The pico editor

pico is a Unix program that will allow you to create a file. It can be any file, but we will use it to create programs and web pages.

pico is very similar to pine, if you have used pine for email. To begin a new file type:
>pico filename

You will then get a new screen to type in with a menu at the bottom of the screen. Most of the commands are self explanatory. Control-K (^k)will delete a whole line and you can use the arrow keys to move around the screen. Control-U (^u) will paste back a line that has been "cut" with ^k. The one command that is a little obscure is Control-O (^o)--WriteOut. This is the equivalent of Save. Use ^o when you are ready to save the file. Control-X (^x) will allow you to exit pico.

One thing to be careful of: if you see this message:
Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?

Be sure you type 'y'--otherwise, anything you have typed into the file will be lost.

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