This is readline.info, produced by makeinfo version 7.1 from rlman.texi.
This manual describes the GNU Readline Library (version 8.3, 30 December
2024), a library which aids in the consistency of user interface across
discrete programs which provide a command line interface.
Copyright © 1988-2025 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License,
Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software
Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and
no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the
section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".
INFO-DIR-SECTION Libraries
START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
* Readline: (readline). The GNU readline library API.
END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
File: readline.info, Node: Top, Next: Command Line Editing, Up: (dir)
GNU Readline Library
********************
This document describes the GNU Readline Library, a utility which aids
in the consistency of user interface across discrete programs which
provide a command line interface. The Readline home page is
.
* Menu:
* Command Line Editing:: GNU Readline User's Manual.
* Programming with GNU Readline:: GNU Readline Programmer's Manual.
* GNU Free Documentation License:: License for copying this manual.
* Concept Index:: Index of concepts described in this manual.
* Function and Variable Index:: Index of externally visible functions
and variables.
File: readline.info, Node: Command Line Editing, Next: Programming with GNU Readline, Prev: Top, Up: Top
1 Command Line Editing
**********************
This chapter describes the basic features of the GNU command line
editing interface.
* Menu:
* Introduction and Notation:: Notation used in this text.
* Readline Interaction:: The minimum set of commands for editing a line.
* Readline Init File:: Customizing Readline from a user's view.
* Bindable Readline Commands:: A description of most of the Readline commands
available for binding
* Readline vi Mode:: A short description of how to make Readline
behave like the vi editor.
File: readline.info, Node: Introduction and Notation, Next: Readline Interaction, Up: Command Line Editing
1.1 Introduction to Line Editing
================================
The following paragraphs use Emacs style to describe the notation used
to represent keystrokes.
The text ‘C-k’ is read as 'Control-K' and describes the character
produced when the key is pressed while the Control key is depressed.
The text ‘M-k’ is read as 'Meta-K' and describes the character
produced when the Meta key (if you have one) is depressed, and the
key is pressed (a “meta character”), then both are released. The Meta
key is labeled or