Читать книгу Linux Bible - Christopher Negus - Страница 142

It's almost impossible to use Linux for any period of time and not need a text editor because, as noted earlier, most Linux configuration files are plain-text files that you will almost certainly need to change manually at some point.

If you are using a GNOME desktop, you can run gedit (type gedit into the Search box and press Enter, or select Applications ➪ Accessories ➪ gedit), which is fairly intuitive for editing text. You can also run a simple text editor called nano from the shell. However, most Linux shell users use either the vi or emacs command to edit text files.

The advantage of vi or emacs over a graphical editor is that you can use the command from any shell, character terminal, or character-based connection over a network (using telnet or ssh, for example)—no graphical interface is required. They each also contain tons of features, so you can continue to grow with them.

The following sections provide a brief tutorial on the vi text editor, which you can use to manually edit a text file from any shell. It also describes the improved versions of vi called vim. (If vi doesn't suit you, see the sidebar “Exploring Other Text Editors” for further options.)

The vi editor is difficult to learn at first, but after you know it, you never have to use a mouse or a function key—you can edit and move around quickly and efficiently within files just by using the keyboard.