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READLINE(3)							   READLINE(3)

NAME
       readline	- get a	line from a user with editing

SYNOPSIS
       #include	<stdio.h>
       #include	<readline/readline.h>
       #include	<readline/history.h>

       char *
       readline	(const char *prompt);

COPYRIGHT
       Readline	 is  Copyright	(C) 1989-2004 by the Free Software Foundation,
       Inc.

DESCRIPTION
       readline	will read a line from the terminal and return it, using	prompt
       as  a  prompt.	If  prompt  is	NULL or	the empty string, no prompt is
       issued.	The line returned is allocated with malloc(3); the caller must
       free  it	 when  finished.   The	line  returned	has  the final newline
       removed,	so only	the text of the	line remains.

       readline	offers editing capabilities while the  user  is	 entering  the
       line.   By  default,  the line editing commands are similar to those of
       emacs.  A vi-style line editing interface is also available.

       This manual page	describes only the most	basic use of  readline.	  Much
       more  functionality  is available; see The GNU Readline Library and The
       GNU History Library for additional information.

RETURN VALUE
       readline	returns	the text of the	line read.  A blank line  returns  the
       empty string.  If EOF is	encountered while reading a line, and the line
       is empty, NULL is returned.  If an EOF is read with a  non-empty	 line,
       it is treated as	a newline.

NOTATION
       An emacs-style notation is used to denote keystrokes.  Control keys are
       denoted by C-key, e.g., C-n means Control-N.  Similarly,	meta keys  are
       denoted	by  M-key,  so M-x means Meta-X.  (On keyboards	without	a meta
       key, M-x	means ESC x, i.e., press the Escape key	then the x key.	  This
       makes  ESC the meta prefix.  The	combination M-C-x means	ESC-Control-x,
       or press	the Escape key then hold the Control key while pressing	the  x
       key.)

       Readline	commands may be	given numeric arguments, which normally	act as
       a repeat	count.	Sometimes, however, it is the  sign  of	 the  argument
       that  is	 significant.	Passing	 a negative argument to	a command that
       acts in the forward direction (e.g., kill-line) causes that command  to
       act  in	a  backward direction.	Commands whose behavior	with arguments
       deviates	from this are noted.

       When a command is described as killing text, the	text deleted is	 saved
       for possible future retrieval (yanking).	 The killed text is saved in a
       kill ring.  Consecutive kills cause the text to be accumulated into one
       unit, which can be yanked all at	once.  Commands	which do not kill text
       separate	the chunks of text on the kill ring.

INITIALIZATION FILE
       Readline	is customized by putting commands in  an  initialization  file
       (the  inputrc  file).  The name of this file is taken from the value of
       the INPUTRC environment variable.   If  that  variable  is  unset,  the
       default is ~/.inputrc.  If that file  does not exist or cannot be read,
       the ultimate default is /etc/inputrc.  When a program  which  uses  the
       readline	library	starts up, the init file is read, and the key bindings
       and variables are set.  There are only a	few basic  constructs  allowed
       in  the	readline init file.  Blank lines are ignored.  Lines beginning
       with a #	are comments.  Lines beginning with a $	 indicate  conditional
       constructs.   Other  lines  denote  key bindings	and variable settings.
       Each program using this library may add its own commands	and  bindings.

       For example, placing

	      M-Control-u: universal-argument
       or
	      C-Meta-u:	universal-argument

       into  the inputrc would make M-C-u execute the readline command univer-
       sal-argument.

       The following symbolic character	names are recognized while  processing
       key  bindings:  DEL,  ESC,  ESCAPE,  LFD, NEWLINE, RET, RETURN, RUBOUT,
       SPACE, SPC, and TAB.

       In addition to command names, readline allows keys to  be  bound	 to  a
       string that is inserted when the	key is pressed (a macro).

   Key Bindings
       The  syntax for controlling key bindings	in the inputrc file is simple.
       All that	is required is the name	of the command or the text of a	 macro
       and  a key sequence to which it should be bound.	The name may be	speci-
       fied in one of two ways:	as a symbolic key name,	possibly with Meta- or
       Control-	prefixes, or as	a key sequence.	 The name and key sequence are
       separated by a colon.  There can	be no whitespace between the name  and
       the colon.

       When using the form keyname:function-name or macro, keyname is the name
       of a key	spelled	out in English.	 For example:

	      Control-u: universal-argument
	      Meta-Rubout: backward-kill-word
	      Control-o: "> output"

       In the above example, C-u is bound to the function  universal-argument,
       M-DEL  is bound to the function backward-kill-word, and C-o is bound to
       run the macro expressed on the right hand side (that is,	to insert  the
       text ``>	output'' into the line).

       In  the	second	form,  "keyseq":function-name or macro,	keyseq differs
       from keyname above in that strings denoting an entire key sequence  may
       be  specified  by  placing the sequence within double quotes.  Some GNU
       Emacs style key escapes can be used, as in the following	 example,  but
       the symbolic character names are	not recognized.

	      "\C-u": universal-argument
	      "\C-x\C-r": re-read-init-file
	      "\e[11~":	"Function Key 1"

       In this example,	C-u is again bound to the function universal-argument.
       C-x C-r is bound	to the function	re-read-init-file, and ESC [ 1 1 ~  is
       bound to	insert the text	``Function Key 1''.

       The  full set of	GNU Emacs style	escape sequences available when	speci-
       fying key sequences is
	      \C-    control prefix
	      \M-    meta prefix
	      \e     an	escape character
	      \\     backslash
	      \"     literal ",	a double quote
	      \'     literal ',	a single quote

       In addition to the GNU Emacs style escape sequences, a  second  set  of
       backslash escapes is available:
	      \a     alert (bell)
	      \b     backspace
	      \d     delete
	      \f     form feed
	      \n     newline
	      \r     carriage return
	      \t     horizontal	tab
	      \v     vertical tab
	      \nnn   the  eight-bit  character	whose value is the octal value
		     nnn (one to three digits)
	      \xHH   the eight-bit character whose value  is  the  hexadecimal
		     value HH (one or two hex digits)

       When  entering  the  text of a macro, single or double quotes should be
       used to indicate	a macro	definition.  Unquoted text is assumed to be  a
       function	 name.	 In  the  macro	 body, the backslash escapes described
       above are expanded.  Backslash will quote any other  character  in  the
       macro text, including " and '.

       Bash  allows the	current	readline key bindings to be displayed or modi-
       fied with the bind builtin command.  The	editing	mode may  be  switched
       during  interactive  use	by using the -o	option to the set builtin com-
       mand.  Other programs using this	library	 provide  similar  mechanisms.
       The  inputrc  file may be edited	and re-read if a program does not pro-
       vide any	other means to incorporate new bindings.

   Variables
       Readline	has variables that can be used to further customize its	behav-
       ior.  A variable	may be set in the inputrc file with a statement	of the
       form

	      set variable-name	value

       Except where noted, readline variables can take the values  On  or  Off
       (without	 regard	 to  case).   Unrecognized variable names are ignored.
       When a variable value is	read, empty or null values, "on"  (case-insen-
       sitive),	and "1"	are equivalent to On.  All other values	are equivalent
       to Off.	The variables and their	default	values are:

       bell-style (audible)
	      Controls what happens when readline wants	to ring	 the  terminal
	      bell.  If	set to none, readline never rings the bell.  If	set to
	      visible, readline	uses a visible bell if one is  available.   If
	      set to audible, readline attempts	to ring	the terminal's bell.
       bind-tty-special-chars (On)
	      If  set  to On, readline attempts	to bind	the control characters
	      treated specially	by the kernel's	terminal driver	to their read-
	      line equivalents.
       comment-begin (``#'')
	      The  string  that	is inserted in vi mode when the	insert-comment
	      command is executed.  This command is bound to M-# in emacs mode
	      and to # in vi command mode.
       completion-ignore-case (Off)
	      If set to	On, readline performs filename matching	and completion
	      in a case-insensitive fashion.
       completion-query-items (100)
	      This determines when the user is queried about viewing the  num-
	      ber  of  possible	 completions generated by the possible-comple-
	      tions command.  It may be	set to any integer value greater  than
	      or  equal	 to  zero.   If	 the number of possible	completions is
	      greater than or equal to the value of this variable, the user is
	      asked  whether or	not he wishes to view them; otherwise they are
	      simply listed on the terminal.  A	negative value causes readline
	      to never ask.
       convert-meta (On)
	      If  set  to On, readline will convert characters with the	eighth
	      bit set to an ASCII key sequence by stripping the	eighth bit and
	      prefixing	 it  with an escape character (in effect, using	escape
	      as the meta prefix).
       disable-completion (Off)
	      If set to	On, readline will inhibit word completion.  Completion
	      characters  will	be  inserted into the line as if they had been
	      mapped to	self-insert.
       editing-mode (emacs)
	      Controls whether readline	begins with a set of key bindings sim-
	      ilar to emacs or vi.  editing-mode can be	set to either emacs or
	      vi.
       enable-keypad (Off)
	      When set to On, readline will try	to enable the application key-
	      pad  when	 it  is	 called.  Some systems need this to enable the
	      arrow keys.
       expand-tilde (Off)
	      If set  to  on,  tilde  expansion	 is  performed	when  readline
	      attempts word completion.
       history-preserve-point (Off)
	      If  set  to  on, the history code	attempts to place point	at the
	      same location on each history line retrieved with	 previous-his-
	      tory or next-history.
       horizontal-scroll-mode (Off)
	      When  set	 to  On, makes readline	use a single line for display,
	      scrolling	the input horizontally on a single screen line when it
	      becomes  longer  than the	screen width rather than wrapping to a
	      new line.
       input-meta (Off)
	      If set to	On, readline will enable eight-bit input (that is,  it
	      will  not	 clear	the  eighth  bit  in the characters it reads),
	      regardless of what the terminal claims it	can support.  The name
	      meta-flag	is a synonym for this variable.
       isearch-terminators (``C-[ C-J'')
	      The  string  of  characters that should terminate	an incremental
	      search without subsequently executing the	character  as  a  com-
	      mand.   If this variable has not been given a value, the charac-
	      ters ESC and C-J will terminate an incremental search.
       keymap (emacs)
	      Set the current readline keymap.	The set	of legal keymap	 names
	      is  emacs,  emacs-standard, emacs-meta, emacs-ctlx, vi, vi-move,
	      vi-command, and vi-insert.   vi  is  equivalent  to  vi-command;
	      emacs  is	 equivalent  to	 emacs-standard.  The default value is
	      emacs.  The value	 of  editing-mode  also	 affects  the  default
	      keymap.
       mark-directories	(On)
	      If set to	On, completed directory	names have a slash appended.
       mark-modified-lines (Off)
	      If  set  to  On,	history	lines that have	been modified are dis-
	      played with a preceding asterisk (*).
       mark-symlinked-directories (Off)
	      If set to	On, completed names which are symbolic links to	direc-
	      tories   have   a	 slash	appended  (subject  to	the  value  of
	      mark-directories).
       match-hidden-files (On)
	      This variable, when set to On, causes readline  to  match	 files
	      whose  names  begin  with	 a  `.'	(hidden	files) when performing
	      filename completion, unless the leading `.' is supplied  by  the
	      user in the filename to be completed.
       output-meta (Off)
	      If  set  to On, readline will display characters with the	eighth
	      bit set directly rather than as a	meta-prefixed escape sequence.
       page-completions	(On)
	      If  set to On, readline uses an internal more-like pager to dis-
	      play a screenful of possible completions at a time.
       print-completions-horizontally (Off)
	      If set to	On, readline will  display  completions	 with  matches
	      sorted  horizontally in alphabetical order, rather than down the
	      screen.
       show-all-if-ambiguous (Off)
	      This alters the default behavior of  the	completion  functions.
	      If set to	on, words which	have more than one possible completion
	      cause the	matches	to be listed immediately  instead  of  ringing
	      the bell.
       show-all-if-unmodified (Off)
	      This  alters the default behavior	of the completion functions in
	      a	fashion	similar	to show-all-if-ambiguous.  If set to on, words
	      which  have more than one	possible completion without any	possi-
	      ble partial completion (the possible completions don't  share  a
	      common  prefix)  cause  the  matches  to	be  listed immediately
	      instead of ringing the bell.
       visible-stats (Off)
	      If set to	On, a character	denoting a file's type as reported  by
	      stat(2)  is  appended to the filename when listing possible com-
	      pletions.

   Conditional Constructs
       Readline	implements a facility similar in  spirit  to  the  conditional
       compilation  features  of  the C	preprocessor which allows key bindings
       and variable settings to	be performed as	the result  of	tests.	 There
       are four	parser directives used.

       $if    The  $if construct allows	bindings to be made based on the edit-
	      ing mode,	the terminal being  used,  or  the  application	 using
	      readline.	  The text of the test extends to the end of the line;
	      no characters are	required to isolate it.

	      mode   The mode= form of the  $if	 directive  is	used  to  test
		     whether  readline	is  in	emacs or vi mode.  This	may be
		     used in conjunction with  the  set	 keymap	 command,  for
		     instance,	to  set	 bindings  in  the  emacs-standard and
		     emacs-ctlx	keymaps	only if	readline is  starting  out  in
		     emacs mode.

	      term   The  term=	 form may be used to include terminal-specific
		     key bindings, perhaps to bind the key sequences output by
		     the terminal's function keys.  The	word on	the right side
		     of	the = is tested	against	the full name of the  terminal
		     and  the portion of the terminal name before the first -.
		     This allows sun  to  match	 both  sun  and	 sun-cmd,  for
		     instance.

	      application
		     The application construct is used to include application-
		     specific  settings.   Each	 program  using	 the  readline
		     library  sets the application name, and an	initialization
		     file can test for a particular value.  This could be used
		     to	 bind key sequences to functions useful	for a specific
		     program.  For instance, the following command adds	a  key
		     sequence  that  quotes  the  current  or previous word in
		     Bash:

		     $if Bash
		     # Quote the current or previous word
		     "\C-xq": "\eb\"\ef\""
		     $endif

       $endif This command, as seen in the previous example, terminates	an $if
	      command.

       $else  Commands in this branch of the $if directive are executed	if the
	      test fails.

       $include
	      This directive takes a single filename as	an argument and	 reads
	      commands	and bindings from that file.  For example, the follow-
	      ing directive would read /etc/inputrc:

	      $include	/etc/inputrc

SEARCHING
       Readline	provides commands for searching	through	 the  command  history
       for  lines  containing a	specified string.  There are two search	modes:
       incremental and non-incremental.

       Incremental searches begin before the  user  has	 finished  typing  the
       search  string.	As each	character of the search	string is typed, read-
       line displays the next entry from the history matching the string typed
       so  far.	  An  incremental  search  requires only as many characters as
       needed to find the desired history entry.  To search  backward  in  the
       history for a particular	string,	type C-r.  Typing C-s searches forward
       through the history.  The  characters  present  in  the	value  of  the
       isearch-terminators  variable  are  used	 to  terminate	an incremental
       search.	If that	variable has not been assigned a value the Escape  and
       C-J characters will terminate an	incremental search.  C-G will abort an
       incremental search and restore the original line.  When the  search  is
       terminated,  the	history	entry containing the search string becomes the
       current line.

       To find other matching entries in the history list, type	C-s or C-r  as
       appropriate.   This  will search	backward or forward in the history for
       the next	line matching the search string	typed so far.  Any  other  key
       sequence	bound to a readline command will terminate the search and exe-
       cute that command.  For instance, a newline will	terminate  the	search
       and  accept  the	 line,	thereby	executing the command from the history
       list.  A	movement command will terminate	the search, make the last line
       found the current line, and begin editing.

       Non-incremental	searches read the entire search	string before starting
       to search for matching history lines.  The search string	may  be	 typed
       by the user or be part of the contents of the current line.

EDITING	COMMANDS
       The  following  is  a list of the names of the commands and the default
       key sequences to	which they are bound.  Command names without an	accom-
       panying key sequence are	unbound	by default.

       In the following	descriptions, point refers to the current cursor posi-
       tion, and mark refers to	a cursor position saved	by the	set-mark  com-
       mand.   The  text  between  the	point  and  mark is referred to	as the
       region.

   Commands for	Moving
       beginning-of-line (C-a)
	      Move to the start	of the current line.
       end-of-line (C-e)
	      Move to the end of the line.
       forward-char (C-f)
	      Move forward a character.
       backward-char (C-b)
	      Move back	a character.
       forward-word (M-f)
	      Move forward to the end of the next word.	 Words are composed of
	      alphanumeric characters (letters and digits).
       backward-word (M-b)
	      Move  back  to the start of the current or previous word.	 Words
	      are composed of alphanumeric characters (letters and digits).
       clear-screen (C-l)
	      Clear the	screen leaving the current line	 at  the  top  of  the
	      screen.	With  an  argument,  refresh  the current line without
	      clearing the screen.
       redraw-current-line
	      Refresh the current line.

   Commands for	Manipulating the History
       accept-line (Newline, Return)
	      Accept the line regardless of where the cursor is.  If this line
	      is  non-empty,  it  may  be added	to the history list for	future
	      recall with add_history().  If the line is  a  modified  history
	      line, the	history	line is	restored to its	original state.
       previous-history	(C-p)
	      Fetch the	previous command from the history list,	moving back in
	      the list.
       next-history (C-n)
	      Fetch the	next command from the history list, moving forward  in
	      the list.
       beginning-of-history (M-<)
	      Move to the first	line in	the history.
       end-of-history (M->)
	      Move  to	the end	of the input history, i.e., the	line currently
	      being entered.
       reverse-search-history (C-r)
	      Search backward starting at the current  line  and  moving  `up'
	      through  the  history  as	 necessary.   This  is	an incremental
	      search.
       forward-search-history (C-s)
	      Search forward starting at the current line  and	moving	`down'
	      through  the  history  as	 necessary.   This  is	an incremental
	      search.
       non-incremental-reverse-search-history (M-p)
	      Search backward through the history starting at the current line
	      using  a	non-incremental	 search	 for  a	string supplied	by the
	      user.
       non-incremental-forward-search-history (M-n)
	      Search forward  through  the  history  using  a  non-incremental
	      search for a string supplied by the user.
       history-search-forward
	      Search  forward through the history for the string of characters
	      between the start	of the current line  and  the  current	cursor
	      position (the point).  This is a non-incremental search.
       history-search-backward
	      Search backward through the history for the string of characters
	      between the start	of the current line and	the point.  This is  a
	      non-incremental search.
       yank-nth-arg (M-C-y)
	      Insert  the  first argument to the previous command (usually the
	      second word on the previous line)	at point.  With	an argument n,
	      insert  the nth word from	the previous command (the words	in the
	      previous command	begin  with  word  0).	 A  negative  argument
	      inserts the nth word from	the end	of the previous	command.  Once
	      the argument n is	computed, the argument is extracted as if  the
	      "!n" history expansion had been specified.
       yank-last-arg (M-., M-_)
	      Insert  the last argument	to the previous	command	(the last word
	      of the  previous	history	 entry).   With	 an  argument,	behave
	      exactly  like  yank-nth-arg.   Successive	calls to yank-last-arg
	      move back	through	the history list, inserting the	last  argument
	      of each line in turn.  The history expansion facilities are used
	      to extract the last argument, as if the "!$"  history  expansion
	      had been specified.

   Commands for	Changing Text
       delete-char (C-d)
	      Delete  the character at point.  If point	is at the beginning of
	      the line,	there are no characters	in  the	 line,	and  the  last
	      character	typed was not bound to delete-char, then return	EOF.
       backward-delete-char (Rubout)
	      Delete  the  character  behind the cursor.  When given a numeric
	      argument,	save the deleted text on the kill ring.
       forward-backward-delete-char
	      Delete the character under the cursor, unless the	cursor	is  at
	      the end of the line, in which case the character behind the cur-
	      sor is deleted.
       quoted-insert (C-q, C-v)
	      Add the next character that you type to the line verbatim.  This
	      is how to	insert characters like C-q, for	example.
       tab-insert (M-TAB)
	      Insert a tab character.
       self-insert (a, b, A, 1,	!, ...)
	      Insert the character typed.
       transpose-chars (C-t)
	      Drag  the	 character  before point forward over the character at
	      point, moving point forward as well.  If point is	at the end  of
	      the  line, then this transposes the two characters before	point.
	      Negative arguments have no effect.
       transpose-words (M-t)
	      Drag the word before point past the  word	 after	point,	moving
	      point  over  that	 word  as well.	 If point is at	the end	of the
	      line, this transposes the	last two words on the line.
       upcase-word (M-u)
	      Uppercase	the current (or	 following)  word.   With  a  negative
	      argument,	uppercase the previous word, but do not	move point.
       downcase-word (M-l)
	      Lowercase	 the  current  (or  following)	word.  With a negative
	      argument,	lowercase the previous word, but do not	move point.
       capitalize-word (M-c)
	      Capitalize the current (or following)  word.   With  a  negative
	      argument,	capitalize the previous	word, but do not move point.
       overwrite-mode
	      Toggle  overwrite	mode.  With an explicit	positive numeric argu-
	      ment, switches to	overwrite mode.	 With an explicit non-positive
	      numeric argument,	switches to insert mode.  This command affects
	      only emacs mode; vi mode does overwrite differently.  Each  call
	      to readline() starts in insert mode.  In overwrite mode, charac-
	      ters bound to self-insert	replace	the text at point rather  than
	      pushing  the  text  to  the  right.   Characters	bound to back-
	      ward-delete-char replace	the  character	before	point  with  a
	      space.  By default, this command is unbound.

   Killing and Yanking
       kill-line (C-k)
	      Kill the text from point to the end of the line.
       backward-kill-line (C-x Rubout)
	      Kill backward to the beginning of	the line.
       unix-line-discard (C-u)
	      Kill  backward  from  point  to  the beginning of	the line.  The
	      killed text is saved on the kill-ring.
       kill-whole-line
	      Kill all characters on the current line, no matter  where	 point
	      is.
       kill-word (M-d)
	      Kill  from  point	 the  end  of  the current word, or if between
	      words, to	the end	of the next word.   Word  boundaries  are  the
	      same as those used by forward-word.
       backward-kill-word (M-Rubout)
	      Kill  the	 word  behind  point.  Word boundaries are the same as
	      those used by backward-word.
       unix-word-rubout	(C-w)
	      Kill the word behind point, using	white space as a  word	bound-
	      ary.  The	killed text is saved on	the kill-ring.
       unix-filename-rubout
	      Kill  the	 word  behind  point,  using white space and the slash
	      character	as the word boundaries.	 The killed text is  saved  on
	      the kill-ring.
       delete-horizontal-space (M-\)
	      Delete all spaces	and tabs around	point.
       kill-region
	      Kill  the	 text  between	the point and mark (saved cursor posi-
	      tion).  This text	is referred to as the region.
       copy-region-as-kill
	      Copy the text in the region to the kill buffer.
       copy-backward-word
	      Copy the word before point to the	kill buffer.  The word	bound-
	      aries are	the same as backward-word.
       copy-forward-word
	      Copy  the	 word  following  point	 to the	kill buffer.  The word
	      boundaries are the same as forward-word.
       yank (C-y)
	      Yank the top of the kill ring into the buffer at point.
       yank-pop	(M-y)
	      Rotate the kill ring, and	yank the new top.  Only	works  follow-
	      ing yank or yank-pop.

   Numeric Arguments
       digit-argument (M-0, M-1, ..., M--)
	      Add  this	digit to the argument already accumulating, or start a
	      new argument.  M-- starts	a negative argument.
       universal-argument
	      This is another way to specify an	argument.  If this command  is
	      followed	by one or more digits, optionally with a leading minus
	      sign, those digits define	the argument.  If the command is  fol-
	      lowed  by	 digits,  executing  universal-argument	again ends the
	      numeric argument,	but is otherwise ignored.  As a	special	 case,
	      if  this	command	is immediately followed	by a character that is
	      neither a	digit or minus sign, the argument count	for  the  next
	      command  is multiplied by	four.  The argument count is initially
	      one, so executing	this function the first	time makes  the	 argu-
	      ment count four, a second	time makes the argument	count sixteen,
	      and so on.

   Completing
       complete	(TAB)
	      Attempt to perform completion on the  text  before  point.   The
	      actual  completion performed is application-specific.  Bash, for
	      instance,	attempts completion treating the text  as  a  variable
	      (if  the	text begins with $), username (if the text begins with
	      ~), hostname (if the text	begins with @),	or command  (including
	      aliases  and  functions)	in  turn.  If none of these produces a
	      match, filename completion is  attempted.	  Gdb,	on  the	 other
	      hand,  allows completion of program functions and	variables, and
	      only attempts filename completion	under certain circumstances.
       possible-completions (M-?)
	      List the possible	completions of the text	before point.
       insert-completions (M-*)
	      Insert all completions of	the text before	point that would  have
	      been generated by	possible-completions.
       menu-complete
	      Similar  to complete, but	replaces the word to be	completed with
	      a	single match from the list of possible completions.   Repeated
	      execution	 of  menu-complete  steps through the list of possible
	      completions, inserting each match	in turn.  At the  end  of  the
	      list of completions, the bell is rung (subject to	the setting of
	      bell-style) and the original text	is restored.  An argument of n
	      moves  n	positions  forward  in the list	of matches; a negative
	      argument may be used to move backward through  the  list.	  This
	      command  is  intended  to	 be  bound  to	TAB, but is unbound by
	      default.
       delete-char-or-list
	      Deletes the character under the cursor if	not at	the  beginning
	      or  end  of  the	line (like delete-char).  If at	the end	of the
	      line, behaves identically	to possible-completions.

   Keyboard Macros
       start-kbd-macro (C-x ()
	      Begin saving the characters  typed  into	the  current  keyboard
	      macro.
       end-kbd-macro (C-x ))
	      Stop saving the characters typed into the	current	keyboard macro
	      and store	the definition.
       call-last-kbd-macro (C-x	e)
	      Re-execute the last keyboard macro defined, by making the	 char-
	      acters in	the macro appear as if typed at	the keyboard.

   Miscellaneous
       re-read-init-file (C-x C-r)
	      Read  in	the  contents of the inputrc file, and incorporate any
	      bindings or variable assignments found there.
       abort (C-g)
	      Abort the	current	editing	command	and ring the  terminal's  bell
	      (subject to the setting of bell-style).
       do-uppercase-version (M-a, M-b, M-x, ...)
	      If  the  metafied	character x is lowercase, run the command that
	      is bound to the corresponding uppercase character.
       prefix-meta (ESC)
	      Metafy the next character	typed.	ESC f is equivalent to Meta-f.
       undo (C-_, C-x C-u)
	      Incremental undo,	separately remembered for each line.
       revert-line (M-r)
	      Undo  all	changes	made to	this line.  This is like executing the
	      undo command enough times	to return  the	line  to  its  initial
	      state.
       tilde-expand (M-&)
	      Perform tilde expansion on the current word.
       set-mark	(C-@, M-<space>)
	      Set  the	mark to	the point.  If a numeric argument is supplied,
	      the mark is set to that position.
       exchange-point-and-mark (C-x C-x)
	      Swap the point with the mark.  The current  cursor  position  is
	      set  to the saved	position, and the old cursor position is saved
	      as the mark.
       character-search	(C-])
	      A	character is read and point is moved to	the next occurrence of
	      that  character.	 A negative count searches for previous	occur-
	      rences.
       character-search-backward (M-C-])
	      A	character is read and point is moved to	 the  previous	occur-
	      rence  of	 that character.  A negative count searches for	subse-
	      quent occurrences.
       insert-comment (M-#)
	      Without a	numeric	argument,  the	value  of  the	readline  com-
	      ment-begin  variable is inserted at the beginning	of the current
	      line.  If	a numeric argument is supplied,	this command acts as a
	      toggle:	if  the	characters at the beginning of the line	do not
	      match the	value of comment-begin,	the value is inserted,	other-
	      wise the characters in comment-begin are deleted from the	begin-
	      ning of the line.	 In either case, the line is accepted as if  a
	      newline  had  been  typed.   The	default	value of comment-begin
	      makes the	current	line a shell comment.  If a  numeric  argument
	      causes  the  comment  character  to be removed, the line will be
	      executed by the shell.
       dump-functions
	      Print all	of the functions and their key bindings	to  the	 read-
	      line output stream.  If a	numeric	argument is supplied, the out-
	      put is formatted in such a way that it can be made  part	of  an
	      inputrc file.
       dump-variables
	      Print  all  of  the  settable  variables and their values	to the
	      readline output stream.  If a numeric argument is	supplied,  the
	      output is	formatted in such a way	that it	can be made part of an
	      inputrc file.
       dump-macros
	      Print all	of the readline	key sequences bound to macros and  the
	      strings  they  output.   If  a numeric argument is supplied, the
	      output is	formatted in such a way	that it	can be made part of an
	      inputrc file.
       emacs-editing-mode (C-e)
	      When  in	vi command mode, this causes a switch to emacs editing
	      mode.
       vi-editing-mode (M-C-j)
	      When in emacs editing mode, this causes a	switch to  vi  editing
	      mode.

DEFAULT	KEY BINDINGS
       The  following is a list	of the default emacs and vi bindings.  Charac-
       ters with the eighth bit	set are	 written  as  M-<character>,  and  are
       referred	to as metafied characters.  The	printable ASCII	characters not
       mentioned in the	list of	emacs  standard	 bindings  are	bound  to  the
       self-insert  function,  which just inserts the given character into the
       input line.  In vi insertion mode, all characters not specifically men-
       tioned are bound	to self-insert.	 Characters assigned to	signal genera-
       tion by stty(1) or the terminal driver, such as C-Z or C-C, retain that
       function.   Upper  and  lower case metafied characters are bound	to the
       same function in	the emacs mode meta keymap.  The remaining  characters
       are  unbound,  which  causes  readline to ring the bell (subject	to the
       setting of the bell-style variable).

   Emacs Mode
	     Emacs Standard bindings

	     "C-@"  set-mark
	     "C-A"  beginning-of-line
	     "C-B"  backward-char
	     "C-D"  delete-char
	     "C-E"  end-of-line
	     "C-F"  forward-char
	     "C-G"  abort
	     "C-H"  backward-delete-char
	     "C-I"  complete
	     "C-J"  accept-line
	     "C-K"  kill-line
	     "C-L"  clear-screen
	     "C-M"  accept-line
	     "C-N"  next-history
	     "C-P"  previous-history
	     "C-Q"  quoted-insert
	     "C-R"  reverse-search-history
	     "C-S"  forward-search-history
	     "C-T"  transpose-chars
	     "C-U"  unix-line-discard
	     "C-V"  quoted-insert
	     "C-W"  unix-word-rubout
	     "C-Y"  yank
	     "C-]"  character-search
	     "C-_"  undo
	     " " to "/"	 self-insert
	     "0"  to "9"  self-insert
	     ":"  to "~"  self-insert
	     "C-?"  backward-delete-char

	     Emacs Meta	bindings

	     "M-C-G"  abort
	     "M-C-H"  backward-kill-word
	     "M-C-I"  tab-insert
	     "M-C-J"  vi-editing-mode
	     "M-C-M"  vi-editing-mode
	     "M-C-R"  revert-line
	     "M-C-Y"  yank-nth-arg
	     "M-C-["  complete
	     "M-C-]"  character-search-backward
	     "M-space"	set-mark
	     "M-#"  insert-comment
	     "M-&"  tilde-expand
	     "M-*"  insert-completions
	     "M--"  digit-argument
	     "M-."  yank-last-arg
	     "M-0"  digit-argument
	     "M-1"  digit-argument
	     "M-2"  digit-argument
	     "M-3"  digit-argument
	     "M-4"  digit-argument
	     "M-5"  digit-argument
	     "M-6"  digit-argument
	     "M-7"  digit-argument
	     "M-8"  digit-argument
	     "M-9"  digit-argument
	     "M-<"  beginning-of-history
	     "M-="  possible-completions
	     "M->"  end-of-history
	     "M-?"  possible-completions
	     "M-B"  backward-word
	     "M-C"  capitalize-word
	     "M-D"  kill-word
	     "M-F"  forward-word
	     "M-L"  downcase-word
	     "M-N"  non-incremental-forward-search-history
	     "M-P"  non-incremental-reverse-search-history
	     "M-R"  revert-line
	     "M-T"  transpose-words
	     "M-U"  upcase-word
	     "M-Y"  yank-pop
	     "M-\"  delete-horizontal-space
	     "M-~"  tilde-expand
	     "M-C-?"  backward-kill-word
	     "M-_"  yank-last-arg

	     Emacs Control-X bindings

	     "C-XC-G"  abort
	     "C-XC-R"  re-read-init-file
	     "C-XC-U"  undo
	     "C-XC-X"  exchange-point-and-mark
	     "C-X("  start-kbd-macro
	     "C-X)"  end-kbd-macro
	     "C-XE"  call-last-kbd-macro
	     "C-XC-?"  backward-kill-line

   VI Mode bindings
	     VI	Insert Mode functions

	     "C-D"  vi-eof-maybe
	     "C-H"  backward-delete-char
	     "C-I"  complete
	     "C-J"  accept-line
	     "C-M"  accept-line
	     "C-R"  reverse-search-history
	     "C-S"  forward-search-history
	     "C-T"  transpose-chars
	     "C-U"  unix-line-discard
	     "C-V"  quoted-insert
	     "C-W"  unix-word-rubout
	     "C-Y"  yank
	     "C-["  vi-movement-mode
	     "C-_"  undo
	     " " to "~"	 self-insert
	     "C-?"  backward-delete-char

	     VI	Command	Mode functions

	     "C-D"  vi-eof-maybe
	     "C-E"  emacs-editing-mode
	     "C-G"  abort
	     "C-H"  backward-char
	     "C-J"  accept-line
	     "C-K"  kill-line
	     "C-L"  clear-screen
	     "C-M"  accept-line
	     "C-N"  next-history
	     "C-P"  previous-history
	     "C-Q"  quoted-insert
	     "C-R"  reverse-search-history
	     "C-S"  forward-search-history
	     "C-T"  transpose-chars
	     "C-U"  unix-line-discard
	     "C-V"  quoted-insert
	     "C-W"  unix-word-rubout
	     "C-Y"  yank
	     "C-_"  vi-undo
	     " "  forward-char
	     "#"  insert-comment
	     "$"  end-of-line
	     "%"  vi-match
	     "&"  vi-tilde-expand
	     "*"  vi-complete
	     "+"  next-history
	     ","  vi-char-search
	     "-"  previous-history
	     "."  vi-redo
	     "/"  vi-search
	     "0"  beginning-of-line
	     "1" to "9"	 vi-arg-digit
	     ";"  vi-char-search
	     "="  vi-complete
	     "?"  vi-search
	     "A"  vi-append-eol
	     "B"  vi-prev-word
	     "C"  vi-change-to
	     "D"  vi-delete-to
	     "E"  vi-end-word
	     "F"  vi-char-search
	     "G"  vi-fetch-history
	     "I"  vi-insert-beg
	     "N"  vi-search-again
	     "P"  vi-put
	     "R"  vi-replace
	     "S"  vi-subst
	     "T"  vi-char-search
	     "U"  revert-line
	     "W"  vi-next-word
	     "X"  backward-delete-char
	     "Y"  vi-yank-to
	     "\"  vi-complete
	     "^"  vi-first-print
	     "_"  vi-yank-arg
	     "`"  vi-goto-mark
	     "a"  vi-append-mode
	     "b"  vi-prev-word
	     "c"  vi-change-to
	     "d"  vi-delete-to
	     "e"  vi-end-word
	     "f"  vi-char-search
	     "h"  backward-char
	     "i"  vi-insertion-mode
	     "j"  next-history
	     "k"  prev-history
	     "l"  forward-char
	     "m"  vi-set-mark
	     "n"  vi-search-again
	     "p"  vi-put
	     "r"  vi-change-char
	     "s"  vi-subst
	     "t"  vi-char-search
	     "u"  vi-undo
	     "w"  vi-next-word
	     "x"  vi-delete
	     "y"  vi-yank-to
	     "|"  vi-column
	     "~"  vi-change-case

SEE ALSO
       The Gnu Readline	Library, Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
       The Gnu History Library,	Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
       bash(1)

FILES
       ~/.inputrc
	      Individual readline initialization file

AUTHORS
       Brian Fox, Free Software	Foundation
       bfox@gnu.org

       Chet Ramey, Case	Western	Reserve	University
       chet@ins.CWRU.Edu

BUG REPORTS
       If you find a bug in readline, you should report	it.   But  first,  you
       should  make  sure  that	it really is a bug, and	that it	appears	in the
       latest version of the readline library that you have.

       Once you	have determined	that a bug actually exists, mail a bug	report
       to  bug-readline@gnu.org.   If  you have	a fix, you are welcome to mail
       that as well!  Suggestions  and	`philosophical'	 bug  reports  may  be
       mailed  to  bug-readline@gnu.org	 or  posted  to	 the  Usenet newsgroup
       gnu.bash.bug.

       Comments	and bug	reports	concerning this	manual page should be directed
       to chet@ins.CWRU.Edu.

BUGS
       It's too	big and	too slow.

GNU Readline 5.2		  2006 Apr 26			   READLINE(3)

NAME | SYNOPSIS | COPYRIGHT | DESCRIPTION | RETURN VALUE | NOTATION | INITIALIZATION FILE | SEARCHING | EDITING COMMANDS | DEFAULT KEY BINDINGS | SEE ALSO | FILES | AUTHORS | BUG REPORTS | BUGS

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