# Binding complex command **URL:** \ **Category:** Help\ **Created:** [September 6, 2025, 2:05pm UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753 "2025-09-06T14:05:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![peperronii](https://discuss.kakoune.com/user_avatar/discuss.kakoune.com/peperronii/32/1572_2.png) [@peperronii](https://discuss.kakoune.com/u/peperronii)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2025, 2:05pm UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753/1 "2025-09-06T14:05:15Z")
So I roughly understands how kakoune’s parsing works and I can get buy raw dogging a command in the kakoune’s command line. Right now, I’m trying to bind this: ```auto :try %{exec "%%s(/\*.*\*/\n){11}”} ``` this selects C-multiline comment that is 11 lines long. but when putting this into kakrc ```auto map global user b ':try %{exec "%%s(/\*.*\*/\n){11}ret”}' ``` it says parsing error 1:7 unterminated string %{…} but this works ```auto define-command 11-comment %{ try %{exec "%%s(/\*.*\*/\n){11}”} } ``` can someone please explain why the mapping doesn’t work Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Screwtapello](https://discuss.kakoune.com/user_avatar/discuss.kakoune.com/screwtapello/32/12_2.png) [@Screwtapello](https://discuss.kakoune.com/u/Screwtapello)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2025, 3:35pm UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753/2 "2025-09-06T15:35:20Z")
If I launch Kakoune 2025.06.03-20-gba41928a with: ```sh kak -n -e 'map global user b %{:try %{exec "%%s(/\*.*\*/\n){11}ret”}}' ``` …I do not get any errors, either at startup, or when executing the mapping. Are you sure it’s this command that is causing the error in your kakrc? P.S. you might want to change your regex to `(/\*[^\n]*\*/\n){11}` or Kakoune will match all consecutive winged comments as a single match, so there won’t be 11 of them. ---
**Author:** ![peperronii](https://discuss.kakoune.com/user_avatar/discuss.kakoune.com/peperronii/32/1572_2.png) [@peperronii](https://discuss.kakoune.com/u/peperronii)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2025, 11:48pm UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753/3 "2025-09-06T23:48:03Z")
My bad. I didn’t write the edited part. So this throws an error when executing the mapping ```auto map global user b %{:try %{exec "%%s(/\*.*\*/\n){11}”}}’ ``` which I now know that I didn’t escape the ‘\<‘ ‘\>’ inside the exec block but with that fixed it doesn’t do any thing also thanks for the regex tip, my use case is a bit weird because every multiline comment I want to match is a single liner now I’ve changed the regex to ```auto \A(^/\*.*\*/\n){11}? ``` so it matches 11 lines of this at the start of a file ```auto /* blah blah blah…. */\n ``` and it does what I want when I use it in select but this : ```auto map global user b %{:try %{exec "%%s\A(^/\*.*\*/\n){11}?ret”}}’ ``` sadly doesn’t do anything right now. ---
**Author:** ![Screwtapello](https://discuss.kakoune.com/user_avatar/discuss.kakoune.com/screwtapello/32/12_2.png) [@Screwtapello](https://discuss.kakoune.com/u/Screwtapello)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2025, 9:11am UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753/4 "2025-09-08T09:11:39Z")
> [@peperronii](#): > > which I now know that I didn’t escape the ‘\<‘ ‘\>’ inside the exec block Ah, right. The right-hand-side of a mapping is already a list of keys to press, so sticking a `execute-keys` inside a mapping requires double-escaping key-names. There are various reasons why your mapping might be broken, but the `try` statement is hiding the error message. What happens if you take the `try` out of the mapping? ---
**Author:** ![ficd](https://discuss.kakoune.com/user_avatar/discuss.kakoune.com/ficd/32/1560_2.png) [@ficd](https://discuss.kakoune.com/u/ficd)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2025, 5:58pm UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753/5 "2025-09-14T17:58:05Z")
As @Screwtapello mentioned, the RHS of a mapping expects a list of keys to press, which complicates things when you’re trying to do a “nested exec”. Let’s refer to the second one as the “inner exec”. When you say the name of a key (like a key name surrounded by `<>`), you’re telling the _outer_ exec to _literally_ press that key. So this can complicate things like needing to turn `` into `ret`, because you don’t want to literally press enter before you’re done typing. This complication can cause a lot of issues or behavior you don’t expect. That’s the reason why in your OP, the command works, but the mapping doesn’t. I highly, highly recommend _always_ defining a command for anything complex like this. It can help avoid a lot of headaches! ---
**Author:** ![peperronii](https://discuss.kakoune.com/user_avatar/discuss.kakoune.com/peperronii/32/1572_2.png) [@peperronii](https://discuss.kakoune.com/u/peperronii)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2025, 3:26am UTC](https://discuss.kakoune.com/t/binding-complex-command/2753/7 "2025-09-15T03:26:08Z")
> [@ficd](#): > > As @Screwtapello mentioned, the RHS of a mapping expects a list of keys to press, which complicates things when you’re trying to do a “nested exec”. Let’s refer to the second one as the “inner exec”. When you say the name of a key (like a key name surrounded by `<>`), you’re telling the _outer_ exec to _literally_ press that key. So this can complicate things like needing to turn `` into `ret`, because you don’t want to literally press enter before you’re done typing. > > This complication can cause a lot of issues or behavior you don’t expect. That’s the reason why in your OP, the command works, but the mapping doesn’t. I highly, highly recommend _always_ defining a command for anything complex like this. It can help avoid a lot of headaches! Yes, it is indeed much easier to just bind to a command. I went with this. For anyone wandering around, just make a new command it’s far more simpler. > [@Screwtapello](#): > > There are various reasons why your mapping might be broken, but the `try` statement is hiding the error message. What happens if you take the `try` out of the mapping? my bad again, it works now, just a typo 🙂