In Unix, how do I set my default (preferred) editor?

To set your default (preferred) editor on your Unix account, you must define the VISUAL and EDITOR environment variables. When you have done this, most Unix programs that use text editors (e.g., trn, tin, nn, and the alternate editor in Pine) will use the editor you have set.

The way to set these environment variables depends upon which Unix shell you use.

If you use csh or tcsh, at the shell prompt, enter: setenv VISUAL editor setenv EDITOR editor Replace editor with the editor you want to use (e.g., Emacs, Pico, or vi).

If you use sh, ksh, or bash, at the shell prompt, enter: VISUAL=editor; export VISUAL EDITOR=editor; export EDITOR Replace editor with the editor you want to use (e.g., Emacs, Pico, or vi).

Note: You may want to include the full path to the editor (e.g., /usr/local/bin/emacs, /usr/local/bin/pico, or /bin/vi) instead of just the name of the editor.

By following the commands above, you will set the default editor for the current computing session only. To make these changes permanent, you will need to place the appropriate commands described above in your .login or .cshrc files (for csh or tcsh users) or your .profile file (if you use sh, ksh, or bash).

At Indiana University, to get support for personal or departmental Linux or Unix systems, see At IU, how do I get support for Linux or Unix?

Also see:

• In Unix, how can I find the current values of all my environment variables and functions?
• In Unix, what is chsh, and how do I use it to change my shell?