HPR1737: Five Steps to Vim

The vim editor is based on the venerable vi editor, which dates from the very early days of Unix. Many persons find it intimidating for the absence of a menu bar, a terse command set that is very much its own, and its "modal" design.

Nevertheless, under its plain surface is a powerful and versatile tool. Frank Bell describes his five steps to learning to use and love vim.

1. Use a .vimrc file.
2. Train yourself to change modes.
3. Learn and use a few basic commands. These should be enough to get you going: x, dd, dw (to delete text); cw (change a work); yy ("yank" or copy a line); p and P (to paste text); u (undo); w ("write") or save text; q (quit vim).
4. Don't force yourself to move the cursor with the h-j-k-l keys if that doesn't feel natural. Use the arrow keys.
5. Use vim to write stuff.

Links:

• Linux Voice vim tutorial: https://www.linuxvoice.com/download-linux-voice-issue-1-with-audio/
• Linux Voice vim video: https://www.linuxvoice.com/learn-to-love-vim/
• vim homepage: https://www.vim.org/index.php
• vim spellcheck: https://vimdoc.sourceforge.net/htmldoc/spell.html
• Dave Morriss's vim hints HPR series: https://hackerpublicradio.org/series/0082.html

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