Linux Essentials

CHAPTER 11

Editing Files

Computer documents come in many forms, but one of the most basic and flexible is text files. Because of their importance and ubiquity, you must be able to edit text files. This chapter covers this task, with an emphasis on the simple text-mode pico, nano, and Vi editors. I begin by describing some of the roles that text files play. I then describe how to select a text editor. To edit text files, of course, you must be able to start the editor, either on an existing document or to create a new one. The pico and nano editors are quite similar to each other, so I describe their operation together, followed by Vi, which is a much more unusual editor by modern standards. I conclude this chapter with a look at conventions used ...