Text editing Mini Howto for linux. (I am using ubuntu 7.04 and kde 3.5.6) Back to Main Page
This i a very short version, and if you want to know more, go to the
Internet etc.
This howto is without any guarantee, and you may use it on your own responsibility only.
There may be errors, but I do not want to use too much time to write this howto.
My idea is to make documentation, so you can at least start using
the system, without reading lots of documentation scrolling down your
screen.
I (66 years old) have abstracted what I find most important, from lots and lots of documentation.
To check specific words you may click here to open wikipedia (use search box, left side middle).
It's easiest to print this howto out, to use it, by your side !
Index:
A sample standard keyboard is shown
"new line
character"
"ctrl+c" (copy to clipboard)
"ctrl+v" (paste from clipboard)- insert text
Keyboards of other countries
The "Alt Gr" button
To copy some text
To delete selected text
To delete text (using "Backspace")
To delete text (using the "del" button)
To insert tex
To insert the "@" (at) character
To move lines up
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To open "Kwrite"
To remove an empty line
To write capital letters
To explain how to edit text, I have chosen the "Kwrite" text editor,
which I find fairly simple to use - it's really a lightweight
variant of the "Kate" editor - but this
text editing should be almost the same in any other linux text editor.
To open "Kwrite" just open a konsole, and write "kwrite" on the command line.
Below is "Kwrite" shown with some sample text, and the text cursor is shown (after the dot):

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A sample standard keyboard is shown below, with the most important buttons:

You can only work one place at a time in the text, and that is where the text cursor is placed (a small vertical blinking line).
You can move the cursor with the arrow keys (there are 4 of them -
lower right on keyboard) or by by left clicking the mouse cursor where
you want the cursor to
be placed - in our start case, the cursor is placed to the right of the dot (see the black vertical line on sample text above).
To delete text (using "Backspace"), one characher at a time
(letter/number/graphic character) click on the "Backspace" button, and
the letters to the left of the
cursor are deleted, one at a time, and the text to the right of the cursor, on the line is
moved to the left as glued (made fast) to the text cursor (see below):
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To delete text (using the "del" button), click on the "Del"
button, and then the characters are deleted from the right, one charachter at a time (see
above/below):
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To move lines up using the "del" button, place the cursor at the end of
the line, after the word "animals" - use the arrow keys or click with
the left mouse
cursor to place the text cursor (see below):

Then click on the "del" button once, and then click on the "space"
button once, and then "Line two" are moved one line up, and a "space"
is inserted after the
word "animals" (see below):
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Please note, that when you press "Enter" you insert a "new line
character" (which is invincible to you) where the text cursor is
placed, and any text (if any)
are moved down onto the next line together with the text cursor.
When the cursor is placed at the end of a line, and you press "enter",
a new empty line is inserted below, and a "new line character" is
inserted at the end of the
line above (invincible to the eye).
To move the text cursor down onto next line, press "Enter" once, and
then press "Enter" once more, to move the text cursor further one line
down (see
above/below):
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To remove an empty line, place the text curson on the empty line (see below):

Then press the "del" button, and the empty line is removed (if there
was several empty lines, press the "del" one time for each empty line
to remove) - see
above/below:
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To insert text,
place the text cursor, where you want the text to be insertet, and then
insert the text, and any any text to the right of the text cursor is
moved
to the right (and if the text becomes longer than the line, it is moved
from the end of the line down onto the next line automatic).
Please note, that each time the "space" button in pressed, a "space
charachter" is created (invincible to the eye) except for the space
seen - this "space
character" can be deleted exactly as any other character.
Now we will insert some text between "Line" and "two", and therefore place the text cursor before "two" (see below):
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Then we will insert the word "one" followed by a "space" (see below):

To copy some text, mark the text to be copied with the left mouse cursor and then press "ctrl+c" (copy to clipboard - a place in the computer memory) see below:
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Then place the text cursor two lines below the selected text - place
the cursor at the end of line after the word "three" and then press
"enter" twice (see below):

Then press "ctrl+v" (paste from clipboard) - and the selection is inserted at the position of the text cursor (see below):
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To delete selected text, select some text, (as above), and then press the "del" button.
To write capital letters (letters in big - A, B, C etc), press the "Ctrl"
(lower left of keyboard) button at the same time as the letter button is pressed.
Please note, that some of the keys of the keyboard are double, both at the left -and right side of the keyboard.
There are two "Alt" buttons and one "Alt Gr" (alternative graphics).
Below is shown a Danish keyboard, in order to show how to use the "Alt Gr" button:

On order to insert the "@" (at) character, press the "Alt Gr + 2", and the same principle for "£", "$" etc.
The keyboards of other countries
has other characters, which are special for their
language.
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To see keymaps of keyboards of other countries, click here
In order to learn the above, try the exercises explained, and then try
again "to morrow", so your brain can get time to absorb (your
subconsiousness - brain -
must have time to absorb the new information - a principle valid for
all new information) - better to train fairly quickly, and
then let some time pass, and then
try again - interesting, that you cannot feel when your subconsiousness is working!
10/2009
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