aXe - an X editor

axe [ -toolkitoption ...] [ -option ... ] [ filename ... ] [ -buffer filename ...]

aXe is a simple to use text editor for X that represents a significant improvement over xedit. Also built around the Athena Text Widget it features, amongst other things,

o multiple windows o multiple buffers o default menu interface o configurable menus o optional configurable button interface o minibuffer for expert use and access to external filters o provision for defining a keyboard macro o geometry specification and resizing in terms of characters o file selection via a browser o knowledge of line numbers o parenthesis matching o regular expression searching o restricted or unlimited undo o ability to change font o easy entry of control codes o xterm-like keymap feature o easy runtime setting of selected preferences (resources) o both brief and comprehensive (hypertext) on-line help o server mode with cooperating client programs o optional extension language using Tcl o optional Xaw3d widget set compatability o collection of reusable widgets that embody the functionality of aXe

By default aXe provides a menu interface to some common Text Widget operations and most of its extra features. An optional button interface, in which there is one button present for every static menu entry, can be selected via the keyword -buttons, or by setting the top level resource buttons. A reduced button interface is configurable.

Individual file names on the command line will be allocated to separate windows. A list of file names introduced by the keyword -buffer will be allocated to buffers belonging to the same window (an older, still supported feature, enables the same to be achieved by quoting the list of names). Note that files destined for individual windows must precede those for buffers if the -buffer keyword is used. An initial number of windows to open can be specified on the command line by using the keyword -windows or by giving the top level resource windows a numeric value. The value of windows is ignored if the files specified on the command line require more than that number of windows.

If a top level geometry resource is provided, e.g. by using the toolkit keyword -geometry, then the width and height fields will be interpreted to mean the numbers of columns and rows respectively that editing widnows are to have.

aXe also acts as a server of editing windows to cooperating clients. Two, coaxe and faxe, are provided as part of the aXe suite. Server mode is the default, but can be switched off by using the command line keyword -noserver, or by setting the top level resource server False

aXe has comprehensive on-line help, so, to avoid having to keep the information up to date in two places, it will not be duplicated here.

That aXe makes use of code from Byron Rakitzis' rc command interpreter that is based on AT&T's Plan 9 shell of the same name is duly acknowledged.

xedit(1), Athena Widget (Xaw) documentation

Jim Wight (j.k.wight@newcastle.ac.uk)

Department of Computing Science, University of Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, NE1 7RU