Using XEDIT

XEDIT provides a full-screen editor you can use to create and edit BFS files.

Using XEDIT, you can edit only regular files (not special files). You need read permission for the file and search permission for any intermediate directories. You need write permission to save changes to the file.

When you create a new file, you must have the appropriate permissions to add a new file to the parent directory. When XEDIT creates a file, it attempts to set the permission bits to rw- r-- r--; if you have a umask in effect, those bits will be downgraded accordingly. See Setting the File Mode Creation Mask for more information.

XEDIT allows many editing sessions at a time. It reads the entire file when the edit session begins. At the end of the session, it replaces the original file with the edited file.

During an XEDIT session, you can use these types of commands:

Types	Functions
Scrolling commands	You can use commands to scroll the data up, down, left, or right.
Line commands	You perform line editing by entering a line command directly on the line number of the affected line. For example, to delete a line, you enter `D` on the line number; to repeat a line, you enter `"` on the line number. You can enter line commands for several lines at the same time.
XEDIT subcommands	To perform editing tasks, you enter XEDIT subcommands. For example, you can use the LOCATE subcommand to scan data for a specific character string. If you entered: `LOCATE /printf(` on the command line, the editor locates the next occurrence of printf(. Likewise, you can enter the CHANGE subcommand to make global changes within a file. For example: `CHANGE /CRTL/C-RTL/ *` changes all instances of `CRTL` to `C-RTL`. You can use other XEDIT subcommands, such as GET, PUT, PUTD, FILE, and SAVE, to work with other files from within your XEDIT session.
CMS commands	While you are editing one file, you can use CMS commands to work with other files, or to perform other tasks.

To end an edit session:

Saving all changes, enter the FILE subcommand.
Without saving any changes, enter the QQUIT subcommand.

When you end the edit session, you go back to where you were when you began it: on the entry panel, to the CMS Ready; prompt, or to the shell prompt.

All You Ever Wanted to Know about XEDIT
The discussion in this chapter is an introduction to XEDIT. For detailed information about XEDIT, including the subcommands just mentioned, use the online HELP facility or see z/VM: XEDIT Commands and Macros Reference.