Keybindings (Jotain Emacs Configuration)

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17 Keybindings ¶

Jotain follows Emacs conventions: only global rebindings live in lisp/init-keysel; per-package bindings stay colocated with the package’s use-package block. which-key is enabled by default, so after any prefix key a paged menu of available continuations appears in the echo area. The prefix labels listed below are registered via which-key-add-key-based-replacements in init-keys.el, so they show up in those menus instead of the bare command names.

C-c — user namespace
C-x — control namespace
Other global bindings
Disabled by default
Mode-local overrides
Embark action menu
Window navigation
Why no leader-key framework?

17.1 `C-c` — user namespace ¶

Reserved by Emacs convention for user bindings. Jotain claims the following:

Key	Label	Command
`C-c a`	org-agenda	`org-agenda`
`C-c c`	org-capture	`org-capture`
`C-c d`	dirvish	`dirvish`
`C-c D`	dirvish-side	`dirvish-side`
`C-c e`	eca	`eca`
`C-c g`	magit-file	`magit-file-dispatch`
`C-c h`	consult-history	`consult-history`
`C-c i`	consult-info	`consult-info`
`C-c j`	jujutsu	`majutsu-log`
`C-c M-j`	jujutsu-dispatch	`majutsu-dispatch`
`C-c k`	consult-kmacro	`consult-kmacro`
`C-c l`	org-store-link	`org-store-link`
`C-c m`	—	`consult-man`
`C-c n`	org-roam prefix	`n f` find, `n i` insert, `n c` capture
`C-c o`	combobulate prefix	structural editing dispatch
`C-c q`	claude-code-ide	`claude-code-ide-menu`
`C-c r`	eglot-refactor prefix	`r r` rename, `r f` format, `r a` actions, `r o` organize-imports, `r q` quickfix
`C-c s`	gptel-send	`gptel-send`
`C-c S`	gptel-menu	`gptel-menu`
`C-c t`	toggle-theme	`auto-dark-toggle-appearance`
`C-c v`	devenv	`devenv` transient — tasks, scripts, processes, env
`C-c M-x`	consult-mode-command	`consult-mode-command`

17.2 `C-x` — control namespace ¶

Built-in Emacs prefix extended with a handful of Jotain additions:

Key	Label	Command
`C-x C-a`	dape (debug) prefix	`dape-global-map` — Debug Adapter Protocol: start, step, breakpoints, REPL
`C-x b`	—	`consult-buffer`
`C-x g`	magit-status	`magit-status`
`C-x G`	git-status-file	`jotain-switch-git-status-buffer`
`C-x M-g`	magit-dispatch	`magit-dispatch`
`C-x j`	rotate-window-split	`jotain-toggle-window-split`
`C-x J`	jj-status-file	`jotain-switch-jj-status-buffer`
`C-x p b`	—	`consult-project-buffer`
`C-x r b`	—	`consult-bookmark`
`C-x t b`	—	`consult-buffer-other-tab`
`C-x u`	vundo	`vundo`
`C-x 1`	—	`jotain-nav-toggle-delete-other-windows`
`C-x P`	project (projection) prefix	`projection-map` — multi-language project commands

17.3 Other global bindings ¶

Single-keystroke globals that don’t fit a C-c / C-x namespace — window switching, spell-check, region growth, and multi-cursor.

Key	Command
`M-o`	`other-window`
`M-$`	`jinx-correct`
`C-M-$`	`jinx-languages`
`C-=`	`expreg-expand`
`C->`	`mc/mark-next-like-this`
`C-<`	`mc/mark-previous-like-this`
`C-S-c C-S-c`	`mc/mark-all-like-this`
`C-h .`	`helpful-at-point` (via `[remap display-local-help]`)
`C-.`	`embark-act`
`C-;`	`embark-dwim`
`C-h B`	`embark-bindings`

17.4 Disabled by default ¶

Key	Reason
`C-z`	Accidentally suspending Emacs from a GUI frame is never what you want
`C-x C-z`	Same

17.5 Mode-local overrides ¶

A few major modes rebind C-c leaves locally:

dired-mode: C-c C-e → wdired-change-to-wdired-mode (toggle writable dired)
sops-mode: C-c C-c save, C-c C-k cancel, C-c C-d edit
embark exports: C-c C-o → embark-export
org-mode: C-c b is an Org Babel notebook prefix — b run buffer, e run subtree, r restart session and run buffer, s switch to session, k clear results, t tangle. Single blocks stay on C-c C-c, and Org’s own C-c C-v babel map is untouched. See Notebooks with Org Babel.

17.6 Embark action menu ¶

C-. (embark-act) opens a keyboard-driven "right-click" menu of the actions that apply to the thing at point — a minibuffer candidate, a file name, a buffer, a URL, an Elisp symbol, the active region. C-; (embark-dwim) skips the menu and runs the default action. The keys below are pressed after C-., inside the action menu:

Key	Action
`C-h`	Searchable `completing-read` of every applicable action — the discovery entry point
`E`	`embark-export` — promote the candidate set to a buffer (grep for ripgrep/grep, occur for `consult-line`, dired for files, ibuffer for buffers)
`A`	`embark-act-all` — run one action on every current candidate
`B`	`embark-become` — re-run the input you typed through a different command
`i`	Insert the candidate into the buffer you came from
`w`	Copy the candidate to the kill-ring

Two habits worth forming:

Search → edit. consult-ripgrep → C-. E exports to a grep buffer, then C-x C-q (wgrep) makes it editable so you can rewrite every match in place and save across all files at once.
Keep the session alive. Acting on a candidate exits the minibuffer by default; call it with a prefix (C-u C-.) to stay in the minibuffer for successive actions — handy for deleting or renaming several files in a row.

Because Embark resolves candidate paths through project.el, the full file-action arsenal (w copy path, r rename, d delete, j jump to dired) works directly on the project-relative candidates of project-find-file without a dired detour. embark-become’s file map already offers p for project-find-file, so C-. B p re-runs a plain C-x C-f input through the project finder.

17.8 Why no leader-key framework? ¶

The article "generalel to conquer Emacs keybindings" makes a persuasive case for adopting generalel as a unified keybinding layer. Jotain considered and rejected the migration: general.el’s primary differentiator is :states for evil-mode integration, which Jotain does not use, and Emacs 30’s keymap-set plus built-in which-key plus use-package :bind already cover the article’s discoverability and leader-key ergonomics without an extra dependency. The spirit of the article — memorable, categorised, self-documenting prefixes — is realised here through the which-key-add-key-based-replacements table in init-keys.el. See Inspiration & Resources for the full rationale.