Conkeror
Encyclopedia
Conkeror is a Mozilla
-based web browser
designed to be navigated primarily by a computer keyboard
. Its design is mainly patterned after the text editor GNU Emacs, with some influence from other programs, including vi
.
It was originally written by Shawn Betts, the primary author of keyboard-driven ratpoison
and Stumpwm tiling window manager
s. Formerly an extension for the Mozilla Firefox
browser, it is now developed for XULRunner
as a stand-alone application. Development of the extension version was abandoned in 2007.
Conkeror is released under the same set of free software licenses as Mozilla: the GNU General Public License
, the GNU Lesser General Public License
, and the Mozilla Public License
.
. The user can type the number of the link and
Conkeror has a large number of key bindings, and can be customized to have more. The following are some example default key bindings: (key bindings are case sensitive)
Like Emacs, Conkeror makes use of buffers in order to allow multiple pages to remain open at the same time (similar to tabs in traditional browsers). Users can open new buffers and navigate through them using key bindings—for example,
as the scripting language, much in the way that Emacs
uses Emacs Lisp
. Customizations can be as simple as rebinding keys, but can be more involved; for instance, writing new interactive commands. By default, Conkeror looks for these customizations in ~/.conkerorrc. If ~/.conkerorrc/ is a directory instead of a file, then all the contained files will be read, which is a technique to enable modularization of bigger customizations.
Conkeror also ships with a number of loadable javascript
modules, some of which provide core functionality; others are user-loadable and provide additional functionality.
Conkeror has modes in which the key bindings, page display or browser behaviour become page-specific. Some modes, like xkcd
-mode, come by default. In xkcd-mode, the message which is normally displayed when the user mouses over the comic strip
is instead displayed in a special font below the strip. Other modes include those for Google Maps
, Reddit
and YouTube
, and modes can be user-defined as well.
web browser
from the KDE
suite of desktop software, although according to the Conkeror FAQ, "the full name of the browser in spoken English is 'Conkeror (with a C)'" to avoid confusion.
Also according to the FAQ, the name derives from the name given to the winner of a game of conkers, a children's game involving horse chestnuts on a string, as well as from a brand of beer also called Conkeror.
Mozilla
Mozilla is a term used in a number of ways in relation to the Mozilla.org project and the Mozilla Foundation, their defunct commercial predecessor Netscape Communications Corporation, and their related application software....
-based web browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
designed to be navigated primarily by a computer keyboard
Computer keyboard
In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
. Its design is mainly patterned after the text editor GNU Emacs, with some influence from other programs, including vi
Vi
vi is a screen-oriented text editor originally created for the Unix operating system. The portable subset of the behavior of vi and programs based on it, and the ex editor language supported within these programs, is described by the Single Unix Specification and POSIX.The original code for vi...
.
It was originally written by Shawn Betts, the primary author of keyboard-driven ratpoison
Ratpoison
Ratpoison is a tiling window manager for the X Window System primarily developed by Shawn Betts. Its user interface and much of its functionality are inspired by the GNU Screen terminal multiplexer...
and Stumpwm tiling window manager
Tiling window manager
In computing, a tiling window manager is a window manager with an organization of the screen into mutually non-overlapping frames, as opposed to the more popular approach of coordinate-based stacking of overlapping objects that tries to fully emulate the desktop metaphor.-Xerox PARC:Although the...
s. Formerly an extension for the Mozilla Firefox
Mozilla Firefox
Mozilla Firefox is a free and open source web browser descended from the Mozilla Application Suite and managed by Mozilla Corporation. , Firefox is the second most widely used browser, with approximately 25% of worldwide usage share of web browsers...
browser, it is now developed for XULRunner
XULRunner
XULRunner is a runtime environment developed by the Mozilla Foundation to provide a common back-end for XUL-based applications. It replaced the Gecko Runtime Environment, a stalled project with a similar purpose....
as a stand-alone application. Development of the extension version was abandoned in 2007.
Conkeror is released under the same set of free software licenses as Mozilla: the GNU General Public License
GNU General Public License
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
, the GNU Lesser General Public License
GNU Lesser General Public License
The GNU Lesser General Public License or LGPL is a free software license published by the Free Software Foundation . It was designed as a compromise between the strong-copyleft GNU General Public License or GPL and permissive licenses such as the BSD licenses and the MIT License...
, and the Mozilla Public License
Mozilla Public License
The Mozilla Public License is a free and open source software license. Version 1.0 was developed by Mitchell Baker when she worked as a lawyer at Netscape Communications Corporation and version 1.1 at the Mozilla Foundation...
.
Browsing
Conkeror emphasizes key bindings and keyboard-based browser navigation. By pressing a key (f, for "follow", by default), Conkeror brings up a small, numbered label beside every element within the current view on the page that can be clickedHyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink is a reference to data that the reader can directly follow, or that is followed automatically. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text with hyperlinks...
. The user can type the number of the link and
ENTER to follow the link.Conkeror has a large number of key bindings, and can be customized to have more. The following are some example default key bindings: (key bindings are case sensitive)
| Key binding | Action |
|---|---|
g |
search/go to URL |
f |
follow link |
C-h i |
Conkeror User Manual |
C-h b |
Complete list of key bindings |
C-s |
search text forward |
Like Emacs, Conkeror makes use of buffers in order to allow multiple pages to remain open at the same time (similar to tabs in traditional browsers). Users can open new buffers and navigate through them using key bindings—for example,
C-u C-f opens a hyperlink in a new buffer, C-u C-g goes to a URL or search term in a new buffer, and C-u C-h i opens the start page in a new buffer. Buffers can be cycled through using M-n to go to the next buffer or M-p to go to the previous one. C-x b displays a list of the currently open buffers from which the user can choose a buffer using the up and down arrows.Customization
The Conkeror browser can be customized in many ways using javascriptJavaScript
JavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
as the scripting language, much in the way that Emacs
Emacs
Emacs is a class of text editors, usually characterized by their extensibility. GNU Emacs has over 1,000 commands. It also allows the user to combine these commands into macros to automate work.Development began in the mid-1970s and continues actively...
uses Emacs Lisp
Emacs Lisp
Emacs Lisp is a dialect of the Lisp programming language used by the GNU Emacs and XEmacs text editors . It is used for implementing most of the editing functionality built into Emacs, the remainder being written in C...
. Customizations can be as simple as rebinding keys, but can be more involved; for instance, writing new interactive commands. By default, Conkeror looks for these customizations in ~/.conkerorrc. If ~/.conkerorrc/ is a directory instead of a file, then all the contained files will be read, which is a technique to enable modularization of bigger customizations.
Conkeror also ships with a number of loadable javascript
JavaScript
JavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
modules, some of which provide core functionality; others are user-loadable and provide additional functionality.
Conkeror has modes in which the key bindings, page display or browser behaviour become page-specific. Some modes, like xkcd
Xkcd
xkcd is a webcomic created by Randall Munroe. The comic's tagline describes it as "a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language." It has been recognized in such mainstream media as The Guardian and The New York Times....
-mode, come by default. In xkcd-mode, the message which is normally displayed when the user mouses over the comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
is instead displayed in a special font below the strip. Other modes include those for Google Maps
Google Maps
Google Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
Reddit
reddit is a social news website where the registered users submit content, in the form of either a link or a text "self" post. Other users then vote the submission "up" or "down," which is used to rank the post and determine its position on the site's pages and front page.Reddit was originally...
and YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, and modes can be user-defined as well.
Name
The name of the browser is pronounced identically to that of the better-known KonquerorKonqueror
Not to be confused with the Conqueror web browser.Konqueror is a web browser and file manager that provides file-viewer functionality for file systems such as local files, files on a remote ftp server and files in a disk image. It is a core part of the KDE desktop environment...
web browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
from the KDE
KDE
KDE is an international free software community producing an integrated set of cross-platform applications designed to run on Linux, FreeBSD, Microsoft Windows, Solaris and Mac OS X systems...
suite of desktop software, although according to the Conkeror FAQ, "the full name of the browser in spoken English is 'Conkeror (with a C)'" to avoid confusion.
Also according to the FAQ, the name derives from the name given to the winner of a game of conkers, a children's game involving horse chestnuts on a string, as well as from a brand of beer also called Conkeror.
External links
- Conkeror at the Emacs Wiki
- Conkeror - browsing the web, emacs-style (with Conkeror customizations)