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XEDIT

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XEDIT
Company typeSoftware
IndustrySoftware, Text editors
Founded1980
FounderXavier de Lamberterie
ProductsVisual editor for VM/CMS

XEDIT serves as a visual editor designed for VM/CMS, functioning primarily in block mode on IBM 3270 terminals, while also accommodating line-mode terminals. Unlike contemporary PC and Unix editors, it emphasizes line-based operations, incorporating automatic line numbering and commands that manipulate groups of lines. Precise editing of specific lines and columns is facilitated through commands such as ALL—which conceals lines that do not match a given pattern—and COL, which hides columns outside a defined range, enabling targeted text adjustments.

A command line interface within XEDIT permits the entry of various editor commands. Due to the characteristics of IBM 3270 terminals, which only transmit data following designated key actions (for instance, program function keys), XEDIT offers less interactivity compared to many PC and Unix editors, restricting functionalities like real-time spell-checking.

Typical screen layout

<syntaxhighlight lang="text" line> 

MOHICANS SCRIPT A1 V 132 Trunc=132 Size=10 Line=10 Col=1 Alt=10

XEDIT: ===== Last of the Mohicans ===== .sp ===== It was a feature peculiar to the colonial wars of North America, ===== that the toils and dangers of the wilderness were to be encountered ===== before the adverse hosts could meet. ===== A wide and apparently an impervious boundary of forests severed ===== the possessions of the hostile provinces of France and England. ===== The hardy colonist, and the trained European who fought at his ===== side, frequently expended months in struggling against the rapids ===== of the streams, or in effecting the rugged passes of the mountains |...+....1....+....2....+....3....+....4....+....5....+....6....+....7... ===== * * * End of File * * * ====> 

                                                        X E D I T 1 File

</syntaxhighlight>

The screen layout highlights several important components:

  • The topmost line contains file information including filename (such as MOHICANS), file type (SCRIPT), mode (A1), record format (V), record length (132), truncation limit, total file size, current cursor line and column, and number of modifications made.
  • Lines beginning with equal signs (=====) provide space for line numbering or prefix commands that target blocks of lines.
  • A ruler bar indicates tab stop positions within the text.
  • An end-of-file indicator appears immediately after the last line of content.
  • The second-to-last line (====>) functions as a command prompt for entering XEDIT or system-level commands and macros.
  • IBM 3270 terminals generally did not support mouse input but included 12 or 24 program function keys (PFKs), which users could assign to specific XEDIT commands or macros.

XEDIT offers extensive options for customizing both its visual presentation and operational behavior, including:

    • Adjusting visibility or placement of command lines, tab rulers, and prefix lines
    • Changing prefix indicators from equal signs to numerical line references
    • Managing expansion behavior for TAB characters
    • Filtering displayed lines based on patterns or specified ranges
    • Toggling visibility for markers indicating top or bottom of file and shadow lines
    • Enabling scale or ruler lines to assist with navigation during editing
    • Configuring foreground and background colors across different screen sections
    • Defining which columns are visible in either text or hexadecimal display modes
    • Handling multiple screen configurations with varied sizes and positions, including side-by-side or stacked arrangements

These capabilities are designed to enhance productivity by tailoring the editing environment to meet the demands typical in enterprise mainframe settings.

Macro language

XEDIT macros are programmable using Rexx, ooRexx, EXEC 2, or EXEC. The editor provides extensive access to its internal variables, allowing macros to manipulate and monitor its operational state with ease.

KEXX

KEDIT 5 for DOS and OS/2 integrates an external Rexx interpreter—either the native OS/2 Rexx or Quercus Rexx, which replaced the earlier Mansfield Rexx for DOS—and offers a restricted internal macro language called KEXX. Meanwhile, KEDITW version 1.6.1 for Windows supports only the internal KEXX 5.62 implementation of the Rexx language. Macros are saved using the .kml extension.

History

Created by IBM developer Xavier de Lamberterie, XEDIT was introduced in 1980. It originated from IBM’s EDIT SP (System Product) and drew inspiration from the CMS editor EDIT as well as IBM’s EDGAR editor for CMS, incorporating many EDGAR commands like SOS (Screen Output Simulation). Additionally, XEDIT supported EXEC 2, which preceded Rexx.

PC and Unix adaptations

With the transition from IBM 3270 terminals to PCs and Unix systems, users desired editors similar to XEDIT’s functionality. This demand led to the development of several analogous editors:

KEDIT

The earliest XEDIT clone was KEDIT, developed by Mansfield Software Group and initially released in 1983. A significant DOS update (version 3.53) came out in 1985. By 1990, KEDIT 4.0 had added support for OS/2 and introduced the ALL command.

The final DOS/OS2 release was KEDIT 5.0p4; the Windows variant, KeditW, reached version 1.6.1 in December 2012. Previous Windows versions include 1.5 service level 3 (January 1998) and 1.6 (December 2007).

Version 1.6 of KEDIT features syntax highlighting for programming languages such as C#, COBOL, FORTRAN, HTML, Java, Pascal, and xBase. These definitions are stored in files with the .kld extension.

Included is an embedded Rexx subset known as KEXX. Notably, Mansfield Software produced the first non-IBM Rexx implementation—named "Personal Rexx"—in 1985.

The December 2012 update (version 1.6.1) introduced compatibility with Windows 8 and extended support at least through June . These are 32-bit editions compatible with Windows Vista, 7, and later but do not provide native Unicode handling. As of December 2022, Kedit operates on Windows 10 and 11, with email support guaranteed until June 2024.

SEDIT

First appearing in 1989, SEDIT is a text editor available on both Windows and Unix platforms that supports a variant of Rexx called S/REXX, introduced in 1994.

THE (The Hessling Editor)

The Hessling Editor (THE) is an open-source text editor initially released in August 1991 under the GPL-2.0-or-later. It runs on a broad range of operating systems including QNX, OS/2, DOS, BeOS, Amiga, various Windows versions from 95 through XP, as well as most POSIX-compliant Unix systems—operating either in text mode or through native X11. THE traces its roots back to IBM’s Mainframe VM/CMS editor XEDIT and incorporates elements from KEDIT. It supports REXX scripting languages and is written in C using PDCurses for certain platforms. To utilize THE’s macro functionality, a REXX interpreter such as Regina is required.

Mark Hessling, THE’s creator, explained his motivation for developing a versatile multi-platform text editor during the 1993 REXX conference held in La Jolla, California.

External links

  • KEDIT, a product by Mansfield Software Group compatible with DOS, OS/2, and Windows
  • Overview of KEDIT/KEXX authored by Rex Swain
  • KEXX Macros collection of macros
  • PcXedit, a free Windows-based editor
  • SEDIT and S/REXX available for Unix and Windows platforms
  • THE, an open-source editor utilizing Regina for macro scripting
  • uni-XEDIT Unix editor released in 2003
  • EE, a full-screen editor designed for VM/370-R6 SixPack
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