Control Characters

As you've likely encountered, computer keyboards rarely have similar layouts beyond the standard ``typewriter'' set. Control characters provide many functions such as editing, program control, and output control. Occasionally, a keyboard might not include common special keys. If this is the case, you will need to know a few of the following control characters. These control characters are summarized in table 

To use a control character, simultaneously hold the CTRL key and press another key. The combination is usually written with the CTRL key being represented as a caret (^). You might notice on some keyboards that backspace produces a ^? instead of deleting the character to the left. If this happens, you will need to use ^H to back up a letter. If you'd like to erase the previous word, use ^W, and to erase the whole line, use ^U.