Right, I'm talking about vim. On Ubuntu, by default, my "vi" is vim. I'm surprised it didn't work for you using vim explicitly. It works for me using version

Right, I'm talking about vim. On Ubuntu, by default, my "vi" is vim. I'm surprised it didn't work for you using vim explicitly. It works for me using versions 7.1.138 and 7.2.245, from fresh installs, by default, with no fancy configuration or add-ons. When I run vim on /usr, it shows me a directory listing which I can browse and edit. I can create, delete, and rename directories and files right there.