kickstart-emacs.mp4

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
   • Packages
   • Helpful resources
2. Installation
   • 1. Requirements
   • 2. Backup your previous configuration
   • 3. Clone the repository to the configuration location
   • 4. Start Emacs
3. Post Installation
   • 1. Install fonts
   • 2. Open the configuration file
   • 3. Fork the repository
4. Uninstallation
5. Gallery

Introduction

This repository gives you a starting point for Gnu Emacs with good defaults, vim keybindings and packages that most people may want to use.

Kickstart.emacs is not a distribution.
It's a template for your own configuration.

This config is:

• A single file org document (with examples of moving to multi-file)
• Modular and easily configurable
• Documented describing its purpuse

Inspired by kickstart.nvim

Special thanks to:

• DistroTube
• System Crafters

Their content helped me to create this configuration.

Packages

Included Package list

• Package Manager: Package.el with Use-package (built in)
• Evil mode: An extensible vi/vim layer
• General: Keybindings
• Gruvbox-theme: Color scheme
• Doom-modeline: Prettier, more useful modeline
• Projectile: Project interaction library
• Eglot: Language Server Protocol Support
• Yasnippet: Template system and snippet collection package
• Some Org mode packages (toc-org, org-superstar)
• Eat: Fast terminal emulator within Emacs
• Nerd Icons: For icons and more helpful ui (Supports both GUI and TUI)
• Magit: Complete text-based user interface to Git
• Diff-hl: Highlights uncommitted changes
• Corfu: Enhances in-buffer completion
• Cape: Provides Completion At Point Extensions
• Orderless: Completion style that matches candidates in any order
• Vertico: Provides a performant and minimalistic vertical completion UI.
• Marginalia: Adds extra metadata for completions in the margins (like descriptions).
• Consult: Provides search and navigation commands.
• Diminish: Hiding or abbreviation of the modeline displays
• Rainbow Delimiters: Adds colors to brackets.
• Which key: Helper utility for keychords

Recommended Packages

If you want to see how to configure these, look up their git repositories or check out my config.

• DashBoard: Extensible startup screen.
• Drag Stuff: Makes it possible to move selected text, regions and lines.
• Rainbow Mode: Displays the actual color as a background for any hex color value (ex. #ffffff).
• UndoTree: Visualizes the undo history (alternative: Vundo with undo-fu-session).
• Vterm: Fast, Fully-fledged terminal emulator inside GNU Emacs.
• Sudo-edit: Utilities for opening files with root privileges (also works with doas).
• Treesit-auto: Automatically installs and uses tree-sitter major modes in Emacs 29+.
• Ws-butler: Removes whitespace from the ends of lines.

Helpful resources

Videos and configurations to get started.

• Emacs From Scratch by System Crafters: Very detailed video series about building Gnu Emacs from the ground up.
• Configuring Emacs by DistroTube: Shorter but also very detailed video series about configuring emacs from scratch.
• Purcell's emacs configuration: Emacs configuration bundle with batteries included.
• Spacemacs and Doom Emacs: For an out of box experience and their wiki pages are really helpful.
• More starter kits: List of starter kits for Emacs.
• Emacs manual: For learning the fundamentals of Emacs.

Installation

1. Requirements

• Gnu Emacs 29.1 (Latest stable release)
• Git (To clone/download this repository)

Optional:

• ripgrep
• fd (improves file indexing performance for some commands)
• Gnu Emacs with native-compilation (provides noticeable performance improvements)

2. Backup your previous configuration

If any exists.

3. Clone the repository to the configuration location

Linux and Mac

git clone https://github.com/MiniApollo/kickstart.emacs.git "${XDG_CONFIG_HOME:-$HOME/.config}"/emacs

Windows

• CMD:

git clone https://github.com/MiniApollo/kickstart.emacs.git %userprofile%\AppData\Local\emacs\

• Powershell:

git clone https://github.com/MiniApollo/kickstart.emacs.git $env:USERPROFILE\AppData\Local\emacs\

4. Start Emacs

Emacs will install all the requested packages (it can take a minute).

Note: If you see errors, warnings when package installation is finished just restart Emacs.

Post Installation

1. Install fonts

Run the following command with M-x (alt-x) C-y to paste

nerd-icons-install-fonts

Change or install JetBrains Mono font

2. Open the configuration file

1. Hit Space-f-c to open the config file at $HOME/.config/emacs

Note If you use Windows you need to change the path (hit C-x C-f, find the config file and in general region replace the path)

2. Now you can Edit and add more configuration.

3. Fork the repository

Recommended so that you have your own copy to modify.

Uninstallation

To uninstall kickstart.emacs, you need to remove the following directory:

• Delete the emacs folder/directory for your OS (E.g. $HOME/.config/emacs/).

Gallery