How to delete every second line?

[YanHan]

Does anyone have any ideas how to do this automatically?

[Mofi]

A "simple" regular expression replace can do it:

In UltraEdit style:

Find What: %^(*^p^)*^p
Replace With: ^1

In Unix/Perl style:

Find What: ^(.*\p).*\p
Replace With: \1

Because of ^p or \p this works only for files with DOS line terminations (CR+LF). See in help of UE/UES the pages Find command or Replace command and Regular Expressions to understand it.

[YanHan]

Thanks, works perfecty, expect that the last line doesn't remove but it's easy to remove.

How about:
- Remove every last/first line?
- Remove every third line?
- Duplicate every line?

[Bego]

The last line should always have a crlf to work properly.
1.: Use "TOP", "BOTTOM" and "DELETELINE" in an UE macro to do this job.
2.: Also a UE macro with key arrow down + deleteline + "EOF loop". Easy.
3.: Also a trivial UE macro with arrow down and duplicateline.

Bego

[YanHan]

Thanks, Bego. But I don't get non of your advices working.

Is it possible to do these with the 'regular expression' feature?

[Bego]

No. regexps are good for "inLINE-searching/replacing", not for navigating in a file.

Try this:
Create a macro called "delTopBottom"
Paste in those lines:

Code: Select all

HexOff
Top
DeleteLine
Bottom
DeleteLine

Let it run on your example file. It should do your issue no. 1

rds Bego

[YanHan]

Thanks once again, Bego. But it's not even works now.

I figured out these which can do only at the top of the document also 'Play macro to End of File' have to use:

1. Remove every last/first line

Code: Select all

HexOff
Key DOWN ARROW
DeleteLine

2. Remove every third line

Code: Select all

HexOff
Key DOWN ARROW
Key DOWN ARROW
DeleteLine

3. Duplicate every line (does not works - does not duplicate first line and the macro loops infinitely )

Code: Select all

HexOff
Key DOWN ARROW
DupeLine

[Doug E]

It's a small macro that is supposed to delete every second line in a file but stalls in the beginning.

Code: Select all

InsertMode
ColumnModeOff
HexOff
Top
Loop 0
MoveLineDown
MoveLineDown
DeleteLine
ExitLoop
EndLoop
Top

What have I missed?

[Mofi]

The command MoveLineDown does not only move the cursor down, it moves the entire line down. And you exit your endless loop after deleting 1 line because ExitLoop is inside the loop without any condition.

You don't really need a macro for that job because a single regular expression replace can do that too. However, here is the macro.

InsertMode
ColumnModeOff
HexOff
UnixReOff
Bottom
IfColNumGt 1
"
"
IfColNumGt 1
DeleteToStartofLine
EndIf
EndIf
Top
Find RegExp "%^(*^r++^n^)*^r++^n"
Replace All "^1"

This macro should work for files with DOS or UNIX line terminations, but definitely not for MAC files.

[Doug E]

Ohh man, I can't believe how complicated a macro that turned out to be

Thanks Mofi!

Keywords for others: remove delete every 2nd other line macro script