path: root/doc/ed.info

This is ed.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.13 from ed.texinfo.

INFO-DIR-SECTION Basics
START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
* Ed: (ed).                     The GNU line editor
END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY

   Copyright (C) 1993, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 Free Software Foundation,
Inc.

   Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.


File: ed.info,  Node: Top,  Next: Overview,  Up: (dir)

The GNU ed line editor
**********************

This manual is for GNU ed (version 1.4, 10 July 2009).


   GNU ed is an 8-bit clean, more or less POSIX-compliant
implementation of the standard Unix line editor. These days,
full-screen editors have rendered `ed' mostly of historical interest.
Nonetheless, it appeals to a handful of aging programmers who still
believe that "Small is Beautiful".

* Menu:

* Overview::                       Overview of the `ed' command
* Introduction to Line Editing::   Getting started with GNU `ed'
* Invoking Ed::                    Command line interface
* Line Addressing::                Specifying lines/ranges in the buffer
* Regular Expressions::            Patterns for selecting text
* Commands::                       Commands recognized by GNU `ed'
* Limitations::                    Intrinsic limits of GNU `ed'
* Diagnostics::                    GNU `ed' error handling
* Problems::                       Reporting bugs
* GNU Free Documentation License:: How you can copy and share this manual


   Copyright (C) 1993, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 Free Software Foundation,
Inc.

   Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.


File: ed.info,  Node: Overview,  Next: Introduction to Line Editing,  Prev: Top,  Up: Top

1 Overview
**********

`ed' is a line-oriented text editor. It is used to create, display,
modify and otherwise manipulate text files. `red' is a restricted `ed':
it can only edit files in the current directory and cannot execute
shell commands.

   If invoked with a FILE argument, then a copy of FILE is read into
the editor's buffer. Changes are made to this copy and not directly to
FILE itself. Upon quitting `ed', any changes not explicitly saved with
a `w' command are lost.

   Editing is done in two distinct modes: "command" and "input".  When
first invoked, `ed' is in command mode. In this mode commands are read
from the standard input and executed to manipulate the contents of the
editor buffer. A typical command might look like:

     ,s/OLD/NEW/g

   which replaces all occurences of the string OLD with NEW.

   When an input command, such as `a' (append), `i' (insert) or `c'
(change), is given, `ed' enters input mode. This is the primary means
of adding text to a file. In this mode, no commands are available;
instead, the standard input is written directly to the editor buffer. A
"line" consists of the text up to and including a <newline> character.
Input mode is terminated by entering a single period (`.') on a line.

   All `ed' commands operate on whole lines or ranges of lines; e.g.,
the `d' command deletes lines; the `m' command moves lines, and so on.
It is possible to modify only a portion of a line by means of
replacement, as in the example above. However even here, the `s'
command is applied to whole lines at a time.

   In general, `ed' commands consist of zero or more line addresses,
followed by a single character command and possibly additional
parameters; i.e., commands have the structure:

     [ADDRESS [,ADDRESS]]COMMAND[PARAMETERS]

   The ADDRESSes indicate the line or range of lines to be affected by
the command. If fewer addresses are given than the command accepts,
then default addresses are supplied.


File: ed.info,  Node: Introduction to Line Editing,  Next: Invoking Ed,  Prev: Overview,  Up: Top

2 Introduction to Line Editing
******************************

`ed' was created, along with the Unix operating system, by Ken Thompson
and Dennis Ritchie. It is the refinement of its more complex,
programmable predecessor, `QED', to which Thompson and Ritchie had
already added pattern matching capabilities (*note Regular
Expressions::).

   For the purposes of this tutorial, a working knowledge of the Unix
shell `sh' (*note Bash: (bash)Bash.) and the Unix file system is
recommended, since `ed' is designed to interact closely with them.

   The principal difference between line editors and display editors is
that display editors provide instant feedback to user commands, whereas
line editors require sometimes lengthy input before any effects are
seen. The advantage of instant feedback, of course, is that if a mistake
is made, it can be corrected immediately, before more damage is done.
Editing in `ed' requires more strategy and forethought; but if you are
up to the task, it can be quite efficient.

   Much of the `ed' command syntax is shared with other Unix utilities.

   As with the shell, <RETURN> (the carriage-return key) enters a line
of input. So when we speak of "entering" a command or some text in
`ed', <RETURN> is implied at the end of each line. Prior to typing
<RETURN>, corrections to the line may be made by typing either
<BACKSPACE> (sometimes labeled <DELETE> or <DEL>) to erase characters
backwards, or <CONTROL>-u (i.e., hold the CONTROL key and type u) to
erase the whole line.

   When `ed' first opens, it expects to be told what to do but doesn't
prompt us like the shell. So let's begin by telling `ed' to do so with
the <P> ("prompt") command:

     $ ed
     P
     *

   By default, `ed' uses asterisk (`*') as command prompt to avoid
confusion with the shell command prompt (`$').

   We can run Unix shell (`sh') commands from inside `ed' by prefixing
them with <!> (exclamation mark, aka "bang"). For example:

     *!date
     Mon Jun 26 10:08:41 PDT 2006
     !
     *!for s in hello world; do echo $s; done
     hello
     world
     !
     *

   So far, this is no different from running commands in the Unix shell.
But let's say we want to edit the output of a command, or save it to a
file. First we must capture the command output to a temporary location
called a "buffer" where `ed' can access it. This is done with `ed''s
<r> command (mnemonic: "read"):

     *r !cal
     143
     *

   Here `ed' is telling us that it has just read 143 characters into
the editor buffer - i.e., the output of the `cal' command, which prints
a simple ASCII calendar. To display the buffer contents we issue the
<p> ("print") command (not to be confused with the prompt command,
which is uppercase!). To indicate the range of lines in the buffer that
should be printed, we prefix the command with <,> (comma) which is
shorthand for "the whole buffer":

     *,p
        September 2006
     Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa Su
                  1  2  3
      4  5  6  7  8  9 10
     11 12 13 14 15 16 17
     18 19 20 21 22 23 24
     25 26 27 28 29 30

     *

   Now let's write the buffer contents to a file named `junk' with the
<w> ("write") command. Again, we use the <,> prefix to indicate that
it's the whole buffer we want:

     *,w junk
     143
     *

   Need we say? It's good practice to frequently write the buffer
contents, since unwritten changes to the buffer will be lost when we
exit `ed'.

   The sample sessions below illustrate some basic concepts of line
editing with `ed'. We begin by creating a file, `sonnet', with some
help from Shakespeare. As with the shell, all input to `ed' must be
followed by a <newline> character. Comments begin with a `#'.

     $ ed
     # The `a' command is for appending text to the editor buffer.
     a
     No more be grieved at that which thou hast done.
     Roses have thorns, and filvers foutians mud.
     Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,
     And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.
     .
     # Entering a single period on a line returns `ed' to command mode.
     # Now write the buffer to the file `sonnet' and quit:
     w sonnet
     183
     # `ed' reports the number of characters written.
     q
     $ ls -l
     total 2
     -rw-rw-r--    1 alm           183 Nov 10 01:16 sonnet
     $

   In the next example, some typos are corrected in the file `sonnet'.

     $ ed sonnet
     183
     # Begin by printing the buffer to the terminal with the `p' command.
     # The `,' means ``all lines.''
     ,p
     No more be grieved at that which thou hast done.
     Roses have thorns, and filvers foutians mud.
     Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,
     And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.
     # Select line 2 for editing.
     2
     Roses have thorns, and filvers foutians mud.
     # Use the substitute command, `s', to replace `filvers' with `silver',
     # and print the result.
     s/filvers/silver/p
     Roses have thorns, and silver foutians mud.
     # And correct the spelling of `fountains'.
     s/utia/untai/p
     Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud.
     w sonnet
     183
     q
     $

   Since `ed' is line-oriented, we have to tell it which line, or range
of lines we want to edit. In the above example, we do this by
specifying the line's number, or sequence in the buffer. Alternatively,
we could have specified a unique string in the line, e.g., `/filvers/',
where the `/'s delimit the string in question.  Subsequent commands
affect only the selected line, a.k.a. the "current" line. Portions of
that line are then replaced with the substitute command, whose syntax
is `s/OLD/NEW/'.

   Although `ed' accepts only one command per line, the print command
`p' is an exception, and may be appended to the end of most commands.

   In the next example, a title is added to our sonnet.

     $ ed sonnet
     183
     a
      Sonnet #50
     .
     ,p
     No more be grieved at that which thou hast done.
     Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud.
     Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,
     And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.
      Sonnet #50
     # The title got appended to the end; we should have used `0a'
     # to append ``before the first line.''
     # Move the title to its proper place.
     5m0p
      Sonnet #50
     # The title is now the first line, and the current line has been
     # set to this line as well.
     ,p
      Sonnet #50
     No more be grieved at that which thou hast done.
     Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud.
     Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,
     And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.
     wq sonnet
     195
     $

   When `ed' opens a file, the current line is initially set to the
last line of that file. Similarly, the move command `m' sets the
current line to the last line moved.

   In summary:

   Structurally, Related programs or routines are `vi (1)', `sed (1)',
`regex (3)',  `sh (1)'. Relevant documents are:

     Unix User's Manual Supplementary Documents: 12 -- 13

     B. W. Kernighan and P. J. Plauger: "Software Tools in Pascal",
     Addison-Wesley, 1981.


File: ed.info,  Node: Invoking Ed,  Next: Line Addressing,  Prev: Introduction to Line Editing,  Up: Top

3 Invoking Ed
*************

The format for running `ed' is:

     ed [OPTIONS] [FILE]
     red [OPTIONS] [FILE]

   FILE specifies the name of a file to read. If FILE is prefixed with
a bang (!), then it is interpreted as a shell command. In this case,
what is read is the standard output of FILE executed via `sh (1)'. To
read a file whose name begins with a bang, prefix the name with a
backslash (`\'). The default filename is set to FILE only if it is not
prefixed with a bang.

   `ed' supports the following options:

`--help'
`-h'
     Print an informative help message describing the options and exit.

`--version'
`-V'
     Print the version number of `ed' on the standard output and exit.

`--loose-exit-status'
`-l'
     Do not exit with bad status if a command happens to "fail" (for
     example if a substitution command finds nothing to replace). This
     can be useful when `ed' is invoked as the editor for crontab.

`--prompt=STRING'
`-p STRING'
     Specifies a command prompt. This may be toggled on and off with the
     `P' command.

`--quiet'
`--silent'
`-s'
     Suppresses diagnostics. This should be used if `ed''s standard
     input is from a script.

`--traditional'
`-G'
     Forces backwards compatibility. This affects the behavior of the
     `ed' commands `G', `V', `f', `l', `m', `t' and `!!'. If the
     default behavior of these commands does not seem familiar, then
     try invoking `ed' with this switch.

`--verbose'
`-v'
     Verbose mode. This may be toggled on and off with the `H' command.



File: ed.info,  Node: Line Addressing,  Next: Regular Expressions,  Prev: Invoking Ed,  Up: Top

4 Line Addressing
*****************

An address represents the number of a line in the buffer. `ed'
maintains a "current address" which is typically supplied to commands
as the default address when none is specified. When a file is first
read, the current address is set to the last line of the file. In
general, the current address is set to the last line affected by a
command.

   A line address is constructed from one of the bases in the list
below, optionally followed by a numeric offset. The offset may include
any combination of digits, operators (i.e., `+' and `-') and
whitespace. Addresses are read from left to right, and their values may
be absolute or relative to the current address.

   One exception to the rule that addresses represent line numbers is
the address `0' (zero). This means "before the first line," and is
valid wherever it makes sense.

   An address range is two addresses separated either by a comma or
semicolon. The value of the first address in a range cannot exceed the
value of the second. If only one address is given in a range, then the
second address is set to the given address. If an N-tuple of addresses
is given where N > 2, then the corresponding range is determined by the
last two addresses in the N-tuple. If only one address is expected,
then the last address is used.

   Each address in a comma-delimited range is interpreted relative to
the current address. In a semicolon-delimited range, the first address
is used to set the current address, and the second address is
interpreted relative to the first.

   The following address symbols are recognized.

`.'
     The current line (address) in the buffer.

`$'
     The last line in the buffer.

`N'
     The Nth, line in the buffer where N is a number in the range `0,$'.

`+'
     The next line. This is equivalent to `+1' and may be repeated with
     cumulative effect.

`-'
     The previous line. This is equivalent to `-1' and may be repeated
     with cumulative effect.

`+N'
`WHITESPACE N'
     The Nth next line, where N is a non-negative number.  Whitespace
     followed by a number N is interpreted as `+N'.

`-N'
     The Nth previous line, where N is a non-negative number.

`,'
     The first through last lines in the buffer. This is equivalent to
     the address range `1,$'.

`;'
     The current through last lines in the buffer. This is equivalent
     to the address range `.,$'.

`/RE/'
     The next line containing the regular expression RE. The search
     wraps to the beginning of the buffer and continues down to the
     current line, if necessary. `//' repeats the last search.

`?RE?'
     The previous line containing the regular expression RE. The search
     wraps to the end of the buffer and continues up to the current
     line, if necessary. `??' repeats the last search.

`'x'
     The apostrophe-x character pair addresses the line previously
     marked by a `k' (mark) command, where `x' is a lower case letter
     from the portable character set.



File: ed.info,  Node: Regular Expressions,  Next: Commands,  Prev: Line Addressing,  Up: Top

5 Regular Expressions
*********************

Regular expressions are patterns used in selecting text. For example,
the `ed' command

     g/STRING/

prints all lines containing STRING. Regular expressions are also used
by the `s' command for selecting old text to be replaced with new text.

   In addition to a specifying string literals, regular expressions can
represent classes of strings. Strings thus represented are said to be
matched by the corresponding regular expression. If it is possible for a
regular expression to match several strings in a line, then the
left-most longest match is the one selected.

   The following symbols are used in constructing regular expressions:

`C'
     Any character C not listed below, including `{', `}', `(', `)',
     `<' and `>', matches itself.

`\C'
     Any backslash-escaped character C, other than `{', ``}', `(', `)',
     `<', `>', `b', `B', `w', `W', `+' and `?', matches itself.

`.'
     Matches any single character.

`[CHAR-CLASS]'
     Matches any single character in CHAR-CLASS. To include a `]' in
     CHAR-CLASS, it must be the first character. A range of characters
     may be specified by separating the end characters of the range
     with a `-', e.g., `a-z' specifies the lower case characters. The
     following literal expressions can also be used in CHAR-CLASS to
     specify sets of characters:

          [:alnum:] [:cntrl:] [:lower:] [:space:]
          [:alpha:] [:digit:] [:print:] [:upper:]
          [:blank:] [:graph:] [:punct:] [:xdigit:]

     If `-' appears as the first or last character of CHAR-CLASS, then
     it matches itself. All other characters in CHAR-CLASS match
     themselves.

     Patterns in CHAR-CLASS of the form:
          [.COL-ELM.]
          [=COL-ELM=]

     where COL-ELM is a "collating element" are interpreted according
     to `locale (5)'. See `regex (3)' for an explanation of these
     constructs.

`[^CHAR-CLASS]'
     Matches any single character, other than newline, not in
     CHAR-CLASS.  CHAR-CLASS is defined as above.

`^'
     If `^' is the first character of a regular expression, then it
     anchors the regular expression to the beginning of a line.
     Otherwise, it matches itself.

`$'
     If `$' is the last character of a regular expression, it anchors
     the regular expression to the end of a line. Otherwise, it matches
     itself.

`\(RE\)'
     Defines a (possibly null) subexpression RE. Subexpressions may be
     nested. A subsequent backreference of the form `\N', where N is a
     number in the range [1,9], expands to the text matched by the Nth
     subexpression. For example, the regular expression `\(a.c\)\1'
     matches the string `abcabc', but not `abcadc'. Subexpressions are
     ordered relative to their left delimiter.

`*'
     Matches the single character regular expression or subexpression
     immediately preceding it zero or more times. If `*' is the first
     character of a regular expression or subexpression, then it matches
     itself. The `*' operator sometimes yields unexpected results. For
     example, the regular expression `b*' matches the beginning of the
     string `abbb', as opposed to the substring `bbb', since a null
     match is the only left-most match.

`\{N,M\}'
`\{N,\}'
`\{N\}'
     Matches the single character regular expression or subexpression
     immediately preceding it at least N and at most M times. If M is
     omitted, then it matches at least N times. If the comma is also
     omitted, then it matches exactly N times. If any of these forms
     occurs first in a regular expression or subexpression, then it is
     interpreted literally (i.e., the regular expression `\{2\}'
     matches the string `{2}', and so on).

`\<'
`\>'
     Anchors the single character regular expression or subexpression
     immediately following it to the beginning (in the case of `\<') or
     ending (in the case of `\>') of a "word", i.e., in ASCII, a
     maximal string of alphanumeric characters, including the
     underscore (_).


   The following extended operators are preceded by a backslash `\' to
distinguish them from traditional `ed' syntax.

`\`'
`\''
     Unconditionally matches the beginning `\`' or ending `\'' of a
     line.

`\?'
     Optionally matches the single character regular expression or
     subexpression immediately preceding it. For example, the regular
     expression `a[bd]\?c' matches the strings `abc', `adc' and `ac'.
     If `\?' occurs at the beginning of a regular expressions or
     subexpression, then it matches a literal `?'.

`\+'
     Matches the single character regular expression or subexpression
     immediately preceding it one or more times. So the regular
     expression `a+' is shorthand for `aa*'. If `\+' occurs at the
     beginning of a regular expression or subexpression, then it
     matches a literal `+'.

`\b'
     Matches the beginning or ending (null string) of a word. Thus the
     regular expression `\bhello\b' is equivalent to `\<hello\>'.
     However, `\b\b' is a valid regular expression whereas `\<\>' is
     not.

`\B'
     Matches (a null string) inside a word.

`\w'
     Matches any character in a word.

`\W'
     Matches any character not in a word.



File: ed.info,  Node: Commands,  Next: Limitations,  Prev: Regular Expressions,  Up: Top

6 Commands
**********

All `ed' commands are single characters, though some require additonal
parameters. If a command's parameters extend over several lines, then
each line except for the last must be terminated with a backslash (`\').

   In general, at most one command is allowed per line. However, most
commands accept a print suffix, which is any of `p' (print), `l'
(list), or `n' (enumerate), to print the last line affected by the
command.

   An interrupt (typically <Control-C>) has the effect of aborting the
current command and returning the editor to command mode.

   `ed' recognizes the following commands. The commands are shown
together with the default address or address range supplied if none is
specified (in parenthesis).

`(.)a'
     Appends text to the buffer after the addressed line, which may be
     the address `0' (zero). Text is entered in input mode. The current
     address is set to last line entered.

`(.,.)c'
     Changes lines in the buffer. The addressed lines are deleted from
     the buffer, and text is appended in their place. Text is entered
     in input mode. The current address is set to last line entered.

`(.,.)d'
     Deletes the addressed lines from the buffer. If there is a line
     after the deleted range, then the current address is set to this
     line.  Otherwise the current address is set to the line before the
     deleted range.

`e FILE'
     Edits FILE, and sets the default filename. If FILE is not
     specified, then the default filename is used. Any lines in the
     buffer are deleted before the new file is read. The current
     address is set to the last line read.

`e !COMMAND'
     Edits the standard output of `!COMMAND', (see the `!' command
     below). The default filename is unchanged. Any lines in the buffer
     are deleted before the output of COMMAND is read. The current
     address is set to the last line read.

`E FILE'
     Edits FILE unconditionally. This is similar to the `e' command,
     except that unwritten changes are discarded without warning.  The
     current address is set to the last line read.

`f FILE'
     Sets the default filename to FILE. If FILE is not specified, then
     the default unescaped filename is printed.

`(1,$)g /RE/COMMAND-LIST'
     Global command. Applies COMMAND-LIST to each of the addressed
     lines matching a regular expression RE. The current address is set
     to the line currently matched before COMMAND-LIST is executed. At
     the end of the `g' command, the current address is set to the last
     line affected by COMMAND-LIST.

     At least the first command of COMMAND-LIST must appear on the same
     line as the `g' command. All lines of a multi-line COMMAND-LIST
     except the last line must be terminated with a backslash (`\').
     Any commands are allowed, except for `g', `G', `v', and `V'. By
     default, a newline alone in COMMAND-LIST is equivalent to a `p'
     command. If `ed' is invoked with the command-line option `-G',
     then a newline in COMMAND-LIST is equivalent to a `.+1p' command.

`(1,$)G /RE/'
     Interactive global command. Interactively edits the addressed lines
     matching a regular expression RE. For each matching line, the line
     is printed, the current address is set, and the user is prompted to
     enter a COMMAND-LIST. At the end of the `G' command, the current
     address is set to the last line affected by (the last)
     COMMAND-LIST.

     The format of COMMAND-LIST is the same as that of the `g' command.
     A newline alone acts as a null command list. A single `&' repeats
     the last non-null command list.

`H'
     Toggles the printing of error explanations. By default,
     explanations are not printed. It is recommended that ed scripts
     begin with this command to aid in debugging.

`h'
     Prints an explanation of the last error.

`(.)i'
     Inserts text in the buffer before the current line. The address `0'
     (zero) is valid for this command; it is equivalent to address `1'.
     Text is entered in input mode. The current address is set to the
     last line entered.

`(.,.+1)j'
     Joins the addressed lines. The addressed lines are deleted from the
     buffer and replaced by a single line containing their joined text.
     The current address is set to the resultant line.

`(.)kx'
     Marks a line with a lower case letter `x'. The line can then be
     addressed as `'x' (i.e., a single quote followed by `x') in
     subsequent commands. The mark is not cleared until the line is
     deleted or otherwise modified.

`(.,.)l'
     Prints the addressed lines unambiguously. The end of each line is
     marked with a `$', and every `$' character within the text is
     printed with a preceding backslash. The current address is set to
     the last line printed.

`(.,.)m(.)'
     Moves lines in the buffer. The addressed lines are moved to after
     the right-hand destination address, which may be the address `0'
     (zero). The current address is set to the new address of the last
     line moved.

`(.,.)n'
     Prints the addressed lines, preceding each line by its line number
     and a <tab>. The current address is set to the last line printed.

`(.,.)p'
     Prints the addressed lines. The current address is set to the last
     line printed.

`P'
     Toggles the command prompt on and off. Unless a prompt is
     specified with command-line option `-p', the command prompt is by
     default turned off.

`q'
     Quits `ed'.

`Q'
     Quits `ed' unconditionally. This is similar to the `q' command,
     except that unwritten changes are discarded without warning.

`($)r FILE'
     Reads FILE to after the addressed line. If FILE is not specified,
     then the default filename is used. If there is no default filename
     prior to the command, then the default filename is set to FILE.
     Otherwise, the default filename is unchanged. The current address
     is set to the last line read.

`($)r !COMMAND'
     Reads to after the addressed line the standard output of
     `!command', (see the `!' command below). The default filename is
     unchanged. The current address is set to the last line read.

`(.,.)s /RE/REPLACEMENT/'
`(.,.)s /RE/REPLACEMENT/g'
`(.,.)s /RE/REPLACEMENT/N'
     Replaces text in the addressed lines matching a regular expression
     RE with REPLACEMENT. By default, only the first match in each line
     is replaced. If the `g' (global) suffix is given, then every match
     is replaced. The N suffix, where N is a postive number, causes
     only the Nth match to be replaced. It is an error if no
     substitutions are performed on any of the addressed lines. The
     current address is set to the last line affected.

     RE and REPLACEMENT may be delimited by any character other than
     <space>, <newline> and the characters used by the form of the `s'
     command shown below. If one or two of the last delimiters is
     omitted, then the last line affected is printed as if the print
     suffix `p' were specified.

     An unescaped `&' in REPLACEMENT is replaced by the currently
     matched text. The character sequence `\M' where M is a number in
     the range [1,9], is replaced by the Mth backreference expression
     of the matched text. If REPLACEMENT consists of a single `%', then
     REPLACEMENT from the last substitution is used. Newlines may be
     embedded in REPLACEMENT if they are escaped with a backslash (`\').

`(.,.)s'
     Repeats the last substitution. This form of the `s' command accepts
     a count suffix N, and any combination of the characters `r', `g',
     and `p'. If a count suffix N is given, then only the Nth match is
     replaced. The `r' suffix causes the regular expression of the last
     search to be used instead of the that of the last substitution.
     The `g' suffix toggles the global suffix of the last substitution.
     The `p' suffix toggles the print suffix of the last substitution.
     The current address is set to the last line affected.

`(.,.)t(.)'
     Copies (i.e., transfers) the addressed lines to after the
     right-hand destination address, which may be the address `0'
     (zero). The current address is set to the last line copied.

`u'
     Undoes the last command and restores the current address to what
     it was before the command. The global commands `g', `G', `v', and
     `V' are treated as a single command by undo. `u' is its own
     inverse.

`(1,$)v /RE/COMMAND-LIST'
     This is similar to the `g' command except that it applies
     COMMAND-LIST to each of the addressed lines not matching the
     regular expression RE.

`(1,$)V /RE/'
     This is similar to the `G' command except that it interactively
     edits the addressed lines not matching the regular expression RE.

`(1,$)w FILE'
     Writes the addressed lines to FILE. Any previous contents of FILE
     is lost without warning. If there is no default filename, then the
     default filename is set to FILE, otherwise it is unchanged. If no
     filename is specified, then the default filename is used. The
     current address is unchanged.

`(1,$)w !COMMAND'
     Writes the addressed lines to the standard input of `!COMMAND',
     (see the `!' command below). The default filename and current
     address are unchanged.

`(1,$)wq FILE'
     Writes the addressed lines to FILE, and then executes a `q'
     command.

`(1,$)W FILE'
     Appends the addressed lines to the end of FILE. This is similar to
     the `w' command, expect that the previous contents of file is not
     clobbered. The current address is unchanged.

`(.)x'
     Copies (puts) the contents of the cut buffer to after the addressed
     line. The current address is set to the last line copied.

`(.,.)y'
     Copies (yanks) the addressed lines to the cut buffer. The cut
     buffer is overwritten by subsequent `y', `s', `j', `d', or `c'
     commands. The current address is unchanged.

`(.+1)z N'
     Scrolls N lines at a time starting at addressed line. If N is not
     specified, then the current window size is used. The current
     address is set to the last line printed.

`!COMMAND'
     Executes COMMAND via `sh (1)'. If the first character of COMMAND
     is `!', then it is replaced by text of the previous `!COMMAND'.
     `ed' does not process COMMAND for backslash (`\') escapes.
     However, an unescaped `%' is replaced by the default filename.
     When the shell returns from execution, a `!' is printed to the
     standard output. The current line is unchanged.

`(.,.)#'
     Begins a comment; the rest of the line, up to a newline, is
     ignored. If a line address followed by a semicolon is given, then
     the current address is set to that address. Otherwise, the current
     address is unchanged.

`($)='
     Prints the line number of the addressed line.

`(.+1)<newline>'
     An address alone prints the addressed line. A <newline> alone is
     equivalent to `+1p'. the current address is set to the address of
     the printed line.



File: ed.info,  Node: Limitations,  Next: Diagnostics,  Prev: Commands,  Up: Top

7 Limitations
*************

If the terminal hangs up, `ed' attempts to write the buffer to file
`ed.hup'.

   `ed' processes FILE arguments for backslash escapes, i.e., in a
filename, any characters preceded by a backslash (`\') are interpreted
literally.

   If a text (non-binary) file is not terminated by a newline character,
then `ed' appends one on reading/writing it. In the case of a binary
file, `ed' does not append a newline on reading/writing.

   Per line overhead: 4 `int's.


File: ed.info,  Node: Diagnostics,  Next: Problems,  Prev: Limitations,  Up: Top

8 Diagnostics
*************

When an error occurs, if `ed''s input is from a regular file or here
document, then it exits, otherwise it prints a `?' and returns to
command mode. An explanation of the last error can be printed with the
`h' (help) command.

   If the `u' (undo) command occurs in a global command list, then the
command list is executed only once.

   Attempting to quit `ed' or edit another file before writing a
modified buffer results in an error. If the command is entered a second
time, it succeeds, but any changes to the buffer are lost.

   `ed' exits with 0 if no errors occurred; otherwise >0.


File: ed.info,  Node: Problems,  Next: GNU Free Documentation License,  Prev: Diagnostics,  Up: Top

9 Reporting Bugs
****************

There are probably bugs in `ed'. There are certainly errors and
omissions in this manual. If you report them, they will get fixed. If
you don't, no one will ever know about them and they will remain unfixed
for all eternity, if not longer.

   If you find a bug in `ed', please send electronic mail to
<bug-ed@gnu.org>. Include the version number, which you can find by
running ``ed' --version'.


File: ed.info,  Node: GNU Free Documentation License,  Prev: Problems,  Up: Top

10 GNU Free Documentation License
*********************************

                     Version 1.3, 3 November 2008

     Copyright (C) 2000, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2008 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
     `http://fsf.org/'

     Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
     of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.

  0. PREAMBLE

     The purpose of this License is to make a manual, textbook, or other
     functional and useful document "free" in the sense of freedom: to
     assure everyone the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it,
     with or without modifying it, either commercially or
     noncommercially.  Secondarily, this License preserves for the
     author and publisher a way to get credit for their work, while not
     being considered responsible for modifications made by others.

     This License is a kind of "copyleft", which means that derivative
     works of the document must themselves be free in the same sense.
     It complements the GNU General Public License, which is a copyleft
     license designed for free software.

     We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for
     free software, because free software needs free documentation: a
     free program should come with manuals providing the same freedoms
     that the software does.  But this License is not limited to
     software manuals; it can be used for any textual work, regardless
     of subject matter or whether it is published as a printed book.
     We recommend this License principally for works whose purpose is
     instruction or reference.

  1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS

     This License applies to any manual or other work, in any medium,
     that contains a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it
     can be distributed under the terms of this License.  Such a notice
     grants a world-wide, royalty-free license, unlimited in duration,
     to use that work under the conditions stated herein.  The
     "Document", below, refers to any such manual or work.  Any member
     of the public is a licensee, and is addressed as "you".  You
     accept the license if you copy, modify or distribute the work in a
     way requiring permission under copyright law.

     A "Modified Version" of the Document means any work containing the
     Document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with
     modifications and/or translated into another language.

     A "Secondary Section" is a named appendix or a front-matter section
     of the Document that deals exclusively with the relationship of the
     publishers or authors of the Document to the Document's overall
     subject (or to related matters) and contains nothing that could
     fall directly within that overall subject.  (Thus, if the Document
     is in part a textbook of mathematics, a Secondary Section may not
     explain any mathematics.)  The relationship could be a matter of
     historical connection with the subject or with related matters, or
     of legal, commercial, philosophical, ethical or political position
     regarding them.

     The "Invariant Sections" are certain Secondary Sections whose
     titles are designated, as being those of Invariant Sections, in
     the notice that says that the Document is released under this
     License.  If a section does not fit the above definition of
     Secondary then it is not allowed to be designated as Invariant.
     The Document may contain zero Invariant Sections.  If the Document
     does not identify any Invariant Sections then there are none.

     The "Cover Texts" are certain short passages of text that are
     listed, as Front-Cover Texts or Back-Cover Texts, in the notice
     that says that the Document is released under this License.  A
     Front-Cover Text may be at most 5 words, and a Back-Cover Text may
     be at most 25 words.

     A "Transparent" copy of the Document means a machine-readable copy,
     represented in a format whose specification is available to the
     general public, that is suitable for revising the document
     straightforwardly with generic text editors or (for images
     composed of pixels) generic paint programs or (for drawings) some
     widely available drawing editor, and that is suitable for input to
     text formatters or for automatic translation to a variety of
     formats suitable for input to text formatters.  A copy made in an
     otherwise Transparent file format whose markup, or absence of
     markup, has been arranged to thwart or discourage subsequent
     modification by readers is not Transparent.  An image format is
     not Transparent if used for any substantial amount of text.  A
     copy that is not "Transparent" is called "Opaque".

     Examples of suitable formats for Transparent copies include plain
     ASCII without markup, Texinfo input format, LaTeX input format,
     SGML or XML using a publicly available DTD, and
     standard-conforming simple HTML, PostScript or PDF designed for
     human modification.  Examples of transparent image formats include
     PNG, XCF and JPG.  Opaque formats include proprietary formats that
     can be read and edited only by proprietary word processors, SGML or
     XML for which the DTD and/or processing tools are not generally
     available, and the machine-generated HTML, PostScript or PDF
     produced by some word processors for output purposes only.

     The "Title Page" means, for a printed book, the title page itself,
     plus such following pages as are needed to hold, legibly, the
     material this License requires to appear in the title page.  For
     works in formats which do not have any title page as such, "Title
     Page" means the text near the most prominent appearance of the
     work's title, preceding the beginning of the body of the text.

     The "publisher" means any person or entity that distributes copies
     of the Document to the public.

     A section "Entitled XYZ" means a named subunit of the Document
     whose title either is precisely XYZ or contains XYZ in parentheses
     following text that translates XYZ in another language.  (Here XYZ
     stands for a specific section name mentioned below, such as
     "Acknowledgements", "Dedications", "Endorsements", or "History".)
     To "Preserve the Title" of such a section when you modify the
     Document means that it remains a section "Entitled XYZ" according
     to this definition.

     The Document may include Warranty Disclaimers next to the notice
     which states that this License applies to the Document.  These
     Warranty Disclaimers are considered to be included by reference in
     this License, but only as regards disclaiming warranties: any other
     implication that these Warranty Disclaimers may have is void and
     has no effect on the meaning of this License.

  2. VERBATIM COPYING

     You may copy and distribute the Document in any medium, either
     commercially or noncommercially, provided that this License, the
     copyright notices, and the license notice saying this License
     applies to the Document are reproduced in all copies, and that you
     add no other conditions whatsoever to those of this License.  You
     may not use technical measures to obstruct or control the reading
     or further copying of the copies you make or distribute.  However,
     you may accept compensation in exchange for copies.  If you
     distribute a large enough number of copies you must also follow
     the conditions in section 3.

     You may also lend copies, under the same conditions stated above,
     and you may publicly display copies.

  3. COPYING IN QUANTITY

     If you publish printed copies (or copies in media that commonly
     have printed covers) of the Document, numbering more than 100, and
     the Document's license notice requires Cover Texts, you must
     enclose the copies in covers that carry, clearly and legibly, all
     these Cover Texts: Front-Cover Texts on the front cover, and
     Back-Cover Texts on the back cover.  Both covers must also clearly
     and legibly identify you as the publisher of these copies.  The
     front cover must present the full title with all words of the
     title equally prominent and visible.  You may add other material
     on the covers in addition.  Copying with changes limited to the
     covers, as long as they preserve the title of the Document and
     satisfy these conditions, can be treated as verbatim copying in
     other respects.

     If the required texts for either cover are too voluminous to fit
     legibly, you should put the first ones listed (as many as fit
     reasonably) on the actual cover, and continue the rest onto
     adjacent pages.

     If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document
     numbering more than 100, you must either include a
     machine-readable Transparent copy along with each Opaque copy, or
     state in or with each Opaque copy a computer-network location from
     which the general network-using public has access to download
     using public-standard network protocols a complete Transparent
     copy of the Document, free of added material.  If you use the
     latter option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you
     begin distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that
     this Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated
     location until at least one year after the last time you
     distribute an Opaque copy (directly or through your agents or
     retailers) of that edition to the public.

     It is requested, but not required, that you contact the authors of
     the Document well before redistributing any large number of
     copies, to give them a chance to provide you with an updated
     version of the Document.

  4. MODIFICATIONS

     You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document
     under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you
     release the Modified Version under precisely this License, with
     the Modified Version filling the role of the Document, thus
     licensing distribution and modification of the Modified Version to
     whoever possesses a copy of it.  In addition, you must do these
     things in the Modified Version:

       A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title
          distinct from that of the Document, and from those of
          previous versions (which should, if there were any, be listed
          in the History section of the Document).  You may use the
          same title as a previous version if the original publisher of
          that version gives permission.

       B. List on the Title Page, as authors, one or more persons or
          entities responsible for authorship of the modifications in
          the Modified Version, together with at least five of the
          principal authors of the Document (all of its principal
          authors, if it has fewer than five), unless they release you
          from this requirement.

       C. State on the Title page the name of the publisher of the
          Modified Version, as the publisher.

       D. Preserve all the copyright notices of the Document.

       E. Add an appropriate copyright notice for your modifications
          adjacent to the other copyright notices.

       F. Include, immediately after the copyright notices, a license
          notice giving the public permission to use the Modified
          Version under the terms of this License, in the form shown in
          the Addendum below.

       G. Preserve in that license notice the full lists of Invariant
          Sections and required Cover Texts given in the Document's
          license notice.

       H. Include an unaltered copy of this License.

       I. Preserve the section Entitled "History", Preserve its Title,
          and add to it an item stating at least the title, year, new
          authors, and publisher of the Modified Version as given on
          the Title Page.  If there is no section Entitled "History" in
          the Document, create one stating the title, year, authors,
          and publisher of the Document as given on its Title Page,
          then add an item describing the Modified Version as stated in
          the previous sentence.

       J. Preserve the network location, if any, given in the Document
          for public access to a Transparent copy of the Document, and
          likewise the network locations given in the Document for
          previous versions it was based on.  These may be placed in
          the "History" section.  You may omit a network location for a
          work that was published at least four years before the
          Document itself, or if the original publisher of the version
          it refers to gives permission.

       K. For any section Entitled "Acknowledgements" or "Dedications",
          Preserve the Title of the section, and preserve in the
          section all the substance and tone of each of the contributor
          acknowledgements and/or dedications given therein.

       L. Preserve all the Invariant Sections of the Document,
          unaltered in their text and in their titles.  Section numbers
          or the equivalent are not considered part of the section
          titles.

       M. Delete any section Entitled "Endorsements".  Such a section
          may not be included in the Modified Version.

       N. Do not retitle any existing section to be Entitled
          "Endorsements" or to conflict in title with any Invariant
          Section.

       O. Preserve any Warranty Disclaimers.

     If the Modified Version includes new front-matter sections or
     appendices that qualify as Secondary Sections and contain no
     material copied from the Document, you may at your option
     designate some or all of these sections as invariant.  To do this,
     add their titles to the list of Invariant Sections in the Modified
     Version's license notice.  These titles must be distinct from any
     other section titles.

     You may add a section Entitled "Endorsements", provided it contains
     nothing but endorsements of your Modified Version by various
     parties--for example, statements of peer review or that the text
     has been approved by an organization as the authoritative
     definition of a standard.

     You may add a passage of up to five words as a Front-Cover Text,
     and a passage of up to 25 words as a Back-Cover Text, to the end
     of the list of Cover Texts in the Modified Version.  Only one
     passage of Front-Cover Text and one of Back-Cover Text may be
     added by (or through arrangements made by) any one entity.  If the
     Document already includes a cover text for the same cover,
     previously added by you or by arrangement made by the same entity
     you are acting on behalf of, you may not add another; but you may
     replace the old one, on explicit permission from the previous
     publisher that added the old one.

     The author(s) and publisher(s) of the Document do not by this
     License give permission to use their names for publicity for or to
     assert or imply endorsement of any Modified Version.

  5. COMBINING DOCUMENTS

     You may combine the Document with other documents released under
     this License, under the terms defined in section 4 above for
     modified versions, provided that you include in the combination
     all of the Invariant Sections of all of the original documents,
     unmodified, and list them all as Invariant Sections of your
     combined work in its license notice, and that you preserve all
     their Warranty Disclaimers.

     The combined work need only contain one copy of this License, and
     multiple identical Invariant Sections may be replaced with a single
     copy.  If there are multiple Invariant Sections with the same name
     but different contents, make the title of each such section unique
     by adding at the end of it, in parentheses, the name of the
     original author or publisher of that section if known, or else a
     unique number.  Make the same adjustment to the section titles in
     the list of Invariant Sections in the license notice of the
     combined work.

     In the combination, you must combine any sections Entitled
     "History" in the various original documents, forming one section
     Entitled "History"; likewise combine any sections Entitled
     "Acknowledgements", and any sections Entitled "Dedications".  You
     must delete all sections Entitled "Endorsements."

  6. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS

     You may make a collection consisting of the Document and other
     documents released under this License, and replace the individual
     copies of this License in the various documents with a single copy
     that is included in the collection, provided that you follow the
     rules of this License for verbatim copying of each of the
     documents in all other respects.

     You may extract a single document from such a collection, and
     distribute it individually under this License, provided you insert
     a copy of this License into the extracted document, and follow
     this License in all other respects regarding verbatim copying of
     that document.

  7. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS

     A compilation of the Document or its derivatives with other
     separate and independent documents or works, in or on a volume of
     a storage or distribution medium, is called an "aggregate" if the
     copyright resulting from the compilation is not used to limit the
     legal rights of the compilation's users beyond what the individual
     works permit.  When the Document is included in an aggregate, this
     License does not apply to the other works in the aggregate which
     are not themselves derivative works of the Document.

     If the Cover Text requirement of section 3 is applicable to these
     copies of the Document, then if the Document is less than one half
     of the entire aggregate, the Document's Cover Texts may be placed
     on covers that bracket the Document within the aggregate, or the
     electronic equivalent of covers if the Document is in electronic
     form.  Otherwise they must appear on printed covers that bracket
     the whole aggregate.

  8. TRANSLATION

     Translation is considered a kind of modification, so you may
     distribute translations of the Document under the terms of section
     4.  Replacing Invariant Sections with translations requires special
     permission from their copyright holders, but you may include
     translations of some or all Invariant Sections in addition to the
     original versions of these Invariant Sections.  You may include a
     translation of this License, and all the license notices in the
     Document, and any Warranty Disclaimers, provided that you also
     include the original English version of this License and the
     original versions of those notices and disclaimers.  In case of a
     disagreement between the translation and the original version of
     this License or a notice or disclaimer, the original version will
     prevail.

     If a section in the Document is Entitled "Acknowledgements",
     "Dedications", or "History", the requirement (section 4) to
     Preserve its Title (section 1) will typically require changing the
     actual title.

  9. TERMINATION

     You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Document
     except as expressly provided under this License.  Any attempt
     otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute it is void,
     and will automatically terminate your rights under this License.

     However, if you cease all violation of this License, then your
     license from a particular copyright holder is reinstated (a)
     provisionally, unless and until the copyright holder explicitly
     and finally terminates your license, and (b) permanently, if the
     copyright holder fails to notify you of the violation by some
     reasonable means prior to 60 days after the cessation.

     Moreover, your license from a particular copyright holder is
     reinstated permanently if the copyright holder notifies you of the
     violation by some reasonable means, this is the first time you have
     received notice of violation of this License (for any work) from
     that copyright holder, and you cure the violation prior to 30 days
     after your receipt of the notice.

     Termination of your rights under this section does not terminate
     the licenses of parties who have received copies or rights from
     you under this License.  If your rights have been terminated and
     not permanently reinstated, receipt of a copy of some or all of
     the same material does not give you any rights to use it.

 10. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE

     The Free Software Foundation may publish new, revised versions of
     the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time.  Such new
     versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may
     differ in detail to address new problems or concerns.  See
     `http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/'.

     Each version of the License is given a distinguishing version
     number.  If the Document specifies that a particular numbered
     version of this License "or any later version" applies to it, you
     have the option of following the terms and conditions either of
     that specified version or of any later version that has been
     published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation.  If
     the Document does not specify a version number of this License,
     you may choose any version ever published (not as a draft) by the
     Free Software Foundation.  If the Document specifies that a proxy
     can decide which future versions of this License can be used, that
     proxy's public statement of acceptance of a version permanently
     authorizes you to choose that version for the Document.

 11. RELICENSING

     "Massive Multiauthor Collaboration Site" (or "MMC Site") means any
     World Wide Web server that publishes copyrightable works and also
     provides prominent facilities for anybody to edit those works.  A
     public wiki that anybody can edit is an example of such a server.
     A "Massive Multiauthor Collaboration" (or "MMC") contained in the
     site means any set of copyrightable works thus published on the MMC
     site.

     "CC-BY-SA" means the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
     license published by Creative Commons Corporation, a not-for-profit
     corporation with a principal place of business in San Francisco,
     California, as well as future copyleft versions of that license
     published by that same organization.

     "Incorporate" means to publish or republish a Document, in whole or
     in part, as part of another Document.

     An MMC is "eligible for relicensing" if it is licensed under this
     License, and if all works that were first published under this
     License somewhere other than this MMC, and subsequently
     incorporated in whole or in part into the MMC, (1) had no cover
     texts or invariant sections, and (2) were thus incorporated prior
     to November 1, 2008.

     The operator of an MMC Site may republish an MMC contained in the
     site under CC-BY-SA on the same site at any time before August 1,
     2009, provided the MMC is eligible for relicensing.


ADDENDUM: How to use this License for your documents
====================================================

To use this License in a document you have written, include a copy of
the License in the document and put the following copyright and license
notices just after the title page:

       Copyright (C)  YEAR  YOUR NAME.
       Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
       under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3
       or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
       with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover
       Texts.  A copy of the license is included in the section entitled ``GNU
       Free Documentation License''.

   If you have Invariant Sections, Front-Cover Texts and Back-Cover
Texts, replace the "with...Texts." line with this:

         with the Invariant Sections being LIST THEIR TITLES, with
         the Front-Cover Texts being LIST, and with the Back-Cover Texts
         being LIST.

   If you have Invariant Sections without Cover Texts, or some other
combination of the three, merge those two alternatives to suit the
situation.

   If your document contains nontrivial examples of program code, we
recommend releasing these examples in parallel under your choice of
free software license, such as the GNU General Public License, to
permit their use in free software.



Tag Table:
Node: Top544
Node: Overview2005
Node: Introduction to Line Editing4062
Node: Invoking Ed11305
Node: Line Addressing12953
Node: Regular Expressions16056
Node: Commands21401
Node: Limitations32546
Node: Diagnostics33121
Node: Problems33825
Node: GNU Free Documentation License34360

End Tag Table