z README

The project's README from github.com/rupa/z. As one markdown file: README.md.

Z(1) User Commands Z(1)

NAME z - jump around

SYNOPSIS z [-chlrtx] [regex1 regex2 ... regexn]

AVAILABILITY bash, zsh

DESCRIPTION Tracks your most used directories, based on 'frecency'.

   After  a  short  learning  phase, z will take you to the most 'frecent'
   directory that matches ALL of the regexes given on the command line, in
   order.

   For example, z foo bar would match /foo/bar but not /bar/foo.

OPTIONS -c restrict matches to subdirectories of the current directory

   -e     echo the best match, don't cd

   -h     show a brief help message

   -l     list only

   -r     match by rank only

   -t     match by recent access only

   -x     remove the current directory from the datafile

EXAMPLES z foo cd to most frecent dir matching foo

   z foo bar     cd to most frecent dir matching foo, then bar

   z -r foo      cd to highest ranked dir matching foo

   z -t foo      cd to most recently accessed dir matching foo

   z -l foo      list all dirs matching foo (by frecency)

NOTES Installation: Put something like this in your $HOME/.bashrc or $HOME/.zshrc:

          . /path/to/z.sh

   cd around for a while to build up the db.

   PROFIT!!

   Optionally:
          Set $_Z_CMD to change the command name (default z).
          Set $_Z_DATA to change the datafile (default $HOME/.z).
          Set  $_Z_MAX_SCORE  lower  to  age  entries  out faster (default
          9000).
          Set $_Z_NO_RESOLVE_SYMLINKS to prevent symlink resolution.
          Set $_Z_NO_PROMPT_COMMAND to handle PROMPT_COMMAND/precmd  your-
          self.
          Set $_Z_EXCLUDE_DIRS to an array of directory trees to  exclude.
          Set $_Z_OWNER to allow usage when in 'sudo -s' mode.
          (These  settings  should  go  in  .bashrc/.zshrc before the line
          added above.)
          Install the provided man page z.1  somewhere  in  your  MANPATH,
          like /usr/local/man/man1.

Aging: The rank of directories maintained by z undergoes aging based on a sim- ple formula. The rank of each entry is incremented every time it is accessed. When the sum of ranks is over 9000, all ranks are multiplied by 0.99. Entries with a rank lower than 1 are forgotten.

Frecency: Frecency is a portmanteau of 'recent' and 'frequency'. It is a weighted rank that depends on how often and how recently something occurred. As far as I know, Mozilla came up with the term.

   To z, a directory that has low ranking but has been  accessed  recently
   will  quickly  have  higher rank than a directory accessed frequently a
   long time ago.

   Frecency is determined at runtime.

Common: When multiple directories match all queries, and they all have a common prefix, z will cd to the shortest matching directory, without regard to priority. This has been in effect, if undocumented, for quite some time, but should probably be configurable or reconsidered.

Tab Completion: z supports tab completion. After any number of arguments, press TAB to complete on directories that match each argument. Due to limitations of the completion implementations, only the last argument will be com- pleted in the shell.

   Internally, z decides you've requested a completion if the  last  argu-
   ment  passed  is  an  absolute  path to an existing directory. This may
   cause unexpected behavior if the last argument to z begins with /.

ENVIRONMENT A function _z() is defined.

   The contents of the variable $_Z_CMD is aliased to _z 2>&1. If not set,
   $_Z_CMD defaults to z.

   The  environment  variable $_Z_DATA can be used to control the datafile
   location. If it is not defined, the location defaults to $HOME/.z.

   The environment variable $_Z_NO_RESOLVE_SYMLINKS can be set to  prevent
   resolving  of  symlinks.  If  it  is  not  set,  symbolic links will be
   resolved when added to the datafile.

   In bash, z appends a command to the PROMPT_COMMAND environment variable
   to maintain its database. In zsh, z appends a function _z_precmd to the
   precmd_functions array.

   The environment variable $_Z_NO_PROMPT_COMMAND can be set if  you  want
   to handle PROMPT_COMMAND or precmd yourself.

   The  environment  variable  $_Z_EXCLUDE_DIRS  can be set to an array of
   directory trees to exclude from tracking.  $HOME  is  always  excluded.
   Directories must be full paths without trailing slashes.

   The  environment  variable  $_Z_OWNER  can  be set to your username, to
   allow usage of z when your sudo environment keeps $HOME set.

FILES Data is stored in $HOME/.z. This can be overridden by setting the $_Z_DATA environment variable. When initialized, z will raise an error if this path is a directory, and not function correctly.

   A man page (z.1) is provided.

SEE ALSO regex(7), pushd, popd, autojump, cdargs

   Please file bugs at https://github.com/rupa/z/

z January 2013 Z(1)

z (rupa/z)

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17.1K ·GitHub
Z
What is this?z is a command-line helper that remembers which directories you use most and takes you straight to them from a few keystrokes — its tagline is 'jump around'.
Is z a separate program, or something I wire into my shell?Not a standalone binary: sourcing z.sh defines a z() shell function that also hooks your prompt to maintain its directory database.
How do I get it running?Add one line to your .bashrc or .zshrc — . /path/to/z.sh — then spend a while cd-ing normally so the database fills up before jumps get accurate.
Will it work in my shell?Only bash and zsh are supported — those are the two shells the man page lists as available.
What happens when several directories match?If the matches share a common prefix, z cds to the shortest one regardless of frecency — the author notes this long-standing behavior should probably be configurable.
Where does it keep what it learns about my habits?In a single local datafile, $HOME/.z by default (relocatable via $ZDATA) — nothing leaves your machine.
What exactly is 'frecency'?A portmanteau of 'recent' and 'frequency' that Mozilla coined — a weighted rank mixing how often and how recently you visit, so a directory accessed recently can quickly outrank one you used frequently a long time ago.
Does z support tab completion?Yes — after any arguments, pressing TAB completes on directories matching each one. Due to shell completion limits, only the last argument actually gets completed.
Will the database fill up with stale directories?No: every access bumps a directory's rank, and once the sum of ranks passes 9000 all ranks are multiplied by 0.99 — entries falling below rank 1 are forgotten.
I ended up with a directory I don't want tracked — can I remove it?Yes — run z -x while inside it, and the current directory is removed from the datafile.
What are similar projects?fzf, autojump, tmuxinator, coreutils, direnv, bashka, zoxide, prezto
Which topics is it in?navigation, zsh, scripting, unix, bash, cli-tool, shell, utility, command-line, productivity, command-line-tool, free
Creator
rupa
Size
0.2 MB
Stars
17.1K
Updated
CommitDec 09Releasev1.12Dec 09
Age
17y
Commits · 90 Days