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Getting Started with Pico

There is a editor on the PopNet that isn't fancy, but it's easy to learn, called Pico. To invoke the editor, type pico at the UNIX command prompt. If the display looks familiar to you, it's because Pico is the same editor used by the Pine Email system.

As in Pine, all commands are displayed at the bottom of the screen, and context-sensitive help is provided. As characters are typed they are immediately inserted into the text. To erase a character, simply backspace. Editing commands are entered using control-key combinations. The editor has five basic features: paragraph justification, searching, block cut/paste, a spelling checker, and a file browser.

Table of Contents

• Creating a New File
• Paragraph Justification
• String Searching
• Block Operations
• Spell Checking
• Save files
• Accessing Files
• Additional Pico Options
• Exit

Creating a New File

Invoke Pico from the command prompt by typing pico

The screen below will appear:

 UW PICO(tm) 2.5       New Buffer 







^G Get Help ^O WriteOut ^R Read File ^Y Prev Pg ^K Cut Text   ^C Cur Pos 

^X Exit     ^J Justify  ^W Where is  ^V Next Pg ^U UnCut Text ^T To Spell

Note:

• Use the arrow keys, not the mouse, to position the cursor
• The lines will automatically wrap to 80 characters. Force a new line by pressing the "Return" key.
• To delete a character,"Backspace" over it.
• Tabs are pre-set to every 10 characters.

Paragraph Justification

Paragraph justification (ctrl-J) "Justify" takes place in the paragraph that contains the cursor, or, if the cursor is between lines, in the paragraph immediately below. Paragraphs are delimited by blank lines, or by lines beginning with a space or tab. Unjustification can be done immediately after justification using the ctrl-U key combination.

String Searching

"Where is" (ctrl-W) begins searching for the string you enter at the current cursor position and wraps around the end of the text. The most recent search string is offered as the default in subsequent searches. Searches are not case sensitive.

Block Operations

Blocks of text can be moved, copied or deleted with creative use of the commands for marking, cutting and pasting.

• To Mark text position the cursor to the beginning of the text and press (ctrl-^) -- Hold down the control key and type a caret "^" which is the "6" key on most keyboards. Some PC keyboards may require that you use the sequence (ctrl-shift-^)
  Using the arrow keys, move the cursor to the end of the text. The cursor should not end up on the last character to be copied, but AFTER it.
• To Cut text press (ctrl-K) "Cut text"
• To Paste text press (ctrl-U) "Uncut text"

To Cut a block:

1. Mark
2. Cut

To Move a block:

1. Mark
2. Cut
3. Move cursor to new location using arrow keys
4. Paste

To Copy a block:

1. Mark
2. Cut
3. Paste (in place)
4. Move cursor to new location using arrow keys
5. Paste (again in new location)

As an exercise, start Pico and type in the lines:

Mary had a little lamb,
It's fleece was white as snow.

Using block cut & paste operations:

1. Mark the phrase "little lamb, "
2. Cut & paste it in place
3. Move the cursor to the end of the line and press "Return"
4. Paste the phrase again
5. Repeat steps 3 & 4
6. Now cut the entire first line "mary had a little lamb" [ If you cut without marking, the entire line will be cut. ]
7. Paste the line in place
8. Paste the line directly above "It's fleece..."

Your file should now resemble the nursery rhyme:

Mary had a little lamb,
little lamb,
little lamb,
Mary had a little lamb
It's fleece was white as snow.

Spell Check

"To spell" (ctrl-T) examines all words in the text. It then offers, in turn, each misspelled word for correction while highlighting it in the text. The program does not offer any suggestions as to correct spellings. To correct the spelling, type in the correction at the prompt. To accept the spelling, press "Return". The spell checker uses the standard UNIX dictionary. [By the way, you can accesss this online dictionary from any xterm window by typing the command: webster followed by the word.]

Save File

To save your file press (ctrl-O) "writeOut"

You will be prompted to supply a UNIX path and file name or you can go into the File Browser (ctrl-T).

Accessing Files

The file browser can be invoked following the "Read file" (ctrl-R) and "write Out" (ctrl-O) commands by typing (ctrl-T) "To files". Filenames, with sizes, and directory names in the current working directory are presented for selection. The current working directory is displayed on the top line of the display while the list of available commands takes up the bottom two. Several basic file manipulation functions are supported: file renaming, copying, and deletion.

UW PICO(tm) 2.5  BROWSER   Dir: /home/pirc14/spicer



..           (parent)           another.file     78 KB
myfile.wpg   28 B               myprogram.sas    3  KB


? Get Help E Exit Brwsr R Rename    -   Back Pg  D Del File M Make Copy
S Select   G Goto Dir   W Where is  Spc Fwd Pg

Additional Pico Options

To edit an existing file directly, invoke Pico with a filename by typing pico filename

You can disable the automatic wrap feature when you invoke Pico, allowing you to edit long lines, by typing pico -w

Exiting

To exit Pico, press (ctrl-X) "eXit"

Last modified: 04/27/06 | Contact Webmaster