[comp.sys.apple] Editing Large Text Files

aba@asbf-cs.huachuca-emh1.army.MIL (ASBIH-CSC Andersen) (02/10/89)

Applewriter //e (as opposed to Applewriter ][) will handle any size file
regardless of memory constraints.  This is fully convered in the program
documentation (now obsolete), but a few highlights are as follows:

Appending data to a file - CTRL-S filename+ (be sure to use the +)
                           You will be asked if you want to overwrite
                           your old file.  Anser[D[Dw[C[C yes, it will in fact
                           only append to the file.

Editing a file with [D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[Dlarge [C[C[C[C[C[C[C[C[C unknown contents. - Just load the file like
                                              you normally would.  You will
                                              get the out of memory beep.
(the hell with this indentation!)  Look at the last line that was pulled
into memory.  Find a unique set of words that you think will not be
replicated elsewhere in the file.  Clear memory and type in the
following:  CTRL-S filename<search parameter<  This will search the
file for your search parameter and pull all it can into memory starting
at the first occurance it finds of your search parameter.  You save that
data in the same manner (CTRL-S filename<search parameter<). 

Make sure you do all this with your prefix alread set to the subdirectory
you want to be in.  The program gets confused with the + and <xx< when
using complete pathnames.

Above all, experiment on a trash disk first!

Hope this helps someone.