ED(oh)				     LOCAL				ED(oh)

ed - text editor: usage

TOC
	   COMMANDS
	   - address
	   - print
	   - edit
	   - marks
	   - files
	   - searching
	   - important
	   SCRIPTING
	   TODO
	   - LEARN
	   SEE ALSO

COMMANDS
     [range]command

   address
     Most commands require a range on which to be executed. If no range is
     specified, it defaults to the current range.
	   Exceptions: u (undo), z (scroll), h (help messages).

     n		   : 6
     n,n	   : 4,5
     /pattern/	   : /sometext/

   print
     p		    : print addressed lines.
     n		    : print addressed lines with line numbers.
     l		    : print addressed lines including control and
		    non-printable characters.

   edit
     a		   : append: start adding text after the range. (Eg.: 4a)
     i		   : insert: start adding text before range. (Eg.: 4i)
     c		   : change: change the addressed line. (Eg.: 4c)
     d		   : delete: deletes range. (Eg.: 4d)
     m		   : move: move source rangeafter target range. (Eg.: 4m5)
     t		   : copy (transfer): copy source rangeafter target range.
		   (Eg.: 4t6)
     j		   : join: join addressed lines. (Eg.: 4,5j)

   marks
     kl		   : mark an rangewith a lower-case letter. (Eg.: 4ka)
     'l		   : set current rangeto the rangemarked as l. (Eg.: 'a > will
		   set current rangeto 4)

   files
     e [filename]		    : edit file, if no file is specified it
				    reloads the current file.
     E				    : same as e but discards changes if any.
     w [file]			    : writes file. If file is not specified,
				    it writes the current file.
     [range]w [file]		    : writes specified range to file or
				    current file if no file is specified.
     [range]W [file]		    : same as w but appends to filename if the
				    file exists.
     %				    : represents the current file.
     f				    : sets/shows the current filename.

   searching
     g		   : search globally for matches.
     v		   : search globally for non-matching lines.

   important
     s		   : normally, substitution is called with /pattern/, but any
		   character can be used (Eg.: |pattern| or @pattern@).
			 this is useful when substituting paths or variables.

     z[n]	   : scroll.
		   -   if n is specified, scroll the number of lines specified
		       by n.
		   -   If n is not specified and zn has been run before,
		       remember the number of lines used before.
		   -   if n is not specified and zn has not been run before,
		       scroll the number of lines determined by the terminal
		       size.
		   -   n: add n to show line numbers. (Eg.: z5n)


SCRIPTING
	     NOTE: It's important to always have the . and w on any
	     interactive commands.
	   To add a . on a script without ending the input, enter \. and then
	   substitute the \ :
     ,s@^\\.$@.@

   example
     $ ed script
     a
     a
     this line is appended
     \.
     w
     .
     ,s@^\\.$@.@
     w
     q
     $ cat script
     a
     this line is appended
     .
     w
     $ cat test.txt
     line 1
     $ ed - test.txt < script
     $ cat test.txt
     line 1
     this line is appended

TODO
     -	 document TIPS split lines

LEARN
     -	 repeat ed commands
     -	 remember last range.
     -	 command list
     -	 undo command list
     -	 learn G

SEE ALSO
     - OpenBSD manpages: ed(1)

AUTHORS
     ohazot(oh) | about(oh) | ohazot.com: https://ohazot.com
     <admin@ohazot.com>

OpenBSD 7.7 linux|  Created:2025-10-03|Updated:2025-10-18|		ED(oh)