs Windows for reference viewing nearly impossible when I can't predict which window gets replaced.
I would guess your primary concern is to have a convenient way to switch buffer, not to understand the emacs' source code, so I would strongly recommend to check
helm
package out: http://tuhdo.github.io/helm-intro.html It will take about 10 to 20 minutes to install and follow the tutorial, and it is well worth. I promise.After installing
helm
and enabling it, the key sequence for you is Ctrl-x b:Shows open buffers, recently opened files
You will get a power pack of many other tools to work in emacs. I had the same problem with switching buffers, and seemingly 'chaotic' buffer popup. After
helm
installation, the problem is minimized to invisible because it is so easy to switch to the buffers you want.Update:
To deal package installation errors and package compatibility:
M-x list-load-path-shadows
to see if there is any conflicting packages. And since you may not have many external packages, I suggest backup~/.emacs.d
and have a new empty one. Also, most of the case when install packages, I try to use emacs package manager. Benefits of using package manger:Following is a workflow of enabling
melpa
repo and installing packages