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Remove references to OS/2. Many minor fixes. New questions about 

autoindent and linking with X.
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FAQ
View File

@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
GNU Midnight Commander
Questions and Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
The newest version of this document is available at
http://cvs.gnome.org/lxr/source/mc/FAQ?raw=1
@ -11,7 +11,9 @@ Questions and Answers
+ 1.4 What else do I need to run MC?
+ 1.5 Is GNU Midnight Commander Public Domain? Copyrighted?
+ 1.6 Where can I get GNU Midnight Commander?
+ 1.7 I don't have FTP access. Where can I get MC?
+ 1.7 I don't have FTP access. Where can I get MC?
+ 1.8 I cannot compile MC. What should I do?
* 2 Keyboard
+ 2.1 What does documentation mean with the C-?, M-? and F?
keys?
@ -23,11 +25,13 @@ Questions and Answers
+ 2.7 What 'keys' are the "a1" and "c1" keys mentioned in the
manual?
+ 2.8 How do I change the key bindings?
* 3 Mouse
+ 3.1 How do I enable mouse support?
+ 3.2 How do I cut and paste text with mouse?
+ 3.3 How do I get the extension dependent pop-up menu to
pop up?
* 4 Display
+ 4.1 Why do I keep getting "Terminal not powerful enough for
SLang" or "Terminal not powerful enough for SLsmg"?
@ -40,20 +44,24 @@ Questions and Answers
+ 4.7 Where can I get xterm or rxvt?
+ 4.8 I got colors working with MC but the other programs don't
work at all anymore!
+ 4.9 Why are there both terminfo and termcap? Wouldn't one
+ 4.9 Why are there both terminfo and termcap? Wouldn't one
database be enough?
* 5 Graphical user interface
+ 5.1 Xview, Tk and Gnome editions?
+ 5.2 Why is MC linked with X libraries?
* 6 Command line problems
+ 6.1 How do I stay in the last directory when I exit Midnight
Commander?
+ 6.2 How can I access command line history?
+ 6.3 How can I complete commands, file names, variable names
and so on?
+ 6.4 I am using ksh. Can I use functions defined in the .kshrc
within MC?
+ 6.4 I am using ksh. Can I use functions defined in the
.kshrc within MC?
+ 6.5 Is there any way to include additional options or hot
keys to MC?
* 7 Virtual file systems
+ 7.1 How can I see the contents of a tar archive?
+ 7.2 How do I get out of a tar archive?
@ -62,28 +70,35 @@ Questions and Answers
+ 7.5 How do I close an ftp connection?
+ 7.6 Why aren't the contents of ftp panel updated?
+ 7.7 What kind of proxy server works with Midnight Commander?
* 8 Other common problems
+ 8.1 How do I get the internal editor to work?
+ 8.2 Is there any way to 'bookmark' favorite ftp-fs links?
+ 8.3 Why I keep getting: "There is no disk in the drive.
Please insert a disk into drive D:"?
+ 8.4 When I start Midnight Commander, nothing happens!
+ 8.5 When I try pasting to the internal editor, it indents
the amount of indenting increases with each line!
* 9 Development
+ 9.1 Who has written Midnight Commander?
+ 9.2 Do I dare to use a development version?
+ 9.3 How can I report a bug/request for a feature?
+ 9.4 How can I join the development?
* 10 More information
+ 10.1 This document didn't answer my question. Where else can
I look for an answer?
+ 10.2 What mailing lists are there for Midnight Commander?
+ 10.3 Where should I look on the World Wide Web for MC stuff?
+ 10.4 Are the mailing lists archived anywhere?
* 11 Legal issues
+ 11.1 Authorship
+ 11.2 Feedback is invited
+ 11.3 Disclaimer and copyright
1 Getting started
1.1 What is Midnight Commander?
@ -100,13 +115,15 @@ Questions and Answers
1.2 Does it run on my machine?
Yes, Midnight Commander can run on almost any machine, including Unix
clones, Windows 95/NT and OS/2. Midnight Commander does not run on
Macintosh.
GNU Midnight Commander runs on POSIX (Unix-like) operating systems,
such as GNU/Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS X, Solaris, HP-UX and others. It
can also be compiled under Cygwin on Windows. There is an unfinished
Windows port.
GNU Midnight Commander uses GNU Autoconf which should automatically
configure it for every Unix clone. Following configurations have
been tested:
Midnight Commander uses GNU Autoconf which can automatically
configure Midnight Commander for use on almost any (if not every)
Unix clone. Following configurations have been tested:
* i386-*-linux1.x, 2.x
* alpha-linux-linux2
* sparc-linux-linux2.x
@ -124,9 +141,6 @@ Questions and Answers
* mc88110-aviion-dgux5.4R2.01
* i386-*-sco3.2v4.2
* i386-*-sco3.2v5
* i386-*-windows-nt-3.51, 4.0
* i386-*-windows95
* i386-*-os2
Windows 95/NT port can be compiled with Microsoft Visual C++, Borland
C++, RSX and Mingw32.
@ -142,19 +156,20 @@ Questions and Answers
1.4 What else do I need to run MC?
You need an Unix compatible operating system. Support for Windows 95/NT
and OS/2 is incomplete - you should be prepared to fix things.
You need a POSIX (Unix compatible) operating system. Native support
for Windows is incomplete - you should be prepared to fix things.
To compile any edition you need to have GLib installed. It's available
at ftp://ftp.gtk.org/pub/gtk/. Only GLib versions 1.2.x will be
currently detected.
To compile any edition you need to have glib 1.2.x or newer
installed. It's available at ftp://ftp.gtk.org/pub/gtk/. If you
don't have glib installed already, please note that glib 2.x is much
harder to compile, so your first choice should be glib 1.2.10.
If you want to use mouse on the Linux console you need the gpm daemon
from ftp://ftp.systemy.it/pub/develop/. You need nothing extra to use
mouse on xterm.
If you do not want to use the S-Lang library you could try using
ncurses (we recommend only version 4.1 and above).
ncurses version 4.1 and above.
1.5 Is GNU Midnight Commander Public Domain? Copyrighted?
@ -178,6 +193,16 @@ Questions and Answers
Most GNU/Linux distributions include GNU Midnight Commander. For
example, Debian, Mandrake, Red Hat, Slackware and SuSE.
1.8 I cannot compile MC. What should I do?
Make sure you have read the INSTALL file in the sources. Report the
error messages exactly as they appear, mention the versions of your
OS, your compiler and whatever else software you think is relevant.
If you have compile problems in the VFS code, try disabling it by
using "--without-vfs" switch. As the last resort, you can use
precompiled binaries from the GNU Midnight Commander website.
2 Keyboard
2.1 What does documentation mean with the C-?, M-? and F? keys?
@ -185,18 +210,21 @@ Questions and Answers
GNU Midnight Commander documentation uses emacs style names for
keyboard keys.
C stands for the Ctrl key. For example, C-f means that you should hold
down the Ctrl key and press the f key.
C stands for the Ctrl key. For example, C-f means that you should
hold down the Ctrl key and press the f key.
M stands for the Meta key. Your terminal might call it Alt or Compose
instead of Meta. For example, M-f means that you should hold down the
Meta/Alt/Compose key and press the f key. If your terminal doesn't
have Meta, Alt or Compose or they don't work you can use Esc. For M-f
press the Esc key and then press the f key.
M stands for the Meta key. Your terminal might call it Alt or
Compose instead of Meta. For example, M-f means that you should hold
down the Meta/Alt/Compose key and press the f key. If your terminal
doesn't have Meta, Alt or Compose or they don't work you can use Esc.
For M-f press the Esc key and then press the f key.
Sometimes Ctrl and Alt are used instead of C and M for simplicity.
Keep in mind that Alt can actually be Meta on some keyboards.
F? stands for a function key. If your terminal doesn't have function
keys or they don't work you can use Esc. For example, for F3 press the
Esc key and then press the 3 key.
keys or they don't work you can use Esc. For example, for F3 press
the Esc key and then press the 3 key.
2.2 Why don't function keys (or some other key) work?
@ -235,9 +263,9 @@ Questions and Answers
the keys this way in the Options menu. The convention for PC keyboards
is that F11-20 always means Shift with F1-10
Note! Windows 95/NT and OS/2 ports use F11 and F12 keys to change the
current disk drive. In this case F11 and F12 mean the real F11 and F12
keys, not shift-F1 and shift-F2.
Note! The native Windows port uses F11 and F12 keys to change the
current disk drive. In this case F11 and F12 mean the real F11 and
F12 keys, not shift-F1 and shift-F2.
2.4 Why does the ESC key behave funny?
@ -286,6 +314,7 @@ Questions and Answers
dialog. However, most actions cannot be redefined to use different
keys.
3 Mouse
3.1 How do I enable mouse support?
@ -304,6 +333,7 @@ Questions and Answers
It was developed for the GNOME edition. The text-mode edition doesn't
support this feature yet.
4 Display
4.1 Why do I keep getting "Terminal not powerful enough for SLang" or
@ -534,12 +564,22 @@ enough?
don't specify them, the configure script will try to use terminfo if
available otherwise it will use termcap.
5 Graphical user interface
5.1 Xview, Tk and Gnome editions?
Xview and Tk and GNOME editions have been removed from the sources.
5.2 Why is MC linked with X libraries?
GNU Midnight Commander is linked with X libraries to read key
modifiers from the X Server. It may be helpful to distinguish
between keys that the terminal emulator reports in the same way, e.g.
PgUp and Ctrl-PgUp. Versions of GNU Midnight Commander after 4.6.0
will load X libraries dynamically on the systems that support it.
6 Command line problems
6.1 How do I stay in the last directory when I exit Midnight Commander?
@ -549,8 +589,12 @@ enough?
6.2 How can I access command line history?
You can browse previous commands with M-p and M-n. Alternatively, you
can summon the command history listbox by pressing F9 c h.
Alt-h shows the last commands you executed from the command line.
Duplicates are suppressed from the history. Commands executed from
the subshell prompt are not shown.
You can put previous commands to the command line with Alt-p. Alt-n
moves you forward in history.
Since version 4.1.15 all the input widgets have permanent history. You
can summon the history listbox by pressing M-h.
@ -583,16 +627,11 @@ enough?
some limitations to make sure MC stays free. See GNU General Public
License for details.
7 Virtual file systems
Note! Virtual file systems are supported by Unix ports only. The
Windows 95/NT and OS/2 ports do NOT support virtual file systems. This
means you haven't got ftp, zip or tar support on Windows 95/NT and
OS/2.
This chapter describes the behavior of the 4.1.x versions of the
Midnight Commander. The behavior of the 4.5.x versions is somewhat
different. More on that when the 4.5.x versions get more stable.
Note! Virtual file systems are supported by Unix ports only. The
native Windows port doesn't support virtual file systems.
7.1 How can I see the contents of a tar archive?
@ -612,9 +651,9 @@ enough?
7.2 How do I get out of a tar archive?
Just press enter on the toplevel ".." file or chdir to a non-tar
directory. Just typing "cd" with no parameters is enough (it will take
you to your home directory).
Just press enter on the toplevel ".." file or change to a non-tar
directory. Just typing "cd" with no parameters is enough (it will
take you to your home directory).
7.3 How do I do anonymous ftp with MC?
@ -650,16 +689,17 @@ enough?
proxies for web browsers.
Midnight Commander only supports ftp proxies which are meant for ftp
clients. Common WWW proxies (like Squid) are not supported. A rule of
thumb is that if a ftp proxy works with a web browser, it won't work
clients. Common WWW proxies (like Squid) are not supported. A rule
of thumb is that if a ftp proxy requires a web browser, it won't work
with Midnight Commander.
8 Other common problems
8.1 How do I get the internal editor to work?
The F4 key used to default to an external editor because that was what
most people were used to. The newer versions use internal editor by
most people were used to. The newer versions use internal editor by
default.
To use the internal editor with an old version, select Configuration
@ -679,9 +719,9 @@ enough?
The internal editor will now be invoked for anything not specified
elsewhere in the mc.ext file.
Make sure that you edit the correct mc.ext file. The Midnight
Commander first checks the existence of $HOME/.mc.ext. If this file is
missing MC will use $prefix/lib/mc/mc.ext instead ($prefix can be
Make sure that you edit the correct mc.ext file. The Midnight
Commander first checks the existence of $HOME/.mc.ext. If this file
is missing MC will use $prefix/lib/mc/mc.ext instead ($prefix can be
changed with configure before compilation and it defaults to
/usr/local).
@ -695,7 +735,7 @@ enough?
8.2 Is there any way to 'bookmark' favorite ftp-fs links?
Use the directory hotlist. Just press control-backslash. If your
Use the directory hotlist. Just press control-backslash. If your
national keyboard layout doesn't have backslash key, just press the
control key with the key which is the backslash key in the English
keyboard layout.
@ -703,7 +743,7 @@ enough?
8.3 Why I keep getting: "There is no disk in the drive. Please insert a disk
into drive D:"?
This is a known bug of the Windows 95/NT and OS/2 ports. MC looks its
This is a known bug of the native Windows port. MC looks its
configuration files from the D:\MC directory and if the D: drive is a
removable drive (like a CD ROM drive) and there is no disk in drive
you get this message every time you try to do anything.
@ -715,26 +755,33 @@ into drive D:"?
8.4 When I start Midnight Commander, nothing happens!
First, invoke MC without subshell support: "mc -u". If this helps
check the shell you are using. Subshell support works best with bash
although tcsh and zsh are also supported. You might want to upgrade
your shell to a newer version. If you use something else than bash,
tcsh or zsh, subshell support is disabled automatically.
check the shell you are using. Subshell support works best with
bash, although tcsh and zsh are also supported. You might want to
upgrade your shell to a newer version. If you use something else
than bash, tcsh or zsh, subshell support is disabled automatically.
If disabling subshell doesn't help, try to reconfigure MC with
"--with-included-slang" and "--with-termcap" options and recompile.
If this helps, there is something wrong with your terminfo database
or shared S-Lang library. For better terminfo databases see chapter
4. For a better S-Lang library, upgrade to a newer version or keep
using the "--with-included-slang" option.
If this helps, something is wrong with your terminfo database or
shared S-Lang library. For better terminfo databases see chapter 4
of this FAQ. For a better S-Lang library, upgrade to a newer version
or keep using the "--with-included-slang" option.
This problem can also be caused by gpm as noted by Luis Espinoza:
Another reason is problems with gpm. Try using "--nomouse" option to
see if it makes any difference. Restarting gpm can help. Sometimes
it's enough to move the mouse.
Also, if you have the DISPLAY environment variable set, but the X
server is unreachable (e.g. it's firewalled), this can also cause a
delay at startup. Unset DISPLAY to see if that's the case.
8.5 When I try pasting to the internal editor, it indents the amount of
indenting increases with each line!
Either turn of 'Return does autoindent' in the editor options or
update GNU Midnight Commander to version 4.6.0 or above - it doesn't
autoindent when you are holding Shift.
In regards to why Midnight Commander does nothing when invoked. I
recently had the same problem. At the same time gpm was not loading
properly with my patched kernel (now 2.0.33 from 2.0.30).
Downloading version 1.13 of gpm, and got it working :-) MC still
appeared locked.... However moving the mouse, brought MC to life.
The mouse I am using is a Kensington Expert Mouse (Trackball).
9 Development
@ -782,21 +829,22 @@ into drive D:"?
9.2 Do I dare to use a development version?
I am afraid you have to answer to this question yourself. Development
versions seldom cause data loss but they have usually got many bugs.
It's up to you to judge whether new features outweigh the bugs.
That's up to you to decide. Development versions may have nasty bugs
at some points of time. It's up to you to judge whether the new
features and fixes for the bugs you know outweigh the risk of unknown
bugs.
9.3 How can I report a bug/request for a feature?
You might first want to get the newest development version to see if
the bug is fixed or the feature is added already.
Send your report/request to mc-devel@gnome.org or mc@gnome.org. These
mailing lists are the most certain way to contact the
developers. Remember to mention if you are not on the mailing list
Send your report/request to mc-devel@gnome.org or mc@gnome.org.
These mailing lists are the most certain way to contact the
developers. Remember to mention if you are not on the mailing list
to make sure that you will receive a copy of replies.
Give as much details as possible. A too long message is a lot better
Give as much details as possible. A too long message is a lot better
than a too short message.
For segmentation faults a stack backtrace is appreciated. You can
@ -829,6 +877,7 @@ into drive D:"?
to do the same if you contribute non-trivial patches. Otherwise we
have to reject your patches in order to avoid copyright problems.
10 More information
10.1 This document didn't answer my question. Where else can I look for an
@ -868,11 +917,12 @@ answer?
The mc and mc-devel lists are archived on the World Wide Web. There are
links to the archives on the mailing list pages (see 10.2).
11 Legal issues
11.1 Authorship
Questions and Answers was written by Janne Kukonlehto. Parts of it
Questions and Answers was written by Janne Kukonlehto. Parts of it
originate from Ian Jackson, Miguel de Icaza, Dugan Porter, Norbert
Warmuth and Paul Sheer.