NAME

pr − print files

SYNOPSIS

pr [[−columns] [−wwidth] [−a]] [−eck] [−ick] [−drtfp] [+page] [−nck] [−ooffset] [−llength] [−sseparator] [−hheader] [−F] [filename ...]

pr [[−m] [−wwidth]] [−eck] [−ick] [−drtfp] [+page] [−nck] [−ooffset] [−llength] [−sseparator] [−hheader] [−F] [filename1  filename2 ...]

AVAILABILITY

SUNWcsu

DESCRIPTION

The pr command formats and prints the contents of a file.  If filename is −, or if no files are specified, pr assumes standard input.  pr prints the named files on standard output. 

By default, the listing is separated into pages, each headed by the page number, the date and time that the file was last modified, and the name of the file.  Page length is 66 lines which includes 10 lines of header and trailer output.  The header is composed of 2 blank lines, 1 line of text ( can be altered with −h), and 2 blank lines;  the trailer is 5 blank lines.  For single column output, line width may not be set and is unlimited.  For multicolumn output, line width may be set and the default is 72 columns.  Diagnostic reports (failed options) are reported at the end of standard output associated with a terminal, rather than interspersed in the output.  Pages are separated by series of line feeds rather than form feed characters. 

By default, columns are of equal width, separated by at least one space; lines which do not fit are truncated. If the −s option is used, lines are not truncated and columns are separated by the separator character. 

Either −columns or −m should be used to produce multi-column output.  −a should only be used with −columns and not −m. 

OPTIONS

+page Begin printing with page numbered page (default is 1). 

−columns Print columns columns of output (default is 1).  For example pr −3 produces the following output:

Printofin
theonethree
linesfilecolumns.

Columns are not balanced; if, for example, there are as many lines in the file as there are lines on the page, only one column will be printed.  Output appears as if −e and −i are on for multi-column output.  May not use with −m. 

−a Print multi-column output across the page one line per column.  columns must be greater than one.  If a line is too long to fit in a column, it is truncated. 

−m Merge and print all files simultaneously, one per column.  The maximum number of files that may be specified is eight.  If a line is too long to fit in a column, it is truncated.  May not use with −column. 

−d Double-space the output.  Blank lines that result from double-spacing are dropped when they occur at the top of a page. 

−eck Expand input tabs to character positions k+1, 2∗k+1, 3∗k+1, etc. If k is 0 or is omitted, default tab settings at every eighth position are assumed.  Tab characters in the input are expanded into the appropriate number of spaces.  If c (any non-digit character) is given, it is treated as the input tab character (default for c is the tab character). 

−ick In output, replace white space wherever possible by inserting tabs to character positions k+1, 2∗k+1, 3∗k+1, etc. If k is 0 or is omitted, default tab settings at every eighth position are assumed.  If c (any non-digit character) is given, it is treated as the output tab character (default for c is the tab character). 

−nck Provide k-digit line numbering (default for k is 5).  The number occupies the first k+1 character positions of each column of single column output or each line of −m output.  If c (any non-digit character) is given, it is appended to the line number to separate it from whatever follows (default for c is a tab). 

−wwidth Set the width of a line to width character positions (default is 72).  This is effective only for multi-column output (−column and −m).  There is no line limit for single column output. 

−ooffset Offset each line by offset character positions (default is 0).  The number of character positions per line is the sum of the width and offset. 

−llength Set the length of a page to length lines (default is 66).  A length of 0 specifies the default length.  By default, output contains 5 lines of header and 5 lines of trailer leaving 56 lines for user-supplied text.  When −llength is used and length exceeds 10, then length−10 lines are left per page for user supplied text.  When length is 10 or less, header and trailer output is omitted to make room for user supplied text; see the −t option. 

−h header Use header as the text line of the header to be printed instead of the file name.  −h is ignored when −t is specified or −llength is specified and the value of length is 10 or less.  (−h is the only pr option requiring space between the option and argument.) 

−p Pause before beginning each page if the output device is a terminal.  pr rings the terminal bell and waits for a carriage return. 

−f Use a single form-feed character for new pages (default is to use a sequence of line feeds).  Pause before beginning the first page if the standard output is associated with a terminal. 

−r Print no diagnostic reports on files that cannot be opened. 

−t Print neither the five-line identifying header nor the five-line trailer normally supplied for each page.  Quit printing after the last line of each file without spacing to the end of the page.  Use of −t overrides the −h option. 

−sseparator Separate columns by the single character separator instead of by the appropriate number of spaces (default for separator is a tab).  Prevents truncation of lines on multicolumn output unless −w is specified. 

−F Fold the lines of the input file.  When used in multi-column mode (with the −a or −m options) lines will be folded to fit the current column’s width, otherwise they will be folded to fit the current line width (80 columns). 

EXAMPLES

Print filename1 and filename2 as a double-spaced, three-column listing headed by “file list”:

example% pr −3dh "file list" filename1 filename2

Copy filename1 to filename2, expanding tabs to columns 10, 19, 28, 37, ... :

example% pr −e9 −t < filename1 > filename2

Print filename1 and filename2 simultaneously in a two-column listing with no header or trailer where both columns have line numbers:

example% pr −t −n filename1 | pr −t −m −n filename2 −

ENVIRONMENT

If any of the LC_∗ variables ( LC_CTYPE, LC_MESSAGES, LC_TIME, LC_COLLATE, LC_NUMERIC, and LC_MONETARY ) (see environ(5)) are not set in the environment, the operational behavior of pr for each corresponding locale category is determined by the value of the LANG environment variable.  If LC_ALL is set, its contents are used to override both the LANG and the other LC_∗ variables.  If none of the above variables is set in the environment, the "C"  (U.S. style) locale determines how pr behaves. 

LC_CTYPE
Determines how pr handles characters. When LC_CTYPE is set to a valid value, pr can display and handle text and filenames containing valid characters for that locale.  pr can display and handle Extended Unix Code (EUC) characters where any individual character can be 1, 2, or 3 bytes wide.  pr can also handle EUC characters of 1, 2, or more column widths. In the "C" locale, only characters from ISO 8859-1 are valid. 

LC_MESSAGES
Determines how diagnostic and informative messages are presented. This includes the language and style of the messages, and the correct form of affirmative and negative responses.  In the "C" locale, the messages are presented in the default form found in the program itself (in most cases, U.S. English).

LC_TIME
Determines how pr handles date and time formats.  In the "C" locale, date and time handling follows the U.S.  rules. 

FILES

/dev/tty∗ If standard output is directed to one of the special files /dev/tty∗, then other output directed to this terminal is delayed until standard output is completed.  This prevents error messages from being interspersed throughout the output. 

SEE ALSO

cat(1), fold(1), more(1), pg(1), environ(5)

Sun Microsystems  —  Last change: 26 Sep 1992