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28 .\" @(#)ctags.1 8.1 (Berkeley) 6/6/93
55 A tags file gives the locations of specified objects in a group of files.
56 Each line of the tags file contains the object name, the file in which it
57 is defined, and a search pattern for the object definition, separated by
63 can quickly locate these object definitions.
64 Depending upon the options provided to
66 objects will consist of subroutines, typedefs, defines, structs,
69 The following options are available:
70 .Bl -tag -width indent
72 Use backward searching patterns
75 Use forward searching patterns
79 Do not create tags for typedefs, structs, unions, and enums.
87 that do not take arguments;
89 that take arguments are tagged automatically.
91 Place the tag descriptions in a file called
93 The default behaviour is to place them in a file called
99 the tags will be written to standard output instead.
101 Update the specified files in the
104 references to them are deleted, and the new values are appended to the
106 This is ignored if the tags file does not exist or is not a regular
109 was used to write to standard output).
111 Beware: this option is implemented in a way which is rather
112 slow; it is usually faster to simply rebuild the
116 An index of the form expected by
118 is produced on the standard output.
120 contains the object name, file name, and page number (assuming 64
122 Since the output will be sorted into lexicographic order,
123 it may be desired to run the output through
126 .Bd -literal -offset indent
127 ctags -v files | sort -f > index
131 Suppress warning diagnostics.
134 produces a list of object
135 names, the line number and file name on which each is defined, as well
136 as the text of that line and prints this on the standard output.
138 is a simple index which can be printed out as an off-line readable
142 Files whose names end in
147 source files and are searched for C style routine and macro definitions.
148 Files whose names end in
153 Files whose names end in
155 are assumed to be Lisp files if their
156 first non-blank character is
165 Other files are first examined to see if they
166 contain any Pascal or Fortran routine definitions, and, if not, are
167 searched for C style definitions.
171 is treated specially in C programs.
173 is created by prepending
175 to the name of the file, with the
178 and any leading pathname components removed.
181 practical in directories with more than one
188 files each have a special tag.
191 of the second section of the
196 the second section of the
200 .Bl -tag -width ".Pa tags" -compact
202 default output tags file
207 utility exits with a value of 1 if an error occurred, 0 otherwise.
208 Duplicate objects are not considered errors.
212 option is a no-op for compatibility with previous versions of
214 that did not create tags for typedefs, enums, structs and unions
230 Recognition of functions, subroutines and procedures
231 for Fortran and Pascal is done in a very simpleminded way.
233 is made to deal with block structure; if you have two Pascal procedures
234 in different blocks with the same name you lose.
238 understand about Pascal types.
240 The method of deciding whether to look for C, Pascal or
246 utility relies on the input being well formed, and any syntactical
247 errors will completely confuse it.
248 It also finds some legal syntax
249 confusing; for example, since it does not understand
251 (incidentally, that is a feature, not a bug), any code with unbalanced
254 will cause it to become somewhat disoriented.
255 In a similar fashion, multiple line changes within a definition will
256 cause it to enter the last line of the object, rather than the first, as
257 the searching pattern.
258 The last line of multiple line
260 will similarly be noted.