less (display file one page at a time)

Displays a file to the screen. It displays one screen, and then waits. The less command is a newer version of the more command. less has both options and commands. Commands are typed while less is running, displaying the file. Commands are similar to vi commands. Pressing a key when less has displayed a screen full of text and is waiting for input tells less what to display next.

 Format:    less filename Examples:  less file1.txt 

The less command has many more commands and options than the more command.

Opt	What It Does	Examples
?	Display help file	less -?
-m	Display a long prompt	less -m
-ppattern	Start display where first pattern is found	less +pa*

Command	What It Does
<space>	Display next screen
n<Enter>	Display the next n lines; default is one line
/pattern	Search for pattern
=	Print current line number
b	Skip backward one screen of text
f	Skip forward two screens of text
n	Repeat last search
q	Stop displaying files
v	Open file in vi editor