2 .\" MAN PAGE COMMENTS to
5 .\" Information Network Services
6 .\" Case Western Reserve University
7 .\" chet.ramey@case.edu
9 .\" Last Change: Sun Feb 28 15:42:34 EST 2016
11 .TH READLINE 3 "2016 February 28" "GNU Readline 7.0"
13 .\" File Name macro. This used to be `.PN', for Path Name,
14 .\" but Sun doesn't seem to like that very much.
20 readline \- get a line from a user with editing
26 #include <readline/readline.h>
27 #include <readline/history.h>
34 \fBreadline\fP (\fIconst char *prompt\fP);
37 .if n Readline is Copyright (C) 1989\-2014 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
38 .if t Readline is Copyright \(co 1989\-2014 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
42 will read a line from the terminal
47 is \fBNULL\fP or the empty string, no prompt is issued.
48 The line returned is allocated with
50 the caller must free it when finished. The line returned
51 has the final newline removed, so only the text of the line
55 offers editing capabilities while the user is entering the
57 By default, the line editing commands
58 are similar to those of emacs.
59 A vi\-style line editing interface is also available.
61 This manual page describes only the most basic use of \fBreadline\fP.
62 Much more functionality is available; see
63 \fIThe GNU Readline Library\fP and \fIThe GNU History Library\fP
64 for additional information.
68 returns the text of the line read. A blank line
69 returns the empty string. If
71 is encountered while reading a line, and the line is empty,
75 is read with a non\-empty line, it is
79 An Emacs-style notation is used to denote
80 keystrokes. Control keys are denoted by C\-\fIkey\fR, e.g., C\-n
81 means Control\-N. Similarly,
83 keys are denoted by M\-\fIkey\fR, so M\-x means Meta\-X. (On keyboards
86 key, M\-\fIx\fP means ESC \fIx\fP, i.e., press the Escape key
89 key. This makes ESC the \fImeta prefix\fP.
90 The combination M\-C\-\fIx\fP means ESC\-Control\-\fIx\fP,
91 or press the Escape key
92 then hold the Control key while pressing the
96 Readline commands may be given numeric
98 which normally act as a repeat count. Sometimes, however, it is the
99 sign of the argument that is significant. Passing a negative argument
100 to a command that acts in the forward direction (e.g., \fBkill\-line\fP)
101 causes that command to act in a backward direction.
102 Commands whose behavior with arguments deviates from this are noted
105 When a command is described as \fIkilling\fP text, the text
106 deleted is saved for possible future retrieval
107 (\fIyanking\fP). The killed text is saved in a
108 \fIkill ring\fP. Consecutive kills cause the text to be
109 accumulated into one unit, which can be yanked all at once.
110 Commands which do not kill text separate the chunks of text
112 .SH INITIALIZATION FILE
114 Readline is customized by putting commands in an initialization
115 file (the \fIinputrc\fP file).
116 The name of this file is taken from the value of the
118 environment variable. If that variable is unset, the default is
120 If that file does not exist or cannot be read, the ultimate default is
122 When a program which uses the readline library starts up, the
123 init file is read, and the key bindings and variables are set.
124 There are only a few basic constructs allowed in the
125 readline init file. Blank lines are ignored.
126 Lines beginning with a \fB#\fP are comments.
127 Lines beginning with a \fB$\fP indicate conditional constructs.
128 Other lines denote key bindings and variable settings.
129 Each program using this library may add its own commands
135 M\-Control\-u: universal\-argument
139 C\-Meta\-u: universal\-argument
144 would make M\-C\-u execute the readline command
145 .IR universal\-argument .
147 The following symbolic character names are recognized while
148 processing key bindings:
162 In addition to command names, readline allows keys to be bound
163 to a string that is inserted when the key is pressed (a \fImacro\fP).
167 The syntax for controlling key bindings in the
169 file is simple. All that is required is the name of the
170 command or the text of a macro and a key sequence to which
171 it should be bound. The name may be specified in one of two ways:
172 as a symbolic key name, possibly with \fIMeta\-\fP or \fIControl\-\fP
173 prefixes, or as a key sequence.
174 The name and key sequence are separated by a colon. There can be no
175 whitespace between the name and the colon.
177 When using the form \fBkeyname\fP:\^\fIfunction-name\fP or \fImacro\fP,
179 is the name of a key spelled out in English. For example:
182 Control\-u: universal\-argument
184 Meta\-Rubout: backward\-kill\-word
186 Control\-o: "> output"
189 In the above example,
191 is bound to the function
192 .BR universal\-argument ,
194 is bound to the function
195 .BR backward\-kill\-word ,
198 is bound to run the macro
199 expressed on the right hand side (that is, to insert the text
200 .if t \f(CW> output\fP
204 In the second form, \fB"keyseq"\fP:\^\fIfunction\-name\fP or \fImacro\fP,
208 above in that strings denoting
209 an entire key sequence may be specified by placing the sequence
210 within double quotes. Some GNU Emacs style key escapes can be
211 used, as in the following example, but the symbolic character names
215 "\eC\-u": universal\-argument
217 "\eC\-x\eC\-r": re\-read\-init\-file
219 "\ee[11~": "Function Key 1"
224 is again bound to the function
225 .BR universal\-argument .
227 is bound to the function
228 .BR re\-read\-init\-file ,
231 is bound to insert the text
232 .if t \f(CWFunction Key 1\fP.
233 .if n ``Function Key 1''.
235 The full set of GNU Emacs style escape sequences available when specifying
253 literal ", a double quote
256 literal ', a single quote
260 In addition to the GNU Emacs style escape sequences, a second
261 set of backslash escapes is available:
290 the eight-bit character whose value is the octal value \fInnn\fP
291 (one to three digits)
294 the eight-bit character whose value is the hexadecimal value \fIHH\fP
295 (one or two hex digits)
299 When entering the text of a macro, single or double quotes should
300 be used to indicate a macro definition. Unquoted text
301 is assumed to be a function name.
302 In the macro body, the backslash escapes described above are expanded.
303 Backslash will quote any other character in the macro text,
307 allows the current readline key bindings to be displayed or modified
310 builtin command. The editing mode may be switched during interactive
315 builtin command. Other programs using this library provide
316 similar mechanisms. The
318 file may be edited and re-read if a program does not provide
319 any other means to incorporate new bindings.
322 Readline has variables that can be used to further customize its
323 behavior. A variable may be set in the
325 file with a statement of the form
328 \fBset\fP \fIvariable\-name\fP \fIvalue\fP
331 Except where noted, readline variables can take the values
335 (without regard to case).
336 Unrecognized variable names are ignored.
337 When a variable value is read, empty or null values, "on" (case-insensitive),
338 and "1" are equivalent to \fBOn\fP. All other values are equivalent to
340 The variables and their default values are:
344 .B bell\-style (audible)
345 Controls what happens when readline wants to ring the terminal bell.
346 If set to \fBnone\fP, readline never rings the bell. If set to
347 \fBvisible\fP, readline uses a visible bell if one is available.
348 If set to \fBaudible\fP, readline attempts to ring the terminal's bell.
350 .B bind\-tty\-special\-chars (On)
351 If set to \fBOn\fP (the default), readline attempts to bind the control
352 characters treated specially by the kernel's terminal driver to their
353 readline equivalents.
355 .B blink\-matching\-paren (Off)
356 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline attempts to briefly move the cursor to an
357 opening parenthesis when a closing parenthesis is inserted.
359 .B colored\-completion\-prefix (Off)
360 If set to \fBOn\fP, when listing completions, readline displays the
361 common prefix of the set of possible completions using a different color.
362 The color definitions are taken from the value of the \fBLS_COLORS\fP
363 environment variable.
365 .B colored\-stats (Off)
366 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline displays possible completions using different
367 colors to indicate their file type.
368 The color definitions are taken from the value of the \fBLS_COLORS\fP
369 environment variable.
371 .B comment\-begin (``#'')
372 The string that is inserted in \fBvi\fP mode when the
375 This command is bound to
381 .B completion\-display\-width (-1)
382 The number of screen columns used to display possible matches
383 when performing completion.
384 The value is ignored if it is less than 0 or greater than the terminal
386 A value of 0 will cause matches to be displayed one per line.
387 The default value is -1.
389 .B completion\-ignore\-case (Off)
390 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline performs filename matching and completion
391 in a case\-insensitive fashion.
393 .B completion\-map\-case (Off)
394 If set to \fBOn\fP, and \fBcompletion\-ignore\-case\fP is enabled, readline
395 treats hyphens (\fI\-\fP) and underscores (\fI_\fP) as equivalent when
396 performing case\-insensitive filename matching and completion.
398 .B completion\-prefix\-display\-length (0)
399 The length in characters of the common prefix of a list of possible
400 completions that is displayed without modification. When set to a
401 value greater than zero, common prefixes longer than this value are
402 replaced with an ellipsis when displaying possible completions.
404 .B completion\-query\-items (100)
405 This determines when the user is queried about viewing
406 the number of possible completions
407 generated by the \fBpossible\-completions\fP command.
408 It may be set to any integer value greater than or equal to
409 zero. If the number of possible completions is greater than
410 or equal to the value of this variable, the user is asked whether
411 or not he wishes to view them; otherwise they are simply listed
412 on the terminal. A negative value causes readline to never ask.
414 .B convert\-meta (On)
415 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline will convert characters with the
416 eighth bit set to an ASCII key sequence
417 by stripping the eighth bit and prefixing it with an
418 escape character (in effect, using escape as the \fImeta prefix\fP).
419 The default is \fIOn\fP, but readline will set it to \fIOff\fP if the
420 locale contains eight-bit characters.
422 .B disable\-completion (Off)
423 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline will inhibit word completion. Completion
424 characters will be inserted into the line as if they had been
425 mapped to \fBself-insert\fP.
427 .B echo\-control\-characters (On)
428 When set to \fBOn\fP, on operating systems that indicate they support it,
429 readline echoes a character corresponding to a signal generated from the
432 .B editing\-mode (emacs)
433 Controls whether readline begins with a set of key bindings similar
434 to \fIEmacs\fP or \fIvi\fP.
441 .B enable\-bracketed\-paste (Off)
442 When set to \fBOn\fP, readline will configure the terminal in a way
443 that will enable it to insert each paste into the editing buffer as a
444 single string of characters, instead of treating each character as if
445 it had been read from the keyboard. This can prevent pasted characters
446 from being interpreted as editing commands.
448 .B enable\-keypad (Off)
449 When set to \fBOn\fP, readline will try to enable the application
450 keypad when it is called. Some systems need this to enable the
453 .B enable\-meta\-key (On)
454 When set to \fBOn\fP, readline will try to enable any meta modifier
455 key the terminal claims to support when it is called. On many terminals,
456 the meta key is used to send eight-bit characters.
458 .B expand\-tilde (Off)
459 If set to \fBOn\fP, tilde expansion is performed when readline
460 attempts word completion.
462 .B history\-preserve\-point (Off)
463 If set to \fBOn\fP, the history code attempts to place point at the
464 same location on each history line retrieved with \fBprevious-history\fP
465 or \fBnext-history\fP.
467 .B history\-size (unset)
468 Set the maximum number of history entries saved in the history list.
469 If set to zero, any existing history entries are deleted and no new entries
471 If set to a value less than zero, the number of history entries is not
473 By default, the number of history entries is not limited.
474 If an attempt is made to set \fIhistory\-size\fP to a non-numeric value,
475 the maximum number of history entries will be set to 500.
477 .B horizontal\-scroll\-mode (Off)
478 When set to \fBOn\fP, makes readline use a single line for display,
479 scrolling the input horizontally on a single screen line when it
480 becomes longer than the screen width rather than wrapping to a new line.
483 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline will enable eight-bit input (that is,
484 it will not clear the eighth bit in the characters it reads),
485 regardless of what the terminal claims it can support. The name
487 is a synonym for this variable.
488 The default is \fIOff\fP, but readline will set it to \fIOn\fP if the
489 locale contains eight-bit characters.
491 .B isearch\-terminators (``C\-[ C\-J'')
492 The string of characters that should terminate an incremental
493 search without subsequently executing the character as a command.
494 If this variable has not been given a value, the characters
495 \fIESC\fP and \fIC\-J\fP will terminate an incremental search.
498 Set the current readline keymap. The set of legal keymap names is
499 \fIemacs, emacs-standard, emacs-meta, emacs-ctlx, vi, vi-move,
502 \fIvi\fP is equivalent to \fIvi-command\fP; \fIemacs\fP is
503 equivalent to \fIemacs-standard\fP. The default value is
507 also affects the default keymap.
509 .B emacs\-mode\-string (@)
510 This string is displayed immediately before the last line of the primary
511 prompt when emacs editing mode is active. The value is expanded like a
512 key binding, so the standard set of meta- and control prefixes and
513 backslash escape sequences is available.
514 Use the \e1 and \e2 escapes to begin and end sequences of
515 non-printing characters, which can be used to embed a terminal control
516 sequence into the mode string.
518 .B keyseq\-timeout (500)
519 Specifies the duration \fIreadline\fP will wait for a character when reading an
520 ambiguous key sequence (one that can form a complete key sequence using
521 the input read so far, or can take additional input to complete a longer
523 If no input is received within the timeout, \fIreadline\fP will use the shorter
524 but complete key sequence.
525 The value is specified in milliseconds, so a value of 1000 means that
526 \fIreadline\fP will wait one second for additional input.
527 If this variable is set to a value less than or equal to zero, or to a
528 non-numeric value, \fIreadline\fP will wait until another key is pressed to
529 decide which key sequence to complete.
531 .B mark\-directories (On)
532 If set to \fBOn\fP, completed directory names have a slash
535 .B mark\-modified\-lines (Off)
536 If set to \fBOn\fP, history lines that have been modified are displayed
537 with a preceding asterisk (\fB*\fP).
539 .B mark\-symlinked\-directories (Off)
540 If set to \fBOn\fP, completed names which are symbolic links to directories
541 have a slash appended (subject to the value of
542 \fBmark\-directories\fP).
544 .B match\-hidden\-files (On)
545 This variable, when set to \fBOn\fP, causes readline to match files whose
546 names begin with a `.' (hidden files) when performing filename
548 If set to \fBOff\fP, the leading `.' must be
549 supplied by the user in the filename to be completed.
551 .B menu\-complete\-display\-prefix (Off)
552 If set to \fBOn\fP, menu completion displays the common prefix of the
553 list of possible completions (which may be empty) before cycling through
556 .B output\-meta (Off)
557 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline will display characters with the
558 eighth bit set directly rather than as a meta-prefixed escape
560 The default is \fIOff\fP, but readline will set it to \fIOn\fP if the
561 locale contains eight-bit characters.
563 .B page\-completions (On)
564 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline uses an internal \fImore\fP-like pager
565 to display a screenful of possible completions at a time.
567 .B print\-completions\-horizontally (Off)
568 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline will display completions with matches
569 sorted horizontally in alphabetical order, rather than down the screen.
571 .B revert\-all\-at\-newline (Off)
572 If set to \fBOn\fP, readline will undo all changes to history lines
573 before returning when \fBaccept\-line\fP is executed. By default,
574 history lines may be modified and retain individual undo lists across
575 calls to \fBreadline\fP.
577 .B show\-all\-if\-ambiguous (Off)
578 This alters the default behavior of the completion functions. If
581 words which have more than one possible completion cause the
582 matches to be listed immediately instead of ringing the bell.
584 .B show\-all\-if\-unmodified (Off)
585 This alters the default behavior of the completion functions in
586 a fashion similar to \fBshow\-all\-if\-ambiguous\fP.
589 words which have more than one possible completion without any
590 possible partial completion (the possible completions don't share
591 a common prefix) cause the matches to be listed immediately instead
594 .B show\-mode\-in\-prompt (Off)
595 If set to \fBOn\fP, add a character to the beginning of the prompt
596 indicating the editing mode: emacs, vi command, or vi insertion.
597 The mode strings are user-settable.
599 .B skip\-completed\-text (Off)
600 If set to \fBOn\fP, this alters the default completion behavior when
601 inserting a single match into the line. It's only active when
602 performing completion in the middle of a word. If enabled, readline
603 does not insert characters from the completion that match characters
604 after point in the word being completed, so portions of the word
605 following the cursor are not duplicated.
607 .B vi\-cmd\-mode\-string ((cmd))
608 This string is displayed immediately before the last line of the primary
609 prompt when vi editing mode is active and in command mode.
610 The value is expanded like a
611 key binding, so the standard set of meta- and control prefixes and
612 backslash escape sequences is available.
613 Use the \e1 and \e2 escapes to begin and end sequences of
614 non-printing characters, which can be used to embed a terminal control
615 sequence into the mode string.
617 .B vi\-ins\-mode\-string ((ins))
618 This string is displayed immediately before the last line of the primary
619 prompt when vi editing mode is active and in insertion mode.
620 The value is expanded like a
621 key binding, so the standard set of meta- and control prefixes and
622 backslash escape sequences is available.
623 Use the \e1 and \e2 escapes to begin and end sequences of
624 non-printing characters, which can be used to embed a terminal control
625 sequence into the mode string.
627 .B visible\-stats (Off)
628 If set to \fBOn\fP, a character denoting a file's type as reported
629 by \fIstat\fP(2) is appended to the filename when listing possible
632 .SS Conditional Constructs
634 Readline implements a facility similar in spirit to the conditional
635 compilation features of the C preprocessor which allows key
636 bindings and variable settings to be performed as the result
637 of tests. There are four parser directives used.
641 construct allows bindings to be made based on the
642 editing mode, the terminal being used, or the application using
643 readline. The text of the test extends to the end of the line;
644 no characters are required to isolate it.
647 The \fBmode=\fP form of the \fB$if\fP directive is used to test
648 whether readline is in emacs or vi mode.
649 This may be used in conjunction
650 with the \fBset keymap\fP command, for instance, to set bindings in
651 the \fIemacs-standard\fP and \fIemacs-ctlx\fP keymaps only if
652 readline is starting out in emacs mode.
654 The \fBterm=\fP form may be used to include terminal-specific
655 key bindings, perhaps to bind the key sequences output by the
656 terminal's function keys. The word on the right side of the
658 is tested against the full name of the terminal and the portion
659 of the terminal name before the first \fB\-\fP. This allows
666 .IP \fBapplication\fP
667 The \fBapplication\fP construct is used to include
668 application-specific settings. Each program using the readline
669 library sets the \fIapplication name\fP, and an initialization
670 file can test for a particular value.
671 This could be used to bind key sequences to functions useful for
672 a specific program. For instance, the following command adds a
673 key sequence that quotes the current or previous word in \fBbash\fP:
678 # Quote the current or previous word
679 "\eC-xq": "\eeb\e"\eef\e""
685 This command, as seen in the previous example, terminates an
688 Commands in this branch of the \fB$if\fP directive are executed if
691 This directive takes a single filename as an argument and reads commands
692 and bindings from that file. For example, the following directive
693 would read \fI/etc/inputrc\fP:
697 \fB$include\fP \^ \fI/etc/inputrc\fP
702 Readline provides commands for searching through the command history
703 for lines containing a specified string.
704 There are two search modes:
707 .IR non-incremental .
709 Incremental searches begin before the user has finished typing the
711 As each character of the search string is typed, readline displays
712 the next entry from the history matching the string typed so far.
713 An incremental search requires only as many characters as needed to
714 find the desired history entry.
715 To search backward in the history for a particular string, type
716 \fBC\-r\fP. Typing \fBC\-s\fP searches forward through the history.
717 The characters present in the value of the \fBisearch-terminators\fP
718 variable are used to terminate an incremental search.
719 If that variable has not been assigned a value the \fIEscape\fP and
720 \fBC\-J\fP characters will terminate an incremental search.
721 \fBC\-G\fP will abort an incremental search and restore the original
723 When the search is terminated, the history entry containing the
724 search string becomes the current line.
726 To find other matching entries in the history list, type \fBC\-s\fP or
727 \fBC\-r\fP as appropriate.
728 This will search backward or forward in the history for the next
729 line matching the search string typed so far.
730 Any other key sequence bound to a readline command will terminate
731 the search and execute that command.
732 For instance, a newline will terminate the search and accept
733 the line, thereby executing the command from the history list.
734 A movement command will terminate the search, make the last line found
735 the current line, and begin editing.
737 Non-incremental searches read the entire search string before starting
738 to search for matching history lines. The search string may be
739 typed by the user or be part of the contents of the current line.
742 The following is a list of the names of the commands and the default
743 key sequences to which they are bound.
744 Command names without an accompanying key sequence are unbound by default.
746 In the following descriptions, \fIpoint\fP refers to the current cursor
747 position, and \fImark\fP refers to a cursor position saved by the
748 \fBset\-mark\fP command.
749 The text between the point and mark is referred to as the \fIregion\fP.
750 .SS Commands for Moving
754 .B beginning\-of\-line (C\-a)
755 Move to the start of the current line.
757 .B end\-of\-line (C\-e)
758 Move to the end of the line.
760 .B forward\-char (C\-f)
761 Move forward a character.
763 .B backward\-char (C\-b)
764 Move back a character.
766 .B forward\-word (M\-f)
767 Move forward to the end of the next word. Words are composed of
768 alphanumeric characters (letters and digits).
770 .B backward\-word (M\-b)
771 Move back to the start of the current or previous word. Words are
772 composed of alphanumeric characters (letters and digits).
774 .B clear\-screen (C\-l)
775 Clear the screen leaving the current line at the top of the screen.
776 With an argument, refresh the current line without clearing the
779 .B redraw\-current\-line
780 Refresh the current line.
782 .SS Commands for Manipulating the History
786 .B accept\-line (Newline, Return)
787 Accept the line regardless of where the cursor is.
789 non-empty, it may be added to the history list for future recall with
791 If the line is a modified history line, the history line is restored to its original state.
793 .B previous\-history (C\-p)
794 Fetch the previous command from the history list, moving back in
797 .B next\-history (C\-n)
798 Fetch the next command from the history list, moving forward in the
801 .B beginning\-of\-history (M\-<)
802 Move to the first line in the history.
804 .B end\-of\-history (M\->)
805 Move to the end of the input history, i.e., the line currently being
808 .B reverse\-search\-history (C\-r)
809 Search backward starting at the current line and moving `up' through
810 the history as necessary. This is an incremental search.
812 .B forward\-search\-history (C\-s)
813 Search forward starting at the current line and moving `down' through
814 the history as necessary. This is an incremental search.
816 .B non\-incremental\-reverse\-search\-history (M\-p)
817 Search backward through the history starting at the current line
818 using a non-incremental search for a string supplied by the user.
820 .B non\-incremental\-forward\-search\-history (M\-n)
821 Search forward through the history using a non-incremental search
822 for a string supplied by the user.
824 .B history\-search\-backward
825 Search backward through the history for the string of characters
826 between the start of the current line and the current cursor
827 position (the \fIpoint\fP).
828 The search string must match at the beginning of a history line.
829 This is a non-incremental search.
831 .B history\-search\-forward
832 Search forward through the history for the string of characters
833 between the start of the current line and the point.
834 The search string must match at the beginning of a history line.
835 This is a non-incremental search.
837 .B history\-substring\-search\-backward
838 Search backward through the history for the string of characters
839 between the start of the current line and the current cursor
840 position (the \fIpoint\fP).
841 The search string may match anywhere in a history line.
842 This is a non-incremental search.
844 .B history\-substring\-search\-forward
845 Search forward through the history for the string of characters
846 between the start of the current line and the point.
847 The search string may match anywhere in a history line.
848 This is a non-incremental search.
850 .B yank\-nth\-arg (M\-C\-y)
851 Insert the first argument to the previous command (usually
852 the second word on the previous line) at point.
855 insert the \fIn\fPth word from the previous command (the words
856 in the previous command begin with word 0). A negative argument
857 inserts the \fIn\fPth word from the end of the previous command.
858 Once the argument \fIn\fP is computed, the argument is extracted
859 as if the "!\fIn\fP" history expansion had been specified.
862 yank\-last\-arg (M\-.\^, M\-_\^)
863 Insert the last argument to the previous command (the last word of
864 the previous history entry).
865 With a numeric argument, behave exactly like \fByank\-nth\-arg\fP.
866 Successive calls to \fByank\-last\-arg\fP move back through the history
867 list, inserting the last word (or the word specified by the argument to
868 the first call) of each line in turn.
869 Any numeric argument supplied to these successive calls determines
870 the direction to move through the history. A negative argument switches
871 the direction through the history (back or forward).
872 The history expansion facilities are used to extract the last argument,
873 as if the "!$" history expansion had been specified.
875 .SS Commands for Changing Text
879 .B \fIend\-of\-file\fP (usually C\-d)
880 The character indicating end-of-file as set, for example, by
883 If this character is read when there are no characters
884 on the line, and point is at the beginning of the line, Readline
885 interprets it as the end of input and returns
889 .B delete\-char (C\-d)
890 Delete the character at point.
891 If this function is bound to the
892 same character as the tty \fBEOF\fP character, as \fBC\-d\fP
893 commonly is, see above for the effects.
895 .B backward\-delete\-char (Rubout)
896 Delete the character behind the cursor. When given a numeric argument,
897 save the deleted text on the kill ring.
899 .B forward\-backward\-delete\-char
900 Delete the character under the cursor, unless the cursor is at the
901 end of the line, in which case the character behind the cursor is
904 .B quoted\-insert (C\-q, C\-v)
905 Add the next character that you type to the line verbatim. This is
906 how to insert characters like \fBC\-q\fP, for example.
908 .B tab\-insert (M-TAB)
909 Insert a tab character.
911 .B self\-insert (a,\ b,\ A,\ 1,\ !,\ ...)
912 Insert the character typed.
914 .B transpose\-chars (C\-t)
915 Drag the character before point forward over the character at point,
916 moving point forward as well.
917 If point is at the end of the line, then this transposes
918 the two characters before point.
919 Negative arguments have no effect.
921 .B transpose\-words (M\-t)
922 Drag the word before point past the word after point,
923 moving point over that word as well.
924 If point is at the end of the line, this transposes
925 the last two words on the line.
927 .B upcase\-word (M\-u)
928 Uppercase the current (or following) word. With a negative argument,
929 uppercase the previous word, but do not move point.
931 .B downcase\-word (M\-l)
932 Lowercase the current (or following) word. With a negative argument,
933 lowercase the previous word, but do not move point.
935 .B capitalize\-word (M\-c)
936 Capitalize the current (or following) word. With a negative argument,
937 capitalize the previous word, but do not move point.
940 Toggle overwrite mode. With an explicit positive numeric argument,
941 switches to overwrite mode. With an explicit non-positive numeric
942 argument, switches to insert mode. This command affects only
943 \fBemacs\fP mode; \fBvi\fP mode does overwrite differently.
944 Each call to \fIreadline()\fP starts in insert mode.
945 In overwrite mode, characters bound to \fBself\-insert\fP replace
946 the text at point rather than pushing the text to the right.
947 Characters bound to \fBbackward\-delete\-char\fP replace the character
948 before point with a space. By default, this command is unbound.
950 .SS Killing and Yanking
955 Kill the text from point to the end of the line.
957 .B backward\-kill\-line (C\-x Rubout)
958 Kill backward to the beginning of the line.
960 .B unix\-line\-discard (C\-u)
961 Kill backward from point to the beginning of the line.
962 The killed text is saved on the kill-ring.
963 .\" There is no real difference between this and backward-kill-line
966 Kill all characters on the current line, no matter where point is.
969 Kill from point the end of the current word, or if between
970 words, to the end of the next word. Word boundaries are the same as
971 those used by \fBforward\-word\fP.
973 .B backward\-kill\-word (M\-Rubout)
974 Kill the word behind point.
975 Word boundaries are the same as those used by \fBbackward\-word\fP.
977 .B unix\-word\-rubout (C\-w)
978 Kill the word behind point, using white space as a word boundary.
979 The killed text is saved on the kill-ring.
981 .B unix\-filename\-rubout
982 Kill the word behind point, using white space and the slash character
983 as the word boundaries.
984 The killed text is saved on the kill-ring.
986 .B delete\-horizontal\-space (M\-\e)
987 Delete all spaces and tabs around point.
990 Kill the text between the point and \fImark\fP (saved cursor position).
991 This text is referred to as the \fIregion\fP.
993 .B copy\-region\-as\-kill
994 Copy the text in the region to the kill buffer.
996 .B copy\-backward\-word
997 Copy the word before point to the kill buffer.
998 The word boundaries are the same as \fBbackward\-word\fP.
1000 .B copy\-forward\-word
1001 Copy the word following point to the kill buffer.
1002 The word boundaries are the same as \fBforward\-word\fP.
1005 Yank the top of the kill ring into the buffer at point.
1008 Rotate the kill ring, and yank the new top. Only works following
1013 .SS Numeric Arguments
1017 .B digit\-argument (M\-0, M\-1, ..., M\-\-)
1018 Add this digit to the argument already accumulating, or start a new
1019 argument. M\-\- starts a negative argument.
1021 .B universal\-argument
1022 This is another way to specify an argument.
1023 If this command is followed by one or more digits, optionally with a
1024 leading minus sign, those digits define the argument.
1025 If the command is followed by digits, executing
1026 .B universal\-argument
1027 again ends the numeric argument, but is otherwise ignored.
1028 As a special case, if this command is immediately followed by a
1029 character that is neither a digit or minus sign, the argument count
1030 for the next command is multiplied by four.
1031 The argument count is initially one, so executing this function the
1032 first time makes the argument count four, a second time makes the
1033 argument count sixteen, and so on.
1040 Attempt to perform completion on the text before point.
1041 The actual completion performed is application-specific.
1043 for instance, attempts completion treating the text as a variable
1044 (if the text begins with \fB$\fP), username (if the text begins with
1045 \fB~\fP), hostname (if the text begins with \fB@\fP), or
1046 command (including aliases and functions) in turn. If none
1047 of these produces a match, filename completion is attempted.
1050 allows completion of program functions and variables, and
1051 only attempts filename completion under certain circumstances.
1053 .B possible\-completions (M\-?)
1054 List the possible completions of the text before point.
1055 When displaying completions, readline sets the number of columns used
1056 for display to the value of \fBcompletion-display-width\fP, the value of
1057 the environment variable
1060 or the screen width, in that order.
1062 .B insert\-completions (M\-*)
1063 Insert all completions of the text before point
1064 that would have been generated by
1065 \fBpossible\-completions\fP.
1068 Similar to \fBcomplete\fP, but replaces the word to be completed
1069 with a single match from the list of possible completions.
1070 Repeated execution of \fBmenu\-complete\fP steps through the list
1071 of possible completions, inserting each match in turn.
1072 At the end of the list of completions, the bell is rung
1073 (subject to the setting of \fBbell\-style\fP)
1074 and the original text is restored.
1075 An argument of \fIn\fP moves \fIn\fP positions forward in the list
1076 of matches; a negative argument may be used to move backward
1078 This command is intended to be bound to \fBTAB\fP, but is unbound
1081 .B menu\-complete\-backward
1082 Identical to \fBmenu\-complete\fP, but moves backward through the list
1083 of possible completions, as if \fBmenu\-complete\fP had been given a
1084 negative argument. This command is unbound by default.
1086 .B delete\-char\-or\-list
1087 Deletes the character under the cursor if not at the beginning or
1088 end of the line (like \fBdelete-char\fP).
1089 If at the end of the line, behaves identically to
1090 \fBpossible-completions\fP.
1096 .B start\-kbd\-macro (C\-x (\^)
1097 Begin saving the characters typed into the current keyboard macro.
1099 .B end\-kbd\-macro (C\-x )\^)
1100 Stop saving the characters typed into the current keyboard macro
1101 and store the definition.
1103 .B call\-last\-kbd\-macro (C\-x e)
1104 Re-execute the last keyboard macro defined, by making the characters
1105 in the macro appear as if typed at the keyboard.
1106 .B print\-last\-kbd\-macro ()
1107 Print the last keyboard macro defined in a format suitable for the
1114 .B re\-read\-init\-file (C\-x C\-r)
1115 Read in the contents of the \fIinputrc\fP file, and incorporate
1116 any bindings or variable assignments found there.
1119 Abort the current editing command and
1120 ring the terminal's bell (subject to the setting of
1123 .B do\-uppercase\-version (M\-a, M\-b, M\-\fIx\fP, ...)
1124 If the metafied character \fIx\fP is lowercase, run the command
1125 that is bound to the corresponding uppercase character.
1127 .B prefix\-meta (ESC)
1128 Metafy the next character typed.
1135 .B undo (C\-_, C\-x C\-u)
1136 Incremental undo, separately remembered for each line.
1138 .B revert\-line (M\-r)
1139 Undo all changes made to this line. This is like executing the
1141 command enough times to return the line to its initial state.
1143 .B tilde\-expand (M\-&)
1144 Perform tilde expansion on the current word.
1146 .B set\-mark (C\-@, M\-<space>)
1147 Set the mark to the point. If a
1148 numeric argument is supplied, the mark is set to that position.
1150 .B exchange\-point\-and\-mark (C\-x C\-x)
1151 Swap the point with the mark. The current cursor position is set to
1152 the saved position, and the old cursor position is saved as the mark.
1154 .B character\-search (C\-])
1155 A character is read and point is moved to the next occurrence of that
1156 character. A negative count searches for previous occurrences.
1158 .B character\-search\-backward (M\-C\-])
1159 A character is read and point is moved to the previous occurrence of that
1160 character. A negative count searches for subsequent occurrences.
1162 .B skip\-csi\-sequence
1163 Read enough characters to consume a multi-key sequence such as those
1164 defined for keys like Home and End. Such sequences begin with a
1165 Control Sequence Indicator (CSI), usually ESC\-[. If this sequence is
1166 bound to "\e[", keys producing such sequences will have no effect
1167 unless explicitly bound to a readline command, instead of inserting
1168 stray characters into the editing buffer. This is unbound by default,
1169 but usually bound to ESC\-[.
1171 .B insert\-comment (M\-#)
1172 Without a numeric argument, the value of the readline
1174 variable is inserted at the beginning of the current line.
1175 If a numeric argument is supplied, this command acts as a toggle: if
1176 the characters at the beginning of the line do not match the value
1177 of \fBcomment\-begin\fP, the value is inserted, otherwise
1178 the characters in \fBcomment-begin\fP are deleted from the beginning of
1180 In either case, the line is accepted as if a newline had been typed.
1181 The default value of
1183 makes the current line a shell comment.
1184 If a numeric argument causes the comment character to be removed, the line
1185 will be executed by the shell.
1188 Print all of the functions and their key bindings to the
1189 readline output stream. If a numeric argument is supplied,
1190 the output is formatted in such a way that it can be made part
1191 of an \fIinputrc\fP file.
1194 Print all of the settable variables and their values to the
1195 readline output stream. If a numeric argument is supplied,
1196 the output is formatted in such a way that it can be made part
1197 of an \fIinputrc\fP file.
1200 Print all of the readline key sequences bound to macros and the
1201 strings they output. If a numeric argument is supplied,
1202 the output is formatted in such a way that it can be made part
1203 of an \fIinputrc\fP file.
1205 .B emacs\-editing\-mode (C\-e)
1208 command mode, this causes a switch to
1212 .B vi\-editing\-mode (M\-C\-j)
1215 editing mode, this causes a switch to
1219 .SH DEFAULT KEY BINDINGS
1221 The following is a list of the default emacs and vi bindings.
1222 Characters with the eighth bit set are written as M\-<character>, and
1226 The printable ASCII characters not mentioned in the list of emacs
1227 standard bindings are bound to the
1229 function, which just inserts the given character into the input line.
1230 In vi insertion mode, all characters not specifically mentioned are
1233 Characters assigned to signal generation by
1235 or the terminal driver, such as C-Z or C-C,
1236 retain that function.
1237 Upper and lower case metafied characters are bound to the same function in
1238 the emacs mode meta keymap.
1239 The remaining characters are unbound, which causes readline
1240 to ring the bell (subject to the setting of the
1248 Emacs Standard bindings
1251 "C-A" beginning-of-line
1257 "C-H" backward-delete-char
1264 "C-P" previous-history
1266 "C-R" reverse-search-history
1267 "C-S" forward-search-history
1268 "C-T" transpose-chars
1269 "C-U" unix-line-discard
1271 "C-W" unix-word-rubout
1273 "C-]" character-search
1275 "\^ " to "/" self-insert
1276 "0" to "9" self-insert
1277 ":" to "~" self-insert
1278 "C-?" backward-delete-char
1283 "M-C-H" backward-kill-word
1285 "M-C-J" vi-editing-mode
1286 "M-C-M" vi-editing-mode
1288 "M-C-Y" yank-nth-arg
1290 "M-C-]" character-search-backward
1292 "M-#" insert-comment
1294 "M-*" insert-completions
1295 "M--" digit-argument
1297 "M-0" digit-argument
1298 "M-1" digit-argument
1299 "M-2" digit-argument
1300 "M-3" digit-argument
1301 "M-4" digit-argument
1302 "M-5" digit-argument
1303 "M-6" digit-argument
1304 "M-7" digit-argument
1305 "M-8" digit-argument
1306 "M-9" digit-argument
1307 "M-<" beginning-of-history
1308 "M-=" possible-completions
1309 "M->" end-of-history
1310 "M-?" possible-completions
1312 "M-C" capitalize-word
1316 "M-N" non-incremental-forward-search-history
1317 "M-P" non-incremental-reverse-search-history
1319 "M-T" transpose-words
1322 "M-\e" delete-horizontal-space
1324 "M-C-?" backward-kill-word
1327 Emacs Control-X bindings
1330 "C-XC-R" re-read-init-file
1332 "C-XC-X" exchange-point-and-mark
1333 "C-X(" start-kbd-macro
1334 "C-X)" end-kbd-macro
1335 "C-XE" call-last-kbd-macro
1336 "C-XC-?" backward-kill-line
1339 .SS VI Mode bindings
1345 VI Insert Mode functions
1348 "C-H" backward-delete-char
1352 "C-R" reverse-search-history
1353 "C-S" forward-search-history
1354 "C-T" transpose-chars
1355 "C-U" unix-line-discard
1357 "C-W" unix-word-rubout
1359 "C-[" vi-movement-mode
1361 "\^ " to "~" self-insert
1362 "C-?" backward-delete-char
1364 VI Command Mode functions
1367 "C-E" emacs-editing-mode
1375 "C-P" previous-history
1377 "C-R" reverse-search-history
1378 "C-S" forward-search-history
1379 "C-T" transpose-chars
1380 "C-U" unix-line-discard
1382 "C-W" unix-word-rubout
1393 "-" previous-history
1396 "0" beginning-of-line
1397 "1" to "9" vi-arg-digit
1407 "G" vi-fetch-history
1416 "X" backward-delete-char
1429 "i" vi-insertion-mode
1449 \fIThe Gnu Readline Library\fP, Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
1451 \fIThe Gnu History Library\fP, Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
1459 Individual \fBreadline\fP initialization file
1462 Brian Fox, Free Software Foundation
1466 Chet Ramey, Case Western Reserve University
1470 If you find a bug in
1472 you should report it. But first, you should
1473 make sure that it really is a bug, and that it appears in the latest
1476 library that you have.
1478 Once you have determined that a bug actually exists, mail a
1479 bug report to \fIbug\-readline\fP@\fIgnu.org\fP.
1480 If you have a fix, you are welcome to mail that
1481 as well! Suggestions and `philosophical' bug reports may be mailed
1482 to \fPbug-readline\fP@\fIgnu.org\fP or posted to the Usenet
1486 Comments and bug reports concerning
1487 this manual page should be directed to
1488 .IR chet.ramey@case.edu .
1491 It's too big and too slow.
projects / deliverable / binutils-gdb.git / blob