Learning the vi and Vim Editors, 7th Edition

nvi 1.79 Options

nvi 1.79 has a total of 78 options that affect its behavior. Table B-2 summarizes the most important ones. Most options described in Table B-1 are not repeated here.

Table B-2. nvi 1.79 set options

Option	Default	Description
backup	A string describing a backup filename to use. The current contents of a file are saved in this file before writing the new data out. A first character of N causes nvi to include a version number at the end of the file; version numbers are always incremented. "N%.bak" is a reasonable example.
cdpath	Environment variable CDPATH, or current directory	A search path for the :cd command.
cedit		When the first character of this string is entered on the colon command line, nvi opens a new window on the command history that you can then edit. Hitting ENTER on any given line executes that line. ESC is a good choice for this option. (Use ^V ^[ to enter it.)
comment	nocomment	If the first nonempty line begins with /*, //, or #, nvi skips the comment text before displaying the file. This avoids displaying long, boring legal notices.
directory (dir)	Environment variable TMPDIR, or /tmp	The directory where nvi puts its temporary files.
extended	noextended	Searches use egrep-style extended regular expressions.
filec		When the first character of this string is entered on the colon command line, nvi treats the blank delimited word in front of the cursor as if it had an * appended to it and does shell-style filename expansion. ESC is also a good choice for this option. (Use ...