levee(1)

NAME

levee - A Screen Oriented Editor.

SYNOPSIS

levee [+address] [file ...]

DESCRIPTION

Levee is a screen oriented editor based on the Unix edi

tor "vi". It provides a terse, powerful way to enter and edit

text (however, if you want a word-processor, you're better off

with WordStar.)

Levee is a moded editor. It operates in 3 modes -- visu

al, command, and insert. Most of the editing work is done is vi

sual mode, file reading and writing is done in command mode,

and insert mode does what you would expect.

When you enter Levee, you may specify an address to

start editing at. These addresses are in the same format as

command mode addresses, except that a naked + will put you at

the very end of the file.

Levee is copyright (c) 1982-1998 by David L. Parsons. (see

the notice at the end of this document for distribution terms)

COMMAND MODE COMMANDS

These commands are used for editing new files, writing

modified files, changing options, doing substitutions, and a

subset of the visual commands. They take as input whole lines,

terminated by return (to execute), or escape (to abort.)

Command mode is reached by typing ":" or "Q" from visual

mode. If you enter command mode by typing ":", Levee will exe

cute one command, then return to visual mode after prompt

ing you with "[more]". If you type anything except a space or

return, Levee will accept another command, and so forth. If,

however, you enter command mode via "Q", Levee will remain in

command mode until you enter the "visual" command.

A NOTE ON COMMAND SYNTAX

A command may be preceded by an optional line-range. If

you do not provide a line-range, Levee will use the default

line-range shown by the command. A line-range is one or two ad

dress specifications in the following format:

(.|$|'x|#) [ (+|-) (/patt/|?patt?|#) ]

. current line.

$ last line.

'x the line with mark x on it.

# line #.

For example, ".-5,.+5p" will print every line within ten

lines of the current line. "$-5" is the fifth line from the end

of the file, and "/end/+2" is the second line past the next

occurrence of the pattern "end". Patterns may be regular

expressions (see below.)

Also, a naked line-range will set the current line to

the first line in the range and print all the lines in that

range. "1,10" sets the current line to 1, then prints lines 1 to

10.

If you specify a non-existent line in a range, the comm

and will abort and Levee will tell you "bad address".

Command mode commands

args show the current argument list, if one exists. The

file that you are currently editing will be framed by '[' and

']'.

(.,.)change

delete lines, then enter insert mode.

(.,.)delete

delete lines. Deleted lines are stored in a Yank

Buffer for later putback with "put".

edit[!] [file]

Discard the current file and start editing a new

one. If changes were made to the current file, you must enter

"edit!" to force Levee to discard the changes. If you do not

specify a filename, Levee will try to reedit the current file

name.

When Levee reads in a new file, it will tell you

how many bytes it read in, or [overflow] if the file is larger

than the internal buffer (256000 bytes on most platforms; 20k on

USCD Pascal.)

execmode

Remain in command mode until you use the "visual"

command.

file[name]

Echo what the current filename is, its status, and

the current line. If you provide it with a name, it will change

the filename to that.

(.)insert

Insert text above the current line. If you specify

a line number, Levee will make that the current line, then insert

above it.

Insert mode commands

^W back over the last word you entered.

^H back over one character.

^U back over all input on this line.

^V escape the next character typed. (For example, ^V^H

will put a ^H into the file.)

ESC exit insert mode.

^D If at start of line, reduce indentation

'shiftwidth' columns.

^T If at start of line, increase indentation

'shiftwidth' columns.

When in insert mode, Levee will not allow you to enter any

control characters except return and tab. Return ends input on

this line and opens a new line for input.

map[!][key[text]]

Define/list macros. There are 3 forms of map:

map. This lists all the active macros.

map(key).

This shows the macro associated with (key), if any.

map(key) (text)

This maps (key) to (text). You may map any key ex

cept ":" and escape. In the normal form (map), the macro will be

effective in visual mode, but in the alternate form, (map!), the

macro will be effective in insert and command modes.

For example, if you map!ped return to "hello world", every

time you entered a return in command or visual mode, the string

"hello world" would pop up.

next[file...]

Edit the next file in the arglist, or edit a new

arglist. Levee takes its initial arglist off the command line

when you execute it. If "autowrite" is set, Levee will write out

the changes to the current file before editing the next one.

(.)open

Insert below the current line. Otherwise just like

insert.

previous

Edit the previous file in the arglist. Otherwise,

like next.

(.,.)print

Display lines without changing the current line.

(.)put Put the contents of the yank buffer back on the

line below the current line. If you specify a line, it resets the

current line, then puts the yank buffer back. The yank buffer is

filled by the delete, change, or yank commands. Put does not de

stroy the yank buffer, so you may put back text multiple times.

quit[!]

Exit Levee. If you want to discard changes, use

"quit!"

(.)read[file]

put the contents of 'file' after the current line.

rmfile Delete 'file' from disk.

set[option=value]

Set a tunable variable. Levee has a dozen or so us

er-definable variables which you can twiddle via this command.

There are boolean, integer, and string variables that you can

set. A string or integer variable is set by 'set xxx=yyy', a

boolean variable is set via

Here are the settable variables (and abbrevia

tions):

tabsize(ts)

tab stop.

shiftwidth(sw)

columns to shift on ^D, ^T, >>, or <<

scroll number of lines to scroll on ^D, ^U

autoindent(ai)

supply indentation during insert mode.

autowrite(aw)

write out changes before :next, :prev

autocopy(ac)

make backup copies of before writing.

list display tabs as ^I, end of line as $.

magic use regular expressions in searches.

suffix if the filename does not have a . in it, supply the

suffix. (this is the only string variable.)

overwrite(ow)

destroy old file first, then write.

beautify(be)

When set, Levee will not allow insert of any con

trol character except tab and return unless you escape it with

ctrl-V.

wrapscan

searches wrap around end of buffer.

ignorecase(ic)

Ignore the case of alphabetic characters during

searches.

mapslash

(ST version only) Map '/' in filenames to when lev

ee is called, this variable will default to true, otherwise it

defaults to false. (See the documentation for the Teeny-shell on

how the teeny-shell interprets `mapslash')

lines(li)

(ST version only) How many lines on the display.

This is primarily for running levee through the serial port - put

set li=xx into your LVRC for a xx line terminal.

cols(co)

(ST version only) How many columns on the display.

Like the lines variable, it's for running levee through the seri

al port.

You may set multiple variables on one line, as in 'set ws

noai'. To see the current settings of these variables, :set -

without any arguments -- will show the current settings.

At startup, Levee looks in the environment variable LVRC

for a list of variables to set (GEMDOS/MS-DOS). LVRC is one line

of the form 'option=value ...'. If you have a LVRC defined that

is 'ts=4 ow nows', Levee will set tabsize to 4, turn on over

write, and turn off wrapscan.

If you are using RMX, Levee looks in the file

":home:r?lvrc" for initialization. If you are using Osy/SWOs,

Levee looks in the file "*.lvrc". The format of these files are

different from the LVRC variable -- see "source" for more infor

mation.

sourcefile

Take command mode commands from 'file'. These com

mands can be any legal command, except "visual". If a error hap

pens during execution of 'file', Levee abandons that level of

source'ing.

In Osy/SWOs, there are a few differences in insert

mode from within a sourced file. No character has special meaning

except a line containing nothing but a period, which terminates

insert mode. For example:

:commands
:insert
blah blah blah blah blah blah
blah blah blah blah blah blah
blah blah blah blah blah blah
:more commands

If you are running Levee under any other operating system,

you cannot do a insert from a :source file.

(.,.)substitute(delim)patt(delim)repl(delim)[qcpg]

(.,.)substitute&

Search for patt and replace it with repl. Levee

will look for patt once on each line and replace it with repl.

The delimiter may be any ascii character.

The pattern is a regular expression, just like a

search pattern.

You may include parts of the pattern in the re

placement string; A '&' in the replacement pattern copies in the

whole source pattern, so if you do a 'sub/this/& and that/g', ev

ery instance of 'this' will be replaced with 'this and that'.

Also, you may pull parts of the pattern out by using the and ar

gument meta-characters. Arguments gotten by & are put into the

replacement string everywhere you do a 1..9 [ 1 is the first ar

gument you set up with & ]. So, if you want to reverse the order

of two substrings, you can do 'sub/-)ring1-)ring2/21/'.

substitute& redoes the last substitution.

Options:

q,c before doing the substitute, display the affected

line and wait for you to type a character. If you type 'y', it

will do the substitution. 'q' aborts the substitute, 'a' does

the rest of the change without prompting, and 'n' does not do it.

p print the affected lines after the change.

g do the change globally. That is, do it for every

occurence of patt on a line, rather than just once.

undo Undo the last modification to the file (except :ed

it, :next, :rm, or :write.) You can only undo the last change to

a file -- undo counts as a change. :undo followed by :undo does

nothing to the file.

unmap(key)

Undefine a macro (see map).

visual[list]

If you entered command mode by "Q" or "execmode",

return to visual mode. If you provide an argument list, it also

does a `:next' on that list.

version

Show which version of levee this is.

(.,.)write [file]

Write lines to a file. If you write the everything

to 'file', the filename is set to 'file', and if you do not spec

ify a file, Levee will write to the filename.

(.,.)wq [file]

Write to a file, then quit.

(.,.)yank

Yank lines from the file into the yank buffer, for

later putback with "put".

xit[!] Write changes to the current file, then exit. If

there are more files in the arglist, use "xit!"

![command]

Execute command.

Example:

!ls => does a 'ls'.

This command is available only under GEMDOS, MSDOS, RMX,

and Unix.

($)= Give the line number of the addressed line. /end/=

gives you the line number of the next line with a 'end' on it.

VISUAL MODE COMMANDS

Visual mode commands move you around and modify the file.

There are movement commands to move the cursor by a variety of

objects.

In the description, a (#) means a optional count. If a

command has a optional count, it will tell you what the count

does in parenthesis. A (*) means that the command can be used in

the delete, yank, and change commands.

Counts are made up by entering digits. If you type '45',

the count will be set to 45. To cancel a count, type ESC.

This section discusses 'whitespace' occasionally. Whites

pace is tabs, spaces, and end of line.

How the display works

Characters are displayed on the screen as you would

expect, except that nonprinting characters are shown as ^x,

and tabs expand to spaces ( unless you set the option list,

then they show as ^I.) When sitting on a control character or

tab, the cursor is placed on the FIRST character displayed. If

you move the cursor to any other part of them ( via j or k -

see below), any changes will start at the next character.

Levee does not display a end of file marker, but lines

past the end of the file are denoted by ~ lines.

If list is set, tabs display as ^I, and the end of line

displays as $.

If a line is too long for the screen, it will just dis

appear off the end of the screen.

Levee will handle any screen resolution and any monospaced

font you hand it ( if you are running in low resolution, Levee

will give you a 25x40 window, for example.)

Visual mode commands

^A Show a debugging message at the bottom of the

screen. This is not at all useful unless you are debugging the

editor. Ignore it.

(#)^D Scroll the screen down a half screen. If a count is

specified, scroll down the specified number of lines.

^E Scroll down 1 line (shorthand for 1^D )

^G Show file statistics. Exactly like ':file'.

(*)(#)^H

Move the cursor left one (count) chars.

^I Redraw the screen.

(*)(#)^J

Move down one (count) lines. When you use ^J and ^K

(below) to move up or down lines, the cursor will remain in the

same column, even if it is in the middle of a tabstop or past the

end of a line.

(*)(#)^K

Move up one (count) lines.

(*)(#)^L

Move right one (count) characters.

(*)(#)^M

Move to the first nonwhite space on the next line.

If a count is specified, move to the first nonwhite count lines

down.

(#)^U Scroll the screen up a half page. If a count is

specified, scroll up count lines.

^Y Scroll the screen up 1 line (shorthand for 1^U.)

(#)a Insert text AFTER the cursor. If you give a count,

the insertion will be repeated count times ( 40i-ESC will give

you a line of 40 dashes).

The commands in insert mode are the same for visual

and command mode.

(*)(#)b

Move to the beginning of the last word (the

count'th word back). A word is a collection of alphanumeric

characters (a-z0-9$_#) or any other nonwhite character (i.e. any

thing but space, tab, eoln).

c Change a object. Change deletes an object, then en

ters insert mode without redrawing the screen. When you tell it

the object to be changed, Levee puts a '$' on the last character

of the object. You cannot change backwards.

The object may be any visual mode command marked

with a '(*) '. For example, 'c4l' will change the next 4 charac

ters on the line to something else. (4cl does the same thing -

4c4l changes the next 16 characters on this line.)

´cc' will change whole lines.

When changing, deleting, or yanking a object, it

will be placed into a yank buffer, where it can be retrieved by

the 'p' or 'P' commands.

(#)d Delete an object. Like 'cc', 'dd' effects whole

lines.

(*)(#)e

Move to the end of the current word.

(*)(#)f(x)

Find the next (count'th) occurance of a character

on the current line. For example, if the cursor is sitting on

the first character of the line 'abcdef', typing "ff" will put

the cursor on the 'f'.

(*)(#)h

Move left one (count) characters. Exactly like ^H.

(#)i Start inserting characters at the cursor. If you

specify a count, the insertion will be duplicated count times.

(*)(#)j

Move down one (count) lines. Exactly like ^J.

(*)(#)k

Move up one (count) lines. Exactly like ^K.

,B (*) (#)l

Move right one (count) character. Exactly like ^L.

m(x) Set the marker (x). There are 26 markers available

(a-z). You may move to a marker by use of the ' or ` commands.

(*)n Find the next occurance of a search pattern. When

you do a search with a / or ? command, Levee will remember the

pattern and the direction you searched in. 'n' will search in the

same direction for the pattern, 'N' searches in the opposite di

rection.

o Open a line below the current line for insertion.

p Put yanked/deleted text back after the cursor. Text

is yanked by the delete (d,x,X,D), change (c,C,s,S), and yank

(y,Y) commands.

(#)r(x)

Replace characters (up to end of line) with (x).

'4ra' will change the next 4 characters after the cursor into

'aaaa'.

(#)s change one (count) characters. Shorthand for (#)cl.

(*)(#)t(x)

Move up to a character on the current line. If you

are on the first character of the line 'abcdef' and you type

'tf', you will end up sitting on the 'e'.

u Undo last modification. You can undo ANY modifica

tion command except :edit, :next, :rm, or :write. (Just like :un

do).

(*)(#)v

Move back to the very end of the previous

(count'th) word. See 'b' for the definition of a word.

(*)(#)w

Move up to the very beginning of the next

(count'th) word.

(#)x Delete one (count) characters forward. Shorthand

for (#)dl.

y Yank an object for later use by put. 'yy' yanks

whole lines.

A Append text at the end of the line. Shorthand for

$a.

(*)(#)B

Move to the beginning of the current word. Exactly

like 'b'.

NOTE: this is incorrect. the capitalized word move

ment commands should, and will in the future, be used for move

ment by space-delimited words.

C Change to the end of the line. Shorthand for c$.

D Delete to the end of the line. Shorthand for d$.

(*)(#)F(x)

Move to the first (count'th) previous occurance of

a character on the current line. If you are sitting at the end of

the line 'abcdef', typing "Fa" will move you back to the 'a' at

the start of the line.

(*)(#)G

Goto line. If you specify a count, Levee will move

to that line, and if there is no count, Levee moves to the abso

lute end of the file.

To get to the start of the file, type "1G". To the

end, just "G".

(*)H Move to the first nonwhite character at the top of

the screen.

I Insert at the end of the current line. Shorthand

for $i.

(#)J Join two (count+1) lines together. Joining appends

the second line at the end of the first, putting a space between

them. If the first line ends in whitespace, Levee will not put in

a space.

(*)L Move to the last nonwhite character on the last

line of the screen.

(*)M Move to the first nonwhite character in the middle

of the screen.

O Open a line above the current line. Otherwise works

just like 'o'.

P Put back the yank buffer at the cursor. Otherwise

works just like 'p'.

Q Enter and remain in command mode. Just like the

command :exec. To get back to visual mode, you must enter the

command ':visual'.

R Replace mode. A limited subset of insert mode that

overwrites characters up to end of line. All of the normal insert

mode commands apply. If you overwrite a character, then back

over it with ^H,^U, or ^W, it will reappear after you exit Re

place mode.

Escape exits replace mode.

NOTE: due to a bug, entering a <return> in Replace

mode will drop you back into visual mode with an error. The re

placements you have made will remain.

S Change characters backwards. Shorthand for (#)ch.

(*)(#)T(x)

Move back to character on current line. If you are

on the last character of the line 'abcdef', typing "Ta" will move

you back to the 'b'.

(*)(#)W

Move to end of word. Exactly like 'e'.

(#)X Delete characters backwards. Shorthand for (#)dh.

Y Yank to end of line. Shorthand for y$.

ZZ Write changes to current file and exit if last file

in arglist. Exactly like :xit.

(*)(#)$

Move to end of line. If you give a count, move to

the end of the (count-1) line down (so 2$ moves you to the end of

the next line.).

(*)% Find matching bracket, parenthesis, or squiggly

bracket. If you are not sitting on a '[]{}()', Levee will search

forward for one of them on the current line, then match whatever

it finds.

[space]

Move to the first nonwhite character on the current

line.

& Redo last substitution command.

(*)(#){

Move to the beginning of the count'th paragraph

back. A paragraph is delimited by a blank line.

(*)(#)}

Move to the end of the count'th paragraph forward.

(*)(#)(

Move to the beginning of the count'th sentence

back. A sentence is delimited by a ., a !, or a ? followed by a

space, a tab, or end of line.

(*)(#))

Move to the end of the count'th sentence forward.

(*)(#)

Move to the (count'th) previous line, first non

white.

(*)(#)+

Move to the (count'th) next line, first nonwhite.

(#)~ Change the case of the next count characters. Upper

case becomes lowercase, lowercase becomes uppercase.

(*)`(x)

Move to the exact position of mark (x). There is a

special mark for some of the visual mode move ment commands -- ''

will move you to where you were before the last (,),',`,G,/,?,n,N

command.

: Execute one command mode command. When the command

is done, it will return to visual mode if it produces one line of

output, but if it scrolls the screen, Levee will prompt [more]

before returning to visual mode. If you type a : in response to

the [more] prompt, Levee will remain in command mode for one more

command.

(#)<(#)

Shift one (count) objects left. If you specify a

second count, Levee will shift the object left that many columns

-- if you do not, they will be sh shifted shiftwidth columns.

This is a nondestructive shift. If the shift would

carry past the left margin, the objects will be moved up to the

left margin but no farther.

Like the other object movement commands, '<<' will

affect whole lines.

(#)>(#)

Shift one (count) objects right. Just like <, ex

cept it will not shift objects past the right margin of the

screen. If you do shift an object past the right margin of the

screen, all of its indent will be removed and it will end up by

the left margin.

. Repeat last modification command. (except undo)

(*)? Search for pattern backwards. Escape aborts the

search pattern, and a empty pattern means search for the last

pattern again.

(*)/ Search for pattern forwards. Otherwise like ?.

(#)| Move to specified column. If you don't have a

count, move to column 0.