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Ever wanted to learn Vim, but weren't sure how to start? We have you covered! This will be the first of a four-part (possibly longer) series covering how to use Vim and where to start using the world's best text editor. Note that this is an article explicitly for beginners new to Vim. If you've been using Vim for a while, all of this should look entirely familiar--and you might wonder why some topics aren't covered. We'll get to everything in due time, but there's a lot to cover! What's Vim, and Why Do I Want It?
Vim is the editor of choice for many developers and power users. It's a 'modal' text editor based on the editor written by Bill Joy in the 1970s for a version of UNIX.
It inherits the key bindings of vi, but also adds a great deal of functionality and extensibility that are missing from the original vi. What the heck do we mean by modal? When you're using most word processors and text editors, the alphanumeric keys (i.e., a through z, 1 through 9) are only used to input those characters unless they're modified by a control key. In Vim, the mode that the editor is in determines whether the alphanumeric keys will input those characters or move the cursor through the document. For example, many text editors and word processors require you to use the mouse to click a menu item or icon, or use the Ctrl-s hotkey combination, to save a file. In Vim, you can save a file without your hands leaving the keyboard, and sometimes without even leaving the home keys. From Vim's insert mode, hit Escape and then:w.
Vim - the ubiquitous text editor Vim is a highly configurable text editor for efficiently creating and changing any kind of text. It is included as 'vi' with most UNIX systems and with Apple OS X.
More on that later. If that all sounds complicated, it's not--but it can take a little getting used to, like driving a manual transmission instead of an automatic. So, why would you want to learn Vim? Even though Vim is my favorite editor, I'll be very blunt: you might not want to. If you're never going to do any system administration or heavy editing of text, and if you don't want to invest any time in learning the capabilities that Vim has, then learning Vim might not be the best use of your time. On the other hand, if do any of the following, you probably want to look into Vim: • System administration • Programming • Working with HTML, LaTeX, or other markup languages • Heavy editing of plain text files Even though Vim isn't as easy to use initially as standard GUI text editors like Gedit or word processors like OpenOffice.org's Writer, over a longer term you can become more productive using Vim.
If you're a touch-typist, you'll find that your speed will improve even more with Vim because your hands rarely need to leave the 'home' keys--and you'll only need to use the mouse if you choose to do so. System administrators need to know at least a little Vim/vi to get by simply because it's the editor most likely to be on any given *nix system that you need to work on.
Vi is the lingua franca of system administration. If you're a programmer or working with structured markup languages like HTML, LaTeX, DocBook, etc., Vim is the bee's knees. It offers a number of features that I'll cover in later installments that make working with programming and markup languages much easier. You might be skeptical. Skype help for mac.
I was too, 10 years ago when my boss insisted I learn Vim to work on the company's Web site. The first week was painful. The month after that was okay. Within two months, I'd have sooner typed with my feet than to switch away from Vim. The Modes Some people disagree on how many modes Vim actually has. I'm going to define three: insert mode, command mode, and last-line mode. Let's start with the default mode you'll see when you start up Vim--command mode.
When you run vim filename to edit a file, Vim starts out in command mode. This means that all the alphanumeric keys are bound to commands, rather than inserting those characters. Typing j won't insert the character 'j'--it will move the cursor down one line.
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Typing dd will delete an entire line, rather than inserting 'dd.' To enter the insert mode, type i (for 'insert') and now the keys will behave as you'd expect. You can type normally until you want to make a correction, save the file, or perform another operation that's reserved for command mode or last-line mode. To get out of insert mode, hit the Escape key. Microsoft office home and business 2015 for mac mac download. Once you press Escape, you're in command mode again.
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What if you'd like to save your file or search through your document? No problem, press: and Vim will switch to last-line mode. Vim is now waiting for you to enter a command like:w to write the file or:q to exit the editor. If that all sounds complicated, it's really not. It does take a few days to start training your brain to move between the modes and memorizing the most important keys for movement, commands, and so on.