rlwrap v 0.29  November 10 2007

* WHAT IT IS: 
rlwrap is a 'readline wrapper', a small utility that uses the GNU
readline library to allow the editing of keyboard input for any
command. I couldn't find anything like it when I needed it, so I wrote
this one back in 1999.  By now, there are a number of good readline
wrappers around, like rlfe, distributed as part of the GNU readline
library, and cle (http://kaolin.unice.fr/Cle/).
rlwrap should be especially useful when you need user-defined
completion (by way of completion word lists) and persistent
history. Moreover, it should be portable across a fairly wide range of
Unix systems (it works under cygwin as well)

* HOW TO USE IT:
If 
  $ <command> <args>
yields garbage like ^H and ^[[D whenever you try to edit input, or
if you just want decent input history and completion,
try:
  $ rlwrap [-options] <command> <args>
You then can edit <command>'s input and recall the input history using
the arrow keys.  Input history is remembered accross invocations,
separately for different <command>s. Typing !<prefix><TAB> will recall
the last input line starting with <prefix>, CTRL-R will search the
input history.  With the -r and -f options you can specify the list of
words which rlwrap will use as possible completions, taking them from a 
file (-f option) or from <command>'s standard in/output.
rlwrap monitors <command>'s terminal settings, so that it can do the
right thing when command asks for single keypresses or for a password.
Commands that already use readline will always ask for (and get)
single keypresses, which makes rlwrapping them rather
pointless. However, if one uses the -a option, rlwrap will use its own
line editing and history. Unforunately, in this case, rlwrap cannot
detect whether <command> asks for a password. This can be remedied by
giving the password prompt (excluding trailing space and possibly the
first few letters) as an argument to the -a option.
 
* EXAMPLES:
Run netcat with command-line editing:

  rlwrap nc localhost 80

Run lprolog and use library1 and library2 to build a completion word
list:
  
  rlwrap -f library1 -f library2 lprolog

Run smbclient (which already uses readline), add all input and output
to completion list, complete local filenames, avoid showing (and
storing) passwords:

  rlwrap -cr -aPassword: smbclient '\\PEANUT\C' 

* INSTALLATION:
Usually just
# ./configure; make install
See the INSTALL file for more information.

* PARENTHESIS MATCHING
This is not very clearly documented in readline's info or manpages, it
should be on by default. It can be controlled by putting "set
blink-matching-paren (off|on)" in your .inputrc

* AUTHOR
Hans Lub, hlub@knoware.nl

* HOMEPAGE
http://utopia.knoware.nl/~hlub/uck/rlwrap