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1.1 Getting Started

Depending on the distribution you have downloaded, you'll find either source code or a pre-compiled binary. If you have a pre-compiled binary, just copy it to a usual location (we suggest /usr/local/bin). If you have downloaded the source code, please read the various text files (they all end in .txt) in the source directory.

The database file (ved_dict.mod) for the spelling checked must be downloaded separately. Instructions on where to install the file is included in the distribution. It is not necessary to have the spelling database installed to use Ved ... but you will not be able to access the spelling options.

Now that you have the necessary files in their proper locations you can edit your first file. Ved's syntax is pretty simple. To edit a file, simply type:

Ved filename [Enter]

where filename is the name of the file you wish to edit. Examples of valid filenames include:

myfile
/etc/myfile
src/letter

In the normal Unix manner the first example edits a file in the current data directory, the second a file in the /etc directory, and the third a file in a subdirectory in the current data directory.

As an alternate, you can start Ved without specifying a filename. In this case Ved's on-screen file selector will let you pick a file in the current data directory--see the section ``Onscreen File Selector'' (Chaper 4, later in this manual).

When you start Ved you can also specify a directory name. If the``file'' you specify is not accessible as a file, Ved will try to access the name as a directory. If successful, the onscreen file selector will display the directory. Note: Ved never changes directories ... writing or reading or new files will always be based on your current directory.

Whatever the method used, if the file is found it will be read into Ved's text buffer. This buffer automatically expands as your file grows. The maximum size file Ved can handle is governed by the amount of free memory plus swap you have in your computer. Since the text buffer is moved to different areas in memory as the buffer grows you may be limited to a buffer size equal to 1/2 of the available contiguous memory. With modern computers, memory never seems to be a problem, but if there is not enough memory to read the entire file into memory, an error message will be generated and Ved will terminate.


next up previous
Next: 1.2 Initialization Files Up: 1. Introduction Previous: 1. Introduction
2004-05-02