screen cheatsheet

I’ve been using the unix screen command a lot lately, and enough to want to learn more.

I used to just scroll through windows with CTRL-a n and CTRL-a p, but now I have a ton of windows in my screen session, so I want to be able to navigate easier.

According to the manpage, you can automatically set the title of a window, but I think it’s nice to do it interactively because the general task that will identify the window’s functionality might not easily be reflected in a path or command.

You can also use screen to copy/paste text between windows:

  • Enter copy mode: CTRL-a [
  • Start/End selecting text to copy: SPACE
  • Paste text CTRL-a ]