emacs-live + tmux: Yes we can!

emacs-live is gorgeous:

But under tmux it can look like this:

Let's fix it!

Note: I'm using Ubuntu Linux, if you're using another distro / OS, it may or may not work.

Does your terminal support 256 colors?

• Get the 256colors2.pl script: http://scie.nti.st/dist/256colors2.pl.
• Open a terminal and run it

./256colors2.pl

• If it shows something like the following, you should be good (this is gnome-terminal):

Force tmux to 256 colors

• In a terminal run tmux
• And the 256colors2.pl script again:

./256colors2.pl

• I'm getting this:

• If it's the case run tmux with the -2 option to force 256 colors:

tmux -2

• After that:

Tell Emacs to use 256 colors

• In the previousely setup tmux session, run Emacs in CLI mode: emacs -nw
• Then M-x list-color-display
• I'm getting:

• We need to make Emacs aware of the 256 colors support
• Exit Emacs
• In the terminal:

export TERM=screen-256color

• Run Emacs again, and M-x list-color-display
• You're good if you get something like:

I want a really black background!

Things are better, but not perfect: Emacs have a grey-ish background instead of black.

• In Emacs: M-x list-color-display:

• Note the name of the black color, for me here it's color-16
• Eval the following to get a black background: M-:

(set-face-background 'default "color-16")

• You should have:

Finally ^_^

Date: 2012-10-20 18:23:37 CEST

Author: denis

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