Although UNIXprovides remarkably effective tools for text editing, that by itself is no guarantee that everyone will automatically make the most effective use of them. In particular, people who are not computer specialists _ typists, secretaries, casual users _ often use the system less effectively than they might.
This document is intended as a sequel to A Tutorial Introduction to the UNIX Text Editor [1], providing explanations and examples of how to edit with less effort. (You should also be familiar with the material in UNIX For Beginners [2].) Further information on all commands discussed here can be found in The UNIX Programmer's Manual [3].
Examples are based on observations of users and the difficulties they encounter. Topics covered include special characters in searches and substitute commands, line addressing, the global commands, and line moving and copying. There are also brief discussions of effective use of related tools, like those for file manipulation, and those based on ed, like grep and sed.
A word of caution. There is only one way to learn to use something, and that is to use it. Reading a description is no substitute for trying something. A paper like this one should give you ideas about what to try, but until you actually try something, you will not learn it.