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browse.mem
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VAX-11
Screen-Oriented Browsing Program
BROWSE
----------------
October 27, 1995
----------------
This manual documents BROWSE, a file browsing utility
Copyright 1995 by Thomas E. Dickey
Page iii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE
1.1 SPECIAL FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
1.2 COMMAND ENTRY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
1.3 SEARCHES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
1.4 SCREEN ORGANIZATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3
1.5 CONFIGURATION REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
CHAPTER 2 BROWSE COMMANDS
2.1 SCROLLING COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
2.1.1 Forward/Backward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
2.1.2 Aborting A Scrolling Operation . . . . . . . . . 2-2
2.1.3 Left/Right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
2.1.4 Column And Line Display . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
2.2 SEARCHING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
2.2.1 Initiating A Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
2.2.2 Continuing A Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
2.2.3 Aborting A Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
2.3 ALTERING THE DISPLAY FORMAT . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
2.3.1 Overstrikes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
2.3.2 Marks And Record Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
2.4 OTHER COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6
2.4.1 Exiting From BROWSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6
2.4.2 Help-Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
2.4.3 Screen-Refresh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
2.4.4 Screen-Dump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
2.4.5 Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
CHAPTER 3 INVOKING BROWSE
APPENDIX A COMMAND SUMMARY
Page iv
PREFACE
MANUAL OBJECTIVES
This manual describes the screen-oriented browsing program BROWSE and provides
usage and reference information on the program.
INTENDED AUDIENCE
This manual is intended for users of the VAX/VMS operating system who must
manage disk files. Users are expected to be familiar with the VMS directory
structure.
STRUCTURE OF THIS DOCUMENT
This manual contains three chapters and one appendix.
o Chapter 1, Introduction to BROWSE, provides an overview of BROWSE, and
describes screen manipulation and command entry.
o Chapter 2, BROWSE Commands, describes the keystroke commands which
BROWSE processes.
o Chapter 3, Invoking BROWSE, explains how to run BROWSE and describes
all of the command line qualifiers.
o Appendix A, Command Summary, describes all BROWSE commands in a short,
concise form.
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE
The BROWSE program permits you, the user, to browse a VMS file, scrolling up,
down, left or right. By using cursor- and screen-update optimization, BROWSE
provides you with rapid response. BROWSE is superior to the EDT screen editor
for applications which require examination, rather than modification.
1.1 SPECIAL FEATURES
Besides the basic scrolling functions, BROWSE provides you with other powerful
screen-oriented functions:
o BROWSE always shows the current position of the display-page in the
file, as well as the filename.
o Text which is underlined or overstruck is shown in the display by
highlighting.
o You may search for a string, either forward or backward. Text
matching the search-string is highlighted (instead of underlined
text).
o You may interrupt a search, so that if you accidentally begin a search
while examining a very large file, you can regain control of your
terminal.
o You may alter the format of the display, causing characters which
normally are used for carriage control (and are invisible) to become
visible.
o BROWSE provides you with a "ruler" command which shows you the line
number and column of any point in the file.
1.2 COMMAND ENTRY
Most commands recognized by BROWSE are single-keystroke. It maps all
alphabetic characters to the set of control characters (e.g., "F", "f" and
"CTRL/F" are equivalent).
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-2
Commands which require more information than a single keystroke prompt you in
the status line for the required information. There are two types of command
which result in a prompt:
1. Searches. BROWSE accepts any combination of printing characters for
a search target. The DELETE key and CTRL/U, CTRL/X have their normal
meaning (delete or cancel).
2. Numeric arguments. Certain commands (e.g., left/right scrolling)
accept an optional numeric argument. If you type a numeric digit,
BROWSE enters numeric-argument mode, echoing this digit as the first
character of your input and listing in the prompt the letters which
it will accept as a command. If you type a number followed by one of
these (alphabetic) characters, BROWSE will then execute the command.
For example, if you typed "12R", BROWSE would scroll right by 12
columns.
If you type a digit but do not wish to perform a command, type CTRL/X
or CTRL/U.
1.3 SEARCHES
BROWSE performs searches and displays their result in an unusual manner:
o The search string may contain only printable ASCII characters. This
restriction is made to eliminate the keypad-dependency of EDT. The
search itself is case-independent.
o Blanks within the search string are matched by any type of blank in
the file itself (e.g., space, TAB, RETURN, LINE-FEED and FORM-FEED).
Multiple blanks are treated as a single blank.
o Search-matches may not span a display-line. (A display-line is
normally synonymous with a record in the file).
o All positions on the display screen which match the search string are
highlighted. Thus, you may see all matches at a glance, rather than
by cursor movement.
o Positions which lie to the left or right of the screen cause the
corresponding end of the line to be highlighted. BROWSE does not
automatically scroll left/right to the search target.
o A search remains in effect until canceled (by searching for an empty
string). If you scroll about with an active search, BROWSE will
continue to highlight locations in the file which match the search
string.
Thus, rather than simply duplicate conventional searches (such as that
provided by EDT), BROWSE provides you with a powerful examination tool. By
treating all white-space the same, BROWSE allows you to ignore the exact
amount of spacing. The highlighting makes searches simpler by showing you all
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-3
occurrences, rather than each one, one at a time.
1.4 SCREEN ORGANIZATION
BROWSE reserves the last line of the screen for status display. It uses the
remainder of the screen to display your file.
Figure 1 shows a typical screen using BROWSE. Overstruck text (e.g., the
title "FLIST - Directory Editor") is highlighted. The file name is given in
the status line, as is the range of line numbers shown in the screen (i.e.,
"1:23"). The range of columns "1:69" is obtained from the current
screen-width (for this example, 70), and the amount by which the screen is
shifted. The length, in columns, of the longest line on the display is given
in parentheses, "(77)".
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:11:44
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
|FLIST - Directory Editor |
| |
| FLIST (directory editor) permits the user to sort directories, |
| files, delete rename or alter the protection code on files, a|
| dynamic display. |
| |
| Format: |
| |
| FLIST [*.*;*] |
| |
| |
|Options: |
| |
| /NOALL Suppress filename if no privilege for other data |
| /ALL (D) Read directory entries for all filenames, eve|
| insufficient privilege. |
| /DBACKUP Show backup dates instead of creation dates |
| /NODATE Suppress creation-date+time |
| /FAST Suppress all fields other than the filename (*3 fast|
| /NOFAST Open each file to obtain auxiliary information |
| date, size). |
| /NOOWNER Suppress display of owner code |
| /NOPROTECTION Suppress display of protection mask |
|FL.HLP; Lines 1:23 Cols 1:69 (77) |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 1 Sample Screen
You may direct BROWSE to display the same screen shifted to the right by
typing R. Scrolling and shifting are single-keystroke commands in BROWSE.
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-4
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:12:03
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| |
|the user to sort directories, examine |
| the protection code on files, all via a |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|if no privilege for other data |
|ntries for all filenames, even if |
|lege. |
|instead of creation dates |
|date+time |
|s other than the filename (*3 faster) |
| obtain auxiliary information (e.g., |
| |
|f owner code |
|f protection mask |
|FL.HLP; Lines 1:23 Cols 36:104 (77) |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 2 Sample Screen, Shifted Right
BROWSE permits you to change the display dynamically. The overstruck text is
composed by backspace-overstrikes. By toggling the O-command, you may see
these backspaces (i.e., "^H" is a CTRL/H, or backspace).
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-5
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:11:51
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
|D^HDI^HIR^HRE^HED^HD -^H- D^HDi^Hir^Hre^Hec^Hct^Hto^Hor^Hry^Hy E^HEd^|
|^M |
| FLIST (directory editor) permits the user to sort directories, |
| files, delete rename or alter the protection code on files, a|
| dynamic display.^M |
|^M |
| Format:^M |
|^M |
| FLIST [*.*;*]^M |
|^M |
|^M |
|O^HOp^Hpt^Hti^Hio^Hon^Hns^Hs:^H:^M |
|^M |
| /NOALL Suppress filename if no privilege for other data^M |
| /ALL (D) Read directory entries for all filenames, eve|
| insufficient privilege.^M |
| /DBACKUP Show backup dates instead of creation dates^M |
| /NODATE Suppress creation-date+time^M |
| /FAST Suppress all fields other than the filename (*3 fast|
| /NOFAST Open each file to obtain auxiliary information |
| date, size).^M |
| /NOOWNER Suppress display of owner code^M |
| /NOPROTECTION Suppress display of protection mask^M |
|FL.HLP; Lines 1:23 Cols 1:69 (89) |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 3 Sample Screen with Expanded Carriage Control
Even more detail is possible. You may direct BROWSE to show the file-address
(cumulative character count) of each display line, and the line number (modulo
100) before each line:
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-6
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:12:36
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 0.01:FLIST - Directory Editor |
| 70.02: |
| 74.03: FLIST (directory editor) permits the user to sort |
| 156.04: files, delete rename or alter the protection cod|
| 238.05: dynamic display. |
| 260.06: |
| 264.07: Format: |
| 278.08: |
| 282.09: FLIST [*.*;*] |
| 308.10: |
| 312.11: |
| 316.12:Options: |
| 344.13: |
| 348.14: /NOALL Suppress filename if no privilege for o|
| 418.15: /ALL (D) Read directory entries for all fil|
| 498.16: insufficient privilege. |
| 542.17: /DBACKUP Show backup dates instead of creation d|
| 606.18: /NODATE Suppress creation-date+time |
| 654.19: /FAST Suppress all fields other than the file|
| 730.20: /NOFAST Open each file to obtain auxiliary |
| 810.21: date, size). |
| 844.22: /NOOWNER Suppress display of owner code |
| 896.23: /NOPROTECTION Suppress display of protection mask |
|FL.HLP; Lines 1:23 Cols 1:56 (77):79 |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 4 Sample Screen Showing File-Address
Another keystroke transforms the file-address into record lengths:
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-7
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:12:43
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 68.01:FLIST - Directory Editor |
| 2.02: |
| 79.03: FLIST (directory editor) permits the user to sort |
| 79.04: files, delete rename or alter the protection cod|
| 20.05: dynamic display. |
| 2.06: |
| 11.07: Format: |
| 2.08: |
| 23.09: FLIST [*.*;*] |
| 2.10: |
| 2.11: |
| 26.12:Options: |
| 2.13: |
| 67.14: /NOALL Suppress filename if no privilege for o|
| 77.15: /ALL (D) Read directory entries for all fil|
| 42.16: insufficient privilege. |
| 62.17: /DBACKUP Show backup dates instead of creation d|
| 46.18: /NODATE Suppress creation-date+time |
| 74.19: /FAST Suppress all fields other than the file|
| 77.20: /NOFAST Open each file to obtain auxiliary |
| 31.21: date, size). |
| 49.22: /NOOWNER Suppress display of owner code |
| 54.23: /NOPROTECTION Suppress display of protection mask |
|FL.HLP; Lines 1:23 Cols 1:56 (77):79 |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 5 Sample Screen Showing Record-Lengths
By selecting "ruler-mode", you may use BROWSE to determine the column and line
number of any point in your file. The ruler is highlighted to make it more
readable.
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-8
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:13:27
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
|FLIST - Directory Editor |
| |
| FLIST (directory editor) permits the user to sort directories, |
| files, delete rename or alter the protection code on files, a|
| dynamic display. |
| |
| Format: |
| |
| FLIST [*.*;*] |
| |
| |
|Options: |
| |
| /NOALL Suppress filename if no privilege for other data |
| /ALL (D) Read directory entries for all filenames, eve|
| insufficient privilege. |
| /DBACKUP Show backup dates instead of creation dates |
| /NODATE Suppress creation-date+time |
| /FAST Suppress all fields other than the filename (*3 fast|
| /NOFAST Open each file to obtain auxiliary information |
| date, size). |
| /NOOWNER Suppress display of owner code |
| /NOPROTECTION Suppress display of protection mask |
|....+...10....+...20....+...30....+...40....+...50....+...60.... 9|
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 6 Sample Screen Showing Line/Column "Ruler"
Though BROWSE is designed primarily to browse text files, you may also examine
binary files with it. Figure 7 was obtained by setting the qualifiers
"/OVER:2" and "/MARK". This causes all control characters to be shown as ".",
and the record-address and line numbers as a display-prefix.
Note that unlike Figures 4 and 5, there are now four columns of numbers shown
in the prefix area. BROWSE normally displays one file-record on each display
line. However, if a LINE-FEED is found embedded within a record, BROWSE
begins a new display line. In Figure 7, the first column shows the record
file address, and the second the offset of the new display-line within the
record. Because the display lines and records are not synonymous, the record
number (third column) is shown separately, from the line number (fourth
column).
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-9
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:14:33
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 0......01.01:..0.@.L.....0204....................;#Qv........|
| .0141....02:......... .#.......$.......C.......D.......G... |
| .0189....03:...H.......l.?....}$.......!........... |
| .0229....04:VMSRTL_001.....$. |
| .0247....05:.....!.......T... |
| .0265....06:SCRSHR_001......................................|
| 512......02.07:all.date.dbackup.drevised.fast.owner.protection.|
| .0273....08:%s%s |
| .0278....09:..HLP.FLIST.more...... %s. ...Terminal must be V|
| .0345....10:..>..=..[0m.[20l..[?4l.?[%d;%d?.... |
| .0381....11:....-.%s: \%.8s\.$.%s |
| .0403....12:. 00:00:00.00.no.%d%c.%s: %s.%s: %s |
| .0439....13:. .Reading: %3d files.Working.....Command failed|
| 1024......03.14:ontinue.?help.?columns.?date.?level.?quota.?size|
| 1536......04.15:inspect.more.next.nfind.print..LIS.protect.purge|
| 2048......05.16:.%d.locked. . . .%%-%ds.%-6s. .%6.6d.%-6s. .%|
| 2560......06.17:licable.Repeated display-field: %s.%c., . (%s).D|
| 3072......07.18:u cannot view this file.EDIT.HOME.%s%s.HOME.EDTI|
| 3584......08.19:.OQ.Q.OR.R.OS.Op.?p.Oq.?q.Or.?r.Os.?s.Ot.?t.Ou.?|
| .0180....20:....;%d.r...You are not the file's owner.(NO Pri|
| 4096......09.21:roll .Up/.Down 1/2 screen (arrow).. R,L - sc|
| 4608......10.22: or arrow keys.Special:. K - Copy screen to|
| .0483....23:. Lines %d:%d Cols %d:%d (% |
|FL.EXE; Lines 1:23 Cols 1:56 (512):512 Records 1+ |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 7 Sample Screen Showing Binary File
The status line is extended to account for the additional information. The
":512" indicates the longest record length. The range of record numbers is
shown "1+", because (like the prefix line-numbers), the prefix record-numbers
are given modulo 100. Scrolling and ruler mode work properly when record
addresses and line numbers are shown. The prefix area is fixed on the screen;
the content alone is shifted:
INTRODUCTION TO BROWSE Page 1-10
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 07:15:43
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 0......01.01:06............"..... |
| .0141....02: |
| .0189....03: |
| .0229....04: |
| .0247....05: |
| .0265....06:................................................|
| 512......02.07:el: %d.%s.Total blocks: %d (%d allocated).%s.%s.|
| .0273....08: |
| .0278....09: |
| .0345....10: |
| .0381....11: |
| .0403....12: |
| .0439....13: |
| 1024......03.14:end./backward./home./middle./low./forward./colum|
| 1536......04.15:fix is legal only on sort-command.+.-.<number> u|
| 2048......05.16:;.%d.File '%s' is not a member of file-list.File|
| 2560......06.17:LIS.LOG.LST.MAP.OBJ.TMP.TM0.TM1.TM2.TM3.TM4.TM5.|
| 3072......07.18:ust be positive.Argument for QUIT must be '*' or|
| 3584......08.19:d..[H.[J...Two control/C's in succession trigger|
| .0180....20:it.. ? - display this message-screen. _|
| 4096......09.21:umn (in scale-mode, move cursor up too). I,J |
| 4608......10.22: - Toggle .OVER mode (3 states if /OVER, else |
| .0483....23: |
| ....+..130....+..140....+..150....+..160... 1|
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 8 Sample Screen Showing Shifted Binary File
1.5 CONFIGURATION REQUIREMENTS
BROWSE runs on any VT52, VT100 or other ANSI x3.64-compatible terminal.
BROWSE is written in VMS-C, and requires approximately 50 kilobytes of memory.
It has been tested under VMS versions 3.6, 3.7 and 4.0.
You may use it to examine any sequential VMS disk file.
CHAPTER 2
BROWSE COMMANDS
This chapter describes in detail the BROWSE browsing commands.
2.1 SCROLLING COMMANDS
BROWSE permits you to scroll forward or backward in units of a half-screen, or
left or right in units of a column. The restriction to half-screen scrolling
is made to reduce the overhead required to examine a file. This permits you
to examine files which are larger than those which you could edit.
Most scrolling operations are performed in a single keystroke. You may
provide a repeat-count to modify the basic half-screen operations.
2.1.1 Forward/Backward
You may scroll through your file in either direction. BROWSE provides you
with several commands for this purpose:
U The UP command (also CTRL/U) directs BROWSE to scroll up by one
half-screen. You may not scroll up past the beginning of the file.
D The DOWN command (also CTRL/D) directs BROWSE to scroll down by one
half-screen. You may not scroll past the end of the file.
F The FORWARD command (also CTRL/F and space) directs BROWSE to scroll
down by a full screen.
B The BACKWARD command (also CTRL/B) directs BROWSE to scroll up by a
full screen.
T The TOP command (also CTRL/T) directs BROWSE to scroll to the top of
the file (i.e., the first line).
E The END command (also CTRL/E) directs BROWSE to scroll to the end of
the file.
As you scroll or skip forward through a file, BROWSE constructs a table which
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-2
permits it to rapidly return to the places where you have been. This is
useful for returning to the end of the file. It also permits BROWSE to return
to the same point on upward scrolling. Each half-screen display overlaps by
one line. The overlap-lines are the tabulated positions in the file.
By supplying a number before the scrolling command, you direct BROWSE to
repeat that operation (without, of course the extra screen operations). For
example, if you type
10D
BROWSE will scroll forward by ten half-screens (normally 110 lines). (Repeat
counts are not applicable to the TOP and END commands.)
Whenever BROWSE skips forward into a part of the file it has not read before,
it displays (in the status line) the half-screen number which it is currently
reading. Because I/O on a heavily-loaded VMS system may be slow, this tells
you how far BROWSE has gotten. Scrolling to parts of the file which you have
previously viewed is much more rapid; BROWSE need reread only the text to
display on that screen.
The arrow keys (UP-ARROW and DOWN-ARROW) are normally assigned to the UP and
DOWN half-screen scrolling commands.
2.1.2 Aborting A Scrolling Operation
If you direct BROWSE to scroll to the end of a file, it will attempt to do
just that. However, you may change your mind; you hadn't realized just how
big the file really was. To stop BROWSE, type "X". This will cause BROWSE to
cease reading new pages. The last screen read will be displayed.
2.1.3 Left/Right
You may direct BROWSE to display the file shifted to the left or the right.
Unlike vertical scrolling, you may scroll left or right by single columns.
BROWSE provides you with several horizontal-scrolling commands:
H The HOME command (also CTRL/H, or backspace) returns the display to
the "home" column (the leftmost one).
J The JUMP command (also CTRL/J, or LINE-FEED) causes BROWSE to scroll
right until the end of the longest line (in the current range of
lines) is visible in the display.
L The LEFT command (also CTRL/L) causes BROWSE to scroll left by one
half-screen. You may not scroll left past the home-column.
R The RIGHT command (also CTRL/R) causes BROWSE to scroll right by one
half-screen. Right-scrolling is limited, based on the current display
mode and the maximum record length of the file.
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-3
You may modify the operation of the HOME, LEFT and RIGHT commands by providing
a number before the command:
o A number provided for the HOME command directs BROWSE to scroll left
or right, placing that particular column at the leftmost position in
the screen.
o A number provided for the LEFT or RIGHT command directs BROWSE to
scroll left or right by that number of columns.
The arrow keys (LEFT-ARROW and RIGHT-ARROW) are normally assigned to the LEFT
and RIGHT commands.
2.1.4 Column And Line Display
There are many applications in which you need to know the exact location of
parts of the file which you are examining. BROWSE provides you with a "ruler"
mode. When you select ruler-mode (by typing an underscore, "_") BROWSE
changes the status line to a combined scale plus line number. The cursor's
column is reflected in the scale; its line number is shown as well. Examples
of ruler-mode display are reproduced in Figures 1-6 and 1-8.
You may move the cursor in units of single columns or lines using the arrow
keys. You may temporarily exit ruler mode, and return. The cursor will
return to the point at which you exited ruler mode (unless, of course, you
scroll to a new screen).
The following commands are provided in ruler mode:
UP-ARROW
moves the cursor up one line. If the cursor is already at the
top-of-screen, BROWSE scrolls up by a half-screen.
DOWN-ARROW
moves the cursor down one line. If the cursor is already at the
bottom of the current screen, BROWSE scrolls down by a half-screen.
LEFT-ARROW
moves the cursor left one column. If the cursor is in the leftmost
display-column, BROWSE scrolls left by a half-screen.
RIGHT-ARROW
moves the cursor right one column. If the cursor is at the end of the
scale, BROWSE scrolls to the right by a half-screen.
H (also CTRL/H, or backspace) moves the cursor to the HOME-column. If
the cursor is already in the HOME-column, BROWSE moves the cursor up
one line.
I (also CTRL/I, or TAB) moves the cursor right, to the next tab stop
(multiples of 8 columns).
J (also CTRL/J, or LINE-FEED) moves the cursor to the end of the current
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-4
display line. If the cursor is already at the end of the display
line, BROWSE moves the cursor down one line.
You may modify the effect of the arrow keys, as well as the I-command by
prefixing the command with a repeat count.
In ruler mode, you may use the other BROWSE commands as well.
2.2 SEARCHING
BROWSE provides you with a simple, easy to use search command. It displays
the points in the file at which the target is found by highlighting each
occurrence.
2.2.1 Initiating A Search
To initiate a search, type "/" or "\". A forward slash ("/") initiates a
forward search; a backward slash ("\") a backward search. BROWSE will prompt
you for a search target. You may provide only printing characters (counting
space). To make corrections, use the DELETE key, or CTRL/U or CTRL/X to abort
the input. Hit the RETURN or ENTER key to complete the text-entry.
Whatever you have entered becomes the current search target. A space in your
target matches any number of white-space characters (i.e., space, TAB,
FORM-FEED or RETURN) in the display. BROWSE begins searching in the current
screen for matches against this target. If no matches are found, BROWSE
continues the search in the given direction. If BROWSE reaches the end of the
file without finding a match, it sounds an alarm, and retains its original
position. If a match is found, BROWSE scrolls to the corresponding screen and
highlights all matching positions. Matching positions which happen to lie to
the left or right of the current column limits are flagged by highlighting the
end of the display line closest to the match.
If you provide no input (i.e., by hitting CTRL/U or CTRL/X, or by simply
hitting RETURN), this clears the search target. If no search target is
active, BROWSE highlights overstruck text.
2.2.2 Continuing A Search
You may continue a search in either direction, regardless of the direction in
which you initiated it:
N The NEXT command (also CTRL/N) directs BROWSE to search forward in the
file, for the next matching positions.
P The PREVIOUS command (also CTRL/P) directs BROWSE to search backward
in the file, for the previous matches.
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-5
2.2.3 Aborting A Search
Searching a file always requires I/O, and can be slow. If you wish to stop a
search, type "X". This will cause BROWSE to halt the search, and return to
its original position.
2.3 ALTERING THE DISPLAY FORMAT
BROWSE is used to examine text files, rather than binary ones. You may direct
BROWSE to display your file in alternate forms to see its structure (i.e., the
actual characters used to make up overstrikes, and the record numbering). The
alternatives are intentionally limited to those which are applicable to text
(or printer) files. You may not, for instance, use BROWSE as a
screen-oriented hexadecimal dump (it strips parity from all characters). Nor
does BROWSE interpret escape sequences (it prevents them from affecting your
screen).
BROWSE, in fact, is designed to be quite robust. It can display the contents
of any sequential file without causing your terminal to lock up. Any control
characters which are not in its repertoire are converted to "^"-form (e.g.,
ESCAPE becomes "^["). You may use BROWSE to examine binary (".EXE" and
".OBJ") files. Note, however, that a LINE-FEED always causes BROWSE to begin
a new line.
2.3.1 Overstrikes
Normally BROWSE interprets overstruck text (created by either backspacing or
embedded RETURN characters) and highlights it. For binary files, this may be
inappropriate. Or you may wish to expand the sequence of characters which
make up the overstruck text. To do this, use the O-command ("O" only, not
CTRL/O). BROWSE will alter its interpretation of backspace and RETURN
characters. Backspaces are shown as "^H", and RETURN as "^M". Tab characters
also are shown as "^I". To undo this command, type "O" again; it simply
toggles the display.
If you have invoked BROWSE with the qualifier
/OVER:2
then the O-command becomes a three-state toggle. The third state shows all
control characters (except LINE-FEED) as a ".". This permits you to examine a
binary file looking only for character strings.
Figure 1-3 illustrates the second state of the O-command. Figures 1-7 and 1-8
illustrate the third state of the O-command.
2.3.2 Marks And Record Numbers
You may also use BROWSE to examine the record structure of a text file. VMS
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-6
files are organized in records which may be of any length up to 32768
characters. Files may have either variable record lengths, or fixed (i.e.,
all the same). For most text files, records are synonymous with lines, i.e.,
the record attributes imply carriage control at the end of each record.
However, there are files (such as those produced by RUNOFF) which do not have
carriage control. Also, even for files having carriage control attributes,
carriage control characters (e.g., LINE-FEED) may be embedded within a record.
BROWSE makes sense of all this and shows your file as it really is.
When it opens a file for examination, BROWSE allocates a buffer large enough
to show the longest display line which could be made. Files with no carriage
control attributes are assumed to be like those produced by RUNOFF: each
record contains characters as needed to produce the desired carriage control.
BROWSE appends records until a LINE-FEED is found, either explicitly, or as
part of the record attributes. (You may override this action with the
"/NOJOIN" qualifier).
A record may correspond to a fraction of a display line, or it may be one or
more display lines. You may examine the record structure of the display by
using the "^"- and M-commands:
o The "^" command sets MARK-mode. BROWSE redisplays the current screen
with a prefix before each line (see Figures 1-4, 1-5, 1-7 and 1-8).
There are either two or four columns of numbers shown in the prefix:
- If two, the first is the record file address (the number of
characters from the beginning of the file), and the second is
the display line number.
- If four, the first is the record file address, the second is
the offset into a record, and the third and fourth are the
record number and line number.
o The M-command (also CTRL/M or RETURN) toggles this prefix mode,
showing the record lengths, rather than their offsets. It is a
three-state toggle; the third state resumes the original display mode.
Normally the M-command becomes inactive again on reaching the original display
mode. If you use the qualifier
/MARKS
however, it is permanently enabled.
2.4 OTHER COMMANDS
The remaining BROWSE commands are all one-of-a-kind, but all useful:
2.4.1 Exiting From BROWSE
To exit from BROWSE, use the Q (quit) command, or Z (also CTRL/Z).
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-7
2.4.2 Help-Screen
You may obtain online help from BROWSE by typing "?" (or PF2). BROWSE
displays the help-screen shown in Figure 1:
Screen dumped: 21-JAN-1985 06:39:56
Image top: 0 bottom: 22
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
|BROWSE - Browsing program |
|Commands: |
| Q,Z - Quit. |
| ? - display this message-screen |
| _ - toggle scale/normal mode (alters arrow keys also) |
| T,E - scroll to Top/End of file. |
| F,B - scroll Forward/Backward by a full-screen. |
| U,D - scroll Up/Down 1/2 screen (arrow). |
| R,L - scroll Right/Left 1/2 screen (arrow) |
| H - scroll left to Home-column (in scale-mode, move cursor up |
| I,J - (scale-mode) move cursor to next tab stop or to next end-o|
| /,\ - search (if '\', backward) for a string |
| N,P - search for Next/Previous occurrence of string. |
| W - refresh display Window |
| X - aborts search/skip |
| <number> - Permit H,L/R scroll by specified number of columns, |
| or repeat of U,D,B,F,I or arrow keys |
|Special: |
| K - Copy screen to SNAPSHOT.CRT |
| M - Toggle MARK mode (active if /MARK option) |
| O - Toggle OVER mode (3 states if /OVER, else 2) |
| V - Display current Version |
| ^ - Toggle MARK (DEBUG) modes |
|FL.HLP; Lines 1:23 Cols 1:71 (77) |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 1 Help Summary
2.4.3 Screen-Refresh
If your screen becomes corrupted by line noise, or by unexpected system
messages, you may direct BROWSE to refresh the screen. The W command causes
BROWSE to re-read the current page and then redisplay it. A CTRL/W may be
given at any time (even while entering a search target), and refreshes the
screen without re-reading the page. The re-read operation is provided to make
BROWSE cleaner:
o If you have directed BROWSE to display the help-screen, the W command
will redisplay the file, rather than the help-screen.
o If you are using the M-command to display record marks, BROWSE may
discover in the middle of a page that the file actually has records
with embedded carriage control. The prefix jumps, from two columns of
BROWSE COMMANDS Page 2-8
numbers, to four. Requiring BROWSE to read each page first to
determine this case would make it slower. The W command re-reads the
page and makes the prefix columns all the same width.
2.4.4 Screen-Dump
You may obtain a copy of the screen contents by using the K command (also
CTRL/K). All of the figures in this document were generated using this
facility.
When you issue a screen-dump command, the screen driver makes a copy of the
current screen and writes it to a file:
SYS$LOGIN:SNAPSHOT.CRT
When you exit from BROWSE, this file is closed and you may print it.
Highlighting is represented in the snapshot-file by underlining. The time and
date of the snapshot are written to the file as well. Each time you invoke
the screen dump, BROWSE informs you of how many times you have done so.
The CTRL/K screen dump is recognized at all times by BROWSE. The K command,
of course, is not recognized during prompts.