1 2 NEWS about less 3 4 ====================================================================== 5 6 For the latest news about less, see https://greenwoodsoftware.com/less 7 You can also download the latest version of less from there. 8 9 Report bugs, suggestions or comments at 10 https://github.com/gwsw/less/issues. 11 12 ====================================================================== 13 14 Major changes between "less" versions 633 and 643 15 16 * Fix problem when a program piping into less reads from the tty, 17 like sudo asking for password (github #368). 18 19 * Fix search modifier ^E after ^W. 20 21 * Fix bug using negated (^N) search (github #374). 22 23 * Fix bug setting colors with -D on Windows build (github #386). 24 25 * Fix reading special chars like PageDown on Windows (github #378). 26 27 * Fix mouse wheel scrolling on Windows (github #379). 28 29 * Fix erroneous EOF when terminal window size changes (github #372). 30 31 * Fix compile error with some definitions of ECHONL (github #395). 32 33 * Fix crash on Windows when writing logfile (github #405). 34 35 * Fix regression in exit code when stdin is /dev/null and 36 output is a file (github #373). 37 38 * Add lesstest test suite to production release (github #344). 39 40 * Change lesstest output to conform with 41 automake Simple Test Format (github #399). 42 43 ====================================================================== 44 45 Major changes between "less" versions 632 and 633 46 47 * Fix build on systems which have ncurses/termcap.h or 48 ncursesw/termcap.h but not termcap.h. 49 50 ====================================================================== 51 52 Major changes between "less" versions 608 and 632 53 54 * Add LESSUTFCHARDEF environment variable (github #275). 55 56 * Add # command (github #330). 57 58 * Add ^S search modifier (github #196). 59 60 * Add --wordwrap option (github #113). 61 62 * Add --no-vbell option (github #304). 63 64 * Add --no-search-headers option (github #44). 65 66 * Add --modelines option (github #89). 67 68 * Add --intr option (github #224). 69 70 * Add --proc-backspace, --proc-tab and --proc-return options (github #335). 71 72 * Add --show-preproc-errors option (github #258). 73 74 * Add LESS_LINES and LESS_COLUMNS environment variables (github #84). 75 76 * Add LESS_DATA_DELAY environment variable (github #337). 77 78 * Allow empty "lines" field in --header option. 79 80 * Update Unicode tables. 81 82 * Improve ability of ^X to interrupt F command (github #49). 83 84 * Status column (-J) shows off-screen matches. 85 86 * Parenthesized sub-patterns in searches are colored with unique colors, 87 if supported by the regular expression library (github #196). 88 89 * Don't allow opening a tty as file input unless -f is set (github #309). 90 91 * Don't require newline input after +&... option (github #339). 92 93 * Fix incorrect handling of some Private Use Unicode characters. 94 95 * Fix ANSI color bug when overstriking with colored chars (github #276). 96 97 * Fix compiler const warning (github #279). 98 99 * Fix signal race in iread (github #280). 100 101 * Fix reading procfs files on Linux (github #282). 102 103 * Fix --ignore-case with ctrl-R (no regex) search (github #300). 104 105 * Fix bug doing repeat search after setting & filter (github #299). 106 107 * Fix bug doing repeat search before non-repeat search. 108 109 * Fix crash with -R and certain line lengths (github #338). 110 111 * Fix input of Windows dead keys (github #352). 112 113 * Don't retain search options from a cancelled search (github #302). 114 115 * Don't call realpath on fake filenames like "-" (github #289). 116 117 * Implement lesstest test suite. 118 119 * Convert function parameter definitions from K&R to C89 (github #316). 120 121 ====================================================================== 122 123 Major changes between "less" versions 590 and 608 124 125 * Add the --header option (github #43). 126 127 * Add the --no-number-headers option (github #178). 128 129 * Add the --status-line option. 130 131 * Add the --redraw-on-quit option (github #36). 132 133 * Add the --search-options option (github #213). 134 135 * Add the --exit-follow-on-close option (github #244). 136 137 * Add 'H' color type to set color of header lines. 138 139 * Add #version conditional to lesskey. 140 141 * Add += syntax to variable section in lesskey files. 142 143 * Allow option name in -- command to end with '=' in addition to '\n'. 144 145 * Add $HOME/.config to possible locations of lesskey file (github #153). 146 147 * Add $XDG_STATE_HOME and $HOME/.local/state to possible locations 148 of history file (github #223). 149 150 * Don't read or write history file in secure mode (github #201). 151 152 * Fix display of multibyte and double-width chars in prompt. 153 154 * Fix ESC-BACKSPACE command when BACKSPACE key does not send 0x08 155 (github #188). 156 157 * Add more \k codes to lesskey format. 158 159 * Fix bug when empty file is modified while viewing it. 160 161 * Fix bug when parsing a malformed lesskey file (githb #234). 162 163 * Fix bug scrolling history when --incsearch is set (github #214). 164 165 * Fix buffer overflow when invoking lessecho with more than 63 -m/-n 166 options (github #198). 167 168 * Fix buffer overflow in bin_file (github #271). 169 170 * Fix bug restoring color at end of highlighted text. 171 172 * Fix bug in parsing lesskey file. 173 174 * Defer moving cursor to lower left in some more cases. 175 176 * Suppress TAB filename expansion in some cases where it doesn't make sense. 177 178 * Fix termlib detection when compiler doesn't accept 179 calls to undeclared functions. 180 181 * Fix bug in input of non-ASCII characters on Windows (github #247) 182 183 * Escape filenames when invoking LESSCLOSE. 184 185 * Fix bug using multibyte UTF-8 char in search string 186 with --incsearch (github #273). 187 188 ====================================================================== 189 190 Major changes between "less" versions 581 and 590 191 192 * Make less able to read lesskey source files (deprecating lesskey). 193 194 * If XDG_CONFIG_HOME is set, find lesskey source file 195 in $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/lesskey rather than $HOME/.lesskey. 196 197 * If XDG_DATA_HOME is set, find and store history file 198 in $XDG_DATA_HOME/lesshst rather than $HOME/.lesshst. 199 200 * Add the --lesskey-src option. 201 202 * Add the --file-size option. 203 204 * With -F, if screen is resized to make file fit on one screen, don't exit. 205 206 * Fix bug which could leave terminal in mouse-reporting mode 207 after exiting less. 208 209 * Fix bug which caused failure to respond to window resize. 210 211 * Fix backslash bug searching in tag file. 212 213 ====================================================================== 214 215 Major changes between "less" versions 563 and 581 216 217 * Change ESC-u command to toggle, not disable, highlighting per man page. 218 219 * Add ESC-U command. 220 221 * Add ctrl-W search modifier for wrapping search. 222 223 * F command can be interrupted by ^X. 224 225 * Support OSC 8 hyperlinks when -R is in effect. 226 227 * g command with no number will ignore -j and put first line at top of screen. 228 229 * Multiple + or -p command line options are handled better. 230 231 * Add the --incsearch option. 232 233 * Add the --line-num-width option. 234 235 * Add the --status-col-width option. 236 237 * Add the --use-color and --color options. 238 239 * Display -w highlight even if highlighted line is empty. 240 241 * If search result is in a long line, scroll to ensure it is visible. 242 243 * Editing the same file under different names now creates only 244 one entry in the file list. 245 246 * Make visual bell more visible on some terminals. 247 248 * Ring end-of-file bell no more than once per second. 249 250 * Build can use either Python or Perl for Makefile.aut operations. 251 252 * Fix crash when using the @ search modifier. 253 254 * Fix crash in the 's' command due to duplicate free. 255 256 * Fix realpath crash on Darwin. 257 258 ====================================================================== 259 260 Major changes between "less" versions 551 and 563 261 262 * Update Unicode tables. 263 264 * Treat Hangul Jamo medial vowels and final consonants as zero width. 265 266 * Display error message immediately when -o is toggled and 267 input is not a pipe. 268 269 * Fix regression: make screen repaint when "squished" and 270 a no-movement command is given. 271 272 * Fix erroneous EOF calculation when F command is interrupted. 273 274 * Make WIN32C version include this fix from 551: 275 Don't count lines in initial screen if using -X with -F. 276 277 * Fix display bug in WIN32C version. 278 279 * Fix memory corruption when built with libtermcap. 280 281 * Support libtinfow. 282 283 ====================================================================== 284 285 Major changes between "less" versions 530 and 551 286 287 * Add --mouse option. 288 289 * Add --wheel-lines option. 290 291 * Add --no-histdups option. 292 293 * Add --save-marks option. 294 295 * Support PCRE2 regular expression library. 296 297 * Redraw screen on SIGWINCH even if screen size doesn't change. 298 299 * Shell-escape filenames in history so they can be used again. 300 301 * Ring bell if user enters invalid long option name. 302 303 * Use PCRE_UTF8 flag for pcre regular expressions when in UTF-8 mode. 304 305 * Windows: use wide-char string to set console title. 306 307 * Don't count lines in initial screen if using -X with -F. 308 309 * Support mingw build system. 310 311 * Fix bug in v command on empty file. 312 313 * Fix bug in v command when filename contains shell metacharacters. 314 315 ====================================================================== 316 317 Major changes between "less" versions 487 and 530 318 319 * Don't output terminal init sequence if using -F and file fits on one screen. 320 321 * When using -S, mark truncated lines with a special character. 322 The character can be changed or disabled via the new --rscroll option. 323 324 * New command M marks the last line displayed on the screen. 325 326 * New command ESC-m removes a line mark. 327 328 * Status column (enabled via -J) now shows mark letters. 329 330 * Status column shows search matches even if highlighting is disabled via -G. 331 332 * A second ESC-u command will clear search match markers in the status column. 333 334 * Do same ANSI escape code filtering for tag matching that we do for 335 searching, to help when viewing syntax-highlighted code. 336 337 * Catch SIGTERM and clean up before exiting. 338 339 * Fix bug initializing default charset on Windows. 340 341 * Handle keypad ENTER key correctly if it sends something other than newline. 342 343 * Fix buffering bug when using stdin with a LESSOPEN pipe. 344 345 * On Windows, allow 'u' in -D option to enable underlining. 346 347 * On Windows, use underline in sgr mode. 348 349 * On Windows, convert UTF-8 to multibyte if console is not UTF-8. 350 351 * Update Unicode tables to 2017-03-08. 352 353 * Pass-thru Unicode formatting chars (Cf type) instead of treating them 354 as binary chars. But treat them as binary if -U is set. 355 356 * Fix erroneous binary file warning when UTF-8 file contains ANSI SGR sequences. 357 358 * Fix bugs when using LESSOPEN and switching between stdin and other files. 359 360 * Fix some bugs handling filenames containing shell metacharacters. 361 362 * Fix some memory leaks. 363 364 * Allow some debugging environment variables to be set in lesskey file. 365 366 * Code improvements: 367 . Use ANSI prototypes in funcs.h declarations. 368 . Fix some const mismatches. 369 . Remove archaic "register" in variable declarations. 370 371 ====================================================================== 372 373 Major changes between "less" versions 481 and 487 374 375 * New commands ESC-{ and ESC-} to shift to start/end of displayed lines. 376 377 * Make search highlights work correctly when changing caselessness with -i. 378 379 * New option -Da in Windows version to enable SGR mode. 380 381 * Fix "nothing to search" error when top or bottom line on screen is empty. 382 383 * Fix bug when terminal has no "cm" termcap entry. 384 385 * Fix incorrect display when entering double-width chars in search string. 386 387 * Fix bug in Unicode handling that missed some double width characters. 388 389 * Update Unicode database to 9.0.0. 390 391 ====================================================================== 392 393 Major changes between "less" versions 458 and 481 394 395 * Don't overwrite history file; just append to it. 396 397 * New command ESC-G goes to end of currently buffered data in a pipe. 398 399 * Disable history feature when compiled with LESSHISTFILE set to "-". 400 401 * In more-compatible mode, make the -p option apply to every file opened, 402 not just the first one. 403 404 * In more-compatible mode, change the -e option to work like -E, not -EF. 405 406 * Treat multiple CRs before LF are like one CR (all the CRs are hidden). 407 408 * Allow "extra" string in lesskey file to append to a multi-char command 409 (like a search pattern), without executing the command. 410 411 * Ignore -u/-U setting while viewing help file, so that 412 underline and bold chars are displayed correctly. 413 414 * Improve detection of "binary" files in UTF-8 mode. 415 416 * Fix bug with ++ commands. 417 418 * Fix bug where prompt was sometimes not displayed with +G. 419 420 * Fix possible memory corruption 421 422 * Fix bugs and improve performance in ampersand filtering. 423 424 * Automate construction of Unicode tables from Unicode database. 425 426 * Allow %% escape sequence in LESSOPEN variable. 427 428 ====================================================================== 429 430 Major changes between "less" versions 451 and 458 431 432 * Allow backslash escaping of metacharacters in LESS environment variable 433 after the --use-backslash option. 434 435 * Don't quit if syntax errors are found in command line options. 436 437 * Increase sizes of some internal buffers. 438 439 * Fix configure bug with --with-regex=none. 440 441 * Fix crash with "stty rows 0". 442 443 * Fix Win32 attribute display bug. 444 445 * Fix display bug when using up/down arrow on the command line. 446 447 ====================================================================== 448 449 Major changes between "less" versions 444 and 451 450 451 * Add ESC-F command to keep reading data until a pattern is found. 452 453 * Use exit code of LESSOPEN script if LESSOPEN starts with "||". 454 455 * When up/down arrow is used on the command line immediately after 456 typing text, the next command starting with that text is found. 457 458 * Add support for GNU regex. 459 460 * Add configure option --with-regex=none and fix compile errors 461 when compiling with no regex library. 462 463 * Fix bugs handling SGR sequences in Win32. 464 465 * Fix possible crashes caused by malformed LESSOPEN or 466 LESSCLOSE variables. 467 468 * Fix bug highlighting text which is discontiguous in the file 469 due to backspace processing. 470 471 * Fix bug in displaying status column when scrolling backwards 472 with -J and -S in effect. 473 474 ====================================================================== 475 476 Major changes between "less" versions 443 and 444 477 478 * Fix bug in unget handling that can cause strange effects on the 479 command line. 480 481 * Remove vestiges of obsolete -l option that can cause a crash. 482 483 ====================================================================== 484 485 Major changes between "less" versions 436 and 443 486 487 * Change search behavior such that when a search is given an explicit 488 pattern, the entire displayed screen is included in the search and 489 not just the portion after the target line. 490 491 * Add -A option to change search behavior to the old way: only 492 the portion of the screen after the target line is searched. 493 494 * Add %F formatting to prompt strings, replaced by the last component 495 of the input file. 496 497 * Control-G while editing a command exits the command. 498 499 * Less now exits with status 2 if control-C is pressed and -K is in effect. 500 501 * Fix "ungetc overflow" when passing long commands via the -p option. 502 503 * Fix bug in using line filtering via the & command 504 in combination with -i and -I. 505 506 * Fix bug in handling negative arguments to the -j option. 507 508 * Fix bug in handling %t in prompt strings. 509 510 * Improve handling of long option names. 511 512 * Improve percentage calculation for very large files. 513 514 ====================================================================== 515 516 Major changes between "less" versions 429 and 436 517 518 * Don't pass "-" to non-pipe LESSOPEN unless it starts with "-". 519 520 * Allow a fraction as the argument to the -# (--shift) option. 521 522 * Fix highlight bug when underlined/overstruck text matches at end of line. 523 524 * Fix non-regex searches with ctrl-R. 525 526 ====================================================================== 527 528 Major changes between "less" versions 424 and 429 529 530 * LESSOPEN pipe will now be used on standard input, if the LESSOPEN 531 environment variable begins with "|-". 532 533 * The -D option with one number now means use the normal background color. 534 535 * Don't change permissions on history file if it is not a regular file. 536 537 * Fix non-ANSI-compliant code that caused problems with some compilers. 538 539 * Fix binary file detection in UTF-8 mode. 540 541 * Fix display problems with long lines on "ignaw" terminals. 542 543 * Fix problem interrupting the line number calculation for initial prompt. 544 545 * Fix SGR emulation when dealing with multiple attributes (e.g. bold+underline). 546 547 * Fix highlight bug when searching for underlined/overstruck text. 548 549 ====================================================================== 550 551 Major changes between "less" versions 418 and 424 552 553 * New "&" command allows filtering of lines based on a pattern. 554 555 * Status column now displays a search match, even if the matched 556 string is scrolled off screen because -S is in effect. 557 558 * Improve behavior of -F option. 559 560 * Allow CSI character (0x9B) to work in UTF-8 mode. 561 562 * Output carriage return at startup in case terminal doesn't default 563 to column 1. 564 565 * Fix bug in '' (quote, quote) command after G command. 566 567 ====================================================================== 568 569 Major changes between "less" versions 416 and 418 570 571 * Color escape sequences are now supported in WIN32 build. 572 573 * Makefile now uses EXEEXT feature of autoconf. 574 575 * Fix search bug when using -R and text contains ANSI color escape sequences. 576 577 * Fix crash when using -r with UTF-8 text containing 0x9B bytes. 578 579 * Fix display bug when using ' command to move less than one page forward. 580 581 * Update GPL to version 3. 582 583 ====================================================================== 584 585 Major changes between "less" versions 409 and 416 586 587 * New --follow-name option makes F command follow the name of a file 588 rather than the file descriptor if an open file is renamed. 589 590 * Make searching with -i/-I work correctly with non-ASCII text. 591 592 * Fix DJGPP build. 593 594 ====================================================================== 595 596 Major changes between "less" versions 406 and 409 597 598 * Support CSI escape sequences, like SGR escape sequences. 599 600 * Fix bug which caused screen to fail to repaint when window is resized. 601 602 * Fix bug in using -i and -I flags with non-ASCII text. 603 604 * Fix configure bug on systems which don't support langinfo.h. 605 606 * Fix crash when searching text containing certain invalid UTF-8 sequences. 607 608 ====================================================================== 609 610 Major changes between "less" versions 394 and 406 611 612 * Allow decimal point in number for % (percent) command. 613 614 * Allow decimal point in number for -j option (fraction of screen height). 615 616 * Make n command fetch previous pattern from history file on first search. 617 618 * Don't rewrite history file if it has not changed. 619 620 * Don't move to bottom of screen on first page. 621 622 * Don't output extraneous newlines, so copy & pasting lines from the 623 output works better. 624 625 * The -c option has been made identical with the -C option. 626 627 * Allow "/dev/null" as synonym for "-" in LESSHISTFILE to indicate 628 that no history file should be used. 629 630 * Search can now find text which follows a null byte, if the PCRE 631 library is used, or if no-regex searching (ctrl-R) is used. 632 633 * Better compatibility with POSIX more specification. 634 635 * Make -f work for directories. 636 637 * Make "t" cmd traverse tags in the correct order. 638 639 * Allow a few binary characters in the input file before warning 640 that the file is binary. 641 642 * Don't warn that file is binary if it merely contains ANSI color sequences 643 and -R is in effect. 644 645 * Update Unicode character tables. 646 647 * Support DESTDIR in Makefile. 648 649 * Fix bug when filename contains certain shell metacharacters such as "$". 650 651 * Fix bug when resizing the window while waiting for input from a pipe. 652 653 * Fix configure bugs. 654 655 ====================================================================== 656 657 Major changes between "less" versions 382 and 394 658 659 * Add history file to save search and shell command history between 660 invocations of less. 661 662 * Improve behavior of history list for search and shell commands. 663 664 * Add -K (or --quit-on-intr) option to make less exit immediately on ctrl-C. 665 666 * Improve handling of UTF-8 files and commands, including better 667 line wrapping and handling double-width chars. 668 669 * Added LESSUTFBINFMT environment variable to control display of 670 non-printable characters in a UTF-8 file. 671 672 * Add --with-secure option to configure, to make it easier to 673 build a secure version of less. 674 675 * Show search matches in the status column even if search highlights 676 are disabled via the -G option or the ESC-u command. 677 678 * Improve performance when the file contains very long lines. 679 680 * Add "windows" charset. 681 682 * Add man page for lessecho. 683 684 * Add support for erase2 character, treated same as erase. 685 686 * Use ASCII lowercase/uppercase logic when operating on the command line. 687 688 * Update makefile for Borland C++ 5.5.1. 689 690 * Fix bug in calculating number of pages for %D prompt. 691 692 * Fix bug in handling tag file error. 693 694 * Fix obscure bug if input file is deleted while viewing help. 695 696 * Fix bug handling filenames which include square brackets. 697 698 * Fix possible buffer overflow in "global" tag search. 699 700 * Fix possible buffer overflow in usage of LESSOPEN and LESSCLOSE. 701 702 * Fix buffer overflow in reverse search. 703 704 ====================================================================== 705 706 Major changes between "less" versions 381 and 382 707 708 * Removed some old copyrighted code. 709 This probably breaks OS/9 support. 710 711 ====================================================================== 712 713 Major changes between "less" versions 378 and 381 714 715 * New -L option to disable LESSOPEN processing. 716 717 * Further support for large (64 bit) file addressing. 718 Large file support is now set up by the configure script. 719 720 * Use autoconf 2.54. 721 Replace configure.in, acconfig.h, defines.h.top with configure.ac. 722 723 * Overstriking underscore with underscore is now bold or underlined 724 depending on context. 725 726 * Use only 7 spaces for line numbers in -N mode, if possible. 727 728 * Fix some bugs in handling overstriking in UTF-8 files. 729 730 * Fix some nroff issues in the man page. 731 732 ====================================================================== 733 734 Major changes between "less" versions 376 and 378 735 736 * Bug fixes: 737 Default buffer space is now 64K as documented. 738 Search highlighting works properly when used with -R. 739 Windows version works properly when input file contains carriage returns. 740 Clean up some compiler warnings. 741 742 ====================================================================== 743 744 Major changes between "less" versions 358 and 376 745 746 * -x option can now specify multiple variable-width tab stops. 747 748 * -X option no longer disables keypad initialization. 749 New option --no-keypad disables keypad initialization. 750 751 * New commands t and T step through multiple tag matches. 752 Added support for "global(1)" tags 753 (see http://www.gnu.org/software/global/global.html). 754 755 * New prompt style set by option -Pw defines the message printed 756 while waiting for data in the F command. 757 758 * System-wide lesskey file now defaults to sysless in etc directory 759 instead of .sysless in bin directory. 760 Use "configure --sysconfdir=..." to change it. 761 (For backwards compatibility, .sysless in bin is still recognized.) 762 763 * Pressing RightArrow or LeftArrow while entering a number now shifts 764 the display N columns rather than editing the number itself. 765 766 * Status column (enabled with -J) now shows search results. 767 768 * Windows version sets window title. 769 770 * Default LESSCHARSET for MS-DOS versions is now "dos". 771 772 * Searching works better with ANSI (SGR) escape sequences. 773 ANSI color escape sequences are now supported in the MS-DOS (DJGPP) version. 774 775 * Improved performance in reading very large pipes. 776 777 * Eliminated some dependencies on file offsets being 32 bits. 778 779 * Fixed problems when viewing files with very long lines. 780 781 * Fixed overstriking in UTF-8 mode, and overstriking tabs. 782 783 * Improved horizontal shifting of text using -R option with ANSI color. 784 785 * Improved handling of filenames containing shell metacharacters. 786 787 * Some fixes for EBCDIC systems. 788 789 * Some fixes for OS/2 systems. 790 791 ====================================================================== 792 793 Major changes between "less" versions 354 and 358 794 795 * Add -J (--status-column) option to display a status column. 796 797 * Add -# (--shift) option to set default horizontal shift distance. 798 Default horizontal shift distance is now one-half screen width. 799 800 * Horizontal shifting does not shift line numbers if -N is in effect. 801 802 * Horizontal shifting acts as though -S were set, to avoid confusion. 803 804 ====================================================================== 805 806 807 Major changes between "less" versions 352 and 354 808 809 * Allow space after numeric-valued command line options. 810 811 * Fix problem with configuring terminal libraries on some systems. 812 813 * Add support for PCRE regular expression library. 814 815 * Add --with-regex option to configure to allow manually selecting 816 a regular expression library. 817 818 * Fix bug compiling with SECURE = 1. 819 820 ====================================================================== 821 822 823 Major changes between "less" versions 346 and 352 824 825 * Enable UTF-8 if "UTF-8" appears in locale-related environment variables. 826 827 * Add --with-editor option to configure script. 828 829 * The -M prompt and = message now show the top and bottom line number. 830 831 * Fix bug in running the editor on a file whose name contains quotes, etc. 832 833 * Fix bug in horizontal scrolling of long lines. 834 835 * Fix bug in doing :d on a file which contains marks. 836 837 * Fix bug causing cleared lines to sometimes be filled with standout, 838 bold, underline, etc. on certain terminals. 839 840 * Fixes for MS-DOS (DJGPP) version. 841 842 ====================================================================== 843 844 845 Major changes between "less" versions 340 and 346 846 847 * The UTF-8 character set is now supported. 848 849 * The default character set is now latin1 rather than ascii. 850 851 * New option -R (--RAW-CONTROL-CHARS) is like -r but handles 852 long (wrapped) lines correctly, as long as the input contains only 853 normal text and ANSI color escape sequences. 854 855 * New option -F (--quit-if-one-screen) quits if the text fits on 856 the first screen. 857 858 * The -w option now highlights the target line of a g or p command. 859 860 * A system-wide lesskey file is supported (LESSKEY_SYSTEM). 861 862 * New escape for prompt strings: %c is replaced by column number. 863 864 * New escape for prompt strings: %P is replaced by percentage into 865 file, based on line number rather than byte offset. 866 867 * HOME and END keys now jump to beginning of file or end of file. 868 869 ====================================================================== 870 871 872 Major changes between "less" versions 337 and 340 873 874 * Command line options for less may now be given in either the old 875 single-letter form, or a new long name form (--option-name). 876 See the less man page or "less --help" for the list of long option names. 877 878 * Command line options for lesskey may now be given in a new long name 879 form. See the lesskey man page for the list of long option names. 880 881 * New command -- toggles an option using the long option name. 882 883 * New command __ queries an option using the long option name. 884 885 * The old -- command is renamed as -!. 886 887 * If a ^P is entered between the dash and the option letter of the - 888 command, the message describing the new setting is suppressed. 889 890 * Lesskey files may now contain \k escape sequences to represent the 891 "special" keys (arrows, PAGE-UP/PAGE-DOWN, HOME, END, INSERT, DELETE). 892 893 * New command :d removes the current file from the list of files. 894 895 * New option -~ (like -w before version 335) 896 suppresses tildes after end-of-file. 897 898 * Less is now released under the GNU General Public License. 899 900 ====================================================================== 901 902 903 Major changes between "less" versions 335 and 337 904 905 * Fixed bugs in "make install". 906 907 ====================================================================== 908 909 910 Major changes between "less" versions 332 and 335 911 912 * The old -w flag (suppress tildes after end-of-file) has been removed. 913 914 * New -w flag highlights the first new line after a forward-screen. 915 916 * New -W flag highlights the first new line after any forward movement. 917 918 * Window resize works even if LINES and/or COLUMNS environment 919 variables are incorrect. 920 921 * New percent escapes for prompt strings: 922 %d is replaced by the page number, and 923 %D is replaced by the number of pages in the file. 924 925 * Added charsets "iso8859" and "ebcdic". 926 927 * In Windows version, uses HOMEDRIVE and HOMEPATH if HOME is not defined. 928 929 * Fixed some bugs causing incorrect display on DOS/Windows. 930 931 ====================================================================== 932 933 934 Major changes between "less" versions 330 and 332 935 936 * Filenames from the command line are entered into the command history, 937 so UPARROW/DOWNARROW can be used to retrieve them from the :e command. 938 939 * Now works correctly on Windows when using a scrolling terminal 940 window (buffer larger than display window). 941 942 * On Windows, now restores the console screen on exit. 943 Use -X to get the old behavior. 944 945 * Fixed bug on Windows when CAPS-LOCK or NUM-LOCK is pressed. 946 947 * Fixed bug on Windows when piping output of an interactive program. 948 949 * Fixed bug in tags file processing when tags file has DOS-style 950 line terminators (CR/LF). 951 952 * Fixed compilation problem on OS/2. 953 954 ====================================================================== 955 956 957 Major changes between "less" versions 321 and 330 958 959 * Now supports filenames containing spaces (in double quotes). 960 New option -" can be used to change the quoting characters. 961 962 * In filename completion, a slash is appended to a directory name. 963 If the environment variable LESSSEPARATOR is set, the value of 964 that variable, rather than a slash, is appended. 965 966 * LeftArrow and RightArrow are same as ESC-[ and ESC-]. 967 968 * Added commands ESC-( and ESC-), same as ESC-[ and ESC-]. 969 970 * A "quit" command defined in a lesskey file may now have an "extra" 971 string, which is used to return an exit code from less when it quits. 972 973 * New environment variables LESSMETACHARS and LESSMETAESCAPE provide 974 more control over how less interfaces to the shell. 975 976 * Ported to Microsoft Visual C compiler for Windows. 977 978 * Ported to DJGPP compiler for MS-DOS. 979 980 * Bug fixes. 981 982 ====================================================================== 983 984 985 Major changes between "less" versions 291 and 321 986 987 * Command line at bottom of screen now scrolls, so it can be longer 988 than the screen width. 989 990 * New commands ESC-] and ESC-[ scroll the display horizontally. 991 992 * New command ESC-SPACE scrolls forward a full screen, even if it 993 hits end-of-file. 994 995 * Alternate modifiers for search commands: ^N is same as !, 996 ^F is same as @, and ^E is same as *. 997 998 * New modifier for search commands: ^K means highlight the matches 999 currently on-screen, but don't move to the first match. 1000 1001 * New modifier for search commands: ^R means don't use regular 1002 expressions in the search. 1003 1004 * Environment variable LESSKEY gives name of default lesskey file. 1005 1006 * Environment variable LESSSECURE will force less to run in 1007 "secure" mode. 1008 1009 * Command line argument "--" signals that the rest of the arguments 1010 are files (not option flags). 1011 1012 * Help file (less.hlp) is no longer installed. Help text is now 1013 embedded in the less executable itself. 1014 1015 * Added -Ph to change the prompt for the help text. 1016 Added -Ps to change the default short prompt (same as plain -P). 1017 1018 * Ported to the Borland C compiler for MS-DOS. 1019 1020 * Ported to Windows 95 & Windows NT. 1021 1022 * Ported to OS-9. 1023 1024 * Ported to GNU Hurd. 1025 1026 ====================================================================== 1027 1028 1029 Major changes between "less" versions 290 and 291 1030 1031 * Less environment variables can be specified in lesskey files. 1032 1033 * Fixed MS-DOS build. 1034 1035 ====================================================================== 1036 1037 1038 Major changes between "less" versions 278 and 290 1039 1040 * Accepts GNU-style options "--help" and "--version". 1041 1042 * OS/2 version looks for less.ini in $HOME before $INIT and $PATH. 1043 1044 * Bug fixes 1045 1046 ====================================================================== 1047 1048 1049 Major changes between "less" versions 252 and 278 1050 1051 * A LESSOPEN preprocessor may now pipe the converted file data to less, 1052 rather than writing it to a temporary file. 1053 1054 * Search pattern highlighting has been fixed. It now highlights 1055 reliably, even if a string is split across two screen lines, 1056 contains TABs, etc. 1057 1058 * The -F flag (which suppress search highlighting) has been changed 1059 to -G. A new flag, -g, changes search highlighting to highlight 1060 only the string found by the last search command, instead of all 1061 strings which match the last search command. 1062 1063 * New flag -I acts like -i, but ignores case even if the search 1064 pattern contains uppercase letters. 1065 1066 * Less now checks for the environment variable VISUAL before EDITOR. 1067 1068 * Ported to OS/2. 1069 1070 ====================================================================== 1071 1072 1073 Major changes between "less" versions 237 and 252 1074 1075 * Changes in line-editing keys: 1076 The literal key is now ^V or ^A rather than \ (backslash). 1077 Filename completion commands (TAB and ^L) are disabled 1078 when typing a search pattern. 1079 1080 * Line-editing command keys can be redefined using lesskey. 1081 1082 * Lesskey with no input file defaults to $HOME/.lesskey 1083 rather than standard input. 1084 1085 * New option -V displays version number of less. 1086 1087 * New option -V displays version number of lesskey. 1088 1089 * Help file less.hlp is now installed by default in /usr/local/share 1090 rather than /usr/local/lib. 1091 1092 1093 ====================================================================== 1094 1095 1096 Major changes between "less" versions 170 and 237 1097 1098 * By popular demand, text which matches the current search pattern 1099 is highlighted. New -F flag disables this feature. 1100 1101 * Henry Spencer's regexp.c is now included, for systems which do not 1102 have a regular expression library. 1103 regexp.c is Copyright (c) 1986 by University of Toronto. 1104 1105 * New line-editing keys, including command history (arrow keys) and 1106 filename completion (TAB). 1107 1108 * Input preprocessor allows modification of input files (e.g. uncompress) 1109 via LESSOPEN/LESSCLOSE environment variables. 1110 1111 * New -X flag disables sending termcap "ti" and "te" (initialize and 1112 deinitialize) strings to the terminal. 1113 1114 * Changing -i from within less now correctly affects a subsequent 1115 repeated search. 1116 1117 * Searching for underlined or overstruck text now works when the -u 1118 flag is in effect, rather than the -i flag. 1119 1120 * Use setlocale (LANG and LC_CTYPE environment variables) to determine 1121 the character set if LESSCHARSET/LESSCHARDEF are not set. 1122 1123 * The default format for displaying binary characters is now standout 1124 (reverse video) rather than blinking. This can still be changed by 1125 setting the LESSBINFMT environment variable. 1126 1127 * Use autoconf installation technology. 1128 1129 * Ported to MS-DOS. 1130 1131 ******************************** 1132 Things that may surprise you 1133 ******************************** 1134 1135 * When you enter text at the bottom of the screen (search string, 1136 filename, etc.), some keys act different than previously. 1137 Specifically, \ (backslash), ESC, TAB, BACKTAB, and control-L 1138 now have line editing functions. 1139 1140 * Some previous unofficial versions of less were able to display 1141 compressed files. The new LESSOPEN/LESSCLOSE feature now provides 1142 this functionality in a different way. 1143 1144 * Some previous unofficial versions of less provided a -Z flag to 1145 set the number of lines of text to retain between full screen scrolls. 1146 The -z-n flag (that is, -z with a negative number) provides this 1147 functionality. 1148 1149 1150 ====================================================================== 1151 1152 1153 Major changes between "less" versions 123 and 170 1154 1155 * New option -j allows target lines to be positioned anywhere on screen. 1156 1157 * New option -S truncates displayed line at the screen width, 1158 rather than wrapping onto the next line. 1159 1160 * New option -y limits amount of forward scroll. 1161 1162 * New option -T specifies a "tags" file. 1163 1164 * Non-printable, non-control characters are displayed in octal. 1165 Such characters, as well as control characters, are displayed 1166 in blinking mode. 1167 1168 * New command -+ sets an option to its default. 1169 * New command -- sets an option to the opposite of its default. 1170 1171 * Lesskey file may have a string appended to a key's action, 1172 which acts as though typed in after the command. 1173 1174 * New commands ESC-^F and ESC-^B match arbitrary types of brackets. 1175 1176 * New command F monitors a growing file (like "tail -f"). 1177 1178 * New command | pipes a section of the input file into a shell command. 1179 1180 * New command :x directly jumps to a file in the command line list. 1181 1182 * Search commands have been enhanced and reorganized: 1183 n Repeat search, same direction. 1184 N Repeat search, opposite direction. 1185 ESC-/ Search forward thru file boundaries 1186 ESC-? Search backward thru file boundaries 1187 ESC-n Repeat search thru file boundaries, same direction. 1188 ESC-N Repeat search thru file boundaries, opposite direction. 1189 Special character * causes search to search thru file boundaries. 1190 Special character @ causes search to begin at start/end of file list. 1191 1192 * Examining a new file adds it to the command line list. 1193 A list of files, or an expression which matches more than one file, 1194 may be examined; all of them are added to the command line list. 1195 1196 * Environment variables LESSCHARSET and LESSCHARDEF can define 1197 a non-ASCII character set. 1198 1199 * Partial support for MSDOS, including options -R for repainting screen 1200 on quit, -v/-V to select video mode, and -W to change window size. 1201 1202 1203 ====================================================================== 1204 1205 1206 Major changes between "less" versions 97 and 123 1207 1208 * New option (-N) causes line numbers to be displayed in the 1209 text of the file (like vi "set nu"). 1210 1211 * New option (-?) prints help message immediately. 1212 1213 * New option (-r) displays "raw" control characters, without 1214 mapping them to ^X notation. 1215 1216 * New option (-f) forces less to open non-regular files 1217 (directories, etc). 1218 1219 * New option (-k) can be used to specify lesskey files by name. 1220 1221 * New option (-y) can be used to set a forward scroll limit 1222 (like -h sets a backward scroll limit). 1223 1224 * File marks (set by the m command) are now preserved when a new 1225 file is edited. The ' command can thus be used to switch files. 1226 1227 * New command ESC-/ searches all files (on the command line) 1228 for a pattern. 1229 1230 * New command ESC-n repeats previous search, spanning files. 1231 1232 * The N command has been changed to repeat the previous search 1233 in the reverse direction. The old N command is still available 1234 via :n. 1235 1236 * New command ESC-N repeats previous search in the reverse 1237 direction and spanning files. 1238 1239 * 8 bit characters are now supported. A new option (-g) can be 1240 used to strip off the eighth bit (the previous behavior). 1241 1242 * Options which take a following string (like -t) may now 1243 optionally have a space between the option letter and the string. 1244 1245 * Six new commands { } ( ) [ and ] can be used to match 1246 brackets of specific types, similar to vi % command. 1247 1248 * New commands z and w move forward/backward one window and 1249 simultaneously set the window size. 1250 1251 * Prompt string expansion now has %L for line number of the last 1252 line in the file, and %E for the name of the editor. 1253 Also, % escapes which refer to a line (b=bottom, t=top, etc.) 1254 can use j for the jump target line. 1255 1256 * New environment variable LESSEDIT can be used to tailor the 1257 command string passed to the editor by the v command. 1258 1259 * Examining a file which was previously examined will return 1260 to the same position in the file. 1261 1262 * A "%" is expanded to the current filename and a "#" to the 1263 previous filename, in both shell commands and the E command. 1264 (Previously % worked only in shell commands and # worked 1265 only in the E command.) 1266 1267 * New command ":ta" is equivalent to "-t". 1268 1269 * New command "s" is equivalent to "-l". 1270 1271 * The - command may be followed by "+X" to revert to the default 1272 for option X, or "-X" to get the opposite of the default. 1273 1274 * Lesskey files may now include characters after the action as 1275 extra input to be parsed after the action; for example: 1276 "toggle-option X" to toggle a specific option X. 1277 1278 1279 1280 1281 1282
Indexes created Sun Jun 21 00:25:28 UTC 2026