This document provides an overview of the Vim text editor, including how to move around files using motions like hjkl, actions like delete and yank, text objects, Ex mode commands like global search/replace, settings in vimrc, and popular plugins. It discusses that the learning curve of Vim is a myth and encourages learning cursor motions first before applying actions. Superman is used as an analogy for the cursor that can quickly move anywhere in a file using motions to then apply actions.

1. Vim

2. The story of a Vimmer
by Vysakh Sreenivasan
(vysakh0)

4. That tweet was a lie

5. Ooops

6. Vim learning curve is a myth
I will tell you why

7. Still a better story than Word

8. A quick tutorial for Vim

9. Open up your terminal and type
vimtutor

10. written on Vim covering everything
That you could read in your free time
The exhaustive book ever

11. Open up your Vim
Press esc :h

12. When you want to type
Insert mode

13. For everything else. We will see that
Command mode

14. SuperMan inside the Vim editor
Lets get to the story of

15. He is in the middle of a street
Superman a.k.a the current
cursor in Vim

16. - beginning of the street
- end of the street
- next street
- previous street
- any where in the location
Just by saying a word
He can move to the

17. (a.k.a motions)
How superman moves

18. What superman sees around
j
k
h lb e
These are few positions in the file
$0

19. Cursor movements:
h j k l ⇒ left down up right
see :h k

20. File movements:
gg first line
G last line
Line movements:
0 beginning of the line
$ end of the line

21. w word forward
b word backward
( sentence forward
) sentence backward
{ paragraph forward
} paragraph backward

22. You can even make your
own marks in the file, and move to it

23. w 2wb2b

25. Actions (few)
- Delete with d
- Yank with y
- Change with c

26. action * motion
Superman applies action along motion

27. w 2wb2b
dw (delete a word)

28. [times] action motion
dw + dw => 2dw (delete two words)

29. w 2wb2b
y0(yank till beginning of line)
0

30. #1 Learn to move around
- Just learn how to reach a particular
position in a file.
- Say, for eg: next paragraph or next line or
start of the line.
- Find the motion keystroke

31. #2 Learn to apply action
while moving around

32. yy yanks (copies) the current line
dd deletes the current line
cc changes the current line
gUgU upcase the current line
Shortcut - doing the action twice

33. inside(i) the object or around(a) the object
:h text-objects

34. word
sentence
paragraph
“ “, ‘ ‘ quotes
[], (), <> blocks
tags (html tags)
Vim treats these as objects

35. - From the cursor position, you can say this
entire thing inside quotes using i”
- From the cursor position, you can say this
entire thing of quotes using a”
“This quote is an object”

36. di”
(delete inside quotes)

37. (lets see few commands in this mode)
Ex mode

38. Delete(globally) all the lines that has the
word "cool".
:g/cool/d

39. Delete all the lines which does not have a
number.
:v/d/d

40. Substitute “cool” with hot in all the lines
and places
:%s/cool/hot/g

41. Substitute “cool” with hot in all the lines
that has “weather”
:g/weather/s/cool/hot/g

42. Vim settings

43. (inside your Vim, will show numbers)
:set number

44. Create your own shortcuts

45. (now when you press “-”, it will delete line)
:map - dd

46. If you want it in every file, you put in vimrc
There are plenty of settings

47. (vim loads it on startup)
~/.vimrc

48. set number
set hlsearch “highlight search
map - dd “just an eg, don’t!
~/.vimrc

49. Plenty of dotfiles in github
I learned primarily from those

50. (Few must have plugins)
Plugins

51. I use neobundle
#1 Good plugin manager

52. I use unite
#2 File searcher

53. I use neo-snipmate
#3 Snippets

54. I use syntastic along with reek, rubocop
for checking ruby style and codesmell
#4 Syntax checker

55. Everybody uses Fugitive
#5 Git inside vim

56. I use nerdCommenter
#6 Quick commenting

57. Use vim-surround
#7 Surrounding operations

58. If you’re a Rails dev, must use it.
#8 VIM-RAILS

59. VIM-DISPATCH
#9 Run programs async

60. Easymotion or vim-sneak
#10 To quickly move in file

61. For a Vim++ editor
And wait for NeoVim

62. Vim is difficult
If someone says mastering

64. - http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1218390/what-is-your-most-
productive-shortcut-with-vim/1220118#1220118
- http://yanpritzker.com/2011/12/16/learn-to-speak-vim-verbs-nouns-
and-modifiers/
- http://vimcasts.org/
- http://www.quora.com/What-are-the-most-amazing-things-that-can-be-
done-with-Vim/answer/Vysakh-Sreenivasan (my answer)
Few links to look at