Readme for the Emacs Code Browser (ECB) v1.80
---------------------------------------------

About
-----

This package contains a code browser for several languages for Emacs. For
instructions on how to use the browser read the online-help (see "Usage"
below). The latest version of this package can be found at:

http://home.swipnet.se/mayhem/ecb.html


Requirements
------------

ECB requires the following packages being properly installed:
- Semantic, author version 1.4 or higher
  (http://cedet.sourceforge.net/semantic.shtml)
- Eieio, author version 0.17 or higher
  (http://cedet.sourceforge.net/eieio.shtml).
- If Java code is edited the ECB works best when the JDE package
  (http://sunsite.auc.dk/jde) is installed.

If you use XEmacs you must have the fsf-compat package installed (contains
overlay.el). If you want to read the online-help of ECB in HTML-format you
must have the library browse-url (part of the mail-lib XEmacs package)
installed!


Installation
------------

*IMPORTANT*: The following steps 1., 2., 3., 6. and 7. describe installation
tasks if you got the archive in the format available at the ECB website. If
you use XEmacs and got ECB as regular XEmacs-package (e.g. downloaded and
installed by the net-installer of XEmacs) then the steps 1., 2., 3., 6. and 7.
are not necessary for you; please start reading at point 4.


1. Unpack the ECB archive.

2. Install the required semantic- and eieio-version.

   Note: ECB maybe requires a newer version of these libraries than shipped
   with Emacs or XEmacs. You have to install exactly a version ECB requires
   and also to make sure that the correct version is loaded into (X)Emacs!

3. Add the new directory to your load-path.

   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.el.

   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!

4. Add to your .emacs or site-start.el file the line:
   (require 'ecb)

5. Restart Emacs.

ECB is now ready for use and can be activated by calling 'M-x ecb-activate'.
Now you can either starting using ECB or you can do these optional
installation steps:

6. Call `ecb-byte-compile'. Byte compiles ECB. You can safely ignore all
   messages. (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.)

7. Install the supplied ecb.info

   The ECB distribution contains a file ecb.info which is 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:

   * Use install-info (recommended):
     1. Copy the file ecb.info into the info-directory of Emacs
     2. Install it with the command install-info (if available on your system)
        in the dir-file.

     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

    * Manual Installation:
      Copy the file ecb.info into the info-directory of Emacs and
      modify the file dir manually.

   But it doesn't matter if you do not execute this step (7.) because the
   online help of ECB is always available though, see `ecb-show-help'!


Usage
-----

Call "M-x ecb-activate" to activated ECB.
Call "M-x ecb-show-help" to get a detailed online-help for ECB.
If you are using ECB the first time you should read the complete
online help accurately!


Contacts
--------

Send comments, bug reports and improvement suggestions to:

ecb-list@lists.sourceforge.net

