Install

$ sudo apt install vim-full

Closing vim

If you open vim and need to get out of it. Type :q. If that does not work, try :q!.

Background

• vim is a text editor.
• It is a clone of the “vi” editor.
• vi was a visual mode for the ex editor.
• ex was a “user-friendly” line editor.
• There are dozens (or hundreds) of text editors available, but it used to be that the two most popular for programming were:
  • vim
  • emacs

Command-mode vs. Insert-mode

• vim is a “modal” editor. What happens when you press a key depends on what mode you are in.
• vim has two modes:
  • command mode
  • insert mode

“vi-binding”

Once you get used to using an editor with command and insert mode, you start to prefer using the keyboard for doing non-typing things.

Lot’s or programs use “vi-binding”, or have an option to use them.

• bash: set -o vi
• ranger : a terminal based file manager less vieb : a web browser with vi-keybindings qutebrowser` : another web browser vi-keybindings
• and many, many more.

Action

Let’s start editing…

We may want a cheetsheat

How do you:

• close a file.
• get into insert mode
• get back to command mode
• start inserting text
  • before the cursor
  • after the cursor
  • at the beginning of a line
  • at the end of a line
  • below the current line
  • above the current line
• move cursor
  • up
  • down
  • left
  • right
  • to the beginning of a line
  • to the end of a line
  • to the top of a file
  • to the end of a file
• delete
  • the character under the cursor
  • the current line
  • the end of the word under the cursor
• change
  • a word
  • text in quotes
  • text in parenthesis
• copy and paste
  • the current line
• cut and paste
  • the current line
• highlight
  • text
  • lines
  • a block
• search
  • for a word
  • find the next word
  • ignore case in search
• replace a word
  • on the current line.
  • on the current line, for all occurrences
  • in the entire file.
• configure
  • exapand tabs into spaces
  • highlight searches
• insert output of a command
• insert large text
• add custom keybinding for inserting large text?