ptab

Ptab is a command-line utility in Unix-like operating systems that allows users to display the contents of a file in a paginated format. It is particularly useful for viewing large files or command outputs that exceed the screen size, as it enables users to scroll through the content one screen at a time. Ptab is often used in conjunction with other commands to filter or format output before displaying it. For example, the combination of "ls -l | ptab" will list the contents of a directory in a long format and display them page by page. The utility is named after the "paging" function it performs, which is similar to turning the pages of a book. Ptab is a standard tool in many Unix distributions and is typically included in the coreutils package. It is invoked by typing "ptab" followed by the name of the file or command output to be displayed. Users can navigate through the pages using the spacebar, and pressing 'q' will quit the ptab session. Ptab is a simple yet powerful tool for managing and viewing large amounts of text data in a Unix-like environment.