Vim

Overview

• Vim stands for Vi improved
• text editor
• things cannot be written in root directory

Modes

• there are three modes
• insert mode — text editing
• command mode — primary mode for copying, pasting, searching
• last line mode — searching, saving, editing

Basic commands

Start

• vim — open Vim in terminal
• vi — open Vim in terminal
• vi [file] — create new file and open file with Vim
• show line numbers :set number
• hide line numbers :set nonumber
• highlight syntax :syntax on

Change mode / navigate

• i — initiate insert mode
• esc — change from insert mode to command mode
• : — change to last line mode

Search

• /[search_term] — find the specified search term

Edit

• c[navigation] — c stands for change, e.g.
• ce — change until end of word
• cb — chnage until start of word
• ciw — change whole word (change inner word)
• ci( — change everything inside brackets-pair
• ci" — change everything inside quotes
• cc — change whole line
• C — change until end of line
• c0 — change ntil start of line
• c^ — change until first character of line
• d[navigation] — delete (see change

Help

• :help or :h— open help manual
• :help [item] — search item in help manual
• :help 42 — open chapter 42 in help manual

Exit

• :x — write and exit Vim
• :wq — write and quit (save changes and exit Vim)
• ZZ — write and quit (save changes and exit)
• esc :q! — hard exit (discard)

Predecessors of Vim

vim --> vi --> ed [-i-d] --> ex

ed: 1. ... editor on unix line-oriented (lines can be edited)