Vim Tips

# Vim Tips

[gregorymcintyre.com](https://gregorymcintyre.com) 2017

====

## Vim Tips

* Beginner
* Intermediate
* Advanced

====

## Beginner Vim

```js
f(world, hello);
```

```vim
<Right><Right>
xxxxxihello<Esc>
<Right><Right><Right>
xxxxxiworld<Esc>
```

====

## Beginner Vim

* `<Right>` = move cursor right
* `x` = delete character
* `i` = enter insert mode
* `<Esc>` = exit insert mode

====

## Beginner Vim

* Lots of keystrokes (or use the mouse!)
* Lots of repetition

====

## Vim Tips

* ~~Beginner~~
* Intermediate
* Advanced

====

## Intermediate Vim

```js
f(world, hello);
```

```vim
wwcwhello<Esc>wwcwworld<Esc>
```

====

## Intermediate Vim

```js
class MyClass {
  myMethod() {
    return subRoutine(); // wcwgreeting<Esc>
  }                      // jjb
  subRoutine() {         // .
    return "Hello World";
  }
}
```

====

## Intermediate Vim

* `h/j/k/l` = move cursor left/down/up/right
* `c` = change (delete the next cursor movement, enter insert mode)
* `w` = word (move cursor forward by one word)
* `j` = move cursor down
* `b` = move back one word
* `.` = repeat last "edit"

====

## Intermediate Vim

* Command + movement = edit!
* Repeat as necessary
* Fewer keystrokes
* Try combinations of commands/movements
* Command vocabulary
* Movement vocabulary

====

## Intermediate Vim

| commands |                               |
| ----     | ----------------------------- |
| `c`      | change                        |
| `d`      | delete (also cut)             |
| `y`      | copy                          |
| `p`/`P`  | paste on previous/next line   |
| `v`/`V`  | select text/line              |

====

## Intermediate Vim

| motions |                               |
| ----    | ----------------------------- |
| `b`/`w` | prev/next word                |
| `{`/`}` | prev/next blank line          |

====

## Quiz

`{d}`

====

## Vim Tips

* ~~Beginner~~
* ~~Intermediate~~
* Advanced

====

## Advanced Vim

* Higher level commands & motions
* Text objects
* Modeline
* Plugins
* Faster navigation
* Tool integration
* Windows/tabs/buffers
* Learning

====

## Advanced Commands

| commands |                               |
| ----     | ----------------------------- |
| `=`      | indent                        |
| `==`     | indent current line           |
| `>`/`<`  | indent/unindent               |
| `>>`/`<<`| indent/unindent current line  |
| `gq`     | format text with hard wrap    |
| `J`      | join (remove newlines)        |
| `10j`    | repeat j 10 times             |

====

## Quiz

* `{gq}`
* `gqq`
* `V10>`

====

## Advanced Motions

| motions  |                                   |
| ----     | -----------------------------     |
| `fx`     | forward until the next letter "x" |
| `^`/`$`  | start/end of line                 |
| `gg`/`G` | start/end of file                 |
| `?`/`/`  | search back/forwards |

====

## Quiz

* `gg=G`
* `d?Quiz<Return>`

====

## Text Objects

| apply to... |                               |
| ----        | ----------------------------- |
| `iw`/`aw`   | word                          |
| `is`/`as`   | sentence                      |
| `ip`/`ap`   | paragraph                     |
| `i"`/`a"`   | double quoted text            |
| `i(`/`a(`   | text in brackets              |
| `it`/`at`   | text in HTML tag              |

====

## Quiz

* `dap`
* `ci"Hello World<Esc>`

====

## Modeline

The Vim command prompt

```vim
:<Tab>
```

====

## Modeline Example

```js
// :bufdo %s/\<subRoutine\>/newName/gc
class MyCode {
  main() {
    subRoutine(); // y
  }
  subRoutine() {  // y
    return "Yay";
  }
} // y/n for other files
```

====

## Modeline Example

```vim
:bufdo %s/\<subRoutine\>/newName/gc
```

* `bufdo` = repeat on all open files
* `%` = select the whole file
* `s` = substitute using regex
* `\<` = beginning of a word (regex)
* `\>` = end of a word (regex)
* `g` = all occurances on each line
* `c` = confirmation prompt
* `:help bufdo`
* `:help substitute`

====

## Plugins

* Themes
* Syntax rules
* Text objects
* Commands
* Other...

====

## Plugins

```vim
call plug#begin('~/.vim/plugged')
" ...
Plug 'elixir-lang/vim-elixir'
" ...
call plug#end()
```

[https://github.com/junegunn/vim-plug](https://github.com/junegunn/vim-plug)

====

## Plugins

* New text objects
  * `dii` = delete everything at current indent level
  * `daa` = delete a comma separated argument neatly
  * `dar` = delete a Ruby expression neatly

```vim
Plug 'michaeljsmith/vim-indent-object'
Plug 'wellle/targets.vim'
Plug 'nelstrom/vim-textobj-rubyblock'
```

====

## Plugins

* New commands
  * `ysiw"`/`ds"` = quote/unquote word
  * `gcar` = comment out Ruby expression

```vim
Plug 'tpope/vim-surround'
Plug 'tpope/vim-commentary'
```

====

## Quiz

* What are some syntactic objects you already work with?
* What do you do to them?

====

## Faster Navigation

Measure how many seconds you spend finding the right code to edit

====

## Faster Navigation

| method      | time          | questions          |
| ----        | ---           | ---                |
| `:NERDTree` | 5-20 seconds  | dir? file? lineno? |
| `:CtrlP`    | 2-15 seconds  | file? lineno?      |
| `gf`        | 2-10 seconds  | lineno?            |
| `:tag`      | 1-3 seconds   | which name?        |
| `<C-]>`     | <1 second     | -                  |

====

## Faster Navigation

```vim
if has("gui_macvim")
  " D- is Command on Mac
  nnoremap <D-p> :CtrlP<CR>
  nnoremap <D-r> :CtrlPMRUFiles<CR>
  nnoremap <D-b> :CtrlPBuffer<CR>
endif
```

```vim
Plug 'kien/ctrlp.vim'
```

====

## Faster Navigation (Command-R)

====

## Faster Navigation

File in the same directory?

```vim
cnoremap %/ <C-R>=expand("%:p:h")."/"<CR>
nnoremap ,e :e
  \ <C-R>=
  \ substitute(expand("%:p:h"), ' ', '\\ ', 'g')
  \ .'/'<CR><BS>/
```

====

## Faster Navigation (,e)

====

## Faster Navigation

```vim
Plug 'airblade/vim-rooter'
```

* `<Command-R>`
* Select file in another project
* `:pwd` will always set appropriately

====

## Tools (RSpec, Mix, etc.)

```bash
$ cat ~/bin/v
exec gvim  --remote-expr "expand('%').':'.line('.')"
$ cat ~/bin/vf
exec gvim  --remote-expr "expand('%')"
$ v
/Users/greg/project/spec/models/user_spec.rb:38
$ vf
/Users/greg/project/spec/models/user_spec.rb
```

====

## RSpec

```bash
$ bundle exec rspec `v`
.

Finished in 0.53 seconds
1 example, 0 failures
```

====

## Mix

```bash
$ mix test `v`

AppSignal disabled.Including tags: [line: "9"]
Excluding tags: [:test]

Finished in 0.06 seconds
2 tests, 0 failures, 1 skipped

Randomized with seed 697624
```

====

## Potentially

```bash
$ cucumber `v`
$ mocha `v`
$ rubocop `vf`
$ mix credo --read-from-stdin < `vf`
$ ember test `vf` # :-(
$ next-cool-tool `v`
```

====

## Typing \`v\` in iTerm

====

## Typing \`v`

```bash
$ be rspec <Command-R><Return>
```

====

## Expanding \`v`

```bash
$ be rspec <Command-R><C-M-e> # bash
% be rspec <Command-R><Tab>   # zsh
```

====

## Windows, Tabs, Buffers

Oh my!

====

## Windows

* `<Command-N>` for a new window (MacVim)
* I don't use it
  * Messes with my \`v\` thing

====

## Tabs

* Change buffer in tab = `:e`, `:close`
* New tab = `:tabedit`, `:tabclose`
* I don't use it
  * Too confusing

====

## Buffers

* `:e`, `,e`, `<Command-R>`, `<Command-P>`
* But I don't use `:b` or `:CtrlPBuffer`
  * Which files are open?
  * Too much mental load

====

## Splits

* `:split` or `<C-W>s` or `<C-W>v`
* Then `<C-W>o`
* I very rarely use it
  * Spatial awareness?
  * Too much mental load

====

## So What DO I Use?

* `<C-]>` and `:tag <Tab>` when possible
  * Forget files and directory structures
  * Huge mental load vanishes
  * Ultra fast

====

## So What DO I Use?

* `<C-o>` and `<C-i>`
  * Works across files
  * Forget files and directory structures
  * Re-opens old files if necessary

====

## So What DO I Use?

* `<Command-P>` or `<Command-R>`
  * Slower backup plan

====

## How Did I Learn?

* Pair programming
* Years of incremental improvements

====

## Take Home Messages

* Prefer repeatable edits
* Get faster incrementally
* Files and directories are slow
* Pair program and ask
  * "Do you know a better way to...?"
  * "How did you just do that?"

====

[gregorymcintyre.com/slides/vim-tips/](https://gregorymcintyre.com/slides/vim-tips/#/)