Ask Different (Apple)
Q&A for power users of Apple hardware and software
Latest Questions
0
votes
1
answers
249
views
How to install Macaulay2 for Mac?
I'm trying to install Macaulay2 in Mac, Im trying to do what the [manual][1] says, but I'm stuck in step 4. [![enter image description here][2]][2] [1]: https://macaulay2.com/Downloads/MacOSX/ReadMe-MacOSX.txt [2]: https://i.sstatic.net/X5ivO.png I write what the manual says but the terminal says fu...
I'm trying to install Macaulay2 in Mac, Im trying to do what the manual says, but I'm stuck in step 4.
I write what the manual says but the terminal says function> and I don't know what to write here

Kevin Duran
(101 rep)
Jan 8, 2024, 06:50 AM
• Last activity: Jul 1, 2025, 04:03 PM
1
votes
1
answers
601
views
Disable all system fn+letter keyboard shortcuts
I have the fn key set up as the Meta key for Emacs. But recently Mac OS (both 12.0.1 and 12.1) has started gobbling one or two combinations of fn plus a letter key: most notably, fn+N opens Notification Centre, even though I have no shortcut set up for ‘Show Notification Centre’ in System Preference...
I have the fn key set up as the Meta key for Emacs. But recently Mac OS (both 12.0.1 and 12.1) has started gobbling one or two combinations of fn plus a letter key: most notably, fn+N opens Notification Centre, even though I have no shortcut set up for ‘Show Notification Centre’ in System Preferences → Keyboard → Shortcuts → Mission Control. Since a lot of Emacs modes use
M-n
to mean ‘next’, this makes those shortcuts in Emacs unusable.
I never use the systemwide fn-shortcuts. How do I defang them completely?
Daphne Preston-Kendal
(111 rep)
Dec 27, 2021, 08:04 AM
• Last activity: Jun 5, 2025, 03:00 AM
0
votes
1
answers
84
views
Emacs launched from the command line produces a message: "[IMKClient subclass]: chose IMKClient_Modern"
I launch Emacs from the command line (from either Terminal or XQuartz apps): ``` /Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs & ``` When I click on the Emacs window, this message appears on the command line: ``` 2025-03-27 14:40:01.973 Emacs-arm64-11[53908:819171] +[IMKClient subclass]: chose IMKCli...
I launch Emacs from the command line (from either Terminal or XQuartz apps):
/Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs &
When I click on the Emacs window, this message appears on the command line:
2025-03-27 14:40:01.973 Emacs-arm64-11[53908:819171] +[IMKClient subclass]: chose IMKClient_Modern
2025-03-27 14:40:01.973 Emacs-arm64-11[53908:819171] +[IMKInputSession subclass]: chose IMKInputSession_Modern
How can I get rid of the message?
I am using Emacs Version 30.1 from [GNU Emacs For Mac OS X](https://emacsformacosx.com/) , running on MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Max chip, macOS Sequoia 15.3.2.
Timur Shtatland
(511 rep)
Mar 27, 2025, 07:23 PM
• Last activity: Mar 27, 2025, 07:31 PM
0
votes
0
answers
39
views
Aquamacs doesn't start cleanly in Sequoia
I have assigned Aquamacs to be the default app for .txt files, and it always worked just fine. But last week I updated to Sequoia (15.2) and now if I double-click on a txt file, Aquamacs starts and immediately freezes (see screenshot below). I can sort of get around this with a shell script that ess...
I have assigned Aquamacs to be the default app for .txt files, and it always worked just fine. But last week I updated to Sequoia (15.2) and now if I double-click on a txt file, Aquamacs starts and immediately freezes (see screenshot below).
I can sort of get around this with a shell script that essentially does:
open -a /Applications/Aquamacs.app
sleep 0.5
/Applications/Aquamacs.app/Contents/MacOS/bin/aquamacs "$my_file"
... but obviously this is ugly and it doesn't solve the problem of double-clicking on a txt file in Finder.
Also, once I opened Aquamacs for one file, I can double-click or use
open
on other files, without a hitch. So it's really only the first time that gets stuck.
Can anyone suggest a better solution? Thanks!
---------------------------------------

gidiav
(75 rep)
Jan 2, 2025, 05:57 PM
0
votes
1
answers
104
views
Why are the Emacs bindings to move around words (such as M-f (option-f) and M-b (option-b)) not working on bash terminal?
I am using macOS Monterey 12.5 on M1 hardware. In case this can be relevant, I am using an American keyboard with Brazilian Portuguese (ABNT2) as input. Also, I am using a cool software [Karabiner Elements][1] to configure my keybindings. I have made a special effort to create an Emacs UX in macOS....
I am using macOS Monterey 12.5 on M1 hardware. In case this can be relevant, I am using an American keyboard with Brazilian Portuguese (ABNT2) as input.
Also, I am using a cool software Karabiner Elements to configure my keybindings. I have made a special effort to create an Emacs UX in macOS. This is my config file .
In addition, I am using
bash
and this is my .bash_profile
file:
export NVM_DIR="$HOME/.nvm"
[ -s "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh" ] && \. "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh" # This loads nvm
[ -s "$NVM_DIR/bash_completion" ] && \. "$NVM_DIR/bash_completion" # This loads nvm bash_completion
export TFR_RELEASE="xx-xx"
export TFR_DEV="xx-xx"
#THIS MUST BE AT THE END OF THE FILE FOR SDKMAN TO WORK!!!
export SDKMAN_DIR="$HOME/.sdkman"
[[ -s "$HOME/.sdkman/bin/sdkman-init.sh" ]] && source "$HOME/.sdkman/bin/sdkman-init.sh"
export PATH="/usr/local/bin:$PATH"
eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"
When I am on the terminal, I can use commands such as C-a
(beginning of line), C-k
(kill line), C-f
(character forward), C-b
(character backward), and others such as C-u
.
The point that really annoys me is that M-f
and M-b
to move around words **do not** work on the terminal. They do work in other parts, such as the bard address of browsers and, obviously, in Emacs.
M-f
generates this (integral, apparently) "∫" character. And M-b
generates this (unknowns named for me) "đ" character. Also, C-M-b
and C-M-b
do not work either to generate this movement around words. I believe they were the default on macOS to generate this movement.
Considering this and this question, I thought it would default to have M-f
and M-b
keybindings to move forward and backward around words.
How can I solve this?
Pedro Delfino
(325 rep)
Sep 4, 2022, 02:12 AM
• Last activity: Dec 15, 2024, 09:23 PM
3
votes
1
answers
1662
views
Text selection in terminal without mouse - moving cursor using arrow keys
I recently moved from a well-configured Ubuntu to Mac. I used Emacs for many years but I am too lazy to re-install it (and re-configure it). One of the useful features in Emacs shell is that you can simply move the cursor around the output text using the arrow keys, select and edit - as if it was a...
I recently moved from a well-configured Ubuntu to Mac.
I used Emacs for many years but I am too lazy to re-install it (and re-configure it).
One of the useful features in Emacs shell is that you can simply move the cursor around the output text using the arrow keys, select and edit - as if it was a standard text editor.
Is there any terminal with that feature in OS X?
I have tried iTerm2, which supports smart search and selections, but I couldn't find exactly what I want - some keyboard-shortcut that will turn the current tab into "text editor" mode.
Editing the text is not important - I just want to be able to select text without touching the mouse, i.e. by moving the cursor around using the arrow keys (left, right, up, down), and select by holding shift.
Yes, I know about the great
... | pbcopy
trick - it's awesome in other use cases.
Oren
(273 rep)
Feb 19, 2016, 12:16 PM
• Last activity: Nov 3, 2024, 06:03 PM
0
votes
0
answers
43
views
Emacs on Mac file opening buffer switching behaviour
I am a very happy user of Emacs on Linux, and a far less happy one on Mac. I can't seem to get one thing right: switching buffers - I can't fathom the behaviour of Emacs on Mac with ```Ctrl-x b```. Looks like it rotates through a number of windows rather than being back-and-forth between two buffers...
I am a very happy user of Emacs on Linux, and a far less happy one on Mac.
I can't seem to get one thing right: switching buffers - I can't fathom the behaviour of Emacs on Mac with
-x b
. Looks like it rotates through a number of windows rather than being back-and-forth between two buffers like on Linux.
Emacs 28.1 (9.0) on Sonoma
simone
(571 rep)
Sep 26, 2024, 05:41 PM
0
votes
0
answers
31
views
Emacs on Mac file opening behaviour
I am a very happy user of Emacs on Linux, and a far less happy one on Mac. I can't seem to get one thing right: opening files from the command line, which I do with open -a Emacs /some/file/path.txt and never seems to open the file at the first shot. Emacs 28.1 (9.0) on Sonoma
I am a very happy user of Emacs on Linux, and a far less happy one on Mac.
I can't seem to get one thing right: opening files from the command line, which I do with
open -a Emacs /some/file/path.txt
and never seems to open the file at the first shot.
Emacs 28.1 (9.0) on Sonoma
simone
(571 rep)
Sep 26, 2024, 05:38 PM
27
votes
4
answers
13321
views
How do I send C-/ (that is, control-slash) to the terminal?
I'm trying to run Emacs in a terminal. I've turned on the "use option as meta" in terminal preferences and so it's about 95% working right. The key sequence ctrl-/ (or in Emacs notation C-/) is "undo". This key sequence just causes the terminal to ring a bell. How do I fix this?
I'm trying to run Emacs in a terminal. I've turned on the "use option as meta" in terminal preferences and so it's about 95% working right.
The key sequence ctrl-/ (or in Emacs notation C-/) is "undo". This key sequence just causes the terminal to ring a bell. How do I fix this?
Kevin Peterson
(482 rep)
Sep 5, 2011, 11:47 PM
• Last activity: Aug 12, 2024, 08:08 AM
1
votes
1
answers
42
views
how to prevent alt+arrows from moving cursor to end/begin of a word
In emacs I mapped alt+\ to switch windows but on macOS terminal it instead moves cursor to begin/end of a word. How to prevent this?
In emacs I mapped alt+\ to switch windows but on macOS terminal it instead moves cursor to begin/end of a word. How to prevent this?
Necktwi
(355 rep)
Jul 13, 2024, 06:13 AM
• Last activity: Aug 12, 2024, 08:04 AM
31
votes
6
answers
27926
views
Emacs on Mac OS X - To Alt or Command?
It's official. I love to hate Emacs on Mac OS X. No matter what I do, I get a thorn in side. When I try to write `\` using Alt + Shift + 7 I get errors because Alt == Meta in Emacs. If I bind the `Meta` to the Command key I circumvent that error. All is fine. Till I want to use `Meta-` Tab . Now I'm...
It's official. I love to hate Emacs on Mac OS X.
No matter what I do, I get a thorn in side.
When I try to write
\
using Alt + Shift + 7 I get errors because Alt == Meta in Emacs. If I bind the Meta
to the Command key I circumvent that error. All is fine. Till I want to use Meta-
Tab. Now I'm suddenly trying to Command-Tab away from Emacs into some other application.
I'm furious at the moment, could anyone help me solve this problem? I would prefer it if I could have Alt as meta
, not install aquamacs.org and not use the fn key.
*Oh, by the way, I use Swedish locale.*
**EDIT 1:**
First solution: add (global-set-key [C-tab] [M-tab])
to ~/.emacs
. This will tie the Meta-tab
to Control-tab
instead. Not what I entirely wanted, but should work.
Zolomon
(621 rep)
Apr 15, 2011, 10:51 AM
• Last activity: Apr 13, 2024, 10:57 AM
1
votes
1
answers
87
views
Hidden MacOS shortcuts: Control+v -> scrollDown; Control+y -> types 'd'
I just became aware of what I feel are 2 hidden macOS Monterey keyboard shortcuts when messing around in the Mac Notes app. Control+v scrolls down a nondeterministic number of lines. Control+y pastes from the system's clipboard I find control+v for scrolling down very useful to get to the bottom of...
I just became aware of what I feel are 2 hidden macOS Monterey keyboard shortcuts when messing around in the Mac Notes app.
Control+v scrolls down a nondeterministic number of lines.
Control+y pastes from the system's clipboard
I find control+v for scrolling down very useful to get to the bottom of something.
These shortcuts are not in any official Apple documentation online that I checked notably
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201236
and
https://support.apple.com/guide/notes/keyboard-shortcuts-and-gestures-apd46c25187e/mac
Does anybody know where these shortcuts are documented so I could find more like these?
Joe
(13 rep)
Mar 24, 2024, 04:31 PM
• Last activity: Apr 1, 2024, 04:21 PM
29
votes
14
answers
17689
views
What to use for a plain text editor on a plain macOS installation?
I'm writing instructions for a project and at some point, for a certain condition one needs to modify a simple plain ascii text file. For windows I can tell them to fire up notepad. I thought on the mac I could use TextEdit but the TextEdit version I'm using defaults to write rtf, which introduces a...
I'm writing instructions for a project and at some point, for a certain condition one needs to modify a simple plain ascii text file.
For windows I can tell them to fire up notepad. I thought on the mac I could use TextEdit but the TextEdit version I'm using defaults to write rtf, which introduces all rtf symbols in the file which is highly undesirable.
Using emacs or vi from the terminal is not something I want to burden the user with.
What are alternatives?
dr jerry
(601 rep)
May 1, 2013, 07:38 AM
• Last activity: Dec 12, 2023, 04:26 PM
2
votes
1
answers
597
views
Emacs starts up without window focus in macOS Sonoma
I've been using [Emacs For Mac OS X][1] on macOS for quite a few years, and it's been working really well until I upgraded to macOS Sonoma (v14.1.1). When starting Emacs now from the command line (from the dock is still OK) the Emacs window starts without focus. I'm on Emacs v28.2. How can I solve t...
I've been using Emacs For Mac OS X on macOS for quite a few years, and it's been working really well until I upgraded to macOS Sonoma (v14.1.1).
When starting Emacs now from the command line (from the dock is still OK) the Emacs window starts without focus. I'm on Emacs v28.2.
How can I solve this problem?
d99kris
(177 rep)
Dec 9, 2023, 12:40 PM
• Last activity: Dec 9, 2023, 12:41 PM
6
votes
3
answers
1295
views
Can I get Command-H to hide an Emacs window?
I'm using GNU Emacs 23.4.1 (x86_64-apple-darwin, NS apple-appkit-1038.36) of 2012-01-29 on bob.porkrind.org on a MacBook Air. Can I set Command - H to hide Emacs? I currently use M-x customize-group ns and set Command Modifier to no value. I already have a standard key binding to iconify-frame, but...
I'm using GNU Emacs 23.4.1 (x86_64-apple-darwin, NS apple-appkit-1038.36) of 2012-01-29 on bob.porkrind.org on a MacBook Air.
Can I set Command-H to hide Emacs? I currently use M-x customize-group ns and set Command Modifier to no value. I already have a standard key binding to iconify-frame, but that is different from hiding; I'd rather use the native OS X hide capability so I can unhide by clicking on the Emacs icon in the dock.
djb
(453 rep)
Jun 20, 2012, 02:01 AM
• Last activity: Nov 15, 2023, 07:14 PM
2
votes
1
answers
274
views
How can I specify the window size for Emacs on a Mac?
I used to be able to launch [Emacs](https://emacsformacosx.com/) version 28.1 on macOS from the command line in XQuartz terminal window like so: ``` /Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs --geometry 109x65 & ``` After upgrading to version 29.1, the geometry option appears not to be respected a...
I used to be able to launch [Emacs](https://emacsformacosx.com/) version 28.1 on macOS from the command line in XQuartz terminal window like so:
/Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs --geometry 109x65 &
After upgrading to version 29.1, the geometry option appears not to be respected any more. Instead, Emacs with a default, smaller window size appears in the background, behind the rest of the XQuartz terminal windows.
How do I fix this?
Timur Shtatland
(511 rep)
Oct 23, 2023, 06:51 PM
• Last activity: Nov 10, 2023, 05:17 PM
1
votes
0
answers
192
views
Karabiner Elements: How to bind "right_command + e" to open Emacs?
I've been trying to use Karabiner Elements to bind the "right_command + e" combination to open Emacs on my macOS. Here's the configuration snippet I originally used to bind the "left_command + e" combination: ```json { "description": "left_command + e -> Emacs", "manipulators": [ { "from": { "key_co...
I've been trying to use Karabiner Elements to bind the "right_command + e" combination to open Emacs on my macOS. Here's the configuration snippet I originally used to bind the "left_command + e" combination:
Has anyone encountered a similar issue? Could you provide guidance on how to bind "right_command + e" to open Emacs using Karabiner Elements?
{
"description": "left_command + e -> Emacs",
"manipulators": [
{
"from": {
"key_code": "e",
"modifiers": {
"mandatory": [
"left_command"
]
}
},
"to": [
{
"shell_command": "open -a emacs"
}
],
"type": "basic"
}
]
}
I attempted to modify the configuration based on a suggestion to simply change "left_command" to "right_command", like so:
{
"description": "right_command + e -> Emacs",
"manipulators": [
{
"from": {
"key_code": "e",
"modifiers": {
"mandatory": [
"right_command"
]
}
},
"to": [
{
"shell_command": "open -a emacs"
}
],
"type": "basic"
}
]
}
However, this modification didn't work as expected. Emacs is not being launched when I press right command
and e
.
This is my whole config file for Karabiner elements. Also, I am using an American keyboard with Brazilian Portuguese input - if it matters. As a fellow user requested, this is my keyboard, a keychron k2. Note that I swapped the keys on the hardware to match my karabiner config.

Pedro Delfino
(325 rep)
Oct 26, 2023, 01:15 AM
• Last activity: Oct 30, 2023, 05:36 PM
10
votes
1
answers
7320
views
How to disable lock-screen hotkey (Command-ctr-Q) in High Sierra?
I use the command-ctrl-Q key in emacs, but find that it is locking my screen on Mac OS X High Sierra. Checking the System Preferences in the Keyboard Shortcuts finds nothing to turn off. I'd rather not move my meta key off of Command to option and thus keep it where I'm used to it. How can I disable...
I use the command-ctrl-Q key in emacs, but find that it is locking my screen on Mac OS X High Sierra. Checking the System Preferences in the Keyboard Shortcuts finds nothing to turn off.
I'd rather not move my meta key off of Command to option and thus keep it where I'm used to it.
How can I disable this functionality?
WilliamKF
(2337 rep)
Jan 18, 2018, 08:46 PM
• Last activity: Oct 25, 2023, 08:47 AM
6
votes
1
answers
4311
views
Emacs on Sonoma: "WARNING: Secure coding is not enabled for restorable state! Enable secure coding by implementing NSApplicationDelegate..."
When starting Emacs on the command line like so: ``` /Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs ... ``` it prints this warning: ``` WARNING: Secure coding is not enabled for restorable state! Enable secure coding by implementing NSApplicationDelegate.applicationSupportsSecureRestorableState: and r...
When starting Emacs on the command line like so:
/Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs ...
it prints this warning:
WARNING: Secure coding is not enabled for restorable state! Enable secure coding by implementing NSApplicationDelegate.applicationSupportsSecureRestorableState: and returning YES.
This started after upgrading macOS to Sonoma 14.0. How can I fix this?
I am using this Emacs version:
/Applications/Emacs.app/Contents/MacOS/Emacs --version
GNU Emacs 28.1
Timur Shtatland
(511 rep)
Oct 3, 2023, 05:20 PM
• Last activity: Oct 11, 2023, 05:20 PM
0
votes
0
answers
250
views
Make EMACS control sequences work in Microsoft Outlook?
One of the reasons I like Apple's software is that I can use emacs control sequences (e.g. ^a to go to the start of the line) in practically any text object. However, this does not work in Microsoft Outlook, which apparently does not use the Apple Text object. I'm finding that I want to use Outlook...
One of the reasons I like Apple's software is that I can use emacs control sequences (e.g. ^a to go to the start of the line) in practically any text object.
However, this does not work in Microsoft Outlook, which apparently does not use the Apple Text object.
I'm finding that I want to use Outlook more and more rather than Mail.app, as it doesn't crash and it now has significantly better features.
Is there any way to make ^a, ^e, ^d, ^n, ^f , ^p and the others work in Outlook?
vy32
(3564 rep)
Jun 30, 2023, 03:19 PM
• Last activity: Jun 30, 2023, 03:35 PM
Showing page 1 of 20 total questions