less is a pager. A pager is a program that displays text files.
less has an enormous number of options (perhaps too many) which let you change the way it behaves.
This is free and open source software.
Features include:
- Backwards movement.
- Searching and highlighting – search for text in the file you’re viewing. You can search forwards and backwards. less highlights the text that matches your search, to make it easy to see where the match is.
- Multiple files – switch between any number of different files, remembering your position in each file. You can also do a single search which spans all the files you are working with.
- Bold and underline – some text files, notably Unix-style “man pages”, use overstriking (backspaces) to simulate underlined and bold text. Less interprets this overstriking and displays the text in real underlined or bold mode.
- Advanced features:
- Highly customizable – change key bindings, set different tab stops, set up filters to view compressed data or other file types, customize the prompt, display line numbers, use “tag” files, and more.
- Portability – available on many different machines, different system architectures, and different terminals. Pretty much wherever you go, you’ll find less.
Website: www.greenwoodsoftware.com/less
Support: FAQ
Developer: Mark Nudelman
License: GNU General Public License v3.0
less is written in C. Learn C with our recommended free books and free tutorials.
Alternatives to more | Alternatives to tail
| Explore Linux | |
|---|---|
 | Best Free and Open Source Software - A huge collection of recommended free and open source software covering every major category. |
 | In-depth Linux Software Reviews - Detailed assessments of Linux software covering features, usability and overall quality. |
 | The Big List of Active Linux Distros - An extensive collection of actively developed Linux distributions. |
 | Open Source Alternatives - Alternatives to software and services from Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Autodesk, Oracle and others. |
 | Essential Linux System Tools - Indispensable utilities for monitoring, maintaining and managing Linux systems. |
 | Linux Productivity Tools - Useful utilities for improving productivity and streamlining everyday tasks. |
 | Alternatives to Popular CLI Tools - Modern alternatives to familiar command-line utilities supplied with Linux systems. |
 | Awesome Free Linux Game Tools - Tools, utilities and companion software that improve gaming on Linux. |
 | Machine Learning on Linux - Machine learning and deep learning software, self-hosted applications and practical tools. |
 | Saving Money with Linux - Practical ways to reduce electricity consumption and lower computing costs with Linux. |
 | Linux Candy - Fun, entertaining and sometimes delightfully quirky software from the lighter side of Linux. |
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.