Question

Two questions:

1. Where does the result of eval-buffer get stored? How do I access it?
   For example:

   (+ 2 2)
   

2. Functions like (forward-word) are executed by eval-buffer, but do not move the cursor? Why is that?

Answer 1

1. eval-buffer is usually used for side-effects, rather than return value. For example, in your .emacs file, eval-buffer will re-load all our config settings. By default, and when used interactively, it will always return nil. If you want to get the return value of code in a buffer, this is the wrong way to do it. eval-last-sexp, bound to C-x C-e, is one way to do so. Calling it with a prefix, C-u C-x C-e will insert the return value into the current buffer.

2. eval-buffer preserves the value of point. So functions like forward-word will have no visible effect.