Korn Shell: Unix and Linux Programming Manual, Third Edition, The

Vi Editing Mode

There are two typing modes. Initially, when you enter a command you are in the input mode. To edit, the user enters control mode by typing Escape (033) and moves the cursor to the point needing correction and then inserts or deletes characters or words as needed. Most control commands accept an optional repeat count prior to the command.

When in vi mode on most systems, canonical processing is initially enabled and the command will be echoed again if the speed is 1200 baud or greater and it contains any control characters or less than one second has elapsed since the prompt was printed. The Escape character terminates canonical processing for the remainder of the command and the user can then modify the command line. This scheme ...