Vim As Your Editor - Introduction

Summary

The Primogen introduces a multi-part series on mastering Vim, a highly efficient text editor. With a focus on Vim motions, the video guides viewers from novice to expert level, emphasizing the importance of understanding Vim's modes: normal, insert, visual, and command. The tutorial covers basic cursor movements, efficient text navigation, and commands like delete and yank. The speaker encourages practice and offers resources like a VimRC video and games to build muscle memory, aiming to transform text editing into a fast, intuitive process.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker has been using Vim for 10 years and aims to guide viewers from novice to expert level in a multi-part series.
• 🔍 The series will focus on Vim motions and navigating within Vim, emphasizing the efficiency of these motions across various programming environments.
• 🛠 The speaker advises against starting with Vim if you have no prior experience, recommending the use of Vim modes or plugins in existing editors first.
• 🤔 Learning every single key in Vim is discouraged; instead, the speaker suggests adopting a more streamlined approach to learning.
• 🔑 Vim operates in different modes: Normal, Insert, Visual, and Command, with Normal mode being the starting point for cursor movement.
• ➡️ Basic cursor movements in Vim are done using 'h', 'j', 'k', 'l', with 'w' and 'b' allowing word-based navigation.
• 🎮 Neovim users can practice motions with a built-in game that helps build muscle memory for efficient cursor movement.
• 🔢 Vim motions can be augmented with counts, allowing for repeated actions, such as '8k' to move up eight lines.
• ✂️ The 'D' command in Vim is used for deletion, and can be combined with motions for more extensive deletions, like 'D3j'.
• ↩️ Insert mode in Vim allows for regular typing, with 'a' and 'I' being useful commands for moving the cursor within the text.
• 📋 Visual mode in Vim is used for selecting text with motions, and 'y' (yank) and 'p' (paste) are key commands for copying and pasting.
• 🔄 Yanking and deleting in Vim use the same buffer, meaning pasting with 'p' after a deletion will recover the deleted text.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the Primogen's series on Vim?

The main focus of Primogen's series is to guide viewers from being complete beginners in Vim to becoming experts, focusing on mastering Vim motions and navigating within Vim.

Why does Primogen recommend using Vim motions even if one is not using Vim as their primary editor?

Primogen recommends using Vim motions because they are extremely efficient and available in many popular editors like IntelliJ, Sublime, and VS Code, improving overall navigation and editing speed.

What does Primogen suggest as a starting point for someone completely new to Vim?

Primogen suggests that beginners should start by using Vim mode or Vim plugins in their current editor of choice, such as VS Code or IntelliJ, to get familiar with the motions before diving into Vim itself.

What are the four modes in Vim that the script mentions?

The four modes mentioned in the script are Normal mode, Insert mode, Visual mode, and Command mode.

What is the difference between 'yank' and 'delete' in Vim, as explained in the script?

In Vim, 'yank' copies the selected text to the clipboard, while 'delete' removes the text and also places it in a buffer from where it can be pasted later. Both operations use the same buffer.

How can one undo and redo actions in Vim according to the script?

In Vim, one can undo actions by pressing 'U' and redo them by pressing 'Ctrl R'.

What is the significance of the 'hjkl' keys in Vim as discussed in the script?

The 'hjkl' keys are fundamental movements in Vim, representing left (h), down (j), up (k), and right (l), allowing for cursor navigation in Normal mode.

What is the purpose of the 'W' and 'B' motions in Vim?

The 'W' motion in Vim moves the cursor forward by words, similar to holding the option key and pressing the arrow key on a Mac. The 'B' motion moves the cursor backward by words.

How can one navigate more efficiently in Vim according to the script?

The script suggests using motions with counts, such as '8k' to move up eight lines or '16j' to move down sixteen lines, for more efficient navigation.

What is the role of the 'visual mode' in Vim as described in the script?

Visual mode in Vim allows the user to highlight text using motions, after which they can perform actions like yanking (copying) and pasting.

What does Primogen suggest for learning Vim efficiently?

Primogen suggests learning Vim motions first and mastering them until they become second nature, before moving on to more advanced features of Vim.

How does Primogen describe the learning experience of Vim for beginners?

Primogen describes the learning experience of Vim for beginners as the hardest part, especially getting used to the Vim paradigm shift from mouse-oriented control to a more keyboard-centric motion system.

What is the 'relative line numbers' feature in Vim mentioned by Primogen and how does it help?

Relative line numbers in Vim shows the distance of lines from the current line, which helps in quickly jumping to different parts of the document without having to count lines manually.

What is the significance of the 'dd' command in Vim as explained in the script?

The 'dd' command in Vim deletes the current line. It can be combined with motions to delete a range of text, such as '3j' to delete the current line plus the next three lines.

How does Primogen recommend practicing Vim motions?

Primogen recommends using a game-like approach, such as the 'vim be good' game in Neovim, to practice Vim motions and build muscle memory in a fun and engaging way.

Outlines

00:00

💻 Introduction to Vim Mastery Series

The speaker, Primagen, introduces a multi-part series aimed at transforming beginners into Vim experts. They emphasize the distinction between Vim as a program and Vim motions, the latter being highly efficient and available in various editors. Primagen encourages starting with Vim motions in familiar editors before diving into Vim itself, which requires customization for optimal use. The series focuses on mastering Vim motions and navigating within Vim. They also recommend using Vim mode in existing editors and provide a link to a video on Vim RC for further learning.

05:02

🔑 Understanding Vim Modes and Basic Movements

Primagen explains the four essential modes in Vim: normal, insert, visual, and command mode. They detail the functions of each mode, with a focus on normal mode for cursor movement. The speaker introduces fundamental cursor movements using 'h', 'j', 'k', and 'l', and recommends becoming proficient with these. They also touch on the concept of Vim games to enhance learning and muscle memory, and briefly mention advanced movements like 'W' and 'B' for word-based navigation.

10:04

🚀 Enhancing Vim Efficiency with Motions and Commands

The speaker demonstrates how to augment Vim motions with counts for repeated actions, such as moving the cursor up or down multiple lines. They introduce the 'D' command for deleting text, which can be combined with motions for more complex operations like deleting multiple lines or words. Primagen also covers undo and redo commands, and transitions into discussing insert mode, emphasizing the use of 'a' to append text and the various ways to exit insert mode. The paragraph concludes with a teaser for upcoming content on visual mode and yank/paste operations.

✂️ Mastering Visual Mode and Text Manipulation

Primagen delves into visual mode, explaining how to select text using 'V' and 'Shift-V' for character-wise and line-wise selection, respectively. They show how to yank and paste text in visual mode, highlighting the difference between pasting in character-wise and line-wise contexts. The speaker also discusses the relationship between yanking, deleting, and the paste buffer, noting that pasting with 'p' can replace the current selection with previously deleted content. They conclude by emphasizing the importance of mastering these fundamental motions and commands as a stepping stone to more advanced Vim techniques.

Keywords

💡Vim

Vim is a highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing. It is known for its modal editing, which means users switch between different modes for inserting text, navigating, and manipulating text. In the video, Vim is the central theme, and the speaker discusses transitioning from a beginner to an expert in using Vim, emphasizing the efficiency of Vim motions across various programming environments.

💡Vim Motions

Vim Motions refer to the set of commands used in Vim to navigate through text efficiently without relying on the mouse. They are considered fundamental to mastering Vim and are extolled in the video for their efficiency, with the speaker advocating their use even in other editors that support Vim keybindings.

💡Normal Mode

Normal Mode is one of the primary modes in Vim, where the user can move the cursor around without inserting text. It is the default mode when Vim starts and is essential for executing motions and commands. The video script mentions Normal Mode as the starting point for learning Vim and introduces basic cursor movements like 'j' and 'k'.

💡Insert Mode

Insert Mode in Vim allows the user to type text into the document, similar to a regular text editor. The video explains how to enter Insert Mode and emphasizes the importance of understanding the transition between Normal Mode and Insert Mode for efficient editing.

💡Visual Mode

Visual Mode in Vim is used for selecting text, either character by character or line by line, to perform operations such as copying (yanking) and pasting. The script demonstrates how to use Visual Mode for highlighting text and performing yank and paste operations.

💡Command Mode

Command Mode in Vim is activated by pressing ':', allowing the user to execute commands such as saving files or quitting the editor. The video script introduces Command Mode and provides examples of basic commands like 'W' for save and 'WQ' for save and quit.

💡HJKL

HJKL refers to the keys used in Vim for basic cursor movement in Normal Mode: 'h' for left, 'j' for down, 'k' for up, and 'l' for right. These keys are highlighted in the video as fundamental to Vim navigation and are part of the 'home row' movement-centric approach of Vim.

💡Vimrc

Vimrc is a configuration file for Vim that allows users to customize their Vim environment. The video script mentions a separate video on Vimrc, indicating its importance in configuring Vim to suit individual needs and preferences.

💡Yank and Paste

Yank and Paste are operations in Vim for copying and inserting text. The video script explains how to use these commands in Visual Mode, demonstrating the process of selecting text and then pasting it elsewhere in the document.

💡Delete

The 'D' command in Vim is used for deleting text. The video script explains how to use 'D' in combination with motions to delete lines or words, emphasizing the power of combining commands and motions for efficient text manipulation.

💡Undo and Redo

Undo and Redo are operations in Vim to revert or reapply changes made to the text. The video script mentions the 'U' command for undoing changes and 'Ctrl R' for redoing, which are crucial for correcting mistakes during the editing process.

💡Relative Line Numbers

Relative Line Numbers is a feature in Vim that displays the distance of lines from the current line, aiding in navigation. The video script suggests using relative line numbers to enhance the ability to jump around the document effectively.

Highlights

Introduction to a multi-part series aimed at transforming users from Vim novices to experts.

Differentiation between Vim the program and Vim the Motions, emphasizing the efficiency of Vim motions across various editors.

Personal preference for configuring Vim to suit individual needs for optimal utility.

Recommendation to start learning Vim motions with existing editors before transitioning to Vim itself.

The importance of not trying to learn every key in Vim at once, but rather adopting a more gradual approach.

Highlighting the challenge of transitioning from mouse-oriented control to Vim's home row motion-centric paradigm.

Explanation of Vim's modal editing concept, focusing on Normal, Insert, Visual, and Command modes.

Basic cursor movement techniques in Normal mode using hjkl keys.

Introduction of Vim's game for practicing cursor movements and building muscle memory.

The concept of motion commands in Vim, including word hopping with 'W' and walking backwards with 'B'.

Augmenting motion commands with counts for multiple actions, such as 8K to jump up eight lines.

Combining the 'D' command with motion to delete text, like D3J to delete three lines down.

Undo and redo functionalities in Vim with the 'U' and Ctrl+R (or 'Ctrl+Y') commands.

Entering Insert mode with 'I' and the various ways to exit it, including Escape and Ctrl+[.

The use of 'a' to append text after the cursor and its frequent utility in day-to-day editing.

Visual mode's functionality for selecting text using motions and performing yank and paste operations.

Differences between using yank in Visual mode and yanking without selection, and the implications for pasting.

The peculiar behavior of 'P' to paste the last deleted content, showcasing Vim's unique buffer system.

Encouragement to practice Vim motions until they become second nature for efficient and fast editing.

The series' aim to demystify Vim and make it feel like a game with smooth and fast editing capabilities.

Transcripts

my name is the primagen and I've been

using Vim for about 10 years and I

wanted to take the time to build a

series in which could lead you from

someone who doesn't know anything about

Vim to someone who could become an

expert at using Vim now this is going to

be a multi-part series in which each

One's Gonna add to the next one and

it'll get you progressively faster as

you go and I do want to make a

separation right away there is vim the

program and Vim the Motions now Vim

motions I don't understand why anyone

who is programming does not use those

those are extremely efficient and

they're very well done and they're

available in IntelliJ Sublime Even Adam

vs code anything you want to use they

have them but Vim the editor I

understand why that may not be as

appealing you have to kind of want to be

able to configure and create your own

environment to exactly your own needs

for them to be super useful and so this

a few part series is going to be focused

on making you awesome at Vim motions and

navigating some things within Vim I'll

try to separate them out so if you're

just not interested in Vim itself that's

how okay but if you are interested more

in using Vim I have a video on your Vim

RC which you can go check out right now

links down in the description and as you

pass by that like button give it like a

little bit of coconut oil appreciate it

all right so right away I do not think

that you should start out in Vim if you

have no familiarity with Vim I really do

think you should continue to use vs code

if that's what you're using IntelliJ if

that's what you're using whatever editor

you're currently using use the Vim mode

or the Vim plugin now I think one of the

big mistakes when learning Vim is that

you try to learn every single key

possible all the different shortcuts and

then you're just sitting sitting there

just like mentally grinding to try to

find the most optimal one in every

single moment that sounds exhausting so

that's why I just took a much different

approach myself to learning it and I'm

gonna try to give you that exact same

approach that I took 10 years ago

alright so one last kind of preface this

will be the hardest of all the videos

because the getting started is the

hardest because you're going from a

paradigm of using the mouse and being

much more kind of click and control

oriented into using something like Vim

which is just much more home row motion

Centric now I know that a lot of you are

probably using vs code I hear if you hit

the Subscribe button right now it

actually makes learning easier go check

the comments people will say that trust

me it makes it easier all right so the

first thing you need to know about Vim

is that it's a model editor whether

you're using it in vs code or Vim itself

you are in various modes and there's

four modes that you really need to be

concerned about first off the mode that

you're in right away is normal mode it

just means that I can move my cursor

around second mode is insert mode you

can see it right down here says insert

that just means I can type like a

regular editor hit all the enters do

everything that it will it'll try to

Auto indent and do the best job it can

third is visual mode you can see right

down here again I'm in visual line mode

as I move it's kind of like highlighting

with your cursor and of course the

fourth mode is command mode if I press

colon you'll notice right here that a

colon appears and my cursor actually

appears on this line I can now type out

some commands a command you should know

is W colon W enter will save the current

file colon WQ will attempt to quit now I

know I ruined all the memes but guess

what the memes are still funny I

actually still like him 10 years later I

still enjoy can't quit Vim memes all

right so let's go over each of the modes

in detail all right so normal mode the

mode you can move your cursor around the

most foundational movements you need to

know is j and k k will obviously go

upwards J will go downwards I have my

keystrokes right here so you can watch

them happen L is going to go this way

and H is going to go this way now these

are the most fundamental movements I do

recommend getting pretty dang good with

them now if you have neovim I actually

built the game for the zigzags thing so

if you do command mode Vim be good you

will get a game if you navigate down

with your JS all the way down to hjk and

L press d d to delete that line it will

start a game for you where you can

actually walk around to each one of

these and then press X to delete it X on

the X and this right here will just help

you get good and just kind of build that

muscle memory in super quick without

making it feel so boring as trying to

use the text editing program but instead

you got a little quick game really just

helps you make that connection with

those keys if you don't know how to do a

plug-in again I have that vimrc video

which I have linked down below but

you'll quickly realize that hjk L is

just not enough right that H and L is

really inconvenient you just like hold

it and slowly go over that would just

melt my mind now I told you Vim is fast

it is smooth it blows people away when

you see someone who is really good at it

use it so obviously L can l and H can't

be the last of your movements so the

last two I really wanted to show you was

W which hops over by word something

equivalent of like holding option I

think on Mac and pressing the arrow key

and B the opposite walks backwards so

those movements are called motion

emotion is anything that moves the

cursor all right so I wanted to go over

the anatomy of emotion so right now all

we've been focusing on is this part

right here hjklwb

those are motions they move the cursor

but did you know that you can kind of

augment them meaning that if we add a

count to it it'll be performed multiple

times so check this out so you can see

about eight lines up there is a to-do

line right up there which if I press 8K

I will jump my cursor eight times up to

that to do line if I want to go back say

all the way down to the return statement

16 lines down I can go 1 6 J you can see

right here I did 16j and my cursor

landed on the return statement right

there yes you're probably impressed with

my Vanna White level pointing skills I

know you can't train it you're born with

it again if you have been be good uh I

did do another one of these games right

down here so if you go all the way down

to relative you turn on relative line

numbers inside your vmrc you can do you

know six down you can just practice the

deleting game so that you can get good

at jumping around while deleting

relative line numbers have helped me in

enormous amounts so I highly recommend

you getting used to jumping around with

relative line numbers obviously counts

work with all the other motions so I can

technically go like 10 L but that'd be

weird or 2B also that would be weird

that sounds like way too much overhead

to try to count how many jumps you have

I would not use that as a way to move

around in Vim all right so let's add a

little bit more let's talk about

commands you can do I want to focus

right now just on the D command d stands

for delete meaning that if I wanted to

delete a line I can press d d that will

just simply delete a singular line I

press U to undo that delete I can press

Ctrl R to redo my previous action so U

is like control Z control R is like

control y D's can be used with motion

just like I said we can do a command

account and a motion so jumping back

here if I'm on this line right here and

I want to delete all the way down to the

return statement but not the return

statement what I can do is I can go D 3

J I have deleted my current line plus

three down below me that means I can

also go delete word that's how you would

delete a single word delete two word you

could delete two two words if you really

want to again I don't do the whole two

with words or back or any of those that

means you can do DB and delete backwards

so D is a command you can mix with a

motion hopefully you're starting to

understand and you're happy that I kind

of went over the anatomy of emotion

because this should start making sense

okay I can move the cursor and I can

delete move the cursor all right so

let's talk about insert mode now first

off I want you to look at where my

cursor is right up here now this cursor

of course is fat it has you know care it

covers an entire character it's just

something I've gotten used to uh some

people when they go into insert mode

their cursors can become thin I never

like that so don't be taken back by this

as you watch me go but if I press I I go

on the left side of my cursor for insert

mode so as you can see I pressed I to go

into insert mode and then I just started

typing and boom these characters come

here now we can leave insert mode by

pressing escape you can also press Ctrl

C and you can also press Ctrl Open

Bracket control Open Bracket and Escape

are the same control C does have some

minor variations to it mostly in visual

block mode that cause some weirdness to

it so you got to know which one you like

alright so you can press U to undo of

course now if I press a you'll notice

that it moves my cursor but I'm in

insert mode so now as I type I'm on the

other side of the zero now you're

thinking okay when would you actually do

you actually ever need that you'd be

surprised at how often pressing a to

move forward like how often you actually

use that a and I become something that

you should just use all the time it's

very very surprising so I'm going to

leave insert mode undo it there we go

there's a bunch of other ways to enter

into insert mode but I think you should

really just get used to that right now

we're about few options even if it's

inconvenient you need to learn the

basics and move fast all right so let's

move on to the last part visual mode so

this one I'm actually going to show you

how to use yank and paste in visual mode

so visual mode has two primary ways

you're going to use it if you press V

you'll go into visual mode down here

that means I can use any of the Motions

that I've learned so far so I can press

W and you'll notice that it's like

highlighting as it's go as it's going

this is effectively like using your

mouse and dragging it and highlighting a

region at this point I could copy and

paste so normally you'd press probably

Ctrl C or command C if you're on one of

those fills drinking coffee Max

but in Vim you just press y y Yanks it

now if I press p i will paste it as you

can see I paste it now notice something

it's not giving me a new line it's

facing the exact contents of what I

yanked so let's undo it with you undo

undo undo and this time let's use shift

V we'll go into visual line mode now

when I yank this if I paste it I

actually get that new line at the end a

little bit more convenient so you kind

of got to know which one you want to do

let's do a little bit of comboing so

what I can do is I can actually

highlight I can yank it I can jump down

here and I can highlight this and I can

paste it so you can paste over a

highlighted region but I'm going to show

you something that's a little bit weird

what do you think happens if I press P

now well I get the last thing I deleted

so that means if you press d d and

delete a line and you press P you

actually paste the last thing you

deleted so yanking and deleting goes to

the same buffer and again if you

highlight a bunch of stuff and you paste

it you'll delete all of that at and then

paste over it with the contents you have

in your paste buffer and now when I

press p i get all the previous things I

deleted and

you can use yanking just by itself so I

can press y y you don't have to

highlight first to use yanking now if

you remember the anatomy of emotion I

did show you that you can do a command

account and the motion so I can do yank

say five and down I just yanked all the

way to this offset line right here so

now when I press P you'll notice I got

those five lines and I was able to paste

them all which means I can also do the

exact same thing with d d5j and I can

paste the things that I just got done

deleting down below now I really wanted

to stress this and I wanted to make sure

you had the time to hear me on this one

which is this is going to be the hardest

of all the lessons if you are new to Vim

this is the hardest part learning how to

do hjk L learning how to do relative

jumps kind of getting your feet wet with

that Vim RC which is still linked down

below like it's just a lot of

information it is very difficult so if

you're using vs code don't feel bad just

keep using vs code that's what I did

when I was gonna use Vim as my editor I

actually started It Off by using idea

Vim the IntelliJ plug and I used that

for years I got really good at the

motions and then moved over so once you

feel like you've really mastered these

motions and they don't feel hard for you

to think about they feel very second

nature you gotta move on to the next

part of this series I don't know how

many videos this series is going to be

somewhere between three to five but I am

hoping to give you a very detailed way

to make Vim as your editor and mostly I

just hope that you feel encouraged

because you know what when I use Vim as

my editor it almost feels like a game

because I have all these combos that I'm

doing I can move really really fast and

I have the ability to do a lot without

having to think too much I really do

like the idea of making everything

second nature to the point where you

don't think about editing the text you

just edit it really fast and that's the

coconut oil goodness that I'm trying to

give you okay if you want to be smooth

and sliding around you just gotta Master

the fundamentals okay practice for a

week and come back for part two the name

is the primogen