Conference noted::hackers_v1

453.0. "Another use for apostrophe" by DELNI::CANTOR (Dave C.) Sat Apr 25 1987 02:29

      The apostrophe command can be used as a strike-out in command
      recall:
      
      Say you've just entered a longish command like:
      
      $ BACKUP DISK$FOOBAR:[USERNAME...] DESTINATION:USERNAME.BCK/SAVE
      
      Now, you want to issue the same sort of command, but for a
      different disk / directory.  You recall the command with
      control-B, but to edit the command requires both insert and
      overstrike mode.   To do this, I leave my terminal set to
      overstrike mode, hit control-H to go to the beginning of the
      line, and type over the appropriate parts of the command. 
      
      Whenever any part of the new command is shorter than the
      corresponding part of the old command, I use the apostrophe
      to strike out the characters, thus:
      
      $ BACKUP DISK$BAZ''':[ANOTHER'...] DESTINATION:ANOTHER'.BCK/SAVE
      
      This works provided the strings of apostrophes all precede
      punctuation marks because, a consecutive pair (the symbol name
      is null) they expands to an empty string, and a single apostrophe 
      preceding a punctuation mark also expands to an empty string.
      
      Saves toggling between overstrike and insert modes.
      
      Totally unsupported, of course.
      
      Dave C.