mirror of https://github.com/MidnightCommander/mc
476 lines
16 KiB
Groff
476 lines
16 KiB
Groff
.TH mcedit 1 "30 January 1997"
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.\"SKIP_SECTION"
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.SH NAME
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mcedit \- Full featured terminal text editor for Unix-like systems.
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.\"SKIP_SECTION"
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.SH USAGE
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.B mcedit
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[[+number] file [\-bcCdfhstVx?]]
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.SH DESCRIPTION
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.LP
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Mcedit is a link to
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.B mc,
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the Midnight Commander, forcing it
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to immediately start its internal editor. The editor is a terminal
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version of the
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.B cooledit
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standalone X Window editor.
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.\".\"DONT_SPLIT"
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.SH OPTIONS
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.TP
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.I "+number"
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Go to the line specified by number (do not insert
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a space between the "+" sign and the number).
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.TP
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.I "\-b"
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Forces black and white display.
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.TP
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.I "\-c"
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Force color mode on terminals where
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.B mcedit
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defaults to black and white.
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.TP
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.I "\-C <keyword>=<FGcolor>,<BGcolor>:<keyword>= ..."
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Used to specify a different color set, where
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.I keyword
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is one of normal, selected, marked, markselect, errors,
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reverse menu, menusel, menuhot, menuhotsel and gauge. The colors
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are optional and are one of black, gray, red, brightred, green,
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brightgreen, brown, yellow, blue, brightblue, magenta,
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brightmagenta, cyan, brightcyan, lightgray and white.
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See the
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.B Colors
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section in
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.B mc.1
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for more information.
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.TP
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.I "\-d"
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Disables mouse support.
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.TP
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.I "\-f"
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Displays the compiled-in search paths for Midnight Commander files.
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.TP
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.I "\-t"
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Used only if the code was compiled with Slang and terminfo: it makes
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the Midnight Commander use the value of the
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.B TERMCAP
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variable for the terminal information instead of the information on
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the system wide terminal database
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.TP
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.I "\-V"
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Displays the version of the program.
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.TP
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.I "\-x"
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Forces xterm mode. Used when running on xterm-capable terminals (two
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screen modes, and able to send mouse escape sequences).
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.PP
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.SH Features
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The internal file editor provides most of the features of common full
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screen editors. It has an extendable file size limit of sixteen megabytes
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and edits binary files flawlessly. The features it presently supports
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are: Block copy, move, delete, cut, paste;
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.I "key for key undo";
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pull-down
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menus; file insertion; macro definition; regular expression
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search and replace (and our own scanf-printf search and
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replace); shift-arrow MSW-MAC text highlighting (for the
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linux console only); insert-overwrite toggle; word-wrap;
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a variety of tabbing options; syntax highlighting for
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various file types; and an option
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to pipe text blocks through shell commands like indent and
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ispell.
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.PP
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.SH Keys
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The editor is very easy to use and requires no tutoring.
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To see what keys do what, just consult the appropriate
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pull-down menu. Other keys are: Shift movement
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keys do text highlighting (Linux console only).
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.B Ctrl-Ins
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copies to the file
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.BR ~/.mc/cedit/cooledit.clip,
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and
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.B Shift-Ins
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pastes from
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.BR ~/.mc/cedit/cooledit.clip.
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.B Shift-Del
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cuts to
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.BR ~/.mc/cedit/cooledit.clip,
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and
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.B Ctrl-Del
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deletes highlighted text - all linux console only. Mouse highlighting
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also works, and you can override the mouse as usual by holding down
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the shift key while dragging the mouse to let normal terminal mouse
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highlighting work.
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.PP
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The completion key (usually
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.B "Alt-Tab"
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or
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.BR "Espace-Tab")
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completes the word under the cursor using the words used earlier in the
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file.
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.PP
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To define a macro, press
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.B Ctrl-R
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and then type out the key
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strokes you want to be executed. Press
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.B Ctrl-R
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again when finished. You can then assign the macro to any key you
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like by pressing that key. The macro is executed when you press
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.B Ctrl-A
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and then the assigned key. The macro is also executed if
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you press Meta, Ctrl, or Esc and the assigned key, provided that the
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key is not used for any other function. Once defined, the macro
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commands go into the file
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.BR ~/.mc/cedit/cooledit.macros.
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Do NOT edit this file if you are going to use macros again in the same
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editing session, because
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.B mcedit
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caches macro key defines in memory.
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.B Mcedit
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now overwrites a macro if a macro with the same key already exists,
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so you won't have to edit this file. You will also have to restart
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other running editors for macros to take effect.
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.P
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.B F19
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will format C, C++, Java or HTML code when it is highlighted. An executable
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file called
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.B ~/.mc/cedit/edit.indent.rc
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will be created for you from the default template. Feel free to edit it
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if you need.
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.PP
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.B C-p
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will run ispell on a block of text in a similar way. The script file
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will be called
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.B ~/.mc/cedit/edit.spell.rc
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.
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.PP
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.SH Redefining Keys
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Keys may be redefined from the Midnight Commander options
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menu.
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.PP
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.SH SYNTAX HIGHLIGHTING
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As of version 3.6.0, \fBcooledit\fP has syntax highlighting. This means
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that keywords and contexts (like C comments, string constants, etc)
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are highlighted in different colors. The following section explains
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the format of the file \fB~/.mc/cedit/Syntax\fP.
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The file \fB~/.mc/cedit/Syntax\fP is rescanned on opening of a any new
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editor file. The file contains rules for highlighting, each of which is
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given on a separate line, and define which keywords will be highlighted
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to what color. The file is also divided into sections, each beginning
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with a line with the \fBfile\fP command, followed by a regular
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expression. The regular expression dictates the file name that that set
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of rules applies to. Following this is a description to be printed on the
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left of the editor window explaining the file type to the user. A third
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optional argument is a regular expression to match the first line of
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text of the file. If either the file name matches, or the first line of text,
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then those rules will be loaded.
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A section ends with the start of a new section. Each section is divided
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into contexts, and each context contains rules. A context is a scope
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within the text that a particular set of rules belongs to. For instance,
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the region within a C style comment (i.e. between \fB/*\fP and \fB*/\fP)
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has its own color. This is a context, although it will have no further
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rules inside it because there is probably nothing that we want
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highlighted within a C comment.
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A trivial C programming section might look like this:
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.PP
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.nf
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file .\\*\\\\.c C\\sProgram\\sFile (#include|/\\\\\\*)
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wholechars abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ_
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# default colors
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context default
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keyword whole if 24
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keyword whole else 24
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keyword whole for 24
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keyword whole while 24
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keyword whole do 24
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keyword whole switch 24
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keyword whole case 24
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keyword whole static 24
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keyword whole extern 24
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keyword { 14
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keyword } 14
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keyword '*' 6
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# C comments
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context /\\* \\*/ 22
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# C preprocessor directives
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context linestart # \\n 18
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keyword \\\\\\n 24
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# C string constants
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context " " 6
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keyword %d 24
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keyword %s 24
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keyword %c 24
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keyword \\\\" 24
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.fi
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.PP
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Each context starts with a line of the form:
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.br
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\fBcontext\fP [\fBexclusive\fP] [\fBwhole\fP|\fBwholeright\fP|\fBwholeleft\fP]
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[\fBlinestart\fP] \fIdelim\fP [\fBlinestart\fP] \fIdelim\fP [\fIforeground\fP] [\fIbackground\fP]
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.br
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One exception is the first context. It must start with the command
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.br
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\fBcontext\fP \fBdefault\fP [\fIforeground\fP] [\fIbackground\fP]
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.br
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or else \fBcooledit\fP will return an error.
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The \fBlinestart\fP option dictates that \fIdelim\fP must start at
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the beginning of a line.
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The \fBwhole\fP option tells that delim must be a whole word. What
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constitutes a whole word are a set of characters that can be
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changed at any point in the file with the \fBwholechars\fP
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command. The \fBwholechars\fP command at the top just sets the
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set exactly to its default and could therefore have been omitted. To
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specify that a word must be whole on the left only, you can use
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the \fBwholeleft\fP option, and similarly on the right. The left and
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right set of characters can be set separately with,
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.br
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\fBwholechars\fP [\fBleft\fP|\fBright\fP] \fIcharacters\fP
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The \fBexclusive\fP option causes the text between the delimiters to be
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highlighted, but not the delimiters themselves.
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Each rule is a line of the form:
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.br
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\fBkeyword\fP [\fBwhole\fP|\fBwholeright\fP|\fBwholeleft\fP] [\fBlinestart\fP]
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\fIstring\fP \fIforeground\fP [\fIbackground\fP]
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.br
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Context or keyword strings are interpreted, so that you can include
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tabs and spaces with the sequences \\t and \\s. Newlines and the \\ are
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specified with \\n and \\\\ respectively. Since whitespace is used as a
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separator, it may not be used as is. Also, \\* must be used to specify
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a *. The * itself is a wildcard that matches any length of characters.
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For example,
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.nf
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keyword '*' 6
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.fi
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colors all C single character constants green. You could also have
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used
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.nf
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keyword "*" 6
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.fi
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to color string constants, except that the matched string may not cross
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newlines. \fIThe wildcard may be used within context delimiters as
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well\fP, but you \fBcannot have a wildcard as the last or first character\fP.
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Important to note is the line
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.nf
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keyword \\\\\\n 24
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.fi
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This line defines a keyword containing the \\ and newline characters.
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Because keywords have a higher precedence than context delimiters, this
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keyword prevents the context from ending at the end of a line if the
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line ends in a \\ thus allowing C preprocessor directive to continue
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across multiple lines.
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The colors themselves are numbered 0 to 26 and are explained below in
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\fBFURTHER BEHAVIORAL OPTIONS\fP. You can also use \fBany\fP of the named
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colors specified in \fB/usr/lib/X11/rgb.txt\fP, though only one word
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versions of them. It is better to stick to the numerical colors
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to limit use of the color palette.
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Comments may be included on a line of there own and begin with
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a #.
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Because of the simplicity of the implementation, there are a few
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intricacies that will not be coped with correctly but these are a minor
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irritation. On the whole, a broad spectrum of quite complicated
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situations are handled with these simple rules. It is a good idea to
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take a look at the syntax file to see some of the nifty tricks you can
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do with a little imagination. If you can't get by with the rules I have
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coded, and you think you have a rule that would be useful, please email
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me with your request. However, do not ask for regular expression
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support, because this is flatly impossible.
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A useful hint is to work with as much as possible with the things
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you \fIcan\fP do rather than try to do things that this
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implementation can't cope with. Also remember that the aim of
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syntax highlighting is to make programming less prone to error,
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\fInot\fP to make code look pretty.
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.PP
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.SH COLORS
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The default colors may be changed by appending to the
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\fBMC_COLOR_TABLE\fP environment variable. Foreground and
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background colors pairs may be specified for example with:
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.PP
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.nf
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MC_COLOR_TABLE="$MC_COLOR_TABLE:\\
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editnormal=lightgray,black:\\
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editbold=yellow,black:\\
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editmarked=black,cyan"
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.fi
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.PP
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.SH OPTIONS
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Most options can now be set from the editors options dialog
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box. See the \fBOptions\fP menu. The following options are defined in
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\fB~/.mc/ini\fP and have obvious counterparts in the dialog box.
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You can modify them to change the editor behavior, by editing the file.
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Unless specified, a 1 sets the option to on, and a 0 sets it to
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off, as is usual.
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.TP
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.I use_internal_edit
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This option is ignored when invoking
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.B mcedit.
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.TP
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.I editor_key_emulation
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1 for
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.B Emacs
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keys, and 0 for normal
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.B Cooledit
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keys.
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.TP
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.I editor_tab_spacing
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Interpret the tab character as being of this length.
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Default is 8. You should avoid using
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other than 8 since most other editors and text viewers
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assume a tab spacing of 8. Use
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.B editor_fake_half_tabs
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to simulate a smaller tab spacing.
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.TP
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.I editor_fill_tabs_with_spaces
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Never insert a tab space. Rather insert spaces (ascii 20h) to fill to the
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desired tab size.
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.TP
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.I editor_return_does_auto_indent
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Pressing return will tab across to match the indentation
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of the first line above that has text on it.
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.TP
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.I editor_backspace_through_tabs
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Make a single backspace delete all the space to the left
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margin if there is no text between the cursor and the left
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margin.
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.TP
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.I editor_fake_half_tabs
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This will emulate a half tab for those who want to program
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with a tab spacing of 4, but do not want the tab size changed
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from 8 (so that the code will be formatted the same when displayed
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by other programs). When editing between text and the left
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margin, moving and tabbing will be as though a tab space were
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4, while actually using spaces and normal tabs for an optimal fill.
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When editing anywhere else, a normal tab is inserted.
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.TP
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.I editor_option_save_mode
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(0, 1 or 2.) The save mode (see the options menu also)
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allows you to change the method
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of saving a file. Quick save (0) saves the file by immediately,
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truncating the disk file to zero length (i.e. erasing it)
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and the writing the editor contents to the file. This method
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is fast, but dangerous, since a system error during a file
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save will leave the file only partially written, possibly
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rendering the data irretrievable. When saving, the safe save (1)
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option enables creation of a temporary file into which the
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file contents are first written. In the event of an problem,
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the original file is untouched. When the temporary file is
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successfully written, it is renamed to the name of the original
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file, thus replacing it. The safest method is create
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backups (2). Where a backup file is created before any changes
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are made. You can specify your own backup file extension in
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the dialog. Note that saving twice will replace your backup
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as well as your original file.
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.PP
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.SH Miscellaneous
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(Scanf search and replace have previously not worked properly.
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With this release, problems with search and replace have been
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fixed.)
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You can use scanf search and replace to search and replace
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a C format string. First take a look at the
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.B sscanf
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and
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.B sprintf
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man pages to see what a format string
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is and how it works. An example is as follows: Suppose you want
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to replace all occurrences of say, an open bracket, three
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comma separated numbers, and a close bracket, with the
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word
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.I apples,
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the third number, the word
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.I oranges
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and then the second number, you would fill in the Replace dialog
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box as follows:
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.nf
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.B Enter search string
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(%d,%d,%d)
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.B Enter replace string
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apples %d oranges %d
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.B Enter replacement argument order
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3,2
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.fi
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The last line specifies that the third and then the second
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number are to be used in place of the first and second.
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It is advisable to use this feature with Prompt On Replace on, because
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a match is thought to be found whenever the number of arguments found
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matches the number given, which is not always a real match. Scanf also
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treats whitespace as being elastic. Note that the scanf format %[ is
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very useful for scanning strings, and whitespace.
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The editor also displays non-us characters (160+). When editing
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binary files, you should set
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.B display bits
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to 7 bits in the Midnight Commander options menu to keep the
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spacing clean.
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.PP
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.SH FILES
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@prefix@/share/mc/mc.hlp
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.IP
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The help file for the program.
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.PP
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@prefix@/share/mc/mc.ini
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.IP
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The default system-wide setup for the Midnight Commander, used only if
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the user lacks his own ~/.mc/ini file.
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.PP
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@prefix@/share/mc/mc.lib
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.IP
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Global settings for the Midnight Commander. Settings in this file are
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global to any Midnight Commander, it is useful to define site-global
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.\"LINK2
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terminal settings.
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.\"Terminal databases"
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.PP
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$HOME/.mc/ini
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.IP
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User's own setup. If this file is present then the setup is loaded
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from here instead of the system-wide startup file.
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.PP
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$HOME/.mc/cedit/
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.IP
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User's own temporary directory where block commands are processed
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and saved.
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.PP
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.\"SKIP_SECTION"
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.SH LICENSE
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This program is distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public
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License as published by the Free Software Foundation. See the built-in
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help of the Midnight Commander for details on the License and the lack
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of warranty.
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.SH AVAILABILITY
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The latest version of this program can be found at
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ftp://ftp.gnome.org/mirror/gnome.org/stable/sources/mc/ and on the
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mirrors listed on the GNOME site http://www.gnome.org/.
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.SH SEE ALSO
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cooledit(1), mc(1), gpm(1), terminfo(1), scanf(3).
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.PP
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.SH AUTHORS
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Paul Sheer (psheer@obsidian.co.za) is the developer of
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the Midnight Commander's internal editor.
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.PP
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.SH BUGS
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Bugs should be reported to mc-devel@gnome.org
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