Glossary

Concepts pertinent to operational usage of Hyperbole are defined here. If some GNU Emacs terms are unfamiliar to you, see section `Glossary' in the GNU Emacs Manual.

action

An executable behavior associated with a Hyperbole button. A specific class of actions which display entities are called links, such as a link to a file.

Action Key

See Smart Key.

action type

A behavioral specification for use within Hyperbole buttons. Action types usually contain a set of parameters which must be given values for each button with which they are associated. An action type together with a set of values, called arguments, may be considered an action. Actype is a synonym for action type.

activation

Request for a Hyperbole button to perform its action. Ordinarily the user presses a key which selects and activates a button.

ange-ftp

A standard GNU Emacs Lisp package which allows one to use pathnames that are accessible via the Internet File Transfer Protocol (ftp) just like other pathnames, for example when finding a file. The latest version of ange-ftp may always be obtained via anonymous ftp to: `/ftp.gnu.ai.mit.edu:ange-ftp/ange-ftp.tar.gz'.

argument

A button-specific value fed to a Hyperbole type specification when the button is activated.

Assist Key

See Smart Key.

attributes

Slot names associated with Hyperbole buttons. An attribute value is associated with each button attribute.

button

A selectable Hyperbole construct which performs an action. A button consists of a set of attributes that includes: a textual label, a category, a type and zero or more arguments. Explicit buttons also have creator, create time, last modifier, and last modifier time attributes. Buttons provide the user's gateway to information. The user sees and interacts with button labels, the rest of the button data is managed invisibly by Hyperbole and displayed only in response to user queries.

button activation

See activation.

button attributes

See attributes.

button data

Lists of button attribute values explicitly saved and managed by Hyperbole. One list for each button created by Hyperbole.

button file, local

A per-directory file named `HYPB' that may be used to store any desired buttons and may then be displayed via a menu selection whenever a user is within that directory.

button file, personal

A per-user file named `HYPB' that may be used to store any desired buttons and may then be displayed via a menu selection.

button key

A normalized form of a button label used internally by Hyperbole.

button label

A text string that visually indicates a Hyperbole button location and provides it with a name and unique identifier. Within a buffer, buttons with the same label are considered separate views of the same button and so behave exactly alike. Since button labels are simply text strings, they may be embedded within any text to provide non-linear information or operational access points. The maximum length of a button label is limited by the variable ebut:max-len.

button selection

The act of designating a Hyperbole button upon which to operate. Use the Action Key to select a button.

category

A high-level, conceptual grouping of Hyperbole buttons into classes. Implicit and explicit groupings represent categories.

class

A group of functions and variables with the same prefix in their names, used to provide an interface to an internal or external Hyperbole abstraction.

context

A programmatic or positional state recognized by Hyperbole. We speak of Smart Key and implicit button contexts. Both are typically defined in terms of surrounding patterns within a buffer, but may be defined by arbitrary Emacs Lisp predicates. (Context may come to have a broader meaning within future versions of Hyperbole.)

environment

See Hyperbole environment.

efs

The much larger successor to ange-ftp. It does the same thing as ange-ftp but works with more types of ftp hosts. See ange-ftp.

explicit button

A button created and managed by Hyperbole. By default, explicit buttons are delimited like this <(fake button)>. Direct selection is used to operate upon an explicit button.

global button

A form of explicit button which is typically accessed by name rather than direct selection. Global buttons are useful when one wants quick access to actions such as jumping to common file locations or for performing sequences of operations. One need not locate them since they are always available by name, with full completion offered. All global buttons are stored in the file given by the variable gbut:file and may be activated as regular explicit buttons by visiting this file. By default, this is the same as the user's personal button file.

global button file

See button file, personal.

hook variable

A variable that permits customization of an existing function's operation without the need to edit the function's code. See also the documentation for the function (run-hooks).

Hyperbole

A flexible, programmable information management and viewing system built on top of GNU Emacs. It utilizes a button-action model and supports hypertextual linkages. Hyperbole is all things to all people.

Hyperbole environment

A programmatic context within which Hyperbole operates. This includes the set of Hyperbole types defined and the set of Hyperbole code modules loaded. It does not include the set of accessible buttons. Although the entire Emacs environment is available to Hyperbole, we do not speak of this as part of the Hyperbole environment.

hypertext

A text or group of texts which may be explored in a non-linear fashion through associative linkages embedded throughout the text. Instead of simply referring to other pieces of work, hypertext references when followed actually take you to the works themselves.

implicit button

A button recognized contextually by Hyperbole. Such buttons contain no button data. See also implicit button type.

implicit button type

A specification of how to recognize and activate implicit buttons of a specific kind. Implicit button types often utilize structure internal to documents created and managed without Hyperbole assistance, for example, programming documentation. Ibtype is a synonym for implicit button type. See also system encapsulation.

instance number

A colon prefaced number appended to the label of a newly created button when the button's label duplicates the label of an existing button in the current buffer. This number makes the label unique and so allows any number of buttons with the same base label within a single buffer.

link

A reference from a Hyperbole button to an entity. The referenced entity is sometimes called a node or referent. A specific class of actions which display entities are called links, such as a link to a file.

local button file

See button file, local.

mouse button

mouse key

See Smart Key.

node

See link.

predicate

A boolean (nil = false, non-nil = true) Lisp expression typically evaluated as part of a conditional expression.

referent

See link.

Smart Key

A context-sensitive key used within Hyperbole and beyond. Actually, there are two Smart Keys, the Action Key and the Assist Key. The Action Key, typically bound to the shift-middle mouse key (or shift-left mouse key on a 2-button mouse), activates Hyperbole buttons and scrolls the buffer forward a windowful when pressed at the end of a line. The Assist Key, typically bound to the shift-right mouse key, explains what a Hyperbole button does or scrolls the buffer backward a windowful when pressed at the end of a line. To see what a Smart Key will do within a particular context, depress and hold the key at the point desired and depress the other Smart Key. A buffer containing a description of its contextual function will then be displayed. You may release the two keys in any order after you have them both depressed. A press of the Assist Key in an unsupported context displays a summary of Smart Key functions in each context, as does the Doc/SmartKy menu item.

source buffer / file

The buffer or file within which a Hyperbole button is embedded.

system encapsulation

Use of Hyperbole to provide an improved or simply consistent user interface to another system. Typically, implicit button types are defined to recognize and activate button-type constructs managed by the other system.

view

A perspective on some information. A view can affect the extent of the information displayed, its format, modes used to operate on it, its display location and so forth.

view spec

A terse (and to the uninitiated, cryptic) string that specifies a particular view of a link referent or some other information.