Skip site navigation (1)Skip section navigation (2)

FreeBSD Manual Pages

  
 
  

home | help
MG(1)			     General Commands Manual			   MG(1)

NAME
     mg -- emacs-like text editor

SYNOPSIS
     mg [-nR] [-b file] [-f mode] [-u file] [+number] [file ...]

DESCRIPTION
     mg  is  intended  to  be  a small, fast, and portable editor for people who
     can't (or don't want to) run emacs for one reason or another,  or	are  not
     familiar  with the vi(1) editor.  It is compatible with emacs because there
     shouldn't be any reason to learn more editor types than emacs or vi(1).

     The options are as follows:

     +number
	     Go to the line specified by number (do not insert a  space  between
	     the  `+'  sign and the number).  If a negative number is specified,
	     the line number counts backwards from the end of the file i.e.  +-1
	     will  be the last line of the file, +-2 will be second last, and so
	     on.

     -b file
	     Turn on batch mode and execute the mg commands found in the  speci-
	     fied file and then terminate.

     -f mode
	     Run  the mode command for all buffers created from arguments on the
	     command line, including the scratch buffer and all files.

     -n      Turn off backup file generation.

     -R      Files specified on the command line will be opened read-only.

     -u file
	     Use file as the startup file, instead of the default ~/.mg.

WINDOWS AND BUFFERS
     When a file is loaded into mg, it is stored in a buffer.  This  buffer  may
     be  displayed  on	the screen in more than one window.  At present, windows
     may only be split horizontally, so each window is delineated by a	modeline
     at  the  bottom.	If changes are made to a buffer, it will be reflected in
     all open windows.

     If a file is changed outside mg and its buffer is about to be  changed,  mg
     prompts  if  the  change  should  go  ahead (y), not go ahead (n) or if the
     buffer should be reverted (r) to the latest file on disk.

     If a buffer name begins and ends with an asterisk, the buffer is considered
     throwaway; i.e. the user will not be prompted  to	save  changes  when  the
     buffer is killed.

POINT AND MARK
     The current cursor location in mg is called the point (or dot).  It is pos-
     sible  to define a window-specific region of text by setting a second loca-
     tion, called the mark.  The region is the text between point and  mark  in-
     clusive.	Deleting  the  character at the mark position leaves the mark at
     the point of deletion.

     Note: The point and mark are window-specific in mg, not buffer-specific, as
     in other emacs flavours.

BACKUP FILES
     Backup files have a `~' character appended to the file name and are created
     in the current working directory by  default.   Whether  to  create  backup
     files or not can be toggled with the make-backup-files command.  The backup
     file  location can either be in the current working directory, or all back-
     ups can be moved to a ~/.mg.d directory where files retain their path  name
     to  retain  uniqueness.  Use the backup-to-home-directory command to alter-
     nate between these two locations.	 Further,  if  any  application  creates
     backup  files in /tmp, these can be left with the leave-tmpdir-backups com-
     mand.

TAGS
     mg supports tag files created by ctags(1), allowing the user to quickly lo-
     cate various object definitions.  Note though that emacs  uses  etags,  not
     ctags.

CSCOPE
     mg  supports  navigating  source  code  using cscope.  However, mg requires
     cscope and cscope-indexer executables to be present in PATH for it to work.

DEFAULT KEY BINDINGS
     Normal editing commands are very similar to GNU Emacs.   In  the  following
     examples, C-x means Control-x, and M-x means Meta-x, where the Meta key may
     be  either a special key on the keyboard or the ALT key; otherwise ESC fol-
     lowed by the key X works as well.

	   C-SPC	 set-mark-command
	   C-a		 beginning-of-line
	   C-b		 backward-char
	   C-c s c	 cscope-find-functions-calling-this-function
	   C-c s d	 cscope-find-global-definition
	   C-c s e	 cscope-find-egrep-pattern
	   C-c s f	 cscope-find-this-file
	   C-c s i	 cscope-find-files-including-file
	   C-c s n	 cscope-next-symbol
	   C-c s p	 cscope-prev-symbol
	   C-c s s	 cscope-find-this-symbol
	   C-c s t	 cscope-find-this-text-string
	   C-d		 delete-char
	   C-e		 end-of-line
	   C-f		 forward-char
	   C-g		 keyboard-quit
	   C-h C-h	 help-help
	   C-h a	 apropos
	   C-h b	 describe-bindings
	   C-h c	 describe-key-briefly
	   C-j		 newline-and-indent
	   C-k		 kill-line
	   C-l		 recenter
	   RET		 newline
	   C-n		 next-line
	   C-o		 open-line
	   C-p		 previous-line
	   C-q		 quoted-insert
	   C-r		 isearch-backward
	   C-s		 isearch-forward
	   C-t		 transpose-chars
	   C-u		 universal-argument
	   C-v		 scroll-up
	   C-w		 kill-region
	   C-x C-b	 list-buffers
	   C-x C-c	 save-buffers-kill-emacs
	   C-x C-f	 find-file
	   C-x C-j	 dired-jump
	   C-x C-g	 keyboard-quit
	   C-x C-l	 downcase-region
	   C-x C-o	 delete-blank-lines
	   C-x C-q	 toggle-read-only
	   C-x C-r	 find-file-read-only
	   C-x C-s	 save-buffer
	   C-x C-u	 upcase-region
	   C-x C-v	 find-alternate-file
	   C-x C-w	 write-file
	   C-x C-x	 exchange-point-and-mark
	   C-x (	 start-kbd-macro
	   C-x )	 end-kbd-macro
	   C-x 0	 delete-window
	   C-x 1	 delete-other-windows
	   C-x 2	 split-window-vertically
	   C-x 4 C-f	 find-file-other-window
	   C-x 4 C-g	 keyboard-quit
	   C-x 4 b	 switch-to-buffer-other-window
	   C-x 4 f	 find-file-other-window
	   C-x =	 what-cursor-position
	   C-x ^	 enlarge-window
	   C-x `	 next-error
	   C-x b	 switch-to-buffer
	   C-x d	 dired
	   C-x e	 call-last-kbd-macro
	   C-x f	 set-fill-column
	   C-x g	 goto-line
	   C-x h	 mark-whole-buffer
	   C-x i	 insert-file
	   C-x k	 kill-buffer
	   C-x n	 other-window
	   C-x o	 other-window
	   C-x p	 previous-window
	   C-x s	 save-some-buffers
	   C-x u	 undo
	   C-y		 yank
	   C-z		 suspend-emacs
	   M-C-v	 scroll-other-window
	   M-SPC	 just-one-space
	   M-!		 shell-command
	   M-.		 find-tag
	   M-*		 pop-tag-mark
	   M-%		 query-replace
	   M-<		 beginning-of-buffer
	   M->		 end-of-buffer
	   M-\		 delete-horizontal-space
	   M-^		 join-line
	   M-b		 backward-word
	   M-c		 capitalize-word
	   M-d		 kill-word
	   M-f		 forward-word
	   M-h		 mark-paragraph
	   M-l		 downcase-word
	   M-m		 back-to-indentation
	   M-q		 fill-paragraph
	   M-r		 search-backward
	   M-s		 search-forward
	   M-t		 transpose-words
	   M-u		 upcase-word
	   M-v		 scroll-down
	   M-w		 copy-region-as-kill
	   M-x		 execute-extended-command
	   M-z		 zap-to-char
	   M-{		 backward-paragraph
	   M-|		 shell-command-on-region
	   M-}		 forward-paragraph
	   M-~		 not-modified
	   M-DEL	 backward-kill-word
	   C-_		 undo
	   )		 blink-and-insert
	   DEL		 delete-backward-char

     For a complete description of mg commands, see "MG COMMANDS".  To	see  the
     active keybindings at any time, type "M-x describe-bindings".

MG COMMANDS
     Commands  are invoked by "M-x", or by binding to a key.  Many commands take
     an optional numerical parameter, n.  This parameter is set either by  M-<n>
     (where  n	is the numerical argument) before the command, or by one or more
     invocations of the universal argument, usually bound to C-u.  When  invoked
     in  this  manner,	the  value of the numeric parameter to be passed is dis-
     played in the minibuffer before the M-x.  One common use of  the  parameter
     is  in mode toggles (e.g. make-backup-files).  If no parameter is supplied,
     the mode is toggled to its alternate state.  If  a  positive  parameter  is
     supplied, the mode is forced to on.  Otherwise, it is forced to off.

     apropos
	    Help Apropos.  Prompt the user for a string, open the *help* buffer,
	    and list all mg commands that contain that string.

     audible-bell
	    Toggle the audible system bell.

     auto-execute
	    Register  an  auto-execute hook; that is, specify a filename pattern
	    (conforming to the shell's filename globbing rules) and  an  associ-
	    ated  function to execute when a file matching the specified pattern
	    is read into a buffer.

     auto-fill-mode
	    Toggle auto-fill mode (sometimes called mail-mode)	in  the  current
	    buffer,  where  text  inserted past the fill column is automatically
	    wrapped to a new line.  Can be set globally with set-default-mode.

     auto-indent-mode
	    Toggle indent mode in the current buffer, where indentation is  pre-
	    served after a newline.  Can be set globally with set-default-mode.

     back-to-indentation
	    Move  the  dot  to the first non-whitespace character on the current
	    line.

     backup-to-home-directory
	    Save backup copies to a ~/.mg.d directory instead of working  direc-
	    tory.  Requires make-backup-files to be on.

     backward-char
	    Move cursor backwards one character.

     backward-kill-word
	    Kill text backwards by n words.

     backward-paragraph
	    Move  cursor  backwards  n	paragraphs.  Paragraphs are delimited by
	    <NL><NL> or <NL><TAB> or <NL><SPACE>.

     backward-word
	    Move cursor backwards by the specified number of words.

     beginning-of-buffer
	    Move cursor to the top of the buffer.  If set, keep mark's position,
	    otherwise set at current position.	A numeric argument n  will  move
	    n/10th of the way from the top.

     beginning-of-line
	    Move cursor to the beginning of the line.

     blink-and-insert
	    Self-insert  a character, then search backwards and blink its match-
	    ing delimiter.  For delimiters other than parenthesis, brackets, and
	    braces, the character itself is used as its own match.  Can be  used
	    in the startup file with the global-set-key command.

     bsmap-mode
	    Toggle bsmap mode, where DEL and C-h are swapped.

     c-mode
	    Toggle a KNF-compliant mode for editing C program files.

     call-last-kbd-macro
	    Invoke the keyboard macro.

     capitalize-word
	    Capitalize	n words; i.e. convert the first character of the word to
	    upper case, and subsequent letters to lower case.

     cd     Change the global working directory.  See also global-wd-mode.

     column-number-mode
	    Toggle whether the column number is displayed in the modeline.

     copy-region-as-kill
	    Copy all of the characters in the region to the kill buffer,  clear-
	    ing  the mark afterwards.  This is a bit like a kill-region followed
	    by a yank.

     count-matches
	    Count the number of lines matching the supplied regular expression.

     count-non-matches
	    Count the number of lines not matching the supplied regular  expres-
	    sion.

     cscope-find-this-symbol
	    List the matches for the given symbol.

     cscope-find-global-definition
	    List global definitions for the given literal.

     cscope-find-called-functions
	    List functions called from the given function.

     cscope-find-functions-calling-this-function
	    List functions calling the given function.

     cscope-find-this-text-string
	    List locations matching the given text string.

     cscope-find-egrep-pattern
	    List  locations  matching the given extended regular expression pat-
	    tern.

     cscope-find-this-file
	    List filenames matching the given filename.

     cscope-find-files-including-file
	    List files that #include the given filename.

     cscope-next-symbol
	    Navigate to the next match.

     cscope-prev-symbol
	    Navigate to the previous match.

     cscope-next-file
	    Navigate to the next file.

     cscope-prev-file
	    Navigate to the previous file.

     cscope-create-list-of-files-to-index
	    Create cscope's List and Index in the given directory.

     define-key
	    Prompts the user for a named keymap (mode), a key, and  an	mg  com-
	    mand, then creates a keybinding in the appropriate map.

     delete-backward-char
	    Delete backwards n characters.  Like delete-char, this actually does
	    a kill if presented with an argument.

     delete-blank-lines
	    Delete  blank  lines around dot.  If dot is sitting on a blank line,
	    this command deletes all the blank lines above and below the current
	    line.  Otherwise, it deletes all of the blank lines after  the  cur-
	    rent line.

     delete-char
	    Delete  n  characters forward.  If any argument is present, it kills
	    rather than deletes, saving the result in the kill buffer.

     delete-horizontal-space
	    Delete any whitespace around the dot.

     delete-leading-space
	    Delete leading whitespace on the current line.

     delete-trailing-space
	    Delete trailing whitespace on the current line.

     delete-matching-lines
	    Delete all lines after dot that contain a string matching  the  sup-
	    plied regular expression.

     delete-non-matching-lines
	    Delete  all lines after dot that don't contain a string matching the
	    supplied regular expression.

     delete-other-windows
	    Make the current window the only window visible on the screen.

     delete-window
	    Delete current window.

     describe-bindings
	    List all global and local keybindings, putting  the  result  in  the
	    *help* buffer.

     describe-key-briefly
	    Read a key from the keyboard, and look it up in the keymap.  Display
	    the name of the function currently bound to the key.

     diff-buffer-with-file
	    View the differences between buffer and its associated file.

     digit-argument
	    Process a numerical argument for keyboard-invoked functions.

     dired-jump
	    Open  a dired buffer containing the current buffer's directory loca-
	    tion.

     downcase-region
	    Set all characters in the region to lower case.

     downcase-word
	    Set characters to lower case, starting at  the  dot,  and  ending  n
	    words away.

     emacs-version
	    Return an mg version string.

     end-kbd-macro
	    Stop defining a keyboard macro.

     end-of-buffer
	    Move cursor to the end of the buffer.  If set, keep mark's position,
	    otherwise  set  at current position.  A numeric argument n will move
	    n/10th of the way from the end.

     end-of-line
	    Move cursor to the end of the line.

     enlarge-window
	    Enlarge the current window by shrinking either the window  above  or
	    below it.

     eval-current-buffer
	    Evaluate  the current buffer as a series of mg commands.  Useful for
	    testing mg startup files.

     eval-expression
	    Get one line from the user, and run it.  Useful for testing  expres-
	    sions in mg startup files.

     exchange-point-and-mark
	    Swap  the  values of "dot" and "mark" in the current window.  Return
	    an error if no mark is set.

     execute-extended-command
	    Invoke an extended command; i.e. M-x.  Call the message line routine
	    to read in the command name and apply autocompletion to it.  When it
	    comes back, look the name up in the symbol table and run the command
	    if it is found, passing arguments as necessary.  Print an  error  if
	    there is anything wrong.

     fill-paragraph
	    Justify a paragraph, wrapping text at the current fill column.

     find-file
	    Select  a file for editing.  First check if the file can be found in
	    another buffer; if it is there, just switch to that buffer.  If  the
	    file  cannot  be  found,  create a new buffer, read in the file from
	    disk, and switch to the new buffer.

     find-file-read-only
	    Same as find-file, except the new buffer is set to read-only.

     find-alternate-file
	    Replace the current file with an alternate one.  Semantics for find-
	    ing the replacement file are the same as find-file, except the  cur-
	    rent  buffer  is killed before the switch.	If the kill fails, or is
	    aborted, revert to the original file.

     find-file-other-window
	    Opens the specified file in a second  buffer.   Splits  the  current
	    window if necessary.

     find-tag
	    Jump to definition of tag at dot.

     forward-char
	    Move  cursor forwards (or backwards, if n is negative) n characters.
	    Returns an error if the end of buffer is reached.

     forward-paragraph
	    Move forward n paragraphs.	Paragraphs are delimited by <NL><NL>  or
	    <NL><TAB> or <NL><SPACE>.

     forward-word
	    Move the cursor forward by the specified number of words.

     global-set-key
	    Bind a key in the global (fundamental) key map.

     global-unset-key
	    Unbind  a  key from the global (fundamental) key map; i.e. set it to
	    'rescan'.

     global-wd-mode
	    Toggle global working-directory mode.  When enabled, mg defaults  to
	    opening  files  (and executing commands like compile and grep) rela-
	    tive to the global working directory.  When disabled, a working  di-
	    rectory is set for each buffer.

     goto-line
	    Go	to  a  specific line.  If an argument is present, then it is the
	    line number, else prompt for a line number to use.

     help-help
	    Prompts for one of (a)propos, (b)indings, des(c)ribe key briefly.

     insert
	    Insert a string, mainly for use from macros.

     insert-buffer
	    Insert the contents of another buffer at dot.

     insert-file
	    Insert a file into the current buffer at dot.

     insert-with-wrap
	    Insert the bound character with word wrap.	Check to  see  if  we're
	    past the fill column, and if so, justify this line.

     isearch-backward
	    Use  incremental  searching,  initially  in  the  reverse direction.
	    isearch ignores any explicit arguments.  If invoked during macro de-
	    finition or evaluation, the non-incremental search-backward  is  in-
	    voked instead.

     isearch-forward
	    Use  incremental  searching,  initially  in  the  forward direction.
	    isearch ignores any explicit arguments.  If invoked during macro de-
	    finition or evaluation, the non-incremental  search-forward  is  in-
	    voked instead.

     join-line
	    Join  the current line to the previous.  If called with an argument,
	    join the next line to the current one.

     just-one-space
	    Delete any whitespace around dot, then insert a space.

     keyboard-quit
	    Abort the current action.

     kill-buffer
	    Dispose of a buffer, by name.  If the buffer name does not start and
	    end with an asterisk,  prompt  the	user  if  the  buffer  has  been
	    changed.

     kill-line
	    Kill  line.  If called without an argument, it kills from dot to the
	    end of the line, unless it is at the end of the line, when it  kills
	    the  newline.   If	called	with an argument of 0, it kills from the
	    start of the line to dot.  If called with a  positive  argument,  it
	    kills from dot forward over that number of newlines.  If called with
	    a  negative  argument  it  kills  any text before dot on the current
	    line, then it kills back abs(n) lines.

     kill-paragraph
	    Delete n paragraphs starting with the current one.

     kill-region
	    Kill the currently defined region.

     kill-word
	    Delete forward n words.

     leave-tmpdir-backups
	    Modifies the behaviour of  backup-to-home-directory.   Backup  files
	    that  would  normally reside in /tmp are left there and not moved to
	    the ~/.mg.d directory.

     line-number-mode
	    Toggle whether the line number is displayed in the modeline.

     list-buffers
	    Display the list of available buffers.  The first column in the out-
	    put indicates which buffer is active with a '>' character.	The sec-
	    ond column indicates which buffers are modified.  The  third  column
	    indicates  which  buffers  are read-only.  The remaining columns are
	    self-explanatory.

     load   Prompt the user for a filename, and then execute commands from  that
	    file.

     local-set-key
	    Bind a key mapping in the local (topmost) mode.

     local-unset-key
	    Unbind a key mapping in the local (topmost) mode.

     make-backup-files
	    Toggle generation of backup files.	Enabled by default.

     make-directory
	    Prompt the user for a path or directory name which is then created.

     mark-paragraph
	    Mark n paragraphs.

     mark-whole-buffer
	    Marks  whole  buffer as a region by putting dot at the beginning and
	    mark at the end of buffer.

     meta-key-mode
	    When disabled, the meta key can be	used  to  insert  extended-ascii
	    (8-bit) characters.  When enabled, the meta key acts as usual.

     negative-argument
	    Process a negative argument for keyboard-invoked functions.

     newline
	    Insert a newline into the current buffer.

     newline-and-indent
	    Insert  a  newline, then enough tabs and spaces to duplicate the in-
	    dentation of the  previous	line,  respecting  no-tab-mode	and  the
	    buffer tab width.

     next-line
	    Move forward n lines.

     no-tab-mode
	    Toggle  notab  mode.   In this mode, spaces are inserted rather than
	    tabs.  Can be set globally with set-default-mode.

     not-modified
	    Turn off the modified flag in the current buffer.

     open-line
	    Open up some blank space.  Essentially, insert n newlines, then back
	    up over them.

     other-window
	    The command to make the next (down the screen)  window  the  current
	    window.  There are no real errors, although the command does nothing
	    if there is only 1 window on the screen.

     overwrite-mode
	    Toggle overwrite mode in the current buffer, where typing overwrites
	    existing characters rather than inserting them.  Can be set globally
	    with set-default-mode.

     prefix-region
	    Inserts  a	prefix	string before each line of a region.  The prefix
	    string is settable by using set-prefix-string or  by  invoking  this
	    command with a prefix argument.

     previous-line
	    Move backwards n lines.

     previous-window
	    This  command  makes the previous (up the screen) window the current
	    window.  There are no errors, although the command does not do a lot
	    if there is only 1 window.

     pop-tag-mark
	    Return to position where find-tag was previously invoked.

     push-shell
	    Suspend mg and switch to alternate screen, if available.

     pwd    Display current (global) working directory in the status area.

     query-replace
	    Query Replace.  Search and replace	strings  selectively,  prompting
	    after each match.

     replace-regexp
	    Replace regular expression globally without individual prompting.

     replace-string
	    Replace string globally without individual prompting.

     query-replace-regexp
	    Replace  strings  selectively.   Does a search and replace operation
	    using regular expressions for both patterns.

     quoted-insert
	    Insert the next character verbatim into the current buffer; i.e. ig-
	    nore any function bound to that key.

     re-search-again
	    Perform a regular expression search again,	using  the  same  search
	    string and direction as the last search command.

     re-search-backward
	    Search  backwards  using  a regular expression.  Get a search string
	    from the user, and search, starting at dot and proceeding toward the
	    front of the buffer.  If found, dot is left pointing  at  the  first
	    character of the pattern [the last character that was matched].

     re-search-forward
	    Search forward using a regular expression.	Get a search string from
	    the  user  and search for it starting at dot.  If found, move dot to
	    just after the matched characters.	display does all the hard stuff.
	    If not found, it just prints a message.

     recenter
	    Reposition dot in the current window.  By default, the dot	is  cen-
	    tered.   If  given	a  positive argument (n), the display is reposi-
	    tioned to line n.  If n is negative, it is that line from  the  bot-
	    tom.

     redraw-display
	    Refresh  the display.  Recomputes all window sizes in case something
	    has changed.

     revert-buffer
	    Revert the current buffer to the latest file on disk.

     save-buffer
	    Save the contents of the current buffer if it has been changed,  op-
	    tionally creating a backup copy.

     save-buffers-kill-emacs
	    Offer to save modified buffers and quit mg.

     save-some-buffers
	    Look  through  the list of buffers, offering to save any buffer that
	    has been changed.  Buffers that are not associated with files  (such
	    as *scratch*, *grep*, *compile*) are ignored.

     scroll-down
	    Scroll  backwards  n pages.  A two-line overlap between pages is as-
	    sumed.  If given a repeat argument, scrolls back lines, not pages.

     scroll-one-line-down
	    Scroll the display down n lines without changing  the  cursor  posi-
	    tion.

     scroll-one-line-up
	    Scroll the display n lines up without moving the cursor position.

     scroll-other-window
	    Scroll the next window in the window list window forward n pages.

     scroll-up
	    Scroll  forward  one  page.  A two-line overlap between pages is as-
	    sumed.  If given a repeat argument, scrolls back lines, not pages.

     search-again
	    Search again, using the same search string and direction as the last
	    search command.

     search-backward
	    Reverse search.  Get a search string  from	the  user,  and  search,
	    starting  at  dot and proceeding toward the front of the buffer.  If
	    found, dot is left pointing at the first character	of  the  pattern
	    (the last character that was matched).

     search-forward
	    Search  forward.   Get a search string from the user, and search for
	    it starting at dot.  If found, dot gets  moved  to	just  after  the
	    matched characters, if not found, print a message.

     self-insert-command
	    Insert a character.

     sentence-end-double-space
	    Toggle  double or single spaces for end of sentences.  Double is the
	    default.  Currently only affects fill-paragraph.

     set-case-fold-search
	    Set case-fold searching, causing case not to matter in  regular  ex-
	    pression searches.	This is the default.

     set-case-replace
	    Preserve the case of the replaced string.  This is the default.

     set-default-mode
	    Append the supplied mode to the list of default modes used by subse-
	    quent  buffer creation.  Built in modes include: fill, indent, notab
	    and overwrite.

     set-fill-column
	    Prompt the user for a fill column.	Used by auto-fill-mode.

     set-mark-command
	    Sets the mark in the current window to the current dot location.

     set-prefix-string
	    Sets the prefix string to be used by the prefix-region command.

     set-tab-width
	    Set the tab width for the current buffer, or  the  default	for  new
	    buffers if called with a prefix argument or from the startup file.

     shell-command
	    Execute  external  command from mini-buffer.  With a universal argu-
	    ment it inserts the command output into the current buffer.

     shell-command-on-region
	    Provide the text in region to the shell command as	input.	 With  a
	    universal argument it replaces the region with the command output.

     shrink-window
	    Shrink  current window by one line.  The window immediately below is
	    expanded to pick up the slack.  If only one window is present,  this
	    command has no effect.

     space-to-tabstop
	    Insert  enough  spaces  to reach the next tab-stop position.  By de-
	    fault, tab-stops occur every 8 characters.

     split-window-vertically
	    Split the current window.  A window smaller than 3 lines  cannot  be
	    split.

     start-kbd-macro
	    Start  defining  a keyboard macro.	Macro definition is ended by in-
	    voking end-kbd-macro.

     suspend-emacs
	    Suspend mg and switch back to alternate screen, if in use.

     switch-to-buffer
	    Prompt and switch to a new buffer in the current window.

     switch-to-buffer-other-window
	    Switch to buffer in another window.

     toggle-read-only
	    Toggle the read-only flag on the current buffer.

     toggle-read-only-all
	    Toggle the read-only flag on all non-ephemeral  buffers.   A  simple
	    toggle that switches a global read-only flag either on or off.

     transpose-chars
	    Transpose  the  two  characters in front of and under dot, then move
	    forward one character.  Treat newline characters  the  same  as  any
	    other.

     transpose-paragraphs
	    Transpose  adjacent  paragraphs.   If  multiple  iterations  are re-
	    quested, the current paragraph will be moved n paragraphs forward.

     transpose-words
	    Transpose adjacent words.

     undo   Undo the most recent action.  If invoked again without an  interven-
	    ing  command,  move the undo pointer to the previous action and undo
	    it.

     undo-boundary
	    Add an undo boundary.  This is not usually done interactively.

     undo-boundary-toggle
	    Toggle whether undo boundaries are generated.  Undo  boundaries  are
	    often  disabled  before  operations that should be considered atomi-
	    cally undoable.

     undo-enable
	    Toggle whether undo information is kept.

     undo-list
	    Show the undo records for the current buffer in a new buffer.

     universal-argument
	    Repeat the next command 4 times.  Usually bound to C-u.   This  com-
	    mand  may  be  stacked; e.g. C-u C-u C-f moves the cursor forward 16
	    characters.

     upcase-region
	    Upper case region.	Change all of the lower case characters  in  the
	    region to upper case.

     upcase-word
	    Move  the  cursor  forward	by the specified number of words.  As it
	    moves, convert any characters to upper case.

     visible-bell
	    Toggle the visible bell.  If this toggle is on,  the  modeline  will
	    flash.

     visit-tags-table
	    Load tags file to be used for subsequent find-tag.

     what-cursor-position
	    Display  a bunch of useful information about the current location of
	    dot.  The character under the cursor (in octal), the  current  line,
	    row,  and column, and approximate position of the cursor in the file
	    (as a percentage) is displayed.  The column position assumes an  in-
	    finite  position  display;	it  does  not  truncate just because the
	    screen does.

     write-file
	    Ask for a file name and write the contents of the current buffer  to
	    that  file.   Update  the  remembered file name and clear the buffer
	    changed flag.

     yank   Yank text from kill-buffer.  Unlike emacs, the mg kill  buffer  con-
	    sists only of the most recent kill.  It is not a ring.

     zap-to-char
	    Ask for a character and delete text from the current cursor position
	    until the next instance of that character, including it.

     zap-up-to-char
	    Like zap-to-char but doesn't delete the target character.

MG DIRED KEY BINDINGS
     Specific key bindings are available in dired mode.

	   DEL		       dired-unmark-backward
	   RET, e, f and C-m   dired-find-file
	   SPC, n	       dired-next-line
	   !		       dired-shell-command
	   +		       dired-create-directory
	   ^		       dired-up-directory
	   a		       dired-find-alternate-file
	   c		       dired-do-copy
	   d and C-d	       dired-flag-file-deletion
	   g		       dired-revert
	   j		       dired-goto-file
	   o		       dired-find-file-other-window
	   p		       dired-previous-line
	   q		       quit-window
	   r		       dired-do-rename
	   u		       dired-unmark
	   x		       dired-do-flagged-delete
	   C-v		       dired-scroll-down
	   M-v		       dired-scroll-up

MG DIRED COMMANDS
     The following are a list of the commands specific to dired mode:

     dired-create-directory
	     Create a directory.

     dired-do-copy
	     Copy the file listed on the current line of the dired buffer.

     dired-do-flagged-delete
	     Delete the files that have been flagged for deletion.

     dired-do-rename
	     Rename the file listed on the current line of the dired buffer.

     dired-find-alternate-file
	     Replace the current dired buffer with an alternate one as specified
	     by the position of the cursor in the dired buffer.

     dired-find-file
	     Open the file on the current line of the dired buffer.  If the cur-
	     sor is on a directory, it will be opened in dired mode.

     dired-flag-file-deletion
	     Flag the file listed on the current line for deletion.  This is in-
	     dicated  in the buffer by putting a D at the left margin.	No files
	     are actually deleted until the function dired-do-flagged-delete  is
	     executed.

     dired-find-file-other-window
	     Open  the file on the current line of the dired buffer in a differ-
	     ent window.

     dired-goto-file
	     Move the cursor to a file name in the dired buffer.

     dired-next-line
	     Move the cursor to the next line.

     dired-other-window
	     This function works just like dired, except that it puts the  dired
	     buffer in another window.

     dired-previous-line
	     Move the cursor to the previous line.

     dired-revert
	     Refresh the dired buffer while retaining any flags.

     dired-scroll-down
	     Scroll down the dired buffer.

     dired-scroll-up
	     Scroll up the dired buffer.

     dired-shell-command
	     Pipe  the	file  under  the current cursor position through a shell
	     command.

     dired-unmark
	     Remove the deletion flag for the file on the current line.

     dired-unmark-backward
	     Remove the deletion flag from the file listed on the previous  line
	     of the dired buffer, then move up to that line.

     dired-up-directory
	     Open a dired buffer in the parent directory.

     quit-window
	     Close the current dired buffer.

CONFIGURATION FILES
     There are two configuration files, .mg and .mg-TERM.  Here, TERM represents
     the name of the terminal type; e.g. if the terminal type is set to "vt100",
     mg will use .mg-vt100 as a startup file.  The terminal type startup file is
     used first.

     The  startup  file  format is a list of commands, one per line, as used for
     interactive evaluation.  Strings that are normally entered by the	user  at
     any subsequent prompts may be specified after the command name; e.g.:

	   global-set-key ")" self-insert-command
	   global-set-key "\^x\^f" find-file
	   global-set-key "\e[Z" backward-char
	   set-default-mode fill
	   set-fill-column 72
	   auto-execute *.c c-mode

     Comments  can  be	added  to the startup files by placing `;' or `#' as the
     first character of a line.

FILES
     ~/.mg			 normal startup file
     ~/.mg-TERM 		 terminal-specific startup file
     ~/.mg.d			 alternative backup file location
     /usr/share/doc/mg/tutorial  concise tutorial

SEE ALSO
     ctags(1), vi(1)

CAVEATS
     Since it is written completely in C, there  is  currently	no  language  in
     which  extensions	can be written; however, keys can be rebound and certain
     parameters can be changed in startup files.

     In order to use 8-bit characters (such as German  umlauts),  the  Meta  key
     needs to be disabled via the meta-key-mode command.

     Multi-byte character sets, such as UTF-8, are not supported.

FreeBSD ports 15.quarterly	  July 10, 2024 			   MG(1)

Want to link to this manual page? Use this URL:
<https://man.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=mg&manpath=FreeBSD+15.1-RELEASE+and+Ports.quarterly>

home | help