### 3.5 The Requester

In various situations, `ne` needs to ask you to choose one string from several (where “several” can mean a lot). For this kind of event, the requester is issued. The requester displays the strings in as many columns as possible and lets you move with the cursor from one string to another. The strings can fill many screens, which are handled as consecutive pages. Most navigation keys work exactly as in normal editing. This is true even of custom key bindings. Thus, for instance, you can page up and down through the list with `<Control>-P` and `<Control>-N` (in the standard keyboard configuration).

As with the input line (see The Input Line), you can confirm your input with <Return> or escape the requester with <f1> or the <Escape> key (or whatever has been bound to the `Escape` command). Moreover, if you are selecting a file name there is a third possibility: by escaping with the <Tab> key, the file or directory name that the cursor is currently on will be copied on the input line. This allows to choose an existing name and modify it.

A special feature is bound to alphabetic characters: they move you to the next entry starting with the letter you typed. The search is case insensitive, and it continues on to the first string after having passed the last one.

An example of a requester is the list of commands appearing when you use the `Help` command. Another example is the file requester that `ne` issues whenever a file operation is going to take place. In this case, pressing <Return> while on a directory name will enter the directory. Note also that, should the requester take too long to appear, you can interrupt the directory scanning with `<Control>-\`. However, the listing will likely be incomplete.

Note that there are two items that always appear in the file requester: `./` and `../`. The first one represents the current directory and can be used to force a reread of the directory. The second one represents the parent directory and can be used to move up by one directory level.