Barry Arthur, 2014-08-14
Learning to use a tool requires:
Understanding — What is it?
Why do I need it?
How does it fit in with the rest of my world?;
Cognition — discovering how it works and remembering so;
Practice — honing the coordination, grace and speed of movements; and finally,
Affection — the desire to use it, to use it properly,
and to identify with the community using it.
Understanding
If you already understand Vim, you can skip this section.
Vim is a Text Editor
A text editor is a
tool for creating and changing text documents.
Vim has a Rich Set of Text Objects
Think of a
Text Object as a unit of text that can be manipulated
(changed, deleted, cut, copied, pasted, selected, etc). Simple editors
like Notepad and Nano offer at most two Text Objects — individual
characters, and visually selected text. Vim introduces objects for
words, sentences, paragraphs, quoted strings, parenthetical
collections, entire blocks and functions in programming languages, and
a lot more. Text Objects allow the user to manipulate logical portions
of text at a higher level of abstraction than mere characters or
clumsy explicit selections. This freedom lets the Vimmer think and act
faster.
Vim is Configurable
Nearly every facet of operation is controlled by one or more
configurable options. Two different Vimmers may have their Vims
configured so differently as to appear as different editors to
newcomers. Initially daunting, this flexibility and control is
appreciated by seasoned Vimmers.
Vim is Extensible
Default functionality can be altered and new functionality added. One
such extensible aspect of Vim is its set of Text Objects — existing
definitions can be altered and new objects created. Another area of
extensibility is through the modification or addition of keys and
commands.
Vim is Scriptable
More complicated edits can be recorded and played back as needed.
These are called macros. I link to three macro articles below.
For even more scripting power, there is Vimscript (aka VimL), Vim’s
built-in scripting language which is used by plugin authors to create
weird and wonderful addons, and ordinary Vimmers to automate and
control facets of Vim.
I look forward to meeting you on the
Path
to VimL Mastery.
Vim is Modal
The control interface to Vim is, typically, a keyboard. Keyboards are
necessarily limited in the number of keys they hold. This limits the
number of unique interactions with Vim that can be made by a User.
One way to solve this problem is by "chording" keystrokes, that is by
holding multiple keys down at the same time. While Vim uses a small
amount of chording, the more dominant model it uses could instead be
referred to as "plucking".
Chording
One definition of such a key-chord includes the common SHIFT, CTRL,
and ALT (META/COMMAND) key combinations used in most Operating Systems
/ Window Managers, like CTRL-W to close a window, or ALT-F4 to close
an application (in Windows). Other definitions exclude such simple
instances and instead require multiple non-(SHIFT, CTRL, ALT) keys to
form a chord.
Two things to know about chording:
-
The number of extra interactions it provides is small.
Chording doesn’t scale very well because the hands can only hold down
so many characters at the same time, less even, when limited by reach.
It also limits the amount of extra interactions that are possible — chording is unaffected by the order in which the keys are pressed — they
all need to be pressed together for the chord to trigger. Chording
is therefore the mathematically poorer Combination as compared to
the richer Permutation that plucking yields.
-
It hurts.
Contorting the hand to simultaneously press multiple keys puts a lot
of strain on tendons and ligaments, and I believe, significantly
contributes to repetitive strain injury (RSI). Anecdotally, I have
heard of far more Emacsians complaining of RSI than I have Vimmers. In
fact, it is an often cited reason for an ex-Emacsian switching to Vim.
For the Emacsian reading this that can’t bare to lose his beloved
Emacs, the Evil mode provides a vimmish interface that might be
kinder on your wrists.
Plucking
Instead of holding down more than one key simultaneously, Vim prefers
a model of striking multiple keys sequentially. This is called a
key-sequence and resembles plucking strings on a guitar (as opposed to
strumming a chord).
Plucking is better because:
-
The number of extra interactions is vastly greater. (permutation vs
combination)
-
It doesn’t hurt. (as much)
And it’s actually better than that because the sequence of keys that
Vim uses for its commands are not random — they are carefully
considered so as to form an actual language designed specifically for
the efficient editing of text.
The
d key for example is a verb for performing a delete operation.
But… deleting what? A character? A word? A line? In other editors,
different chords are used to express these alternatives, like ctrl-d
deletes a word, ctrl-shift-d deletes a line, ctrl-alt-shift-d breaks
your wrist, etc.
The
d verb is an unfinished command in Vim. It is an operator (verb)
pending a motion (an object to operate on). Vim is waiting for me to
tell it what to delete. If I type
l now, it will delete a letter (a
synonym for the
x command); if I type
w it will delete from the
cursor to the end of the word;
b will delete back from the cursor to
the start of the word; and another
d will delete the entire line.
This is a common idiom in Vim — doubling the operator (here,
dd)
will operate on the whole line. So,
y is the yank operator (and
unsurprisingly, I hope, pressing it DOES NOTHING because Vim is now
waiting for you to tell it
what to yank), and
yy yanks the whole
line. “Yank” is Vim’s term for copy (for pasting later).
One particularly nice set of "motions" are the Text Objects. I will
show one here just quickly, but you need to read
:help text-objects
(heck, just grab a cold beer and read
all of
:help motion.txt — thank me later)
The iw Text Object:
The command
diw will delete an entire word, no matter where the
cursor is inside the word. This is better than messing around with
dw which only deletes from the cursor to the end of the word.
What Does This Have To Do With Vim Being Modal?
Whereas some editor might use
ctrl-d to delete a word, Vim uses
diw To those unfamiliar with Vim, that might seem like a typo: how
can the
d i and
w keys be used to delete a word?! What if I want
to
type a "d" or "i" or "w"?! This is where modes come in. In
Normal mode, Vim uses
diw to delete the word at the cursor. In
Insert mode, it inserts (types) these letters instead.
By separating semantically different concepts, Vim is able to re-use
keys for different purposes. For example, in
Normal and
Visual
modes, the "%" key jumps the cursor to the bracket matching the one
under the cursor; in
Command-line mode, it serves as an alias
meaning "the whole buffer" when used as a range, or the name of the
current buffer when used as an argument to an ex command; and, of
course, in
Insert mode it merely inserts a "%" character.
Pop Quiz: Been paying attention? Let’s see.
Given the following
text, where the cursor is on the "
(" :
echo getline(1, '$')
What do you expect the following
Normal mode key sequence to do:
d%
Check your answer at the end of the article.
Vim has 12 modes all up (6 basic modes — the other 6 are variations
on the basic ones) but the beginner Vimmer only needs to know 4 of
them:
-
Normal mode — The editor starts in this mode. Use
<Escape> to
return to Normal mode from any other mode. This mode is for
movements and operations on Text Objects, like changing, deleting,
cutting, yanking (copying), pasting, and entering one of the other
modes.
-
Visual mode — Used to extend a highlight region over text.
Non-movement commands in this mode execute the command on the
selected text.
-
Insert mode — Anything typed in this mode is inserted into the buffer.
-
Command-line mode — For running one of three types of commands:
-
Ex commands —
:
-
Searches —
/ and ?
-
Filters —
! (which you won’t need until you advance somewhat)
Cognition
Learning Vim is learning a skill
Learning a skill is very different to learning knowledge. Skills
require that, not just your mind, but also your muscles get involved.
We can intellectually
know what is required of a task and yet be
completely incapable of performing it competently. The gap here is
what separates a skill from knowledge: practice. Physical practice.
And not just any old practice; it requires Perfect Practice. More on
that later.
A good way to learn a new skill:
-
Normal - Watch an expert do it at normal speed
-
Slow - Watch an expert do it slowly
-
With - Do it with an expert, several times, from slow to normal speed
-
Practice - Practice the new skill several times per day until competent
Use videos if you don’t have access to an expert to watch live. Textual
descriptions of steps in tutorials will suffice if no better source is
available, but then you lose value by missing the
Normal and
Slow steps.
The value here is in seeing what really is achievable in terms of speed and
ease. Seeing a skill being performed properly lowers learning barriers for many
who can’t picture themselves being able to do a set of steps explained orally
or in written form. Harness the power of Monkey See, Monkey Do.
A digression:
Unfortunately, a lot of video resources for Vim lack in two important ways:
-
They tend to show too much in one session, confounding higher level
concepts with lower level edit sequences.
-
Some lack OSD overlays showing keystrokes as they’re typed,
resulting more in porn than instruction. Watching a Gary Bernhardt
session late at night, after the children have gone to bed, is a
perfectly acceptable way to unwind after a stressful day.
|
Racing up the Vim Ramp — topics begging for decent videos:
-
motion.txt — All the builtin motions and text objects (or at least
the most useful ones). Seeing
them grouped is useful; perhaps the video could similarly group its
presentation of these powerful commands.
-
ranges — Something the
Vim
Ranger can help you with for now.
-
registers
-
Searching & Replacing (Regular Expressions,
/, :s///, :g//,
:v//) The Walter Alan Zintz
(waz) tutorial is this in text
form. Other useful
tutorials exist.
-
Macros — when to use them, not silly examples where
:[range]s///
is preferred.
My
macro
articles
are one place to start.
-
Tags — The
80/20
that makes it worth learning.
-
Quickfix —
:make & :vimgrep
-
Buffers, Windows and Tabs — Examples of using them wisely. This
buffers
& args article is a place to begin.
In addition to all of the resources above, I recommend my
LearnVim to rapidly
acquaint yourself with and acquire the skills of Vim.
Practice
One of the pieces of advice given in LearnVim is the use of a Practice
File — a place where you can collect newly learned editing motions
and commands requiring frequent practice.
Since LearnVim was first written wherein the Practice File advice was
espoused, I have since written a tool to replace the manual
maintenance of such a Practice File:
VimGym.
The
purpose of VimGym is to be a place for you to practice the things
you need to work on. As and when you discover new commands or
motions or ways to do things, create a practice task in VimGym.
Gradually, you will build up a set of exercises targeting your
weaknesses, helping
you where you need it.
But how do I know if I’m practising right?
Excellent question. This is one of the key requirements for Deliberate
Practice — the supervision of a coach — the knowledge that you’re
investing energy in the right place, working on the right things.
In Vim terms, this means practising motions and commands and
ways
that are suitable to the task at hand.
Where do I find a coach?
-
Read
:help motion.txt
-
Read the set of learning resources I have linked to in this article
-
Look at sane solutions to vim-golf problems
-
A solution is not sane if you don’t understand it.
-
Ask on #vim for explanations if you think it could be sane given clarity.
Fast, Slow, Medium
Once you know
what you should be practising, there is the question
of how: “How do I get my fingers Bernhardt fast?!”
Steve Yegge proposes the
Fast,
Slow, Medium approach.
I wonder if Gary used this…?
Affection
Being a successful Vimmer requires living the Vim Way. Many initially
come to Vim with notions carried over from their prior editor pasts
and attempt to change Vim accordingly. Many struggle this way until
they give up on Vim, decrying it as worthless or inflexible. Those
that eventually give up their struggle against Vim discover the
opposite; they discover the power and flexibility and extensibility of
a tool that, when used right, has continued to be the best “editor of
text” for decades and will probably continue to be so for decades
more.
Advice: Stop fighting Vim and start using it the way(s) it was
intended. When you’re told on #vim that your approach is anathema to
the Vim Way: stop, listen and change your approach. Happiness this way
lies.
Good luck, and welcome aboard.
Quiz Answer: The cursor is on the "
(" character, and in
Normal
mode the
% key jumps to the matching bracket. The
d key is given
% as its motion. The result is that the entire bracketed chunk of
text [
(1, '$') ] is deleted.
