2.1.3 The mode line

At the bottom of each editor window is a mode line that provides information concerning the buffer which that window is displaying. The contents of the mode line are as follows:

• "----" or "-**-" or "-%%-": the first indicates that the buffer is unchanged since it was last saved; the second that it has been changed; and the third that it is read only.
• the name of the buffer (the name of a buffer originating from a file is usually the same as the name of that file).
• the package of the current buffer written within braces.
• a major mode (such as Fundamental or Lisp). An buffer always operates in a single major mode.
• a minor mode (such as Abbrev or Auto-Fill). If no minor mode is in operation then this element is omitted from the mode line. An editor can operate in any number of minor modes.
• a character position indicator . This value indicates the position in the buffer of the first character displayed in the pane, expressed as a percentage of the total number of characters in the buffer. A value of 10 would indicate that the first character in the pane is 10% of the way through the buffer.
• a buffer position indicator. This value ind icates the percenta ge of the buffer that is currently displayed, and is separated from the character position indicator by a +. A value of 20 would indicate that a total of 20% of the buffer is currently shown.
• the pathname with which the buffer is associated.