That is the way to do it, because I think it's a mistake to copy another user's ~/.vimrc especially if you aren't aware of why those settings are in use. You'll

That is the way to do it, because I think it's a mistake to copy another user's ~/.vimrc especially if you aren't aware of why those settings are in use. You'll learn more, faster, if you start with a blank ~/.vimrc and build it up yourself. Another tip to advance up the learning curve is to start using vim for everything, not just code. Write email, todo's, documentation, and everything else with it and pretty soon the learning curve doesn't feel so steep anymore.