1.11 Command-Line Editing
1.11 Command-Line Editing
As you play around with the shell, you may notice that you can edit the command line with the left and right arrow keys, as well as page through previous commands with the up and down arrows. This is as good as standard on almost any Linux system.
However, you should forget about the arrow keys and use control key sequences instead. If you learn and practice the ones listed in Table 1-2, you will have a great advantage when entering text in the many Unix programs that use these standard keystrokes.
|
Keystroke |
Action |
|---|---|
|
CONTROL-B |
Move cursor left |
|
CONTROL-F |
Move cursor right |
|
CONTROL-P |
View previous command (or move cursor up) |
|
CONTROL-N |
View next command (or move cursor down) |
|
CONTROL-A |
Move the cursor to the beginning of the line |
|
CONTROL-E |
Move the cursor to the end of the line |
|
CONTROL-W |
Erase the preceding word |
|
CONTROL-U |
Erase the entire line |
