hexl-inspect

This package implements a minor mode named hexl-inspect-mode to be used in conjunction with a buffer set to hexl-mode. When activated, the minor mode will create a data inspection buffer, window, and display to the side of the hexl-mode buffer. As the point moves around in the parent buffer, the contents will update to reflect the point’s position.

The mode depends on the variable state of hexl-inspect--big-endian-p which determines how the data under the point is to be interpreted.

The automated update structure and the mode structure was patterned after the explore mode in treesit-explore-mode in treesit.el as that was the closest analog to what I was attempting to accomplish.

Setup

This package is not available on any package site as of yet, however may be cloned and loaded with the following code (and alter the load-path as needed to match your local directories.)

(use-package hexl-inspect
  :load-path "~/.emacs.d/site-lisp/hexl-inspect")

Keybinds

There’s currently only one keybind associated with the minor mode.

Keybind	Function
C-c h	Toggles the endianness of the data inspection.

It may be useful to add a keybind to hexl-mode to activate the data inspection.

(add-hook 'hexl-mode-hook
          (lambda () (define-key hexl-mode-map (kbd "C-c i") 'hexl-inspect-mode)))

Usage

It should be as easy as activating the mode and moving the point around. A buffer will appear alongside the hexl-mode buffer with the following contents (as a sample). The endian mode will change when toggled via C-c h.

-------------------- Data Inspection -------------------
--------------------  Little endian  -------------------
Byte (Hex):           0x48
Byte (Binary):        0b01001000
uint8:                72
int8:                 72
char:                 H

16-bit word (Hex):    0x4348
16-bit word (Binary): 0b0100001101001000
uint16:               17224
int16:                17224
chars:                CH

32-bit word (Hex):    0x43594348
32-bit word (Binary): 0b01000011010110010100001101001000
uint32:               1129923400
int32:                1129923400
chars:                CYCH

64-bit word (Hex):    0x000f424143594348
uint64:               4294972720890696
int64:                4294972720890696
--------------------------------------------------------

To Do List [2/5]

At the moment, this suits my needs fairly well. I suspect before it’s released for general consumption some additional safety measures may need to be added. It’s also not wildly aesthetically appealing so that might be something to think about. I welcome suggestions on how to improve the module.

Current things to address:

• [X] Does not compile cleanly. Investigate compilation and address warnings/errors
• [ ] Implement more customizable parameters (timer, output products, etc.)
• [ ] Create keybind to bring the buffer back after a user hits q.
• [ ] Possibly create a keybind for dismissing the buffer like q because the point is actually in the parent buffer for operations.
• [X] Detect when the point was placed on the second nibble of an address and account for that when performing the character acquisition (foolproofing)

Acknowledgements

I deeply appreciate the aid rendered by /u/artherno1 on the Emacs subreddit in discussing the intricaties of string and buffer manipulation in Elisp.