EX Mode
The line editor that became vi's visual mode.
ex (short for extended) is a line editor based on and intended as an improvement to ed, the original Unix editor. Today, it is standardized by POSIX.
Quick Facts
- Franchise
- Gunpey
- Developer
- Bandai Namco Entertainment
- Genre
- Puzzle
Lore & Background
George Coulouris of Queen Mary College developed an improved version of ed called em in 1975 that took advantage of video terminals. While visiting Berkeley, Coulouris presented em to Bill Joy, who modified it along with Charles Haley to be less demanding of the processor. The editor became ex and got included in the Berkeley Software Distribution. Later, ex was enhanced to support full-screen editing via a new, visual mode. The vi text editor is, in fact, ex running in visual mode.
Reader's Guide
The program can be started in either the visual or legacy mode (via command vs. ) and the user can switch between modes at runtime. In visual mode, ex commands can be issued at the colon (:) prompt. The core ex commands which relate to search and replace are essential to vi. For instance, the ex command replaces every instance of with , and works in vi too. The means every line in the file. The 'g' stands for global and means replace every instance on every line (if it was not specified, then only the first instance on each line would be replaced).
Did You Know?
- Even though vi is just a mode of ex, the editor is more commonly called vi today instead of ex.
- Some programs such as vim provide both vi and ex compatibility modes such that neither vi nor ex are the program per se.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does EX Mode exist in Gunpeyard Flower Carnival?
No, the official records for Gunpeyard Flower Carnival do not contain any combat system or feature named 'EX Mode.' The game is a puzzle title focused on connecting line fragments represented as worms within a garden setting.
Who developed Gunpeyard Flower Carnival and when was it released?
Bandai Namco Entertainment created this puzzle game, releasing it first in Japan on February 27, 2017, followed by a worldwide launch on March 28 of the same year. The service operated until its shutdown on December 13, 2017.
Why might fans be confused about an EX Mode?
Confusion often arises because many mobile games from that era included 'EX' or special battle modes, but this specific title was strictly a puzzle experience without such features. The absence of combat systems means no alternate character states or power-ups like EX Mode were implemented.
More in Combat Systems & Mechanics
Elsewhere in Flower
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced