Re: [Nano-devel] [PATCH v2] docs: give suggestions for alternative key bindings in the sample nanorc

[Brand Huntsman]

On Sat, 13 Oct 2018 00:13:30 -0500
David Ramsey <address@hidden> wrote:

> Brand Huntsman:
> > I don't know about the usefulness of a markfile function but
> > marktofilestart, marktofileend, markblock, marktoblockstart,
> > marktoblockend, markline, marktolinestart and marktolineend could be
> > useful. These can all be done with string macros but the cursor
> > position is lost when undoing, the functions could preserve it.  
> 
> What I was trying to do was implement a function/binding for something
> that would require more than two keystrokes to accomplish otherwise.

The point wasn't to reduce keystrokes, but to preserve cursor position when 
undoing. If you create "shift-Home shift-Home ^K" or "shift-End ^K" macros, and 
then accidentally use them, an undo will put cursor at start or end of the 
line. A marktolinestart could save cursor, move to start of line, and then mark 
back to the saved cursor. The others would work the same way, but markfile, 
markblock and markline wouldn't actually be needed since cursor must be moved 
to one of the ends, and the original cursor couldn't be preserved.


> > I don't know what cutrestoffile is used for, but it could be
> > implemented with a "marktofileend cut" string macro.  
> 
> Am I the only one who often has to deal with files where everything
> after the cursor position needs to be removed?

Ignore me on that, I actually use ^6^Home^K and ^6^End^K all the time. For 
large areas of text, I'd rather use two separate keys to mark a file/block and 
cut, than use a single key to do both.

The cutrestoffile function preserves the cursor when undoing, but a 
cuttofilestart macro wouldn't. The mark functions would not only allow 
cuttofile* macros, but any other action as well. They allow macros to do more, 
so functions like cutrestoffile wouldn't need to be implemented in code. One 
person could use two keys for marktofileend and cut, and another could have a 
single key for "marktofileend cut". And both get the same undo benefits.