Follow exatly these steps to install ECB:
ECB performs two autom checks:
So if you are not sure if you have installed the required packages at all or if you have installed the correct versions of these packages then do not worry about this, just go on with the following installation steps: If ECB is missing something it will give you proper feedback and support not later than at load-time or start-time!
load-path
variable.
You MUST add the ECB-install-directory to the load-path
either
by changing the load-path
variable directly in your .emacs or
site-lisp/site-start.el or by working with a file
subdirs.el1.
So for example the needed entry for your .emacs-file could be:
(add-to-list 'load-path "/path/to/your/ecb/installation/directory")
ATTENTION:
ECB is NOT properly installed if it's directory is not added to
load-path
and for example just loaded by
(load-file "/path/to/ecb/ecb.el")
Do not do this! It will not work!
If you want to load the complete ECB at (X)Emacs-loadtime (Advantage: All ECB-options available after loading ECB. Disadvantage: Increasing loadtime2):
(require 'ecb)
If you want to load the ECB first after starting it by
ecb-activate
(Advantage: Fast loading3.
Disadvantage: ECB- and semantic-options first available after starting
ECB):
(require 'ecb-autoloads)
This loads all available autoloads of ECB, e.g. ecb-activate
,
ecb-minor-mode
, ecb-byte-compile
and
ecb-show-help
.
Regardless which method you prefer: In both cases the used statement must be placed after the statement of step 3!
Only for users of a manually installed author version of the CEDET-suite (not that one integrated into Emacs >= 23.2): Instructions for loading CEDET into Emacs must be placed somewhere before the statements needed for loading ECB (s.a.)!
ECB is now ready for use and can be activated by calling M-x
ecb-activate
or ecb-minor-mode
. Now you can either starting
using ECB or you can do these optional installation steps:
ecb-show-help
Maybe you are interested to read the online-help of ECB before first start.
ecb-byte-compile
This byte compiles ECB. You can safely ignore all messages if there are any. (You can also bytecompile ECB from the command-line either by using the Makefile or by using the batch-file make.bat; just read the comments in that file you choose.)
The ECB distribution contains a subdirectory info-help which contains the online-help of ECB in Info-format. You can install this online help so it's available in the Top-directory of Info. There are two ways to do this:
The supplied Makefile offers a target install-help
which
does both of these steps. You have just to call make
install-help
with the correct EMACSINFOPATH set (see the comment in
Makefile). Here is an example:
make EMACSINFOPATH=/path/to/emacs/info install-help
Copy the files of the subdirectory info-help into the info-directory of Emacs and modify the file dir manually.
But it doesn't matter if you do not execute this step (8.) because the
online help of ECB is always available though, see
ecb-show-help
(see Interactive ECB commands).
[1] This works at least for Emacs but XEmacs may have slightly different mechanisms; see the XEmacs documentation
[2] Cause of full loading of ECB itself and also the packages semantic, eieio and speedbar regardless if ECB is started.
[3] ECB, semantic, eieio and speedbar are first loaded after starting ECB or with other words: ECB and semantic are not loaded if you do not use/need them