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This article has changed(or at least I hope) my life. I'm installing Vim today on my Windows Laptop. Does anyone know of a good guide for beginners?

Smudge 14y ago
:help tutor Or, if you get bored: http://vim-adventures.com/ http://vim-adventures.com/
solutionyogi 14y ago
I would highly recommend 'The Practical Vim' by Pragmatic Bookshelf. http://pragprog.com/book/dnvim/practical-vim http://pragprog.com/book/dnvim/practical-vim It will teach you 'The Vim Way' which is a MUST if you want to get most out of it. When starting with Vim, it can be very daunting and I can't emphasize that enough. If you are in NJ/NY, please email me and I can walk you through 'The Vim Way' to make it easier to get up to speed.
icarus_drowning 14y ago
I learn by watching and following along with examples, so the following YouTube videos are the ones that I've found the most useful: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71YTkxUNwmg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71YTkxUNwmg <--Covers the basics and helpful commands. I had never used vim before watching this video, and now I'm reasonably competent at basic text editing. I needed to do find and replace on a short story I'm working on (changed a character's name), and I found this one helpful: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1_CfIb-3X4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1_CfIb-3X4 I wanted to understand/use the .vimrc file, so I googled until I hit this one, which I found quite informative: [UPDATE: put in the wrong link, serves me right for picking the last history item with .vimrc in it instead of watching it. The actual video I found helpful was this one of a guy showing his .vimrc file and what various things in it do: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZuy4gBghho http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZuy4gBghho] Lastly, once you're comfortable using it, try going into command mode and typing Shift-a, and notice that it moves your cursor to the end of the line and puts you in insert mode. I saw this tip on HN awhile back, and I hadn't seen it in any basic tutorials, but it is the single most useful command I've come across.
- FuzzyDunlop 14y ago
  Shift+I moves your cursor to the start of the line, and enters insert mode, too.
possibilistic 14y ago
It is NOT going to be easy, but please stick with it. In time you will gain a muscle memory and proficiency for its use. And you will only continue to get better. I can't speak for how vim feels under Windows (I'm not knocking your OS, just commenting on possible issues you may have). If it seems non-native it may serve you to spin up a virtual Ubuntu instance and give it a try there. Also, temper your expectations. The comment above by StavrosK [1] is good to keep in mind. Using vim feels liberating and fluid, but it will not improve your programming ability. [1] http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4236181 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4236181
chappi42 14y ago
Smash into vim I + II (screencasts) helped me a lot. Link: https://peepcode.com/screencasts https://peepcode.com/screencasts
mun2mun 14y ago
Start with Darek Watt's novice tutorial series[1]. He presented basic features of vim in a simple and a bit funny way. http://www.derekwyatt.org/vim/vim-tutorial-videos/vim-novice-tutorial-videos/ http://www.derekwyatt.org/vim/vim-tutorial-videos/vim-novice...
jng 14y ago
http://www.viemu.com/a_vi_vim_graphical_cheat_sheet_tutorial.html http://www.viemu.com/a_vi_vim_graphical_cheat_sheet_tutorial...

Smudge 14y ago

:help tutor Or, if you get bored: http://vim-adventures.com/ http://vim-adventures.com/

solutionyogi 14y ago

I would highly recommend 'The Practical Vim' by Pragmatic Bookshelf. http://pragprog.com/book/dnvim/practical-vim http://pragprog.com/book/dnvim/practical-vim It will teach you 'The Vim Way' which is a MUST if you want to get most out of it. When starting with Vim, it can be very daunting and I can't emphasize that enough. If you are in NJ/NY, please email me and I can walk you through 'The Vim Way' to make it easier to get up to speed.

icarus_drowning 14y ago

I learn by watching and following along with examples, so the following YouTube videos are the ones that I've found the most useful: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71YTkxUNwmg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71YTkxUNwmg <--Covers the basics and helpful commands. I had never used vim before watching this video, and now I'm reasonably competent at basic text editing. I needed to do find and replace on a short story I'm working on (changed a character's name), and I found this one helpful: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1_CfIb-3X4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1_CfIb-3X4 I wanted to understand/use the .vimrc file, so I googled until I hit this one, which I found quite informative: [UPDATE: put in the wrong link, serves me right for picking the last history item with .vimrc in it instead of watching it. The actual video I found helpful was this one of a guy showing his .vimrc file and what various things in it do: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZuy4gBghho http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZuy4gBghho] Lastly, once you're comfortable using it, try going into command mode and typing Shift-a, and notice that it moves your cursor to the end of the line and puts you in insert mode. I saw this tip on HN awhile back, and I hadn't seen it in any basic tutorials, but it is the single most useful command I've come across.

FuzzyDunlop 14y ago
Shift+I moves your cursor to the start of the line, and enters insert mode, too.

possibilistic 14y ago

It is NOT going to be easy, but please stick with it. In time you will gain a muscle memory and proficiency for its use. And you will only continue to get better. I can't speak for how vim feels under Windows (I'm not knocking your OS, just commenting on possible issues you may have). If it seems non-native it may serve you to spin up a virtual Ubuntu instance and give it a try there. Also, temper your expectations. The comment above by StavrosK [1] is good to keep in mind. Using vim feels liberating and fluid, but it will not improve your programming ability. [1] http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4236181 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4236181

chappi42 14y ago

Smash into vim I + II (screencasts) helped me a lot. Link: https://peepcode.com/screencasts https://peepcode.com/screencasts

mun2mun 14y ago

Start with Darek Watt's novice tutorial series[1]. He presented basic features of vim in a simple and a bit funny way. http://www.derekwyatt.org/vim/vim-tutorial-videos/vim-novice-tutorial-videos/ http://www.derekwyatt.org/vim/vim-tutorial-videos/vim-novice...

jng 14y ago

http://www.viemu.com/a_vi_vim_graphical_cheat_sheet_tutorial.html http://www.viemu.com/a_vi_vim_graphical_cheat_sheet_tutorial...