RE: gutter region on both sides of screen

[Drew Adams]

> >> Hmm, I'm using emacs 21.3.1, which has 'fringe', but no 
> >> 'fringe-mode'.  Any ideas how to turn it off there?

Emacs 21 introduced fringe as a feature, but AFAIK provided no way to turn it
off. This is a good example of how not to add a new feature. ;-)

In Emacs 21, there is no function or variable with `fringe' in its name, and I
know of no function or variable that can be used to remove the fringe.

You can customize the face `fringe', to (for example) make its background color
the same as the frame's background color - that will make the fringe seem to
disappear, at least: `M-x customize-face RET fringe RET'.

The best suggestion, if it's feasible for you, is to upgrade to a more recent
Emacs release. Emacs 22 is quite stable. Emacs 23 was just released recently.
Starting with Emacs 22, it is easy to wear no fringe. ;-)