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30.1 Creating Frames

To create a new frame, call the function make-frame.

Command: make-frame &optional parameters ¶

This function creates and returns a new frame, displaying the current buffer.

The parameters argument is an alist that specifies frame parameters for the new frame. See Frame Parameters. If you specify the terminal parameter in parameters, the new frame is created on that terminal. Otherwise, if you specify the window-system frame parameter in parameters, that determines whether the frame should be displayed on a text terminal or a graphical terminal. See Window Systems. If neither is specified, the new frame is created in the same terminal as the selected frame.

Any parameters not mentioned in parameters default to the values in the alist default-frame-alist (see Initial Frame Parameters); parameters not specified there default from the X resources or its equivalent on your operating system (see X Resources in The GNU Emacs Manual). After the frame is created, this function applies any parameters specified in frame-inherited-parameters (see below) it has no assigned yet, taking the values from the frame that was selected when make-frame was called.

Note that on multi-monitor displays (see Multiple Terminals), the window manager might position the frame differently than specified by the positional parameters in parameters (see Position Parameters). For example, some window managers have a policy of displaying the frame on the monitor that contains the largest part of the window (a.k.a. the dominating monitor).

This function itself does not make the new frame the selected frame. See Input Focus. The previously selected frame remains selected. On graphical terminals, however, the window system may select the new frame for its own reasons.

Variable: before-make-frame-hook ¶

A normal hook run by make-frame before it creates the frame.

Variable: after-make-frame-functions ¶

An abnormal hook run by make-frame after it created the frame. Each function in after-make-frame-functions receives one argument, the frame just created.

Note that any functions added to these hooks by your initial file are usually not run for the initial frame, since Emacs reads the initial file only after creating that frame. However, if the initial frame is specified to use a separate minibuffer frame (see Minibuffers and Frames), the functions will be run for both, the minibuffer-less and the minibuffer frame. Alternatively, you can add functions to these hooks in your “early init file” (see The Init File), in which case they will be in effect for the initial frame as well.

Variable: frame-inherited-parameters ¶

This variable specifies the list of frame parameters that a newly created frame inherits from the currently selected frame. For each parameter (a symbol) that is an element in this list and has not been assigned earlier when processing make-frame, the function sets the value of that parameter in the created frame to its value in the selected frame.

User Option: server-after-make-frame-hook ¶

A normal hook run when the Emacs server starts using a client frame. When this hook is called, the client frame is the selected one. Note that, depending on how emacsclient was invoked (see Invoking emacsclient in The GNU Emacs Manual), this client frame could be a new frame created for the client, or it could be an existing frame that the server reused for handling the client commands. See Emacs Server in The GNU Emacs Manual.