VI, VEDIT, VIEW(1,C) AIX Commands Reference VI, VEDIT, VIEW(1,C)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
vi, vedit, view
PURPOSE
Edits files with a full screen display.
SYNTAX
+-------+ +------------+ +-----------------+ +----------------+
| vi |---| +--------+ |---| +--------+ |---| +---- + -----+ |--->
| view | +-| -l |-+ +- -r -| |-+ +-| |-+
| vedit | A| -t tag || +- file -+ +- + subcmd -+
+-------+ || -R ||
|| -wnum ||
|| -ynum || +------------+
|+--------+| >---| |---|
+----------+ +--- file ---+
A |
+--------+
DESCRIPTION
The vi command is a display editor based on an underlying line editor (ex).
The view command is a read-only version of vi. In it, the readonly option is
set to protect files during browsing. The vedit command is a version of vi
intended for beginners. In it, the report option is set to 1, and the showmode
and novice options are set. Since novice is set, it is a line editor. For
more information on these options, see "Setting Options."
The file parameter specifies the file or files to be edited. If you supply
more than one file on the command line, vi edits each file in the order
specified.
When you use vi, changes you make to a file are reflected in your display. The
position of the cursor on the display indicates its position within the file.
The subcommands effect the file at the cursor position.
The following list provides the maximum limits of the vi editor. If you have
selected a language (through the LANG environment variable) that supports
multibyte characters, the character limits can be reduced by as much as 50%,
depending on the character code set being used.
o 1024 characters per line
o 256 characters per global command list
o 128 characters in the previous inserted and deleted text
o 100 characters in a shell escape command
o 63 characters in a string-valued option
o 30 characters in a tag name
o 250,000 lines of 1024 characters per line silently enforced
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o 128 map macros with 2048 characters total. Each macro has a maximum of 100
characters.
o 100 characters per each map macro subcommand (or "rhs").
If vi is run in a non-interactive manner (that is, with standard input
redirected from a file), the command runs as though it were invoked as ex
rather than vi.
Editing States
The vi editor has the following operational states:
command state This is the initial state. Any subcommand can be entered
(except commands that can only be used in the input
state). When subcommands and the other states end, they
return to this state. Pressing the ESC key cancels a
partial command.
input state Entered by the a, A, i, I, o, O, c, C, s, S, and R
subcommands. After entering one of these commands, you
can enter text into the editing buffer at the current
cursor position. To return to the command state, press
ESC for normal exit or press INTERRUPT (Ctrl-C) to end
abnormally.
last line state Some subcommands (subcommands with the prefix :, /, ?,
!obj, or !!) read input on a line displayed at the bottom
of the screen. When you enter the initial character, vi
places the cursor at the bottom of the screen, where you
enter the remaining characters of the command. Press the
Enter key to perform the subcommand and INTERRUPT
(Ctrl-C) to cancel it.
Setting Options
The vi editor allows you to customize options so that you can use the editor
for a specific task. Use the set command to set or change an option. To view
the current setting of options, enter ":set all" while in vi command state.
Some options are set to a string or a number value. Other options are simply
turned on or off. To change an option that is set to a value, enter a command
in the form :set option=value. To toggle an option that can be set to on or
off, enter a line of the form :set option to set it on or :set nooption to set
it off.
Options set by the set command last only for the current editing session. To
have certain options set each time vi is started, use EXINIT variables or add
an .exrc file to your home directory. All set command options and
abbreviations must be entered in ASCII characters. See the Text Formatting
Guide for details.
Options can be abbreviated in a set command. The following table lists some of
the most commonly-used options, abbreviations, and descriptions:
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Figure 8 (Page 1 of 5). Commonly Used vi Options
Option AbbreviationDescription
autoindent ai Indents automatically in text mode to the indentation
on the previous line by using the spacing between tab
stops specified by the shiftwidth option. The default
is noai. To back the cursor up to the previous tab
stop, type Ctrl-D. This option is not in effect for
global commands.
autoprint ap Prints the current line after any command that changes
the editing buffer. The default is ap. This option
applies only to the last command in a sequence of
commands on a single line, and is not in effect for
global commands.
autowrite aw Writes the editing buffer to the file automatically
before the :n, :ta, Ctrl-^, and ! subcommands if the
editing buffer has been changed since the last write
command. The default is noaw.
beautifying bf Prevents user from entering control characters (except
text for tab, newline, and formfeed) in the editing buffer
during text entry. The default is nobf. This option
does not apply to command input.
directory dir= Displays the directory that contains the editing
buffer. The default is dir=/tmp.
edcompatibleed Retains global (g) and confirm (c) subcommand suffixes
during multiple substitutions and causes the read (r)
suffix to work like the r subcommand. The default is
noed.
errorbells eb Error messages are preceded by a bell. If possible, vi
places the error message in reverse video (white
lettering on a black background) instead of ringing a
bell. The default is noeb. This may not work on PS/2
machines.
flash fl Flashes error messages. The default is flash. If nofl
is set, it always beeps on errors, even if terminal can
flash. This may not work on PS/2 machines.
hardtabs ht= Tells vi the distance between the hardware tab stops on
your display. The default is ht=8.
ignorecase ic Ignores distinction between uppercase and lowercase
while searching for regular expressions. The default
is noic.
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Figure 8 (Page 2 of 5). Commonly Used vi Options
Option AbbreviationDescription
lisp lisp Removes the special meaning of (), {}, [[ and ]] and
enables the = (formatted print) operator for
S-expressions, so you can edit LISP programs. The
default is nolisp.
list list Displays text with tabs and the end of lines marked.
Tabs are displayed as "^I" and the end of lines as "$".
The default is nolist.
mesg mesg Causes write permission to be turned off to the
terminal while you are in visual mode, if nomesg is
set. The default is mesg.
magic magic Treats the characters ., [, and "*" as special
characters in scans. In off mode, only the "( )" and
"$" retain special meanings; however, special meaning
of other characters can still be evoked by preceding
the character with a "\". The default is magic.
modeline modeline Runs editor command lines found in the first five and
the last five lines of the file. An editor command
line may be anywhere in a line. To be recognized as a
command line, it must contain a space or a tab followed
by the string "ex:" or "vi:". The command line is
ended by a second ":". The editor tries to interpret
any data between the first and second ":" as editor
commands. The default is nomodeline.
novice novice A feature of viedit which makes it a line editor. This
option cannot be set in vi The default is nonovice.
number nu Displays lines prefixed with their line numbers. The
default is nonu.
optimize opt Speeds up the operation of terminals that lack
cursor-addressing. The default is noopt.
paragraphs para= Defines to vi macro names that start paragraphs. The
default is para=IPLPPPQPP LIpplpipnpbp. Single letter
nroff macros, such as .P must include the space as a
quoted character if re-specifying a paragraph.
prompt prompt Command mode input is prompted with a colon (:). The
default is prompt.
readonly readonly Sets permanent read mode. The default is is
noreadonly.
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Figure 8 (Page 3 of 5). Commonly Used vi Options
Option AbbreviationDescription
redraw re Simulates a smart work station on a dumb work station.
The default is nore.
remap remap If on, macros are repeatedly tried until they are
changed. For example, if o is mapped to O and O is
mapped to I, and then remap is set, o maps to I. But
if noremap is set, it maps to O. The default is remap.
report report= Sets the number of repetitions of a command before a
message is displayed. For subcommands that can produce
a number of messages, such as global subcommands, the
messages are displayed when the command is completed.
The default is report=5.
scroll Pscroll= Displays the default number of lines to be scrolled
when the user scrolls up or down. The default is
scroll=12. Changing this with the set option has no
effect. This feature can be set by entering "n CTRL-d"
during the command mode. "CTRL-u" and "CTRL-d" both
respond to this change.
sections sect= Defines to vi macro names that start sections. The
default is sect=NHSHH HUuhsh+c. Single letter nroff
macros, such as .P must include the space as a quoted
character if re-specifying a paragraph.
shell sh= Defines the shell for ! or :! commands. The default is
sh=/bin/sh.
shiftwidth sw= Sets the distance for the software tab stops used by
autoindent, the shift commands ( > and < ), and the
input commands (Ctrl-D and Ctrl-T) to allow the editor
to indent text and move back to a previous indentation.
The default is sw=8.
showmode smd If smd is turned on, whenever you are in input mode, it
is indicated on the bottom line. The default is
noshowmode. (smd if you invoked vi as viedit.)
showmatch sm Shows the matching open parenthesis ( or open bracket {
as you type the close parenthesis ) or close bracket }.
The default is nosm.
slowopen slow Postpones updating the display during inserts. The
default is slow.
tabstop ts= Sets distance between tab stops when a file is
displayed. The default is ts=8.
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Figure 8 (Page 4 of 5). Commonly Used vi Options
Option AbbreviationDescription
taglength tl Tags are not significant beyond this many characters.
A value of zero (the default) means that all characters
are significant.
tags tags A list of files to be used as tag files for the tag
command. The tag files are searched sequentially for
the requested tag. The default is tags = tags
/usr/lib/tags. Thus, by default, a file named tags in
the current directory, and a file named tags in
/usr/lib are searched. /usr/lib/tags is a master file
for the entire system.
term term= Sets the kind of work station you are using. The
default is term=$TERM where $TERM is the value of the
shell variable TERM. You cannot set TERM directly
while you are in vi. Set it at the shell level or quit
vi to ex command mode. (:Q), type set term and
re-enter vi (:vi).
terse terse Allows vi to display the short form of messages. The
default is noterse.
timeout to Sets a time limit of one second on entry of characters.
This limit allows the characters in a macro to be
entered and processed as separate characters when
timeout is set. To resume use of the macro, set
notimeout. The default is to (timeout).
warn warn Displays a warning message before the ! subcommand
executes a shell command if this is the first time you
have issued a shell command after a given set of
changes have been made in the editing buffer but not
written to a file. The default is warn.
window wi= Sets the number of lines displayed in one window of
text. The default is dependent on the baud rate at
which you are operating: 600 baud or less / 8 lines,
1200 baud / 16 lines, higher speeds / full screen minus
one.
wrapmargin wm= Sets the margin for automatic wordwrapping from one
line to the next. The default is wm=0. A value of
zero indicates no wordwrapping.
wrapscan ws Allows string searches to wrap from the end of the
editing buffer to the beginning. The default is ws.
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Figure 8 (Page 5 of 5). Commonly Used vi Options
Option AbbreviationDescription
writeany wa Turns off the checks usually made before a write
command. The default is nowa.
VEDIT
vedit works much like vi but it is for beginning users. When you enter the
input state (via the a, A, i, I, o, O, c, C, s, S, and R subcommands), the
bottom right hand portion of the screen verifies this.
The vedit command has the following main subcommands: showmode, novice
andreport (the vedit default for report is 1).
Note: When you are in vedit and enter :set, you see the options that are
different from vi.
Defining Macros
If you use a subcommand or sequence of subcommands frequently, you can create a
macro that issues the subcommand or sequence when you call a macro. To create
a macro, enter the sequence of subcommands into an editing buffer named with an
ASCII character. When used, a - z overlay the contents of the buffer; A - Z
append text to the previous contents of the buffer, allowing the building of a
macro piece by piece.
To invoke the macro, enter "@"x where x is the letter name of the buffer.
Enter "@""@" to repeat the last macro you invoked.
Mapping Keys
You can use the map command to set a keystroke to a subcommand or a sequence of
subcommands. To set a key mapping, enter
:map key subcommand
where key (lhs) is the key to which you want to assign a subcommand or sequence
of subcommands and subcommand (rhs) is the subcommand or sequence of
subcommands. (The key variable can contain Japanese characters.) For example,
to set "@" to delete lines, enter:
:map @ dd
In this example, "@" is the key to which the subcommand is assigned and "dd" is
the subcommand.
In the next example, a subcommand sequence is mapped to a key:
:map * {>>
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The "*" is the key to which the subcommand sequence is assigned and "{>>" is
the subcommand sequence. The "{" moves the cursor to the beginning of the
paragraph and the ">>" indents the paragraph to the next shiftwidth.
To display the list of the current key mappings (while you are in command
mode), enter the command :map. You can also remove a key mapping. To remove a
key mapping, enter :unmap string or :unmap! string, where string is the string
used after the :map command to set the key and subcommand sequence. For
example to remove key mapping for the previous example:
:unmap *
If function keys are defined for your terminal, they can be put in a map or
unmap command by typing Ctrl-V, then pressing the desired key. Keys that are
infrequently used in editing are useful to define, such as a Shift, Ctrl, or
Alt function key with another key or one of the function keys F0 - F12.
Keeping a Customized Change
When you customize vi from the vi command line, the customized editor is in
effect until you exit the editor. If you want to keep your assignments so you
can reuse them, you must put the commands in the file .exrc. The editor reads
this file each time you call it. When you type the commands in a file, do not
type the : (colon) before each command. The : is only required if you are in
the editor. Here is an example of an .exrc file:
set ai aw
set wm=5
map @ dd
FLAGS
-l Enters vi in LISP mode. In this mode, vi indents
appropriately for LISP code and the (,), {, }, [[, and ]]
subcommands are modified to act appropriately for LISP.
-r file Recovers file after an editor or system crash. If you do
not specify a file name, vi displays a list of all saved
files.
-R Sets the readonly option to protect the file against
overwriting.
-t tag Edits the file containing the tag and positions the
editor at its definition.
-wnum Sets the default window size to num. This is useful when
you use the editor over a low speed line.
+subcmd Performs the ex subcommand before editing begins. If you
do not specify subcmd, the cursor is placed on the last
line of the file.
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-ynum Allocates num number of lines at startup.
PARAMETERS
In the following lists, <ESC> stands for pressing the ESCAPE key instead of
pressing the Enter key.
General Subcommand Syntax
[named_buffer] [operator] [number] object
Surrounding square brackets indicate optional items:
[named_buffer] A temporary text storage area in memory.
[operator] Specifies the subcommand or action; tells vi what to do.
[number] A whole decimal value that specifies either the extent of
the action, or a line address.
object Specifies what to act on. This can be a text object (a
character, word, sentence, paragraph, section, character
string) or a text position (a line, position in the
current line, screen position).
Counts before Subcommands
You may prefix many subcommands with a number. vi interprets this number in
one of the following ways:
1. Go to line number:
5G
10z
2. Go to column number:
25|
3. Scroll number lines:
10Ctrl-D
10Ctrl-U
Subcommands for Moving within the File
There are many commands that you can use to move within a file. They can be
entered while vi is in the command state.
MOVEMENTS WITHIN A LINE
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<- or h Moves the cursor one character to the left.
v or j Moves the cursor down one line (but it remains in the same column).
^ or k Moves the cursor up one line (but it remains in the same column).
-> or l Moves the cursor one character to the right.
CHARACTER POSITIONING WITHIN A LINE
^ Moves the cursor to the first nonblank character.
0 Moves the cursor to the beginning of the line.
$ Moves the cursor to the end of the line.
fx Moves the cursor to the next x character.
Fx Moves the cursor to the last x character.
tx Moves the cursor to one column before the next x character.
Tx Moves the cursor to one column after the last x character.
; Repeat the last f, F, t, or T subcommand.
, Repeat the last f, F, t, or T subcommand in the opposition direction.
num| Moves the cursor to the specified column.
WORDS, SENTENCES, PARAGRAPHS
l Moves the cursor to the next character (includes punctuation as words).
w Moves the cursor to the next word (includes punctuation as words).
b Moves the cursor to the previous word (includes punctuation as words).
e Moves the cursor to the end of the word (includes punctuation as
words).
W Moves the cursor to the next word (ignores punctuation).
B Moves the cursor to the previous word (ignores punctuation).
E Moves the cursor to the end of the word (includes punctuation as part
of the current word).
LINE POSITIONING
H Moves the cursor to the top line on the screen.
L Moves the cursor to the last line on the screen.
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M Moves the cursor to the middle line on the screen.
+ Moves the cursor to the next line at its first nonblank character.
- Moves the cursor to the previous line at its first nonblank character.
Enter Moves the cursor to the next line at its first nonblank character.
SCROLLING
Ctrl-U Scrolls up one half screen.
Ctrl-D Scrolls down one half screen.
Ctrl-F Scrolls forward one screen.
Ctrl-B Scrolls backward one screen.
SEARCHING FOR PATTERNS
[num]G Places the cursor at line number num or to the last line if num is not
specified.
/pattern
Places the cursor at the next line containing pattern.
?pattern
Places the cursor at the next previous line containing pattern.
n Repeats last search for pattern in the same direction.
N Repeats last search for pattern in the opposite direction.
/pattern/+num
Places the cursor at the numth line after the line matching pattern.
?pattern?-num
Places the cursor at the numth line before the line matching pattern.
% Finds the parentheses or brace that matches the one at the current
cursor position.
The pattern can contain Japanese characters.
MOVING TO SENTENCES, PARAGRAPHS, OR SECTIONS
]] Places the cursor at next section (or function if you are in the LISP
mode).
[[ Places the cursor at previous section (or function if you are in the
LISP mode).
( Places the cursor at the beginning of the previous sentence (or the
previous s-expression if you are in the LISP mode).
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) Places the cursor at the beginning of the next sentence (or the next
s-expression if you are in the LISP mode).
{ Places the cursor at the beginning of the previous paragraph (or at the
next list if you are in the LISP mode).
} Places the cursor at the beginning of the next the paragraph, at the
next list if you are in the LISP mode.
MARKING AND RETURNING
`` Moves the cursor to the previous location off current line.
'' Moves cursor to the beginning of the line containing the previous
location off the current line.
mx Marks the current position with letter x.
"x Moves cursor to mark x.
'x Moves cursor to the beginning of the line containing mark x.
The x variable must be an ASCII character.
ADJUSTING THE SCREEN
Ctrl-L Clears and redraws the screen.
Ctrl-R Redraws the screen and eliminates blank lines marked with a "@".
z Redraws the screen with the current line at the top of the screen.
z- Redraws the screen with the current line at the bottom of the
screen.
z. Redraws the screen with the current line at the center of the
screen.
/pattern/z- Redraws the screen with the line containing pattern at the bottom.
The pattern can contain Japanese characters.
znum. Makes the window num lines long.
Ctrl-E Scrolls the window down 1 line.
Ctrl-Y Scrolls the window up 1 line.
Subcommands for Editing
Use the following subcommands to edit your text. Those subcommands that do not
have an "*" (asterisk) following them enter in the input state. You return to
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the command state by pressing the Esc key. These subcommands affect the text
relative to the current cursor position.
EDITING THE FILE
atext Inserts text after the cursor.
Atext Adds text to the end of the line.
C Changes rest of line (c$).
numcc Changes lines.
numce Changes text to the end of n words.
ch Changes characters before cursor.
numcl Changes characters (s).
numcw Changes words from cursor position; can be used to change word endings,
etc.
numcwtext
Changes words to text.
<Enter> Split line at cursor position.
numdd "*"
Deletes lines.
numde "*"
Deletes text to the end of n words.
dh "*" Deletes characters before the cursor (X).
numdl "*"
Deletes characters.
numdw "*"
Deletes words from cursor position; can be used to delete incorrect
word endings.
itext Inserts text before the cursor. The text can contain Japanese
characters.
Itext Inserts text before the first nonblank character in the line. The text
can contain Japanese characters.
J "*" Joins lines.
o Adds an empty line below the current line.
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O Adds an empty line above the current line.
numrx "*"
Replaces the current character with x. (Commands followed by "*" do
not enter the input state.)
Rtext Overwrites characters with text.
nums "*"
Substitutes characters (cl).
S "*" Substitutes lines (cc).
u "*" Undoes the previous change.
numx "*"
Deletes characters (dl).
X "*" Deletes characters before cursor (dh).
numyh "*"
Yanks characters before cursor into the undo buffer.
numyl "*"
Yanks characters (s) into the undo buffer.
numyw "*"
Yanks words from cursor position into the undo buffer.
numyy "*"
Yanks lines into the undo buffer.
<< "*" Shifts one line to the left.
<L Shifts all lines from the cursor to the end of the screen to the left.
>> "*" Shifts one line to the right.
>L Shifts all lines from the cursor to the end of the screen to the right.
~ Changes letters at cursor to opposite case.
! "*" Indents for LISP.
CORRECTIONS DURING INSERT Use the following commands only while in the input
state; they have different meanings in the command state.
Ctrl-H Erases last character.
Ctrl-W Erases last word.
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\ Quotes the erase and kill characters.
<ESC> Ends insertion, back to command state.
Ctrl-? Interrupts, terminates insert or Ctrl-D.
Ctrl-D Goes back to previous autoindent stop.
^Ctrl-D Ends autoindent for this line only.
0Ctrl-D Moves cursor back to left margin.
Ctrl-V Enters nonprinting character.
MOVING TEXT
p Puts back text in the undo buffer after the cursor.
P Puts back text in the undo buffer before the cursor.
"xp Puts back text from the buffer x.
"xd Deletes text into the buffer x.
y Places the object that follows (for example, w for word) in the undo
buffer.
"xy Places the object that follows in the x buffer.
Y Places the line in the undo buffer.
The x variable must be an ASCII character.
RESTORING AND REPEATING CHANGES
u Undoes the last change.
U Restores the current line.
. Repeats the last change.
"n p Retrieves the nth last delete.
Interrupting, Cancelling, and Exiting vi
Q Enter ex editor in command state.
ZZ Exits vi, saving changes.
:q Quits vi. If you have changed the contents of the editing buffer, vi
displays a warning message and does not quit.
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:q! Quits vi, discarding the editing buffer.
:sh Runs a shell. You can return to vi by pressing Ctrl-D.
:!cmd Runs cmd, then returns.
:!! Repeats the last :!cmd command.
n!!cmd Executes shell command cmd and replaces the number of lines specified
by n with the output of cmd. If n is not specified, the default is 1.
If cmd expects standard input, the lines specified are used as input.
Thus the command "!sort" can sort a paragraph.
n!obj cmd
Executes shell command cmd and replaces n with output of cmd. If n is
not specified, the default is 1. If cmd expects standard input, the
lines or obj specified is used as input.
<ESC> Ends insert or ends an incomplete subcommand.
Ctrl-L Redisplays a screen.
Ctrl-R Redisplays the screen if Ctrl-L is the -> key.
Ctrl-? Interrupts a subcommand.
File Manipulation
:e file Edits file.
:e! Re-edits the current file and discards all changes.
:e +file
Edits file starting at the end.
:e +num
Edits file starting at line num.
:e # Edits the alternate file. The alternate file is usually the the
previous current file name. However if changes are pending on the
current file when a new file is called, the new file becomes the
alternate file. This subcommand is the same as Ctrl ^.
:n Edits next file in the list entered on the command line.
:n files
Specifies new list of files to edit. The file names can contain
Japanese characters.
:r file Reads the file into the editing buffer by adding new lines below the
current cursor position.
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VI, VEDIT, VIEW(1,C) AIX Commands Reference VI, VEDIT, VIEW(1,C)
:r !cmd Runs the shell command cmd and places its output in the file by adding
new lines below the current cursor position.
:ta tag Edits a file containing tag at the location of tag. The tag must
contain ASCII characters.
:w Writes the editing buffer contents to the original file.
:w file Writes the editing buffer contents to the named file.
:w! file
Overwrites file with the editing buffer contents.
Ctrl-G Shows current file name and line.
Ctrl ^ Edits the alternate file. The alternate file is usually the the
previous current file name. However if changes are pending on the
current file when a new file is called, the new file becomes the
alternate file. This subcommand is the same as :e #.
Ctrl ] Finds the word at the cursor in the tags file and edits the indicated
file, placing the cursor at the tag. With noaw set, this only moves
within the current file if changes have been made to the edit buffer.
A warning message is posted if the desired tag is in another file.
RELATED INFORMATION
See the following commands: ctags, "ed, red" and "ex."
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