Virtual Private Server User Guide

Internet and UNIX Basics

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Text Editors

Much of the work that you perform while logged in to your server involves editing 

text files. For this reason, one of the first orders of business should be to become 

familiar with one of the provided text editors. 

The PICO Editor

The pico editor is one of the easiest text editors for new UNIX users to learn, and 

we will discuss it here. Keep in mind, however, that there are several others 

available to you such as vi and emacs, and we encourage you to try several 

editors to find which one you are most comfortable with. Be aware that pico is not 

available on all UNIX systems. We preinstall it for you, largely Because of its 

popularity and ease of use, we preinstall it on VPS servers.

To create a new file or edit an existing one, simply invoke the editor by typing the 

pico command, followed by the name of the file, as shown in the following syntax:

pico filename

If no such filename currently exists, pico will create a new file using the filename 

you specify.

Example: Create a new file called "hello" by typing the following at the command 

prompt:

> pico hello

The pico editor opens an 

empty file called  hello,  

and your screen will look 

something like the screen 

at right. 

Because the file is empty, 

the editing screen will 

appear blank.  

While in the editor, type some text, for example:

Testing 123

To save the new contents of this file, press Ctrl+X. Pico will ask if you would like to 

save the contents of the file. Press Y to do so. Finally, pico will ask you what to 

name the saved file (File Name to write). By default, pico suggests you keep the 

same filename, so simply press ENTER to accept.

Technical Training Department

August 2004

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