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1 *intro.txt* For Vim version 7.2. Last change: 2009 Apr 21
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
7 Introduction to Vim *ref* *reference*
9 1. Introduction |intro|
10 2. Vim on the internet |internet|
11 3. Credits |credits|
12 4. Notation |notation|
13 5. Modes, introduction |vim-modes-intro|
14 6. Switching from mode to mode |mode-switching|
15 7. The window contents |window-contents|
16 8. Definitions |definitions|
18 ==============================================================================
19 1. Introduction *intro*
21 Vim stands for Vi IMproved. It used to be Vi IMitation, but there are so many
22 improvements that a name change was appropriate. Vim is a text editor which
23 includes almost all the commands from the Unix program "Vi" and a lot of new
24 ones. It is very useful for editing programs and other plain text.
25 All commands are given with the keyboard. This has the advantage that you
26 can keep your fingers on the keyboard and your eyes on the screen. For those
27 who want it, there is mouse support and a GUI version with scrollbars and
28 menus (see |gui.txt|).
30 An overview of this manual can be found in the file "help.txt", |help.txt|.
31 It can be accessed from within Vim with the <Help> or <F1> key and with the
32 |:help| command (just type ":help", without the bars or quotes).
33 The 'helpfile' option can be set to the name of the help file, in case it
34 is not located in the default place. You can jump to subjects like with tags:
35 Use CTRL-] to jump to a subject under the cursor, use CTRL-T to jump back.
37 Throughout this manual the differences between Vi and Vim are mentioned in
38 curly braces, like this: {Vi does not have on-line help}. See |vi_diff.txt|
39 for a summary of the differences between Vim and Vi.
41 This manual refers to Vim on various machines. There may be small differences
42 between different computers and terminals. Besides the remarks given in this
43 document, there is a separate document for each supported system, see
44 |sys-file-list|.
46 *pronounce*
47 Vim is pronounced as one word, like Jim, not vi-ai-em. It's written with a
48 capital, since it's a name, again like Jim.
50 This manual is a reference for all the Vim commands and options. This is not
51 an introduction to the use of Vi or Vim, it gets a bit complicated here and
52 there. For beginners, there is a hands-on |tutor|. To learn using Vim, read
53 the user manual |usr_toc.txt|.
55 *book*
56 There are many books on Vi that contain a section for beginners. There are
57 two books I can recommend:
59 "Vim - Vi Improved" by Steve Oualline
61 This is the very first book completely dedicated to Vim. It is very good for
62 beginners. The most often used commands are explained with pictures and
63 examples. The less often used commands are also explained, the more advanced
64 features are summarized. There is a comprehensive index and a quick
65 reference. Parts of this book have been included in the user manual
66 |frombook|.
67 Published by New Riders Publishing. ISBN: 0735710015
68 For more information try one of these:
69 http://iccf-holland.org/click5.html
70 http://www.vim.org/iccf/click5.html
72 "Learning the Vi editor" by Linda Lamb and Arnold Robbins
74 This is a book about Vi that includes a chapter on Vim (in the sixth edition).
75 The first steps in Vi are explained very well. The commands that Vim adds are
76 only briefly mentioned. There is also a German translation.
77 Published by O'Reilly. ISBN: 1-56592-426-6.
79 ==============================================================================
80 2. Vim on the internet *internet*
82 *www* *WWW* *faq* *FAQ* *distribution* *download*
83 The Vim pages contain the most recent information about Vim. They also
84 contain links to the most recent version of Vim. The FAQ is a list of
85 Frequently Asked Questions. Read this if you have problems.
87 VIM home page: http://www.vim.org/
88 VIM FAQ: http://vimdoc.sf.net/
89 Downloading: ftp://ftp.vim.org/pub/vim/MIRRORS
92 Usenet News group where Vim is discussed: *news* *usenet*
93 comp.editors
94 This group is also for other editors. If you write about Vim, don't forget to
95 mention that.
97 *mail-list* *maillist*
98 There are several mailing lists for Vim:
99 <vim@vim.org>
100 For discussions about using existing versions of Vim: Useful mappings,
101 questions, answers, where to get a specific version, etc. There are
102 quite a few people watching this list and answering questions, also
103 for beginners. Don't hesitate to ask your question here.
104 <vim-dev@vim.org> *vim-dev* *vimdev*
105 For discussions about changing Vim: New features, porting, patches,
106 beta-test versions, etc.
107 <vim-announce@vim.org> *vim-announce*
108 Announcements about new versions of Vim; also for beta-test versions
109 and ports to different systems. This is a read-only list.
110 <vim-multibyte@vim.org> *vim-multibyte*
111 For discussions about using and improving the multi-byte aspects of
112 Vim.
113 <vim-mac@vim.org> *vim-mac*
114 For discussions about using and improving the Macintosh version of
115 Vim.
117 See http://www.vim.org/maillist.php for the latest information.
119 NOTE:
120 - You can only send messages to these lists if you have subscribed!
121 - You need to send the messages from the same location as where you subscribed
122 from (to avoid spam mail).
123 - Maximum message size is 40000 characters.
125 *subscribe-maillist*
126 If you want to join, send a message to
127 <vim-subscribe@vim.org>
128 Make sure that your "From:" address is correct. Then the list server will
129 give you help on how to subscribe.
131 *maillist-archive*
132 For more information and archives look on the Vim maillist page:
133 http://www.vim.org/maillist.php
136 Bug reports: *bugs* *bug-reports* *bugreport.vim*
138 Send bug reports to: Vim bugs <bugs@vim.org>
139 This is not a maillist but the message is redirected to the Vim maintainer.
140 Please be brief; all the time that is spent on answering mail is subtracted
141 from the time that is spent on improving Vim! Always give a reproducible
142 example and try to find out which settings or other things influence the
143 appearance of the bug. Try different machines, if possible. Send me patches
144 if you can!
146 It will help to include information about the version of Vim you are using and
147 your setup. You can get the information with this command: >
148 :so $VIMRUNTIME/bugreport.vim
149 This will create a file "bugreport.txt" in the current directory, with a lot
150 of information of your environment. Before sending this out, check if it
151 doesn't contain any confidential information!
153 If Vim crashes, please try to find out where. You can find help on this here:
154 |debug.txt|.
156 In case of doubt or when you wonder if the problem has already been fixed but
157 you can't find a fix for it, become a member of the vim-dev maillist and ask
158 your question there. |maillist|
160 *year-2000* *Y2K*
161 Since Vim internally doesn't use dates for editing, there is no year 2000
162 problem to worry about. Vim does use the time in the form of seconds since
163 January 1st 1970. It is used for a time-stamp check of the edited file and
164 the swap file, which is not critical and should only cause warning messages.
166 There might be a year 2038 problem, when the seconds don't fit in a 32 bit int
167 anymore. This depends on the compiler, libraries and operating system.
168 Specifically, time_t and the ctime() function are used. And the time_t is
169 stored in four bytes in the swap file. But that's only used for printing a
170 file date/time for recovery, it will never affect normal editing.
172 The Vim strftime() function directly uses the strftime() system function.
173 localtime() uses the time() system function. getftime() uses the time
174 returned by the stat() system function. If your system libraries are year
175 2000 compliant, Vim is too.
177 The user may create scripts for Vim that use external commands. These might
178 introduce Y2K problems, but those are not really part of Vim itself.
180 ==============================================================================
181 3. Credits *credits* *author* *Bram* *Moolenaar*
183 Most of Vim was written by Bram Moolenaar <Bram@vim.org>.
185 Parts of the documentation come from several Vi manuals, written by:
186 W.N. Joy
187 Alan P.W. Hewett
188 Mark Horton
190 The Vim editor is based on Stevie and includes (ideas from) other software,
191 worked on by the people mentioned here. Other people helped by sending me
192 patches, suggestions and giving feedback about what is good and bad in Vim.
194 Vim would never have become what it is now, without the help of these people!
196 Ron Aaron Win32 GUI changes
197 Zoltan Arpadffy work on VMS port
198 Tony Andrews Stevie
199 Gert van Antwerpen changes for DJGPP on MS-DOS
200 Berkeley DB(3) ideas for swap file implementation
201 Keith Bostic Nvi
202 Walter Briscoe Makefile updates, various patches
203 Ralf Brown SPAWNO library for MS-DOS
204 Robert Colon many useful remarks
205 Marcin Dalecki GTK+ GUI port, toolbar icons, gettext()
206 Kayhan Demirel sent me news in Uganda
207 Chris & John Downey xvi (ideas for multi-windows version)
208 Henk Elbers first VMS port
209 Daniel Elstner GTK+ 2 port
210 Eric Fischer Mac port, 'cindent', and other improvements
211 Benji Fisher Answering lots of user questions
212 Bill Foster Athena GUI port
213 Google Lets me work on Vim one day a week
214 Loic Grenie xvim (ideas for multi windows version)
215 Sven Guckes Vim promoter and previous WWW page maintainer
216 Darren Hiebert Exuberant ctags
217 Jason Hildebrand GTK+ 2 port
218 Bruce Hunsaker improvements for VMS port
219 Andy Kahn Cscope support, GTK+ GUI port
220 Oezguer Kesim Maintainer of Vim Mailing Lists
221 Axel Kielhorn work on the Macintosh port
222 Steve Kirkendall Elvis
223 Roger Knobbe original port to Windows NT
224 Sergey Laskavy Vim's help from Moscow
225 Felix von Leitner Previous maintainer of Vim Mailing Lists
226 David Leonard Port of Python extensions to Unix
227 Avner Lottem Edit in right-to-left windows
228 Flemming Madsen X11 client-server, various features and patches
229 Microsoft Gave me a copy of DevStudio to compile Vim with
230 Paul Moore Python interface extensions, many patches
231 Katsuhito Nagano Work on multi-byte versions
232 Sung-Hyun Nam Work on multi-byte versions
233 Vince Negri Win32 GUI and generic console enhancements
234 Steve Oualline Author of the first Vim book |frombook|
235 Dominique Pelle figuring out valgrind reports and fixes
236 A.Politz Many bug reports and some fixes
237 George V. Reilly Win32 port, Win32 GUI start-off
238 Stephen Riehm bug collector
239 Stefan Roemer various patches and help to users
240 Ralf Schandl IBM OS/390 port
241 Olaf Seibert DICE and BeBox version, regexp improvements
242 Mortaza Shiran Farsi patches
243 Peter da Silva termlib
244 Paul Slootman OS/2 port
245 Henry Spencer regular expressions
246 Dany St-Amant Macintosh port
247 Tim Thompson Stevie
248 G. R. (Fred) Walter Stevie
249 Sven Verdoolaege Perl interface
250 Robert Webb Command-line completion, GUI versions, and
251 lots of patches
252 Ingo Wilken Tcl interface
253 Mike Williams PostScript printing
254 Juergen Weigert Lattice version, AUX improvements, UNIX and
255 MS-DOS ports, autoconf
256 Stefan 'Sec' Zehl Maintainer of vim.org
258 I wish to thank all the people that sent me bug reports and suggestions. The
259 list is too long to mention them all here. Vim would not be the same without
260 the ideas from all these people: They keep Vim alive!
263 In this documentation there are several references to other versions of Vi:
264 *Vi* *vi*
265 Vi "the original". Without further remarks this is the version
266 of Vi that appeared in Sun OS 4.x. ":version" returns
267 "Version 3.7, 6/7/85". Sometimes other versions are referred
268 to. Only runs under Unix. Source code only available with a
269 license. More information on Vi can be found through:
270 http://vi-editor.org [doesn't currently work...]
271 *Posix*
272 Posix From the IEEE standard 1003.2, Part 2: Shell and utilities.
273 Generally known as "Posix". This is a textual description of
274 how Vi is supposed to work.
275 See |posix-compliance|.
276 *Nvi*
277 Nvi The "New" Vi. The version of Vi that comes with BSD 4.4 and FreeBSD.
278 Very good compatibility with the original Vi, with a few extensions.
279 The version used is 1.79. ":version" returns "Version 1.79
280 (10/23/96)". There has been no release the last few years, although
281 there is a development version 1.81.
282 Source code is freely available.
283 *Elvis*
284 Elvis Another Vi clone, made by Steve Kirkendall. Very compact but isn't
285 as flexible as Vim.
286 The version used is 2.1. It is still being developed. Source code is
287 freely available.
289 ==============================================================================
290 4. Notation *notation*
292 When syntax highlighting is used to read this, text that is not typed
293 literally is often highlighted with the Special group. These are items in [],
294 {} and <>, and CTRL-X.
296 Note that Vim uses all possible characters in commands. Sometimes the [], {}
297 and <> are part of what you type, the context should make this clear.
300 [] Characters in square brackets are optional.
302 *count* *[count]* *E489*
303 [count] An optional number that may precede the command to multiply
304 or iterate the command. If no number is given, a count of one
305 is used, unless otherwise noted. Note that in this manual the
306 [count] is not mentioned in the description of the command,
307 but only in the explanation. This was done to make the
308 commands easier to look up. If the 'showcmd' option is on,
309 the (partially) entered count is shown at the bottom of the
310 window. You can use <Del> to erase the last digit (|N<Del>|).
312 *[quotex]*
313 ["x] An optional register designation where text can be stored.
314 See |registers|. The x is a single character between 'a' and
315 'z' or 'A' and 'Z' or '"', and in some cases (with the put
316 command) between '0' and '9', '%', '#', or others. The
317 uppercase and lowercase letter designate the same register,
318 but the lowercase letter is used to overwrite the previous
319 register contents, while the uppercase letter is used to
320 append to the previous register contents. Without the ""x" or
321 with """" the stored text is put into the unnamed register.
323 *{}*
324 {} Curly braces denote parts of the command which must appear,
325 but which can take a number of different values. The
326 differences between Vim and Vi are also given in curly braces
327 (this will be clear from the context).
329 *{char1-char2}*
330 {char1-char2} A single character from the range char1 to char2. For
331 example: {a-z} is a lowercase letter. Multiple ranges may be
332 concatenated. For example, {a-zA-Z0-9} is any alphanumeric
333 character.
335 *{motion}* *movement*
336 {motion} A command that moves the cursor. These are explained in
337 |motion.txt|. Examples:
338 w to start of next word
339 b to begin of current word
340 4j four lines down
341 /The<CR> to next occurrence of "The"
342 This is used after an |operator| command to move over the text
343 that is to be operated upon.
344 - If the motion includes a count and the operator also has a
345 count, the two counts are multiplied. For example: "2d3w"
346 deletes six words.
347 - The motion can be backwards, e.g. "db" to delete to the
348 start of the word.
349 - The motion can also be a mouse click. The mouse is not
350 supported in every terminal though.
351 - The ":omap" command can be used to map characters while an
352 operator is pending.
353 - Ex commands can be used to move the cursor. This can be
354 used to call a function that does some complicated motion.
355 The motion is always characterwise exclusive, no matter
356 what ":" command is used. This means it's impossible to
357 include the last character of a line without the line break
358 (unless 'virtualedit' is set).
359 If the Ex command changes the text before where the operator
360 starts or jumps to another buffer the result is
361 unpredictable. It is possible to change the text further
362 down. Jumping to another buffer is possible if the current
363 buffer is not unloaded.
365 *{Visual}*
366 {Visual} A selected text area. It is started with the "v", "V", or
367 CTRL-V command, then any cursor movement command can be used
368 to change the end of the selected text.
369 This is used before an |operator| command to highlight the
370 text that is to be operated upon.
371 See |Visual-mode|.
373 *<character>*
374 <character> A special character from the table below, optionally with
375 modifiers, or a single ASCII character with modifiers.
377 *'character'*
378 'c' A single ASCII character.
380 *CTRL-{char}*
381 CTRL-{char} {char} typed as a control character; that is, typing {char}
382 while holding the CTRL key down. The case of {char} does not
383 matter; thus CTRL-A and CTRL-a are equivalent. But on some
384 terminals, using the SHIFT key will produce another code,
385 don't use it then.
387 *'option'*
388 'option' An option, or parameter, that can be set to a value, is
389 enclosed in single quotes. See |options|.
391 *quotecommandquote*
392 "command" A reference to a command that you can type is enclosed in
393 double quotes.
395 *key-notation* *key-codes* *keycodes*
396 These names for keys are used in the documentation. They can also be used
397 with the ":map" command (insert the key name by pressing CTRL-K and then the
398 key you want the name for).
400 notation meaning equivalent decimal value(s) ~
401 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
402 <Nul> zero CTRL-@ 0 (stored as 10) *<Nul>*
403 <BS> backspace CTRL-H 8 *backspace*
404 <Tab> tab CTRL-I 9 *tab* *Tab*
405 *linefeed*
406 <NL> linefeed CTRL-J 10 (used for <Nul>)
407 <FF> formfeed CTRL-L 12 *formfeed*
408 <CR> carriage return CTRL-M 13 *carriage-return*
409 <Return> same as <CR> *<Return>*
410 <Enter> same as <CR> *<Enter>*
411 <Esc> escape CTRL-[ 27 *escape* *<Esc>*
412 <Space> space 32 *space*
413 <lt> less-than < 60 *<lt>*
414 <Bslash> backslash \ 92 *backslash* *<Bslash>*
415 <Bar> vertical bar | 124 *<Bar>*
416 <Del> delete 127
417 <CSI> command sequence intro ALT-Esc 155 *<CSI>*
418 <xCSI> CSI when typed in the GUI *<xCSI>*
420 <EOL> end-of-line (can be <CR>, <LF> or <CR><LF>,
421 depends on system and 'fileformat') *<EOL>*
423 <Up> cursor-up *cursor-up* *cursor_up*
424 <Down> cursor-down *cursor-down* *cursor_down*
425 <Left> cursor-left *cursor-left* *cursor_left*
426 <Right> cursor-right *cursor-right* *cursor_right*
427 <S-Up> shift-cursor-up
428 <S-Down> shift-cursor-down
429 <S-Left> shift-cursor-left
430 <S-Right> shift-cursor-right
431 <C-Left> control-cursor-left
432 <C-Right> control-cursor-right
433 <F1> - <F12> function keys 1 to 12 *function_key* *function-key*
434 <S-F1> - <S-F12> shift-function keys 1 to 12 *<S-F1>*
435 <Help> help key
436 <Undo> undo key
437 <Insert> insert key
438 <Home> home *home*
439 <End> end *end*
440 <PageUp> page-up *page_up* *page-up*
441 <PageDown> page-down *page_down* *page-down*
442 <kHome> keypad home (upper left) *keypad-home*
443 <kEnd> keypad end (lower left) *keypad-end*
444 <kPageUp> keypad page-up (upper right) *keypad-page-up*
445 <kPageDown> keypad page-down (lower right) *keypad-page-down*
446 <kPlus> keypad + *keypad-plus*
447 <kMinus> keypad - *keypad-minus*
448 <kMultiply> keypad * *keypad-multiply*
449 <kDivide> keypad / *keypad-divide*
450 <kEnter> keypad Enter *keypad-enter*
451 <kPoint> keypad Decimal point *keypad-point*
452 <k0> - <k9> keypad 0 to 9 *keypad-0* *keypad-9*
453 <S-...> shift-key *shift* *<S-*
454 <C-...> control-key *control* *ctrl* *<C-*
455 <M-...> alt-key or meta-key *meta* *alt* *<M-*
456 <A-...> same as <M-...> *<A-*
457 <D-...> command-key (Macintosh only) *<D-*
458 <t_xx> key with "xx" entry in termcap
459 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
461 Note: The shifted cursor keys, the help key, and the undo key are only
462 available on a few terminals. On the Amiga, shifted function key 10 produces
463 a code (CSI) that is also used by key sequences. It will be recognized only
464 after typing another key.
466 Note: There are two codes for the delete key. 127 is the decimal ASCII value
467 for the delete key, which is always recognized. Some delete keys send another
468 value, in which case this value is obtained from the termcap entry "kD". Both
469 values have the same effect. Also see |:fixdel|.
471 Note: The keypad keys are used in the same way as the corresponding "normal"
472 keys. For example, <kHome> has the same effect as <Home>. If a keypad key
473 sends the same raw key code as its non-keypad equivalent, it will be
474 recognized as the non-keypad code. For example, when <kHome> sends the same
475 code as <Home>, when pressing <kHome> Vim will think <Home> was pressed.
476 Mapping <kHome> will not work then.
478 *<>*
479 Examples are often given in the <> notation. Sometimes this is just to make
480 clear what you need to type, but often it can be typed literally, e.g., with
481 the ":map" command. The rules are:
482 1. Any printable characters are typed directly, except backslash and '<'
483 2. A backslash is represented with "\\", double backslash, or "<Bslash>".
484 3. A real '<' is represented with "\<" or "<lt>". When there is no
485 confusion possible, a '<' can be used directly.
486 4. "<key>" means the special key typed. This is the notation explained in
487 the table above. A few examples:
488 <Esc> Escape key
489 <C-G> CTRL-G
490 <Up> cursor up key
491 <C-LeftMouse> Control- left mouse click
492 <S-F11> Shifted function key 11
493 <M-a> Meta- a ('a' with bit 8 set)
494 <M-A> Meta- A ('A' with bit 8 set)
495 <t_kd> "kd" termcap entry (cursor down key)
497 If you want to use the full <> notation in Vim, you have to make sure the '<'
498 flag is excluded from 'cpoptions' (when 'compatible' is not set, it already is
499 by default). >
500 :set cpo-=<
501 The <> notation uses <lt> to escape the special meaning of key names. Using a
502 backslash also works, but only when 'cpoptions' does not include the 'B' flag.
504 Examples for mapping CTRL-H to the six characters "<Home>": >
505 :imap <C-H> \<Home>
506 :imap <C-H> <lt>Home>
507 The first one only works when the 'B' flag is not in 'cpoptions'. The second
508 one always works.
509 To get a literal "<lt>" in a mapping: >
510 :map <C-L> <lt>lt>
512 For mapping, abbreviation and menu commands you can then copy-paste the
513 examples and use them directly. Or type them literally, including the '<' and
514 '>' characters. This does NOT work for other commands, like ":set" and
515 ":autocmd"!
517 ==============================================================================
518 5. Modes, introduction *vim-modes-intro* *vim-modes*
520 Vim has six BASIC modes:
522 *Normal* *Normal-mode* *command-mode*
523 Normal mode In Normal mode you can enter all the normal editor
524 commands. If you start the editor you are in this
525 mode (unless you have set the 'insertmode' option,
526 see below). This is also known as command mode.
528 Visual mode This is like Normal mode, but the movement commands
529 extend a highlighted area. When a non-movement
530 command is used, it is executed for the highlighted
531 area. See |Visual-mode|.
532 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- VISUAL --" is shown
533 at the bottom of the window.
535 Select mode This looks most like the MS-Windows selection mode.
536 Typing a printable character deletes the selection
537 and starts Insert mode. See |Select-mode|.
538 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- SELECT --" is shown
539 at the bottom of the window.
541 Insert mode In Insert mode the text you type is inserted into the
542 buffer. See |Insert-mode|.
543 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- INSERT --" is shown
544 at the bottom of the window.
546 Command-line mode In Command-line mode (also called Cmdline mode) you
547 Cmdline mode can enter one line of text at the bottom of the
548 window. This is for the Ex commands, ":", the pattern
549 search commands, "?" and "/", and the filter command,
550 "!". |Cmdline-mode|
552 Ex mode Like Command-line mode, but after entering a command
553 you remain in Ex mode. Very limited editing of the
554 command line. |Ex-mode|
556 There are six ADDITIONAL modes. These are variants of the BASIC modes:
558 *Operator-pending* *Operator-pending-mode*
559 Operator-pending mode This is like Normal mode, but after an operator
560 command has started, and Vim is waiting for a {motion}
561 to specify the text that the operator will work on.
563 Replace mode Replace mode is a special case of Insert mode. You
564 can do the same things as in Insert mode, but for
565 each character you enter, one character of the existing
566 text is deleted. See |Replace-mode|.
567 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- REPLACE --" is
568 shown at the bottom of the window.
570 Virtual Replace mode Virtual Replace mode is similar to Replace mode, but
571 instead of file characters you are replacing screen
572 real estate. See |Virtual-Replace-mode|.
573 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- VREPLACE --" is
574 shown at the bottom of the window.
576 Insert Normal mode Entered when CTRL-O given in Insert mode. This is
577 like Normal mode, but after executing one command Vim
578 returns to Insert mode.
579 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- (insert) --" is
580 shown at the bottom of the window.
582 Insert Visual mode Entered when starting a Visual selection from Insert
583 mode, e.g., by using CTRL-O and then "v", "V" or
584 CTRL-V. When the Visual selection ends, Vim returns
585 to Insert mode.
586 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- (insert) VISUAL --"
587 is shown at the bottom of the window.
589 Insert Select mode Entered when starting Select mode from Insert mode.
590 E.g., by dragging the mouse or <S-Right>.
591 When the Select mode ends, Vim returns to Insert mode.
592 If the 'showmode' option is on "-- (insert) SELECT --"
593 is shown at the bottom of the window.
595 ==============================================================================
596 6. Switching from mode to mode *mode-switching*
598 If for any reason you do not know which mode you are in, you can always get
599 back to Normal mode by typing <Esc> twice. This doesn't work for Ex mode
600 though, use ":visual".
601 You will know you are back in Normal mode when you see the screen flash or
602 hear the bell after you type <Esc>. However, when pressing <Esc> after using
603 CTRL-O in Insert mode you get a beep but you are still in Insert mode, type
604 <Esc> again.
606 *i_esc*
607 TO mode ~
608 Normal Visual Select Insert Replace Cmd-line Ex ~
609 FROM mode ~
610 Normal v V ^V *4 *1 R gR : / ? ! Q
611 Visual *2 ^G c C -- : --
612 Select *5 ^O ^G *6 -- -- --
613 Insert <Esc> -- -- <Insert> -- --
614 Replace <Esc> -- -- <Insert> -- --
615 Command-line *3 -- -- :start -- --
616 Ex :vi -- -- -- -- --
618 - NA
619 -- not possible
621 *1 Go from Normal mode to Insert mode by giving the command "i", "I", "a",
622 "A", "o", "O", "c", "C", "s" or S".
623 *2 Go from Visual mode to Normal mode by giving a non-movement command, which
624 causes the command to be executed, or by hitting <Esc> "v", "V" or "CTRL-V"
625 (see |v_v|), which just stops Visual mode without side effects.
626 *3 Go from Command-line mode to Normal mode by:
627 - Hitting <CR> or <NL>, which causes the entered command to be executed.
628 - Deleting the complete line (e.g., with CTRL-U) and giving a final <BS>.
629 - Hitting CTRL-C or <Esc>, which quits the command-line without executing
630 the command.
631 In the last case <Esc> may be the character defined with the 'wildchar'
632 option, in which case it will start command-line completion. You can
633 ignore that and type <Esc> again. {Vi: when hitting <Esc> the command-line
634 is executed. This is unexpected for most people; therefore it was changed
635 in Vim. But when the <Esc> is part of a mapping, the command-line is
636 executed. If you want the Vi behaviour also when typing <Esc>, use ":cmap
637 ^V<Esc> ^V^M"}
638 *4 Go from Normal to Select mode by:
639 - use the mouse to select text while 'selectmode' contains "mouse"
640 - use a non-printable command to move the cursor while keeping the Shift
641 key pressed, and the 'selectmode' option contains "key"
642 - use "v", "V" or "CTRL-V" while 'selectmode' contains "cmd"
643 - use "gh", "gH" or "g CTRL-H" |g_CTRL-H|
644 *5 Go from Select mode to Normal mode by using a non-printable command to move
645 the cursor, without keeping the Shift key pressed.
646 *6 Go from Select mode to Insert mode by typing a printable character. The
647 selection is deleted and the character is inserted.
649 If the 'insertmode' option is on, editing a file will start in Insert mode.
651 *CTRL-\_CTRL-N* *i_CTRL-\_CTRL-N* *c_CTRL-\_CTRL-N* *v_CTRL-\_CTRL-N*
652 Additionally the command CTRL-\ CTRL-N or <C-\><C-N> can be used to go to
653 Normal mode from any other mode. This can be used to make sure Vim is in
654 Normal mode, without causing a beep like <Esc> would. However, this does not
655 work in Ex mode. When used after a command that takes an argument, such as
656 |f| or |m|, the timeout set with 'ttimeoutlen' applies.
658 *CTRL-\_CTRL-G* *i_CTRL-\_CTRL-G* *c_CTRL-\_CTRL-G* *v_CTRL-\_CTRL-G*
659 The command CTRL-\ CTRL-G or <C-\><C-G> can be used to go to Insert mode when
660 'insertmode' is set. Otherwise it goes to Normal mode. This can be used to
661 make sure Vim is in the mode indicated by 'insertmode', without knowing in
662 what mode Vim currently is.
664 *Q* *mode-Ex* *Ex-mode* *Ex* *EX* *E501*
665 Q Switch to "Ex" mode. This is a bit like typing ":"
666 commands one after another, except:
667 - You don't have to keep pressing ":".
668 - The screen doesn't get updated after each command.
669 - There is no normal command-line editing.
670 - Mappings and abbreviations are not used.
671 In fact, you are editing the lines with the "standard"
672 line-input editing commands (<Del> or <BS> to erase,
673 CTRL-U to kill the whole line).
674 Vim will enter this mode by default if it's invoked as
675 "ex" on the command-line.
676 Use the ":vi" command |:visual| to exit "Ex" mode.
677 Note: In older versions of Vim "Q" formatted text,
678 that is now done with |gq|. But if you use the
679 |vimrc_example.vim| script "Q" works like "gq".
681 *gQ*
682 gQ Switch to "Ex" mode like with "Q", but really behave
683 like typing ":" commands after another. All command
684 line editing, completion etc. is available.
685 Use the ":vi" command |:visual| to exit "Ex" mode.
686 {not in Vi}
688 ==============================================================================
689 7. The window contents *window-contents*
691 In Normal mode and Insert/Replace mode the screen window will show the current
692 contents of the buffer: What You See Is What You Get. There are two
693 exceptions:
694 - When the 'cpoptions' option contains '$', and the change is within one line,
695 the text is not directly deleted, but a '$' is put at the last deleted
696 character.
697 - When inserting text in one window, other windows on the same text are not
698 updated until the insert is finished.
699 {Vi: The screen is not always updated on slow terminals}
701 Lines longer than the window width will wrap, unless the 'wrap' option is off
702 (see below). The 'linebreak' option can be set to wrap at a blank character.
704 If the window has room after the last line of the buffer, Vim will show '~' in
705 the first column of the last lines in the window, like this: >
707 +-----------------------+
708 |some line |
709 |last line |
710 |~ |
711 |~ |
712 +-----------------------+
714 Thus the '~' lines indicate that the end of the buffer was reached.
716 If the last line in a window doesn't fit, Vim will indicate this with a '@' in
717 the first column of the last lines in the window, like this: >
719 +-----------------------+
720 |first line |
721 |second line |
722 |@ |
723 |@ |
724 +-----------------------+
726 Thus the '@' lines indicate that there is a line that doesn't fit in the
727 window.
729 When the "lastline" flag is present in the 'display' option, you will not see
730 '@' characters at the left side of window. If the last line doesn't fit
731 completely, only the part that fits is shown, and the last three characters of
732 the last line are replaced with "@@@", like this: >
734 +-----------------------+
735 |first line |
736 |second line |
737 |a very long line that d|
738 |oesn't fit in the wi@@@|
739 +-----------------------+
741 If there is a single line that is too long to fit in the window, this is a
742 special situation. Vim will show only part of the line, around where the
743 cursor is. There are no special characters shown, so that you can edit all
744 parts of this line.
745 {Vi: gives an "internal error" on lines that do not fit in the window}
747 The '@' occasion in the 'highlight' option can be used to set special
748 highlighting for the '@' and '~' characters. This makes it possible to
749 distinguish them from real characters in the buffer.
751 The 'showbreak' option contains the string to put in front of wrapped lines.
753 *wrap-off*
754 If the 'wrap' option is off, long lines will not wrap. Only the part that
755 fits on the screen is shown. If the cursor is moved to a part of the line
756 that is not shown, the screen is scrolled horizontally. The advantage of
757 this method is that columns are shown as they are and lines that cannot fit
758 on the screen can be edited. The disadvantage is that you cannot see all the
759 characters of a line at once. The 'sidescroll' option can be set to the
760 minimal number of columns to scroll. {Vi: has no 'wrap' option}
762 All normal ASCII characters are displayed directly on the screen. The <Tab>
763 is replaced with the number of spaces that it represents. Other non-printing
764 characters are replaced with "^{char}", where {char} is the non-printing
765 character with 64 added. Thus character 7 (bell) will be shown as "^G".
766 Characters between 127 and 160 are replaced with "~{char}", where {char} is
767 the character with 64 subtracted. These characters occupy more than one
768 position on the screen. The cursor can only be positioned on the first one.
770 If you set the 'number' option, all lines will be preceded with their
771 number. Tip: If you don't like wrapping lines to mix with the line numbers,
772 set the 'showbreak' option to eight spaces:
773 ":set showbreak=\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ "
775 If you set the 'list' option, <Tab> characters will not be shown as several
776 spaces, but as "^I". A '$' will be placed at the end of the line, so you can
777 find trailing blanks.
779 In Command-line mode only the command-line itself is shown correctly. The
780 display of the buffer contents is updated as soon as you go back to Command
781 mode.
783 The last line of the window is used for status and other messages. The
784 status messages will only be used if an option is on:
786 status message option default Unix default ~
787 current mode 'showmode' on on
788 command characters 'showcmd' on off
789 cursor position 'ruler' off off
791 The current mode is "-- INSERT --" or "-- REPLACE --", see |'showmode'|. The
792 command characters are those that you typed but were not used yet. {Vi: does
793 not show the characters you typed or the cursor position}
795 If you have a slow terminal you can switch off the status messages to speed
796 up editing:
797 :set nosc noru nosm
799 If there is an error, an error message will be shown for at least one second
800 (in reverse video). {Vi: error messages may be overwritten with other
801 messages before you have a chance to read them}
803 Some commands show how many lines were affected. Above which threshold this
804 happens can be controlled with the 'report' option (default 2).
806 On the Amiga Vim will run in a CLI window. The name Vim and the full name of
807 the current file name will be shown in the title bar. When the window is
808 resized, Vim will automatically redraw the window. You may make the window as
809 small as you like, but if it gets too small not a single line will fit in it.
810 Make it at least 40 characters wide to be able to read most messages on the
811 last line.
813 On most Unix systems, resizing the window is recognized and handled correctly
814 by Vim. {Vi: not ok}
816 ==============================================================================
817 8. Definitions *definitions*
819 screen The whole area that Vim uses to work in. This can be
820 a terminal emulator window. Also called "the Vim
821 window".
822 window A view on a buffer.
824 A screen contains one or more windows, separated by status lines and with the
825 command line at the bottom.
827 +-------------------------------+
828 screen | window 1 | window 2 |
829 | | |
830 | | |
831 |= status line =|= status line =|
832 | window 3 |
833 | |
834 | |
835 |==== status line ==============|
836 |command line |
837 +-------------------------------+
839 The command line is also used for messages. It scrolls up the screen when
840 there is not enough room in the command line.
842 A difference is made between four types of lines:
844 buffer lines The lines in the buffer. This is the same as the
845 lines as they are read from/written to a file. They
846 can be thousands of characters long.
847 logical lines The buffer lines with folding applied. Buffer lines
848 in a closed fold are changed to a single logical line:
849 "+-- 99 lines folded". They can be thousands of
850 characters long.
851 window lines The lines displayed in a window: A range of logical
852 lines with wrapping, line breaks, etc. applied. They
853 can only be as long as the width of the window allows,
854 longer lines are wrapped or truncated.
855 screen lines The lines of the screen that Vim uses. Consists of
856 the window lines of all windows, with status lines
857 and the command line added. They can only be as long
858 as the width of the screen allows. When the command
859 line gets longer it wraps and lines are scrolled to
860 make room.
862 buffer lines logical lines window lines screen lines ~
864 1. one 1. one 1. +-- folded 1. +-- folded
865 2. two 2. +-- folded 2. five 2. five
866 3. three 3. five 3. six 3. six
867 4. four 4. six 4. seven 4. seven
868 5. five 5. seven 5. === status line ===
869 6. six 6. aaa
870 7. seven 7. bbb
871 8. ccc ccc c
872 1. aaa 1. aaa 1. aaa 9. cc
873 2. bbb 2. bbb 2. bbb 10. ddd
874 3. ccc ccc ccc 3. ccc ccc ccc 3. ccc ccc c 11. ~
875 4. ddd 4. ddd 4. cc 12. === status line ===
876 5. ddd 13. (command line)
877 6. ~
879 ==============================================================================
880 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: