--- title: "Terminal: Exploring Vim after 20 Years of Writing Code" description: "Notice: This is a little \"terminal treat\" – a short tip rather than a whole article. Enjoy!" date: 2025-04-27 canonical_url: "https://christofersandin.com/texts/terminal-exploring-vim-after-20-years-of-writing-code" section: "Texts" --- # Terminal: Exploring Vim after 20 Years of Writing Code **Notice: This is a little "terminal treat" – a short tip rather than a whole article. Enjoy!** **As a middle-aged CEO and developer, I’ve found myself increasingly occupied with running the company and maintaining a general project overview lately. I needed something new to explore. Therefore, after more than 20 years of coding in regular text editors and IDEs, I decided to explore *Vim*.** Why? There was no particular reason; I was just a little curious and needed a challenge. I did like the idea that you spend more time editing than writing, so there should be a specific mode for that. This text is not a general introduction to Vim — there are many available on the Internet — but I have written down a few notes from that endeavor. --- The whole thing did not start with Vim. At first, I took a look at [Helix](https://helix-editor.com). Helix is an editor that functions similarly to Vim and Neovim. It’s fast, written in Rust, and requires almost zero configuration. I liked it a lot and spent some time in it. It took a bit of getting used to working in different modes, but I could see the appeal. Helix is still a very niche product, and after reading and reviewing tutorials, I switched to [Neovim](https://neovim.io) mainly because of the extensive amount of material and plugins available. Neovim is an extension of Vim, so learning this provides a solid foundation for Vim motions as well. I also liked learning [Lua](https://www.lua.org), the programming language used to configure Neovim. Many people suggest starting `nvim`, pressing the `` key, typing `:Tutor`, and then `` if you need help with the basics. Another great place to start is to go all-in on the [kickstart.nvim](https://github.com/nvim-lua/kickstart.nvim) project. You can also read the project’s [config file](https://github.com/nvim-lua/kickstart.nvim/blob/master/init.lua), which is full of comments and ideas, directly on GitHub and pick and choose the things you like. Both approaches are good options and might suit you, but I needed to see what was doable, so I started watching some "set up Neovim from scratch" videos on YouTube to get into it. Have I switched to Neovim exclusively? No, I have not. Have I gained insights into what’s out there? Yes, I have. Currently, I’m in the middle, but I can see myself using an editor with Vim key bindings soon. --- ## Key bindings The most interesting aspect of Vim and Vim-based editors is learning how to work in different modes. ## Normal mode You start in normal mode, which is your base, and all interactions begin here. Move around files and select what to edit. ### Navigation - Left, down, up, right `h` `j` `k` `l` - Start of line `0` / End of line `$` - `f @`- move cursor to next occurrence of **@**, i.e., `f _` move to next \_ - `t @` - move cursor to character **before** next **@**. - Next word `w` / WORD `W` - Previous word `b` / WORD `B` - End of next word `e` / WORD `E` - Previous blank line `{` / Next blank line `}` - Previous sentence `(` / Next sentence `)` - Move cursor to first line of document `gg` - Move cursor to last line of document `G` - Move cursor to last insert point `gi` - Move cursor to line `#` - `#G` - Go `#` lines down - `#j` / Go `#` lines up - `#k` - Move up a screen `Ctrl u` - Move down a screen `Ctrl d` - Substitute line (delete line, enter insert mode) `S` ### Editing text **Edit** - `a` - add - `i` - insert - `A` - start editing at the end of the line - `I` - start editing at the beginning of the line - `D` - delete to end of line - `C` - change text to end of line - `.` - repeat the last change - `ciw` - Change Inner Word **Folding code** - `zR` - Open all - `zM` - Collapse all - `zo` - Open - `zO` - Open all from the current location - `zc` - Close - `zC` - Close all from the current location - `za` - Toggle current fold - `zi` - Toggle code folding **Quit vim** - `ZZ` **Auto-complete** - `Ctrl P/N` **Selection** - Select current word - `*` ### Spelling - Go to previous and next spelling mistake - `[s` and `]s` - Spell check current word - `z=` - Add current word to spell check - `zg` - Remove current word from spell checker - `zG` ## Files and buffers An open file lives in a buffer. You can display multiple buffers at the same time, and you can have the same file open in many buffers. ### Buffers - `:ls` - List buffers - `:bn` - Next buffer - `:bp` - Previous buffer - `:bw` - Close buffer - `:bd#` - Close buffer # ### Splits - `:sp` - split horizontally - `:vs` - split vertically - `ZQ` - quit without saving (same as `:q!`) - Go between split windows with `Ctrl w` and the Vim keys (`h`or `l` for left and right, `j` and `k` for up and down) ## Macros Record interactions and reuse them with macros. **Recordings** 1. Record: `q a` (keystrokes) `q` 2. Play: `@ a` 3. Play multiple (15) times: `15@a` --- ## Visual mode Working in visual mode allows you to select text and view a visual representation of what you have selected. **Select a paragraph** - `Vap` - *select* **around** the current **paragraph** - `Vip` - *select* **inside** the current **paragraph** **Select block** - `v%` - *select* from the current position to the next matching character **Select until next instance** - `v/foo` - *select* from your current position to the next instance of **foo**, and `n` expands to the next instance. **Select Word** - `viw` and `viW` **Copy a word and replace another word** - To copy a word under the cursor, press `bvey` - To replace the word under the cursor, press `bvep` --- ## Insert mode - `Ctrl o` - temporarily enter Normal mode. - `Ctrl w` - delete the word to the left of the cursor. - `Ctrl u` - delete from the cursor to the beginning of the line. --- ## Third-party plugins Before committing to third-party plugins and extensions, it is wise to explore the basic commands in your applications. It is also always a good idea to keep dependencies to a minimum. That said, there are a few plugins that significantly enhance the user experience in Neovim, and if they have a good reputation and solid support, I’m not opposed to using them. ### The foundation From what I gathered during my research, it appears that [lazy.nvim](https://github.com/folke/lazy.nvim) is a reliable way to manage plugins. Here is a list of the ones that function as a foundation for my setup: - Package manager for downloading plugins (lazy.nvim) - Download LSPs, formatters, and linters (mason.nvim) - [nvim-treesitter](https://github.com/nvim-treesitter/nvim-treesitter) - syntax highlighting - [nvim-treesitter-textobjects](https://github.com/nvim-treesitter/nvim-treesitter-textobjects) - working with text objects ## File pickers ### telescope.nvim [*Telescope*](https://github.com/nvim-telescope/telescope.nvim) is an extendable fuzzy finder over lists for Neovim. It is "built on the latest awesome features from Neovim core," which I guess must be good. It is centered around modularity, allowing for easy customization. ``` vim.keymap.set("n", "", builtin.oldfiles, {}) vim.keymap.set("n", "ff", builtin.find_files, {}) vim.keymap.set("n", "fg", builtin.live_grep, {}) vim.keymap.set("n", "fb", builtin.buffers, {}) vim.keymap.set("n", "fr", builtin.registers, {}) ``` ## File explorers ### oil.nvim If you like to step away from the file tree view on the left-hand side of the code and use a more native-feeling solution, you want to try [oil.nvim](https://github.com/stevearc/oil.nvim). Hitting the - key displays a list of the current directory, and you can use your Vim skills to add, delete, and rename files. Using `g` will display other options if you have [Which Key](https://github.com/folke/which-key.nvim) installed. Currently, this is my preferred method for quickly and easily performing file-related tasks within Neovim. ## Code formatting and auto-complete - Formatting code (conform.nvim) - Linting code (nvim-lint) - Syntax highlighting and code completion with LSPs - [nvim-lspconfig](https://github.com/neovim/nvim-lspconfig) - LSP interaction - [blink.cmp](https://github.com/Saghen/blink.cmp) - code completion with support for LSPs and external sources ### nvim-surround Surround text with a character or a tag. - `add` with `ys{motion}{char}` - `delete` with `ds{char}` - `change` with `cs{target}{replacement}` `ysiw)` – add "(" and ")" around word `ys$t` - adds a tag around the text from the cursor position to the end of the line `ds"` - delete " around text `dst` - delete tag around text `cs'"` - change quotes from `'` to `"` ### [// Comment.nvim](https://github.com/numToStr/Comment.nvim) Comment your code in style. - NORMAL mode - `gcc` - Toggles the current line using a line-wise comment - `gbc` - Toggles the current line using a block-wise comment - VISUAL mode - `gc` - Toggles the region using a line-wise comment - `gb` - Toggles the region using a block-wise comment ## LSP ### nvim-lspconfig Nvim supports the Language Server Protocol (LSP), which means it acts as a client to LSP servers. LSP is a standard that lets different editors understand how programming languages work; it originated at [Microsoft](https://microsoft.github.io/language-server-protocol/). This is the official plugin used to make Neovim use LSPs. > LSP facilitates features like go-to-definition, find references, hover, completion, rename, format, refactor, etc., using semantic whole-project analysis ### trouble.nvim This is a way to look at the diagnostics that the LSP server provides, both for individual files and for the whole project. > A pretty list for showing diagnostics, references, telescope results, quickfix and location lists to help you solve all the trouble your code is causing. [trouble.nvim on GitHub](https://github.com/folke/trouble.nvim) ## Putting a smile on your face These are the others I use at the moment: - Interface/UX - [α alpha-nvim](https://github.com/goolord/alpha-nvim) - start up Neovim with style - [lualine.nvim](https://github.com/nvim-lualine/lualine.nvim) - easy to configure Neovim status line - [colorizer.lua](https://github.com/norcalli/nvim-colorizer.lua) - display your color codes in color - [:GuessIndent](https://github.com/NMAC427/guess-indent.nvim) - fast indentation style detection written in Lua - [Noice (Nice, Noise, Notice)](https://github.com/folke/noice.nvim) - completely replaces the UI for *messages*, *cmdline*, and the *popup menu*. - Navigation - [Neovim-Tmux Navigation](https://github.com/alexghergh/nvim-tmux-navigation) - navigate between tmux and Neovim - Git - [fugitive.vim](https://github.com/tpope/vim-fugitive) - working with Git inside Neovim (haven’t had time to explore, but the name alone puts it on the list) - [gitsigns.nvim](https://github.com/lewis6991/gitsigns.nvim) - deep buffer integration for Git --- ## Links ### References and videos - "Neovim from scratch" by Mr Jakob - [Part 1: lazy.nvim, kanagawa.nvim, oil.nvim, Statusline & Essential Settings](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1gyYttzxcI) - [Part 2: Supercharged Code Navigation via Treesitter, Textobjects & which-key](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4qXZv34NQQ) - [Part 3: Insanely fast Neovim Navigation with fzf ❤️ lua](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3e7uAE8jjo) - [Part 4: Code Intelligence in Neovim - The LSP Setup that grants you IDE Powers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b17g20II6SQ) - [Part 5: Perfect Code Formatting with conform.nvim](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVO_cq3xATo&t=137s) - [Part 6: blink-cmp: Lightning-Fast Autocompletion Built in Rust](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKIxgCcKAq4) - [How I Setup Neovim To Make It AMAZING in 2024: The Ultimate Guide](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pAG3BHurdM) by Josean Martinez - [How To Setup Linting And Formatting In Neovim To Replace null-ls](https://youtube.com/watch?v=ybUE4D80XSk) by Josean Martinez - [The Only Video You Need to Get Started with Neovim](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8C0Cq9Uv9o) by TJ DeVries - [telescope.nvim introduction](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqdCshrIKIg) by TJ DeVries - [Code Formatting made easy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEqqkHLhlGY) by TJ DeVries - [0 to LSP : Neovim RC From Scratch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7i4amO_zaE&t=37s) by ThePrimeagen - [Vim Color scheme ‘evangelion’](https://github.com/xero/evangelion.nvim) - [Neovim Ascii Logo by rc!](https://gist.githubusercontent.com/liocer/ce1485f9f4971fec4877fae7de2fbfc4/raw/efd6010e9eb4c1d0a2475de99cc4b56f0abcf828/nv.asc) ### Official links to repo and plugins - [Neovim](https://neovim.io/) - [Nerdfonts](https://www.nerdfonts.com/) - [Telescope](https://github.com/nvim-telescope/telescope.nvim) - [Oil](https://github.com/stevearc/oil.nvim) - [Neo-tree](https://github.com/nvim-neo-tree/neo-tree.nvim) ### Themes - [Zenbones](https://github.com/zenbones-theme/zenbones.nvim) ### Guides - [Learn Vim (the Smart Way)](https://github.com/iggredible/Learn-Vim) – a free book bridging the gap between `:Tutor` and `:help` - [Intermediate Vim](https://dn.ht/intermediate-vim) by Dennis Hotson - [LazyVim](https://www.lazyvim.org/) – a popular preconfigured Neovim distribution, if you’d rather not build the stack yourself - [Dotfyle](https://dotfyle.com/) – discover Neovim plugins and browse real-world configs --- ## Metadata [\#terminal-treats](/writing/terminal-treats) Published . Last modified . 29 48 86 1817