source: chapter07/inputrc.xml@ d16b770c

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<sect1 id="ch-scripts-inputrc">
<title>Creating the /etc/inputrc File</title>
<?dbhtml filename="inputrc.html"?>

<indexterm zone="ch-scripts-inputrc"><primary sortas="e-/etc/inputrc">/etc/inputrc</primary></indexterm>

<para>The <filename>inputrc</filename> file handles keyboard mapping for
specific situations. This file is the startup file used by Readline &mdash; the
input-related library &mdash; used by Bash and most other shells.</para>

<para>Most people do not need user-specific keyboard mappings so the command
below creates a global <filename>/etc/inputrc</filename> used by everyone who
logs in. If you later decide you need to override the defaults on a per-user
basis, you can create a <filename>.inputrc</filename> file in the user's home
directory with the modified mappings.</para>

<para>For more information on how to edit the <filename>inputrc</filename> file,
see <command>info bash</command> under the <emphasis>Readline Init File</emphasis>
section. <command>info readline</command> is also a good source of information.</para>

<para>Below is a generic global <filename>inputrc</filename> along with comments
to explain what the various options do. Note that comments cannot be on the same
line as commands. Create the file using the following command:</para>

<screen><userinput>cat &gt; /etc/inputrc &lt;&lt; "EOF"
<literal># Begin /etc/inputrc
# Modified by Chris Lynn &lt;roryo@roryo.dynup.net&gt;

# Allow the command prompt to wrap to the next line
set horizontal-scroll-mode Off

# Enable 8bit input
set meta-flag On
set input-meta On

# Turns off 8th bit stripping
set convert-meta Off

# Keep the 8th bit for display
set output-meta On

# none, visible or audible
set bell-style none

# All of the following map the escape sequence of the
# value contained inside the 1st argument to the
# readline specific functions

"\eOd": backward-word
"\eOc": forward-word

# for linux console
"\e[1~": beginning-of-line
"\e[4~": end-of-line
"\e[5~": beginning-of-history
"\e[6~": end-of-history
"\e[3~": delete-char
"\e[2~": quoted-insert

# for xterm
"\eOH": beginning-of-line
"\eOF": end-of-line

# for Konsole
"\e[H": beginning-of-line
"\e[F": end-of-line

# End /etc/inputrc</literal>
EOF</userinput></screen>

</sect1>