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46.Working_With_Text_Editors.md

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Working with Editors

We can use editors to edit file content.
There are multiple editors available:

  1. geditor
  2. vi editor
  3. nano editor
    etc.

1. Working with geditor:

It is a graphical editor, similar to Windows Notepad.

Commands:

$ gedit file1.txt
$ gedit first.sh

Script Example:

echo "This is my first shell script"
mkdir dir{1..6}
echo "six directories got created"
date
cal

Making the Script Executable and Running It:

$ chmod u+x first.sh
$ ./first.sh

Note:

  • gedit can work only on the desktop version and does not work on server versions.
  • If we are connecting to a remote server using putty, then gedit cannot be used.
  • In such cases, we must use vi editor.

Key Differences:

  • gedit and nano are Linux-based editors.
  • vi editor is Unix-based.
  • vi editor can work in both desktop and server environments.

Working with vi Editor

vi means Visual Editor. It is used to create new files or edit existing files.

Basic Command to Open a File

vi file1.txt

  • If file1.txt does not exist, a new file will be created and opened for editing.

  • To save and exit this empty file, use :wq (w means save, and q means quit).

  • If the file already exists, vi will open the file ready for editing.

Modes in vi

The vi editor operates in three primary modes:

1. Command Mode

  • This is the default mode.
  • Allows the execution of vi commands.
  • Switch to Insert Mode by pressing:
    • i (commonly used)
    • Other commands like a, I, etc.

2. Insert Mode (or Input Mode)

  • Used to modify the file contents:
    • Insert new data.
    • Append to existing data.
  • Return to Command Mode by pressing <Esc>.

3. Exit Mode

  • Used to quit the editor.
  • Accessed from Command Mode by typing :.

Editing Commands in vi

Insert and Append Data

  • A : Append data at the end of the line.
  • I : Insert data at the beginning of the line.
  • a : Append data to the right of the cursor.
  • i : Insert data to the left of the cursor.

Delete Data

Character-wise Deletion

  • x : Delete the character under the cursor.
  • 3x : Delete 3 characters.
  • X : Delete the previous character.
  • 3X : Delete the previous 3 characters.

Word-wise Deletion

  • dw : Delete the current word.
  • 3dw : Delete 3 words.

Line-wise Deletion

  • dd : Delete the current line.
  • 3dd : Delete 3 lines.
  • d$ : Delete from the cursor to the end of the line.
  • d^ : Delete from the cursor to the beginning of the line.
  • dgg : Delete from the start of the file to the cursor.
  • dG : Delete from the cursor to the end of the file.

Replace Data

  • r : Replace the current character.
  • R : Replace multiple characters.
  • S or cc : Replace an entire line.

Open New Lines

  • O : Open a new line above the cursor.
  • o : Open a new line below the cursor.