How to set default display mode in psql

Question

Almost every psql query comes out an illegible mess if not preceded by display configuration commands such as \\x auto. Typing this manually for each psql instance

Answer 1

Use .psqlrc to set defaults.

For the specific case of \x, newer psql versions (9.3, I think, but it might just be the 9.4 pre-release) can automatically switch to expanded output mode when the rows are too wide to fit on a line. From \?:

\x [on|off|auto] toggle expanded output (currently off)

So I suggest putting \x auto in your .psqlrc, rather than forcing it to on.