pfm - Personal File Manager for Linux/Unix
pfm [ directory ] [ -s, --swap directory ]
[ -c, --colorset string ]
[ -l, --layout number ] [ --login ]
[ -o, --sort mode ]
pfm { --help | --usage | --version }
pfm is a terminal-based file manager, based on PFM.COM for MS-DOS.
All pfm commands are accessible through one or two keystrokes, and a few
are accessible with the mouse. Most command keys are case-insensitive. pfm
can operate in single-file mode or multiple-file mode. In single-file mode,
the command corresponding to the keystroke will be performed on the current
(highlighted) file only. In multiple-file mode, the command will apply to
a selection of files.
Note that throughout this manual page, file can mean any type of file, not just plain regular files. These will be referred to as regular files.
This manual pertains to version 2.12.3.
Most of pfm's configuration is read from a config file. The default
location for this file is $HOME/.pfm/.pfmrc, but an alternative location
may be specified using the environment variable PFMRC. If there is no
config file present at startup, one will be created. The file contains
many comments on the available options, and is therefore supposed to be
self-explanatory. pfm will issue a warning if the version number of an
existing config file is less than the version of pfm you are running, and
will offer to update it to its own version. Alternatively, you could let
pfm create a new default config file and compare the changes with your
own settings, so that you can configure the new options right away. See
also the Config command under MORE COMMANDS below, and DIAGNOSIS.
There are two commandline options that specify starting directories.
The CDPATH environment variable is taken into account when pfm
tries to find these directories.
The directory that pfm should initially use as its main directory. If
unspecified, the current directory is used.
Print extended usage information, then exit.
Start pfm using the specified colorset (as defined in the .pfmrc).
Start pfm using the specified column layout (as defined in the .pfmrc).
Start pfm as a login shell. pfm will change its name to -pfm
and start a new session using setsid().
Start pfm using the specified sort mode (as shown by the F6 command).
The directory that pfm should initially use as swap directory. (See
also below, under the F7 command).
There would be no point in setting the swap directory and subsequently
returning to the main directory if 'persistentswap' is turned off in your
config file. Therefore, pfm will swap back to the main directory only
if 'persistentswap' is turned on.
Print concise usage information, then exit.
Print current version, then exit.
Navigation through directories is essentially done using the arrow keys
and the vi(1) cursor keys (hjkl). The following additional navigation
keys are available:
Movement inside a directory:
| up arrow, down arrow | move the cursor by one line |
| k, j | move the cursor by one line |
| -, + | move the cursor by ten lines |
| CTRL-E, CTRL-Y | scroll the screen by one line |
| CTRL-U, CTRL-D | move the cursor by half a page |
| CTRL-B, CTRL-F | move the cursor by a full page |
| PgUp, PgDn | move the cursor by a full page |
| HOME, END | move the cursor to the top or bottom line |
| SPACE | mark the current file, then move the cursor one line down |
Movement between directories:
| l, right arrow | chdir() to a subdirectory |
| h, left arrow | chdir() to the parent directory |
| ENTER | chdir() to a subdirectory |
| ESC, BS | chdir() to the parent directory |
If the option 'chdirautocmd' has been specified in the .pfmrc file,
pfm will execute that command after every chdir(). This can be used
e.g. to set the title of an xterm window.
Note: the l and ENTER keys function differently when the cursor is on a non-directory file (see below under Link and LAUNCHING FILES respectively).
Changes the mode of the file if you are the owner. The mode may be specified
either symbolically or numerically, see chmod(1) for more details.
Note 1: the mode on a symbolic link cannot be set. See chmod(1) for more
details.
Note 2: the name Attribute for this command is a reminiscence of the DOS version.
Copy current file. You will be prompted for the destination filename. Directories will be copied recursively with all underlying files.
In multiple-file mode, it is not allowed to specify a single non-directory filename as a destination. Instead, the destination name must be a directory or a name containing a =1 or =2 escape (see below under cOmmand).
If clobber mode is off (see below under the ! command), existing files will not be overwritten unless the action is confirmed by the user.
Whether Copy follows symlinks or copies them is OS-specific; you can
change the default behavior by setting the 'copyoptions' option in your
.pfmrc. See cp(1).
Delete a file or directory. You must confirm this command with Y to actually delete the file. If the current file is a directory which contains files, and you want to delete it recursively, you must respond with Affirmative to the additional prompt. Lost files (files on the screen but not actually present on disk) can be deleted from the screen listing without confirmation. Whiteouts cannot be deleted; use unWhiteout for this purpose.
Edit a file with your external editor. You can specify an editor with the
environment variable VISUAL or EDITOR or with the 'editor' option
in the .pfmrc file. Otherwise vi(1) is used.
If a capital E is pressed, the foreground editor is used ('fg_editor').
If the current sort mode is by filename, you are prompted for a (partial) filename. While you type, the cursor is positioned on the best match. Type ENTER to end typing.
If the current sort mode is not by filename, then you are prompted for a filename. The cursor is then positioned on that file.
Allows you to change the target that a symbolic link points to. You must have permission to remove the current symbolic link.
The new name may use the =0 escape to modify the existing target (see below under cOmmand).
Allows you to mark a group of files which meet a certain criterion:
files newer/older than a specified date and time
all files, including dotfiles (but not the . and .. entries)
regular files of which the filenames match a specified regular expression (not a glob pattern!)
all directories (but not the . and .. entries)
files that are bigger or smaller than the provided size in bytes.
files which were created during a previous multiple command and are now denoted with a newmark (~)
files which were marked (*) before a previous multiple command and are now denoted with an oldmark (.)
files owned by the current user
all dotfiles (but not the . and .. entries).
Oldmarks and newmarks may be used to perform more than one command on the same group of files.
Note that the . and .. entries will never automatically become marked.
There is also the option:
Inverts the selection, except for the . and .. entries, which become unmarked.
Prompts to create either:
This will create a symlink containing an absolute path to the target, irrespective of whether you enter a relative or an absolute symlink name.
Example: when the cursor is on the file /home/rene/incoming/.plan, and you request an absolute symlink to be made with either the name ../.plan or /home/rene/.plan, the actual symlink will become:
/home/rene/.plan -> /home/rene/incoming/.plan
This will create an additional hard link to the current file with the specified name, which must be on the same filesystem (see ln(1)).
This will create a symlink containing a relative path to the target, irrespective of whether you enter a relative or an absolute symlink name.
Example: when the cursor is on the file /home/rene/incoming/.plan, and you request a relative symlink to be made with either the name ../.plan or /home/rene/.plan, the actual symlink will become:
/home/rene/.plan -> incoming/.plan
If a directory is specified, pfm will follow the behavior of ln(1),
which is to create the new link inside that directory.
In multiple-file mode, it is not allowed to specify a single non-directory filename as a new name. Instead, the new name must be a directory or a name containing a =1 or =2 escape (see below under cOmmand).
If clobber mode is off (see below under the ! command), existing files will not be overwritten.
Note that if the current file is a directory, the l key, being one of
the vi(1) cursor keys, will chdir() you into the directory. The capital L
command will always try to make a link.
Presents you with a choice of operations not related to the current
file. Use this e.g. to configure pfm, edit a new file, make a
new directory, show a different directory, or write the history files to
disk. See below under MORE COMMANDS. Pressing ESC or ENTER will
take you back to the main menu.
Shows the complete long filename. For a symbolic link, this command will also show the complete target of the symbolic link. This is useful in case the terminal is not wide enough to display the entire name, or if the name contains non-printable characters. Non-ASCII characters and control characters will be displayed as their octal, decimal (html entity-like) or hexadecimal equivalents like the examples in the following table.
The 'defaultradix' config file option specifies the radix that will initially be used. The 'defaulttranslatespace' config file option controls whether spaces will initially be converted as well.
When the name is shown in its converted form, pressing N will change the radix, and pressing SPACE will toggle the translation of spaces. Any other key will exit the N command.
Examples:
| character | representation in radix | ||
| octal | hexadecimal | decimal | |
| CTRL-A | \001 | \0x01 |  |
| space | \040 | \0x20 |   |
| c cedilla (ç) | \347 | \0xe7 | ç |
| backslash (\) | \\ | \\ | \\ |
Allows execution of a shell command. After the command completes, pfm
will resume. If the command is cd, pfm itself will change to
that directory.
On the commandline, you may use several special abbreviations, which
pfm will replace with the current filename, directoryname etc. (see
below). These abbreviations start with an escape character. This escape
character is defined with the option 'escapechar' in your .pfmrc
file. By default it is =. (Previous versions of pfm used \, but
this was deemed too confusing because backslashes are parsed by the shell
as well. This manual page (and the default config file) will assume you
are using = as 'escapechar').
The following abbreviations are available:
the current filename without extension (see below)
the current filename, complete
the full current directory path
the mountpoint of the current filesystem
the full swap directory path (see F7 command)
the basename of the current directory
the extension of the current filename (see below)
a space-separated list of all marked filenames. If the =8 escape takes the form prefix=8suffix, then the prefix and suffix strings are applied to each of the names.
the full previous directory path (see F2 command)
the symlink target if the current file is a symlink; otherwise an empty string
a single literal =
the editor specified with the 'editor' option in the config file
the 'foreground' editor, specified with the 'fg_editor' option in the
config file. This is expected to be defined as an editor that does not
fork into the background. pfm uses this editor in a few cases so
that it can wait for its results.
the pager specified with the 'pager' option in the config file
the image viewer specified with the 'viewer' option in the config file
The extension of the filename is defined as follows:
If the filename does not contain a period at all (e.g. hosts) or only has an initial period (e.g. .profile), then the file has no extension (=7 is empty) and its whole name is regarded as =1.
If the filename does contain a non-initial period (e.g. mail.log or .profile.old), the extension =7 is defined as the final part of the filename, starting at the last period in the name. The filename =1 is the part before the last period.
In all cases, the concatenation of =1 and =7 is equal to =2.
Examples:
| =2 | =1 | =7 |
| track01.wav | track01 | .wav |
| garden.jpg | garden | .jpg |
| end. | end | . |
| hosts | hosts | empty |
| .profile | .profile | empty |
| .profile.old | .profile | .old |
See also below under ESCAPE MODIFIERS and QUOTING RULES.
Will prompt for a print command (default lpr -P$PRINTER =2, or lpr =2
if PRINTER is unset) and will run it. No formatting is done. You may
specify a print command with the 'printcmd' option in the .pfmrc file.
Exit pfm. The option 'confirmquit' in the .pfmrc file specifies
whether pfm should ask for confirmation. Note that by pressing a capital
Q (quick quit), you will never be asked for confirmation.
Change the name of the file and/or move it into another directory. You will be prompted for the new filename. Depending on your Unix implementation, a pathname on another filesystem may or may not be allowed.
In multiple-file mode, it is not allowed to specify a single non-directory filename as a new name. Instead, the new name must be a directory or a name containing a =1 or =2 escape (see above under cOmmand).
If clobber mode is off (see below under the ! command), existing files will not be overwritten unless the action is confirmed by the user.
Displays the contents of the current file or directory on screen. You can choose which pager to use for file viewing with the environment variable PAGER, or with the 'pager' option in the .pfmrc file.
Changes mtime (modification date/time) of the file. The time may be entered either with or without clarifying interpunction (e.g. 2008-12-04 08:42.12). Enter . to set the mtime to the current date and time. If the current file does not exist in the directory (lost file or whiteout), it is touch(1)ed first.
Changes ownership of a file. Note that many Unix variants do not allow
normal (non-root) users to change ownership. Symbolic links will be
followed.
Updates the current file with status information of the applicable
versioning system. pfm will examine the current directory to figure
out which versioning system is used. Supported versioning systems are:
Subversion, CVS, Bazaar and Git. See also More - reVision.
(Only on platforms that support whiteout files). Provides the option to remove the whiteout entry in the top layer of a stacked/overlay filesystem, thereby restoring access to the corresponding file in the lower layer.
Allows you to erase marks on a group of files which meet a certain criterion. See Include for details.
Like cOmmand (see above), except that it uses preconfigured commands from the .pfmrc file. These commands are identified by a single letter (case-sensitive) or digit.
Your command definitions may use =0 up to =9 and =e, =E, =p and =v escapes just as in cOmmand, e.g.:
your[A]:svn add =8
your[c]:tar cvf - =2 | gzip > =2.tar.gz
your[t]:tar tvf =2 | =p
your[1]:vimdiff =2*
Navigation through the available commands works in the same way as for directories (see above under NAVIGATION), except that ENTER selects the highlighted command, and j and k select their own command (as do the other letters and digits).
For directories, reports the grand total (in bytes) of the directory and its contents.
For other file types, reports the total number of bytes in allocated data blocks. For regular files, this is often more than the reported file size. For special files and fast symbolic links, the number is zero, as no data blocks are allocated for these file types.
If the screen layout (selected with F9) does not contain the 'grand total' column, then the 'filesize' column will temporarily be used instead. A 'grand total' column in the layout will never be filled in when entering the directory.
Note: since du(1) commands are not portable, pfm guesses how it can
calculate the size according to the Unix variant that it runs on. If
pfm makes an incorrect guess, please notify the author of any
corrections that should be made.
These commands are accessible through the main screen More command.
Edit the Access Control List for this file. Note: This feature has not yet been implemented for all Un*x variants.
WARNING: This feature has not been well tested on all Unices. Use it at your own risk.
Any help getting the commands right would be appreciated by the author.
Lists all the available bookmarks and asks the user in which slot the current directory should be bookmarked. If the input is valid, a new bookmark is created in the bookmark list.
Navigation through the bookmark list works in the same way as for directories (see above under NAVIGATION), except that ENTER selects the highlighted slot, and j and k select their own slot (as do the other letters and digits).
This command will open the .pfmrc config file with the configured
editor. The file will be re-read by pfm after you exit your editor.
Options that are only modifiable through the config file (like
'columnlayouts') will be reinitialized immediately, options that affect
settings modifiable by key commands (like 'defaultsortmode') will not.
You will be prompted for a filename, then your editor will be spawned.
If a capital E is pressed, the foreground editor is used ('fg_editor').
Prompts for a name, then creates a FIFO file (named pipe) with that
name. See also fifo(4) and mkfifo(1).
Lists all the available bookmarks and asks the user which bookmark should
be loaded to the current directory (and file). If the input is valid,
the bookmark is loaded and a chdir() is done to the directory.
Navigation through the bookmark list works as noted above, under Bookmark.
Spawns your default login shell. When you exit from it, pfm will resume.
If the current file is a symlink, it is followed and the cursor positioned at the target file.
Specify a new directory name and pfm will create it for you. Furthermore,
if you don't have any files marked, your current directory will be set to
the newly created directory.
Opens a new (file manager) window on the current directory, as configured with 'windowtype' and 'windowcmd' in the .pfmrc. Some examples:
If 'windowtype' is "pfm" and 'windowcmd' is something like "xterm -e",
then a new terminal window running pfm will be opened.
If 'windowtype' is "standalone" and 'windowcmd' is something like
"nautilus", then a new nautilus window will be opened.
Shows the physical pathname of the current directory until a key is pressed.
Offers the user the choice to read the input history and/or bookmarks from disk.
The input history is the history of Unix commands, pathnames, regular
expressions, modification times, and file modes that the user enters.
pfm uses the readline library to manage these.
The input history is also read in when pfm starts, from individual files in
$HOME/.pfm/.
The bookmarks are also read in when pfm starts, from $HOME/.pfm/bookmarks.
See also More-Write history/bookmarks.
You will be asked for the directory you want to view. Note that this command is different from F7 because this will not change your current swap directory status.
If the terminal has an alternate screen (like xterm), and pfm has been
configured to use it (through the 'altscreenmode' option in the .pfmrc),
then this command shows the alternate screen until a key is pressed.
This is useful for reading error messages of shell commands and so on.
Updates the current directory with status information of the applicable
versioning system. pfm will examine the current directory to figure
out which versioning system is used. Supported versioning systems are:
Subversion, CVS, Bazaar and Git.
If you set the 'autorcs' option in your .pfmrc, this will automatically
be done every time pfm shows directory contents.
Offers the user the choice to write the input history and/or bookmarks to disk.
The input history is also written when pfm exits and the
'autowritehistory' option is set in .pfmrc.
The bookmarks are also written when pfm exits and the
'autowritebookmarks' option is set in .pfmrc.
See also More-Read history/bookmarks.
If the previous directory was a descendant of the current directory, return one level down. e.g. if the previous directory was /home/rene/projects/pfm and the current directory is /home, this command will subsequently descend into /home/rene, /home/rene/projects and /home/rene/projects/pfm.
Like F4, but cycles backward.
Refreshes the directory like F5 (remove lost files from the listing, read the current directory again etc.) but keeps the marks.
Allows the user to enter a string of sort mode characters which will be applied sequentially. Example: a string of sN will sort by size ascending followed by name descending; the string tn will sort directories before files, each sorted alphabetically.
Like F9, but cycles backward.
Starts a perl shell in the context of pfm. Primarily used for debugging.
If the current file is a directory, pfm will chdir() to that directory.
Otherwise, pfm will attempt to launch the file. See
below under LAUNCHING FILES.
Identical to the Delete command (see above).
Toggle clobber mode. This controls whether a file should be overwritten when its name is reused in Copy, Link or Rename.
Toggle pathname handling. In physical mode, the current directory path will always be transformed to its canonical form (the simplest form, with symbolic names resolved). In logical mode, all symbolic link components in the current directory path will be preserved.
Toggle show/hide whiteout files.
Toggle show/hide dot files.
Identical to Find (see above).
Toggle show/hide svn ignored files.
Pan the menu and footer, in order to view all available commands.
Cycle through displaying identity information: username, hostname, and/or ttyname.
Pan the menu and footer, in order to view all available commands.
Display help. Identical to F1.
Allows the user to enter a perl command to be executed in the context
of pfm. Primarily used for debugging, but may for example be used
for setting environment variables, e.g.:
$ENV{LC_ALL} = 'C'
Display help, version number and license information.
chdir() back to the previous directory. In shell commands,
the previous directory path may be referred to as =9.
Fit the file list into the current window and refresh the display.
Change the current colorset. Multiple colorsets may be defined, see the .pfmrc file itself for details.
Current directory will be reread. Use this when the contents of the directory have changed. This command will erase all marks.
Allows you to re-sort the directory listing. You will be presented a number of sort modes.
Alternates the display between two directories. When switching for the first time, you are prompted for a directory path to show. When you switch back by pressing F7 again, the contents of the alternate directory are displayed unchanged. Menu text changes color when in swap screen. In shell commands, the directory path from the alternate screen may be referred to as =5. If the 'persistentswap' option has been set in the config file, then leaving the swap mode will store the main directory path as swap path again.
Toggles the mark (include flag) on an individual file.
Toggle the column layout. Layouts are defined in your .pfmrc, in the 'defaultlayout' and 'columnlayouts' options. See the config file itself for information on changing the column layout.
Note that a 'grand total' column in the layout will only be filled when the siZe command is issued, not when reading the directory contents.
Switch between single-file and multiple-file mode.
Refresh (using lstat(2)) the displayed file data for the current file (or files, in multiple mode).
Toggle mouse use. See below under MOUSE COMMANDS.
The above mentioned escapes =0 to =9 and =e, =E, =p and =v can make use of the following modifiers:
prefix is a word which may use * characters as a wildcard. If the prefix matches the beginning of the value of the escape, then the result of the expansion is the expanded value of escape with the shortest (#) or longest (##) matching string deleted.
suffix is a word which may use * characters as a wildcard. If the suffix matches a trailing portion of the value of the escape, then the result of the expansion is the expanded value of escape with the shortest (%) or longest (%%) matching string deleted.
Find occurrences of string in the expanded value of escape and replace them with replacement. For /, replace only the first occurrence; for //, replace all occurrences.
This expansion modifies the case of alphabetic characters in escape. The ^ operator converts letters in letters to uppercase; the , operator converts letters in letters to lowercase. The ^^ and ,, expansions convert each matched character in the expanded value; the ^ and , expansions match and convert only the first character in the expanded value. If letters is omitted, it is treated like a ?, which matches every letter.
If a modification is done on =8, it is done on each of the expanded values.
Examples:
| escape | result |
| =2 | ActivateDebtor.php |
| ={2} | ActivateDebtor.php |
| ={2#Activate} | Debtor.php |
| ={2#t} | ActivateDebtor.php |
| ={2#*t} | ivateDebtor.php |
| ={2##*t} | or.php |
| ={2%hp} | ActivateDebtor.p |
| ={2%t} | ActivateDebtor.php |
| ={2%t*} | ActivateDeb |
| ={2%%t*} | Ac |
| ={2/at/} | ActiveDebtor.php |
| ={2//t/} | AcivaeDebor.php |
| ={2,d} | Activatedebtor.php |
| ={2^ph} | ActivateDebtor.Php |
| ={2^^ph} | ActivateDebtor.PHP |
| ={2,,t} | ActivateDebtor.php |
| ={2^^t} | AcTivaTeDebTor.php |
| ={2,,} | activatedebtor.php |
| ={2^^} | ACTIVATEDEBTOR.PHP |
| =8 | UserId.php UserName.php |
| ={8,} | userId.php userName.php |
| ={8#User} | Id.php Name.php |
| =8.old | UserId.php.old UserName.php.old |
| ={8#User}.bak | Id.php.bak Name.php.bak |
| Local={8/.php/} | LocalUserId LocalUserName |
The ENTER key, when used on a non-directory file, will make pfm
attempt to launch the file.
pfm can be configured to use any combination of four methods for
determining the appropriate command. These methods are:
The filename extension will be translated to a file type (preferably a MIME type) using the 'extension[*.extension]' options in the config file.
Example:
extension[*.gif]: image/gif
extension[*.pdf]: application/pdf
Launch commands for every file type may be defined using the 'launch[filetype]' options.
Example:
launch[image/gif] : =v =2 &
launch[application/pdf]: acroread =2 &
The file(1) command will be run on the current file. Its output will
be translated to a file type using the 'magic[regular expression]'
options in the config file.
Example:
magic[GIF image data]: image/gif
magic[PDF document] : application/pdf
The file type will then be used to look up a launch command as described above.
The executable bits in the file permissions will be checked (after
symbolic links have been followed). If the current file is executable,
pfm will attempt to start the file as an executable command.
Some filenames have their own unique way of launching them. These can be configured using the 'launchname' config option:
launchname[Makefile] : make
launchname[Imakefile] : xmkmf
launchname[Makefile.PL]: perl =2
To select which method or methods (extension, magic, xbit, and/or name) should be used for determining the file type, you should specify these using the 'launchby' option (separated by commas if there is more than one).
Example:
launchby:name,xbit,extension
pfm will try these methods in succession until one succeeds, or all
fail.
If the file type cannot be determined, the current file will be displayed using your pager.
The ENTER key will always behave as if pfm runs in single-file mode.
It will not launch multiple files. Use Your or cOmmand to launch
multiple files.
pfm adds an extra layer of parsing to filenames and shell commands. It
is therefore important to take notice of the rules that pfm uses.
In versions prior to 1.93.1, the default escape character was \. Since this causes confusing results, this is no longer the default, and you are discouraged from using it.
The following six types of input can be distinguished:
The input is parsed as a regular expression.
Characters not in the set [0-9.] are removed from the input.
The input is taken literally.
The input is taken literally.
First of all, tilde expansion is performed.
Next, any =[0-9eEpv] character sequence is expanded to the corresponding
value.
At the same time, any =[^0-9eEpv] character sequence is just replaced
with the character itself.
Finally, if the filename is to be processed by pfm, it is taken literally;
if it is to be handed over to a shell, all metacharacters are replaced
escaped.
First of all, tilde expansion is performed.
Next, any =[0-9eEpv] character sequence is expanded to the corresponding
value, with shell metacharacters escaped.
At the same time, any =[^0-9eEpv] character sequence is just replaced
with the character itself.
In short:
pfm always escapes shell metacharacters in expanded =2
etc. constructs.
In filenames entered, shell metacharacters are taken literally.
In shell commands entered, metacharacters that you want to be taken literally must be escaped one extra time.
Examples:
| char(s) wanted in filename | char(s) to type in filename | char(s) to type in shell command | |
| any non-metachar | that char | that char | |
| \ | \ | \\ or '\' | |
| " | " | \" or '"' | |
| = | == | == | |
| space | space | \\space or 'space' | |
| filename | =2 | =2 | |
| \2 | \2 | \\2 or '\2' | |
| =2 | ==2 | ==2 | |
When pfm is run in an xterm or other terminal (or emulator) that supports
the use of a mouse, turning on mouse mode (either initially with the
'defaultmousemode' option in the .pfmrc file, or while running using
the F12 key) will give mouse access to the following commands:
| button | location clicked | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| pathline | menu/footer | heading | fileline | filename | dirname | ||
| 1 | chdir() | pfm command | sort | F8 | Show | Show | |
| 2 | cOmmand | pfm command | sort rev | Show | ENTER | More - Open window | |
| 3 | cOmmand | pfm command | sort rev | Show | ENTER | More - Open window | |
| wheel up | five lines up | ||||||
| wheel down | five lines down | ||||||
If the config option 'mouse_moves_cursor' has been set to 'yes', a mouse click on a non-directory will move the cursor to that file. Otherwise, the cursor will only move when a directory is clicked or the mouse wheel is used.
The mouse wheel moves the cursor five lines per notch by default, or one line if shift is pressed. The actual number of lines can be configured in your .pfmrc using 'mousewheeljumpsize'.
Clicking button 1 on the current directory path will chdir() up to the
clicked ancestor directory. If the current directory was clicked, or the
device name, it will act like a More - Show command.
Clicking button 2 on a directory name will open a new window like More - Open window.
Clicking on the column headings will sort the directory contents by that heading. Clicking again will sort the directory in reverse order.
Clicking on "Sort" in the footer will cycle through a number of preconfigured sort modes as defined in the config option 'sortcycle'.
Clicking on the menu or footer will execute the command that was clicked.
Clicking on one of the identity lines in the info column will toggle the display like the = command does.
Mouse use will be turned off during the execution of commands.
Upon exit, pfm will save its current working directory in the file
$HOME/.pfm/cwd, and its swap directory, if any, in $HOME/.pfm/swd.
This enables the user to have the calling process (shell) "inherit"
pfm's current working directory, and to reinstate the swap directory
upon the next invocation. To achieve this, you may call pfm using a
function or alias like the following:
Example for ksh(1), bash(1) and zsh(1):
pfm() {
if [ -s ~/.pfm/swd ]; then
swd=-s"`cat ~/.pfm/swd`"
fi
# providing $swd is optional
env pfm $swd "$@"
if [ -s ~/.pfm/cwd ]; then
cd "`cat ~/.pfm/cwd`"
rm -f ~/.pfm/cwd
fi
}
Example for csh(1) and tcsh(1):
alias pfm ': \
if (-s ~/.pfm/swd) then \
set swd=-s"`cat ~/.pfm/swd`" \
endif \
: providing $swd is optional \
env pfm $swd \!* \
if (-s ~/.pfm/cwd) then \
cd "`cat ~/.pfm/cwd`" \
rm -f ~/.pfm/cwd \
endif'
Detected as an indication that ANSI coloring escape sequences should not be used.
A colon-separated list of directories specifying the search path when changing directories. There is always an implicit . entry at the start of this search path.
The X display on which the 'windowcmd' will be opened.
The editor to be used for the Edit command. Overridden by VISUAL.
Determine locale settings, most notably for collation sequence, messages
and date/time format. See locale(7).
Identifies the pager with which to view text files. Defaults to less(1)
for Linux systems or more(1) for Unix systems.
Indicate whether and how the readline prompts should be highlighted. See Term::ReadLine(3pm). If unset, a good guess is made based on your config file 'framecolors[]' setting.
Specify a location of an alternate .pfmrc file. If unset, the default location $HOME/.pfm/.pfmrc is used. The cwd- and history-files cannot be displaced in this manner, and will always be located in the directory $HOME/.pfm/.
May be used to specify a printer to print to using the Print command.
Your default login shell, spawned by More - sHell.
The editor to be used for the Edit command. Overrides EDITOR.
The directory $HOME/.pfm/ and files therein. A number of input histories and the current working directory on exit are saved to this directory.
The default location for the config file is $HOME/.pfm/.pfmrc.
Success (could also be a user requested exit, e.g. after --help or --version).
Invalid commandline option.
No valid layout found in the .pfmrc file.
If pfm reports that your config file might be outdated, you might be
missing some of the newer configuration options (or default values for
these). The best way to solve this is by having pfm generate a new
config file, e.g. by running the following command and comparing the
new config file with your original one:
env PFMRC=~/.pfm/.pfmrc-new pfm
Alternatively, you may reply with y when pfm offers to update the
config file for you.
If a function key like F1 or F10 is intercepted by your windowing system or OS, and it is not feasible to change that mapping, then you can define an alternative key mapping (like Shift-F1, Shift-F10) in your .pfmrc, e.g.:
keydef[*]:k1=\eO1;2P:k10=\e[21;2~:
Or for a specific value of TERM:
keydef[xterm]:k1=\eO1;2P:k10=\e[21;2~:
The smallest terminal size supported is 80x24. The display will be messed
up if you resize your terminal window to a smaller size, unless you specify
'force_minimum_size' in the config file and the terminal supports resizing;
in that case pfm will resize the terminal to at least 80 columns and/or
24 rows.
The author once almost pressed ENTER when logged in as root and with the cursor on the file /sbin/reboot. You have been warned.
This manual pertains to version 2.12.3.
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms described by the GNU General Public License version 3.
This program was based on PFM.COM version 2.32, originally written for MS-DOS by Paul R. Culley and Henk de Heer. The name 'pfm' was adopted with kind permission of the original authors.
Special thanks to Ewoud Kappers for useful suggestions and testing.
Special thanks to Maurice Makaay for useful suggestions and assistance with debugging.
The documentation on PFM.COM. The manual pages for chmod(1), cp(1),
file(1), less(1), ln(1), locale(7), lpr(1), touch(1), vi(1).
For developers:
Term::Screen(3pm), Term::ScreenColor(3pm), Term::ReadLine(3pm).
App::PFM::Abstract(3pm), App::PFM::Application(3pm), App::PFM::Browser(3pm), App::PFM::CommandHandler(3pm), App::PFM::Config(3pm), App::PFM::Directory(3pm), App::PFM::Event(3pm), App::PFM::File(3pm), App::PFM::History(3pm), App::PFM::JobHandler(3pm), App::PFM::Job::Abstract(3pm), App::PFM::OS(3pm), App::PFM::Screen(3pm), App::PFM::State(3pm) and App::PFM::Util(3pm).
The pfm project page: http://sourceforge.net/projects/p-f-m/
The pfm homepage: http://p-f-m.sourceforge.net/