nano

Using nano to edit the file my_file.txt.

UPPMAX has multiple text editors available. This page describes the GNU nano text editor.

Want to see a video?

See the YouTube video using nano on Rackham

GNU nano is a simple terminal text editor that is easy to learn.

Starting nano

Start nano on a terminal with:

nano

To start nano to edit a file (for example, my_file.txt, use:

nano my_file.txt

Using nano

The keyboard shortcuts are shown on-screen, where ^ denotes Ctrl and M the meta key.

OS specifics:

• On Windows, Alt is the meta key
• On Mac: in the Terminal.app, go to 'Preferences -> Settings -> Keyboard' and turn on "Use option as meta key", after which Alt is the meta key

Common tasks:

• Save a file: CTRL + O , then edit the filename and press enter
• Exit: CTRL + X, press "y" or "n" on some questions and/or press Enter to confirm.
• Help: CTRL + G

More tips can be found at the nano cheat sheet.