Routines (alphabetical) > Dot Commands > .STEP

# .STEP

The .STEP command executes one or more statements in the current program starting at the current position, stops, and returns control to the interactive mode. This command is useful in debugging programs. The optional argument n indicates the number of statements to execute. If n is omitted, a single statement is executed.

Note: .STEP is an executive command. Executive commands can only be used at the IDL command prompt, not in programs.

## Syntax

.STEP [n] or .S [n]