How do I get spaces instead of tabs in nano?
31,196
Solution 1
From the nano Command Manual:
-E, --tabstospaces
Convert typed tabs to spaces.
-T <#cols>, --tabsize=<#cols>
Set the displayed tab length to #cols columns. The value of #cols must be greater than 0. The default value is 8.
For four spaces, the appropriate command would therefore be nano -ET4
.
Consider creating a permanent alias.
Solution 2
Either create .nanorc
in your home folder, including:
set tabsize 4
set tabstospaces
or edit the system /etc/nanorc
file.
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Comments
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flo over 1 year
I usually edit Python files with nano, so I need four spaces instead of a tab. How can I get nano to automatically insert spaces for tabs, and control how many of them it inserts?
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Sven Rojek almost 11 yearsStackOverflow: tabs to spaces in nano
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theTuxRacer about 13 yearsyou could also consider editing
/etc/nanorc
instead of making an alias. -
Srikanth almost 12 yearsI feel like patching /etc/nanorc.... and uploading to fix this once and for all. With python3 not accepting mixed tabs&spaces this is silly to have tabs in python files in nano.