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*<A NAME="tips.txt"></A><B>tips.txt</B>* For Vim version 8.0. Last change: 2009 Nov 07
VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by <A HREF="intro.html#Bram">Bram</A> <A HREF="intro.html#Moolenaar">Moolenaar</A>
Tips and ideas for using Vim *<A NAME="tips"></A><B>tips</B>*
These are just a few that we thought would be helpful for many users.
You can find many more <A HREF="#tips">tips</A> on the wiki. The URL can be found on
<A HREF="http://www.vim.org">http://www.vim.org</A>
Don't forget to browse the user manual, <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> also contains lots of useful <A HREF="#tips">tips</A>
|<A HREF="usr_toc.html">usr_toc.txt</A>|.
Editing C programs |<A HREF="#C-editing">C-editing</A>|
Finding where identifiers are used |<A HREF="#ident-search">ident-search</A>|
Switching screens in an xterm |<A HREF="#xterm-screens">xterm-screens</A>|
Scrolling in <A HREF="insert.html#Insert">Insert</A> mode |<A HREF="#scroll-insert">scroll-insert</A>|
Smooth <A HREF="scroll.html#scrolling">scrolling</A> |<A HREF="#scroll-smooth">scroll-smooth</A>|
Correcting common typing mistakes |<A HREF="#type-mistakes">type-mistakes</A>|
Counting words, lines, etc. |<A HREF="#count-items">count-items</A>|
Restoring the cursor position |<A HREF="#restore-position">restore-position</A>|
Renaming files |<A HREF="#rename-files">rename-files</A>|
Change a name in multiple files |<A HREF="#change-name">change-name</A>|
Speeding up external commands |<A HREF="#speed-up">speed-up</A>|
Useful mappings |<A HREF="#useful-mappings">useful-mappings</A>|
Compressing the help files |<A HREF="#gzip-helpfile">gzip-helpfile</A>|
Executing shell commands in a window |<A HREF="#shell-window">shell-window</A>|
Hex editing |<A HREF="#hex-editing">hex-editing</A>|
Using <> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> in autocommands |<A HREF="#autocmd-<>">autocmd-<></A>|
Highlighting matching parens |<A HREF="#match-parens">match-parens</A>|
==============================================================================
Editing C programs *<A NAME="C-editing"></A><B>C-editing</B>*
There are quite a few features in Vim to help you edit C program files. Here
is an overview with <A HREF="tagsrch.html#tags">tags</A> to jump to:
|<A HREF="usr_29.html">usr_29.txt</A>| Moving through programs chapter in the user manual.
|<A HREF="usr_30.html">usr_30.txt</A>| Editing programs chapter in the user manual.
|<A HREF="indent.html#C-indenting">C-indenting</A>| Automatically set the indent of a line while typing
text.
|<A HREF="change.html#=">=</A>| Re-indent a few lines.
|<A HREF="change.html#format-comments">format-comments</A>| Format comments.
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#:checkpath">:checkpath</A>| Show all recursively included files.
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#[i">[i</A>| Search for identifier under cursor in current and
included files.
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#[_CTRL-I">[_CTRL-I</A>| Jump to match for "<A HREF="tagsrch.html#[i">[i</A>"
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#[I">[I</A>| <A HREF="eval.html#List">List</A> all lines in current and included files where
identifier under the cursor matches.
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#[d">[d</A>| Search for define under cursor in current and included
files.
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#CTRL-]">CTRL-]</A>| Jump to <A HREF="tagsrch.html#tag">tag</A> under cursor (e.g., definition of a
function).
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#CTRL-T">CTRL-T</A>| Jump back to before a <A HREF="tagsrch.html#CTRL-]">CTRL-]</A> command.
|<A HREF="tagsrch.html#:tselect">:tselect</A>| <A HREF="visual.html#Select">Select</A> one <A HREF="tagsrch.html#tag">tag</A> out of a <A HREF="eval.html#list">list</A> of matching <A HREF="tagsrch.html#tags">tags</A>.
|<A HREF="pattern.html#gd">gd</A>| Go to Declaration of local variable under cursor.
|<A HREF="pattern.html#gD">gD</A>| Go to Declaration of global variable under cursor.
|<A HREF="editing.html#gf">gf</A>| Go to file name under the cursor.
|<A HREF="motion.html#%">%</A>| Go to matching (), <A HREF="intro.html#{}">{}</A>, <A HREF="motion.html#[]">[]</A>, /* */, #if, #else, #endif.
|<A HREF="motion.html#[/">[/</A>| Go to previous start of comment.
|<A HREF="motion.html#]/">]/</A>| Go to next end of comment.
|<A HREF="motion.html#[#">[#</A>| Go back to unclosed #if, #ifdef, or #else.
|<A HREF="motion.html#]#">]#</A>| Go forward to unclosed #else or #endif.
|<A HREF="motion.html#[(">[(</A>| Go back to unclosed '('
|<A HREF="motion.html#])">])</A>| Go forward to unclosed ')'
|<A HREF="motion.html#[{">[{</A>| Go back to unclosed '{'
|<A HREF="motion.html#]}">]}</A>| Go forward to unclosed '}'
|<A HREF="motion.html#v_ab">v_ab</A>| <A HREF="visual.html#Select">Select</A> "a block" from "<A HREF="motion.html#[(">[(</A>" to "<A HREF="motion.html#])">])</A>", including braces
|<A HREF="motion.html#v_ib">v_ib</A>| <A HREF="visual.html#Select">Select</A> "inner block" from "<A HREF="motion.html#[(">[(</A>" to "<A HREF="motion.html#])">])</A>"
|<A HREF="motion.html#v_aB">v_aB</A>| <A HREF="visual.html#Select">Select</A> "a block" from "<A HREF="motion.html#[{">[{</A>" to "<A HREF="motion.html#]}">]}</A>", including brackets
|<A HREF="motion.html#v_iB">v_iB</A>| <A HREF="visual.html#Select">Select</A> "inner block" from "<A HREF="motion.html#[{">[{</A>" to "<A HREF="motion.html#]}">]}</A>"
==============================================================================
Finding where identifiers are used *<A NAME="ident-search"></A><B>ident-search</B>*
You probably already know that |<A HREF="tagsrch.html#tags">tags</A>| can be used to jump to the place where a
function or variable is defined. But sometimes you wish you could jump to all
the places where a function or variable is being used. This is possible in
two ways:
1. Using the |<A HREF="quickfix.html#:grep">:grep</A>| command. This should work on most <A HREF="os_unix.html#Unix">Unix</A> systems,
but can be slow (it reads all files) and only searches in one directory.
2. Using ID utils. This is fast and works in multiple directories. It uses a
database to store locations. You will need some additional programs for
this to work. And you need to keep the database up to date.
Using the GNU id-tools:
What you need:
- The GNU id-tools installed (mkid is needed to create ID and <A HREF="quickfix.html#lid">lid</A> is needed to
use the macros).
- An identifier database file called "ID" in the current directory. You can
create <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> with the shell command "mkid file1 file2 ..".
Put this in your <A HREF="starting.html#.vimrc">.vimrc</A>:
<B> map _u :call ID_search()<Bar>execute "/\\<" . g:word . "\\>"<CR></B>
<B> map _n :n<Bar>execute "/\\<" . g:word . "\\>"<CR></B>
<B> function! ID_search()</B>
<B> let g:word = expand("<cword>")</B>
<B> let x = system("lid --key=none ". g:word)</B>
<B> let x = substitute(x, "\n", " ", "g")</B>
<B> execute "next " . x</B>
<B> endfun</B>
To use <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A>, place the cursor on a <A HREF="motion.html#word">word</A>, type "_u" and vim will load the file
that contains the <A HREF="motion.html#word">word</A>. Search for the next occurrence of the <A HREF="motion.html#word">word</A> in the
same file with "<A HREF="pattern.html#n">n</A>". Go to the next file with "_n".
This has been tested with id-utils-3.2 (which is the name of the id-tools
archive file on your closest gnu-ftp-mirror).
[the idea for this comes from Andreas Kutschera]
==============================================================================
Switching screens in an xterm *<A NAME="xterm-screens"></A><B>xterm-screens</B>* *<A NAME="xterm-save-screen"></A><B>xterm-save-screen</B>*
(From comp.editors, by Juergen Weigert, in reply to a question)
<A HREF="change.html#:>">:></A> Another question is that after <A HREF="starting.html#exiting">exiting</A> vim, the screen is left <A HREF="motion.html#as">as</A> <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A>
<A HREF="change.html#:>">:></A> was, i.e. the contents of the file I was viewing (editing) was left on
<A HREF="change.html#:>">:></A> the screen. The output from my previous like "ls" were lost,
<A HREF="change.html#:>">:></A> ie. no longer in the <A HREF="scroll.html#scrolling">scrolling</A> buffer. I know that there is a way to
<A HREF="change.html#:>">:></A> restore the screen after <A HREF="starting.html#exiting">exiting</A> vim or other <A HREF="intro.html#vi">vi</A> like editors,
<A HREF="change.html#:>">:></A> I just don't know how. Helps are appreciated. Thanks.
:
:I imagine someone else can answer this. I assume though that vim and <A HREF="intro.html#vi">vi</A> <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A>
:the same thing <A HREF="motion.html#as">as</A> each other for a given xterm setup.
They not necessarily <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> the same thing, <A HREF="motion.html#as">as</A> this may be a <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A> vs.
<A HREF="term.html#terminfo">terminfo</A> problem. You should be aware that there are two databases for
describing attributes of a particular type of <A HREF="terminal.html#terminal">terminal</A>: <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A> and
<A HREF="term.html#terminfo">terminfo</A>. This can cause differences when the entries differ AND when of
the programs in question one uses <A HREF="term.html#terminfo">terminfo</A> and the other uses <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A>
(also see |<A HREF="various.html#+terminfo">+terminfo</A>|).
In your particular problem, you are looking for the <A HREF="intro.html#control">control</A> sequences
^[[?47h and ^[[?47l. These switch between xterms alternate and main screen
buffer. As a quick workaround a command sequence like
<B> echo -n "^[[?47h"; vim ... ; echo -n "^[[?47l"</B>
may <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> what you want. (My <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> ^[ means the ESC character, further down
you'll see that the databases use \E instead).
On <A HREF="starting.html#startup">startup</A>, vim echoes the value of the <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A> variable ti (terminfo:
smcup) to the <A HREF="terminal.html#terminal">terminal</A>. When <A HREF="starting.html#exiting">exiting</A>, <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> echoes te (terminfo: rmcup). Thus
these two <A HREF="eval.html#variables">variables</A> are the correct place where the above mentioned <A HREF="intro.html#control">control</A>
sequences should go.
Compare your xterm <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A> entry (found in /etc/termcap) with your xterm
<A HREF="term.html#terminfo">terminfo</A> entry (retrieved with "infocmp <A HREF="starting.html#-C">-C</A> xterm"). Both should contain
entries similar to:
<B> :te=\E[2J\E[?47l\E8:ti=\E7\E[?47h:</B>
PS: If you find any difference, someone (your sysadmin?) should better check
the complete <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A> and <A HREF="term.html#terminfo">terminfo</A> database for consistency.
NOTE 1: If you recompile Vim with FEAT_XTERM_SAVE defined in feature.h, the
builtin xterm will include the mentioned "te" and "ti" entries.
NOTE 2: If you want to disable the screen switching, and you don't want to
change your <A HREF="term.html#termcap">termcap</A>, you can add these lines to your <A HREF="starting.html#.vimrc">.vimrc</A>:
<B> :set t_ti= t_te=</B>
==============================================================================
Scrolling in <A HREF="insert.html#Insert">Insert</A> mode *<A NAME="scroll-insert"></A><B>scroll-insert</B>*
If you are in insert mode and you want to see something that is just off the
screen, you can use <A HREF="change.html#CTRL-X">CTRL-X</A> <A HREF="scroll.html#CTRL-E">CTRL-E</A> and <A HREF="change.html#CTRL-X">CTRL-X</A> <A HREF="scroll.html#CTRL-Y">CTRL-Y</A> to scroll the screen.
|<A HREF="insert.html#i_CTRL-X_CTRL-E">i_CTRL-X_CTRL-E</A>|
To make this easier, you could use these mappings:
<B> :inoremap <C-E> <C-X><C-E></B>
<B> :inoremap <C-Y> <C-X><C-Y></B>
(Type this literally, make sure the '<A HREF="change.html#<"><</A>' flag is not in <A HREF="options.html#'cpoptions'">'cpoptions'</A>).
You then lose the ability to copy text from the line above/below the cursor
|<A HREF="insert.html#i_CTRL-E">i_CTRL-E</A>|.
Also consider setting <A HREF="options.html#'scrolloff'">'scrolloff'</A> to a larger value, so that you can always see
some context around the cursor. If <A HREF="options.html#'scrolloff'">'scrolloff'</A> is bigger than half the <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A>
height, the cursor will always be in the middle and the text is scrolled when
the cursor is moved up/down.
==============================================================================
Smooth <A HREF="scroll.html#scrolling">scrolling</A> *<A NAME="scroll-smooth"></A><B>scroll-smooth</B>*
If you like the <A HREF="scroll.html#scrolling">scrolling</A> to go a bit smoother, you can use these mappings:
<B> :map <C-U> <C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y><C-Y></B>
<B> :map <C-D> <C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E><C-E></B>
(Type this literally, make sure the '<A HREF="change.html#<"><</A>' flag is not in <A HREF="options.html#'cpoptions'">'cpoptions'</A>).
==============================================================================
Correcting common typing mistakes *<A NAME="type-mistakes"></A><B>type-mistakes</B>*
When there are a few words that you keep on typing in the wrong way, make
<A HREF="map.html#abbreviations">abbreviations</A> that correct them. For example:
<B> :ab teh the</B>
<B> :ab fro for</B>
==============================================================================
Counting words, lines, etc. *<A NAME="count-items"></A><B>count-items</B>*
To <A HREF="intro.html#count">count</A> how often any <A HREF="pattern.html#pattern">pattern</A> occurs in the current buffer use the substitute
command and add the '<A HREF="pattern.html#n">n</A>' flag to avoid the substitution. The reported number
of substitutions is the number of items. Examples:
<B> :%s/./&/gn characters</B>
<B> :%s/\i\+/&/gn words</B>
<B> :%s/^//n lines</B>
<B> :%s/the/&/gn "the" anywhere</B>
<B> :%s/\<the\>/&/gn "the" as a word</B>
You might want to reset <A HREF="options.html#'hlsearch'">'hlsearch'</A> or <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> "<A HREF="pattern.html#:nohlsearch">:nohlsearch</A>".
Add the '<A HREF="motion.html#e">e</A>' flag if you don't want an error when there are no matches.
An alternative is using |<A HREF="editing.html#v_g_CTRL-G">v_g_CTRL-G</A>| in <A HREF="visual.html#Visual">Visual</A> mode.
If you want to find matches in multiple files use |<A HREF="quickfix.html#:vimgrep">:vimgrep</A>|.
*<A NAME="count-bytes"></A><B>count-bytes</B>*
If you want to <A HREF="intro.html#count">count</A> bytes, you can use this:
Visually select the characters (block is also possible)
Use "<A HREF="change.html#y">y</A>" to <A HREF="change.html#yank">yank</A> the characters
Use the <A HREF="eval.html#strlen()">strlen()</A> function:
<B> :echo strlen(@")</B>
A line break is counted for one byte.
==============================================================================
Restoring the cursor position *<A NAME="restore-position"></A><B>restore-position</B>*
Sometimes you want to write a <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A> that makes a change somewhere in the
file and restores the cursor position, without <A HREF="scroll.html#scrolling">scrolling</A> the text. For
example, to change the date <A HREF="motion.html#mark">mark</A> in a file:
<B> :map <F2> msHmtgg/Last [cC]hange:\s*/e+1<CR>"_D"=strftime("%Y %b %d")<CR>p'tzt`s</B>
Breaking up saving the position:
ms store cursor position in the '<A HREF="change.html#s">s</A>' <A HREF="motion.html#mark">mark</A>
<A HREF="motion.html#H">H</A> go to the first line in the <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A>
mt store this position in the '<A HREF="motion.html#t">t</A>' <A HREF="motion.html#mark">mark</A>
Breaking up restoring the position:
't go to the line previously at the top of the <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A>
<A HREF="scroll.html#zt">zt</A> scroll to move this line to the top of the <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A>
`s jump to the original position of the cursor
For something more advanced see |<A HREF="eval.html#winsaveview()">winsaveview()</A>| and |<A HREF="eval.html#winrestview()">winrestview()</A>|.
==============================================================================
Renaming files *<A NAME="rename-files"></A><B>rename-files</B>*
Say I have a directory with the following files in them (directory picked at
random :-):
buffer.c
charset.c
digraph.c
<A HREF="eval.html#...">...</A>
and I want to rename *.c *.bla. I'd <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> like this:
<B> $ vim</B>
<B> :r !ls *.c</B>
<B> :%s/\(.*\).c/mv & \1.bla</B>
<B> :w !sh</B>
<B> :q!</B>
==============================================================================
Change a name in multiple files *<A NAME="change-name"></A><B>change-name</B>*
Example for using a <A HREF="usr_41.html#script">script</A> file to change a name in several files:
Create a file "subs.vim" containing substitute commands and a <A HREF="editing.html#:update">:update</A>
command:
<B> :%s/Jones/Smith/g</B>
<B> :%s/Allen/Peter/g</B>
<B> :update</B>
Execute Vim on all files you want to change, and source the <A HREF="usr_41.html#script">script</A> for
each argument:
<B> vim *.let</B>
<B> argdo source subs.vim</B>
See |<A HREF="editing.html#:argdo">:argdo</A>|.
==============================================================================
Speeding up external commands *<A NAME="speed-up"></A><B>speed-up</B>*
In some situations, execution of an external command can be very slow. This
can also slow down <A HREF="editing.html#wildcard">wildcard</A> expansion on <A HREF="os_unix.html#Unix">Unix</A>. Here are a few suggestions to
increase the speed.
If your .cshrc (or other file, depending on the shell used) is very long, you
should separate <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> into a section for interactive use and a section for
non-interactive use (often called secondary shells). When you execute a
command from Vim like ":!ls", you <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> not need the interactive things (for
example, setting the prompt). Put the stuff that is not needed after these
lines:
<B> if ($?prompt == 0) then</B>
<B> exit 0</B>
<B> endif</B>
Another way is to include the "<A HREF="starting.html#-f">-f</A>" flag in the <A HREF="options.html#'shell'">'shell'</A> option, e.g.:
<B> :set shell=csh\ -f</B>
(the <A HREF="intro.html#backslash">backslash</A> is needed to include the space in the option).
This will make csh completely skip the use of the .cshrc file. This may cause
some things to stop working though.
==============================================================================
Useful mappings *<A NAME="useful-mappings"></A><B>useful-mappings</B>*
Here are a few mappings that some people like to use.
*<A NAME="map-backtick"></A><B>map-backtick</B>*
<B> :map ' `</B>
Make the single <A HREF="change.html#quote">quote</A> work like a backtick. Puts the cursor on the column of
a <A HREF="motion.html#mark">mark</A>, instead of going to the first non-blank character in the line.
*<A NAME="emacs-keys"></A><B>emacs-keys</B>*
For Emacs-style editing on the command-line:
<B> " start of line</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-A> <Home></B>
<B> " back one character</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-B> <Left></B>
<B> " delete character under cursor</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-D> <Del></B>
<B> " end of line</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-E> <End></B>
<B> " forward one character</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-F> <Right></B>
<B> " recall newer command-line</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-N> <Down></B>
<B> " recall previous (older) command-line</B>
<B> :cnoremap <C-P> <Up></B>
<B> " back one word</B>
<B> :cnoremap <Esc><C-B> <S-Left></B>
<B> " forward one word</B>
<B> :cnoremap <Esc><C-F> <S-Right></B>
NOTE: This requires that the '<' flag is excluded from <A HREF="options.html#'cpoptions'">'cpoptions'</A>. |<A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A>|
*<A NAME="format-bullet-list"></A><B>format-bullet-list</B>*
This <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A> will format any bullet <A HREF="eval.html#list">list</A>. It requires that there is an empty
line above and below each <A HREF="eval.html#list">list</A> entry. The <A HREF="eval.html#expression">expression</A> commands are used to
be able to give comments to the parts of the <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A>.
<B> :let m = ":map _f :set ai<CR>" " need 'autoindent' set</B>
<B> :let m = m . "{O<Esc>" " add empty line above item</B>
<B> :let m = m . "}{)^W" " move to text after bullet</B>
<B> :let m = m . "i <CR> <Esc>" " add space for indent</B>
<B> :let m = m . "gq}" " format text after the bullet</B>
<B> :let m = m . "{dd" " remove the empty line</B>
<B> :let m = m . "5lDJ" " put text after bullet</B>
<B> :execute m |" define the mapping</B>
(<> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> |<A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A>|. Note that this is all typed literally. ^W is "<A HREF="motion.html#^">^</A>" "<A HREF="motion.html#W">W</A>", not
<A HREF="index.html#CTRL-W">CTRL-W</A>. You can copy/paste this into Vim if '<A HREF="change.html#<"><</A>' is not included in
<A HREF="options.html#'cpoptions'">'cpoptions'</A>.)
Note that the last comment starts with |", because the "<A HREF="eval.html#:execute">:execute</A>" command
doesn't accept a comment directly.
You also need to set <A HREF="options.html#'textwidth'">'textwidth'</A> to a non-zero value, e.g.,
<B> :set tw=70</B>
A <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A> that does about the same, but takes the indent for the <A HREF="eval.html#list">list</A> from the
first line (Note: this <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A> is a single long line with a lot of spaces):
<B> :map _f :set ai<CR>}{a <Esc>WWmmkD`mi<CR><Esc>kkddpJgq}'mJO<Esc>j</B>
*<A NAME="collapse"></A><B>collapse</B>*
These two mappings reduce a sequence of empty (;b) or blank (;n) lines into a
single line
<B> :map ;b GoZ<Esc>:g/^$/.,/./-j<CR>Gdd</B>
<B> :map ;n GoZ<Esc>:g/^[ <Tab>]*$/.,/[^ <Tab>]/-j<CR>Gdd</B>
==============================================================================
Compressing the help files *<A NAME="gzip-helpfile"></A><B>gzip-helpfile</B>*
For those of you who are really short on disk space, you can <A HREF="pi_gzip.html#compress">compress</A> the help
files and still be able to <A HREF="starting.html#view">view</A> them with Vim. This makes accessing the help
files a bit slower and requires the "<A HREF="pi_gzip.html#gzip">gzip</A>" program.
(1) Compress all the help files: "<A HREF="pi_gzip.html#gzip">gzip</A> doc/*.txt".
(2) Edit "doc/tags" and change the ".txt" to ".txt.gz":
<B> :%s=\(\t.*\.txt\)\t=\1.gz\t=</B>
(3) Add this line to your <A HREF="starting.html#vimrc">vimrc</A>:
<B> set helpfile={dirname}/help.txt.gz</B>
Where {dirname} is the directory where the help files are. The |<A HREF="pi_gzip.html#gzip">gzip</A>| <A HREF="usr_05.html#plugin">plugin</A>
will take care of decompressing the files.
You must make sure that <A HREF="starting.html#$VIMRUNTIME">$VIMRUNTIME</A> is set to where the other Vim files are,
when they are not in the same location <A HREF="motion.html#as">as</A> the compressed "doc" directory. See
|<A HREF="starting.html#$VIMRUNTIME">$VIMRUNTIME</A>|.
==============================================================================
Executing shell commands in a <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A> *<A NAME="shell-window"></A><B>shell-window</B>*
There have been questions for the possibility to execute a shell in a <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A>
inside Vim. The answer: you can't! Including this would add a lot of code to
Vim, which is a good reason not to <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> this. After all, Vim is an editor, <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A>
is not supposed to <A HREF="diff.html#do">do</A> non-editing tasks. However, to get something like this,
you might try splitting your <A HREF="terminal.html#terminal">terminal</A> screen or display <A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A> with the
"splitvt" program. You can probably find <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> on some ftp server. The person
that knows more about this is Sam Lantinga <A HREF="mailto:slouken@cs.ucdavis.edu"><slouken@cs.ucdavis.edu></A>.
An alternative is the "<A HREF="windows.html#window">window</A>" command, found on BSD <A HREF="os_unix.html#Unix">Unix</A> systems, which
supports multiple overlapped <A HREF="windows.html#windows">windows</A>. Or the "screen" program, found at
www.uni-erlangen.de, which supports a stack of <A HREF="windows.html#windows">windows</A>.
==============================================================================
Hex editing *<A NAME="hex-editing"></A><B>hex-editing</B>* *<A NAME="using-xxd"></A><B>using-xxd</B>*
See section |<A HREF="usr_23.html#23.4">23.4</A>| of the user manual.
If one has a particular extension that one uses for binary files (such <A HREF="motion.html#as">as</A> exe,
bin, etc), you may find <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> helpful to automate the process with the following
bit of autocmds for your <.vimrc>. Change that "*.bin" to whatever
comma-separated <A HREF="eval.html#list">list</A> of extension(s) you find yourself wanting to edit:
<B> " vim -b : edit binary using xxd-format!</B>
<B> augroup Binary</B>
<B> au!</B>
<B> au BufReadPre *.bin let &bin=1</B>
<B> au BufReadPost *.bin if &bin | %!xxd</B>
<B> au BufReadPost *.bin set ft=xxd | endif</B>
<B> au BufWritePre *.bin if &bin | %!xxd -r</B>
<B> au BufWritePre *.bin endif</B>
<B> au BufWritePost *.bin if &bin | %!xxd</B>
<B> au BufWritePost *.bin set nomod | endif</B>
<B> augroup END</B>
==============================================================================
Using <A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> in autocommands *<A NAME="autocmd-<>"></A><B>autocmd-<></B>*
The <A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> is not recognized in the argument of an <A HREF="autocmd.html#:autocmd">:autocmd</A>. To avoid
having to use special characters, you could use a self-destroying <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A> to
get the <A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> and then call the <A HREF="map.html#mapping">mapping</A> from the autocmd. Example:
*<A NAME="map-self-destroy"></A><B>map-self-destroy</B>*
<B> " This is for automatically adding the name of the file to the menu list.</B>
<B> " It uses a self-destroying mapping!</B>
<B> " 1. use a line in the buffer to convert the 'dots' in the file name to \.</B>
<B> " 2. store that in register '"'</B>
<B> " 3. add that name to the Buffers menu list</B>
<B> " WARNING: this does have some side effects, like overwriting the</B>
<B> " current register contents and removing any mapping for the "i" command.</B>
<B> "</B>
<B> autocmd BufNewFile,BufReadPre * nmap i :nunmap i<CR>O<C-R>%<Esc>:.g/\./s/\./\\./g<CR>0"9y$u:menu Buffers.<C-R>9 :buffer <C-R>%<C-V><CR><CR></B>
<B> autocmd BufNewFile,BufReadPre * normal i</B>
Another method, perhaps better, is to use the "<A HREF="eval.html#:execute">:execute</A>" command. In the
<A HREF="eval.html#string">string</A> you can use the <A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> by preceding <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> with a <A HREF="intro.html#backslash">backslash</A>. Don't
forget to double the number of existing backslashes and put a <A HREF="intro.html#backslash">backslash</A> before
'"''.
<B> autocmd BufNewFile,BufReadPre * exe "normal O\<C-R>%\<Esc>:.g/\\./s/\\./\\\\./g\<CR>0\"9y$u:menu Buffers.\<C-R>9 :buffer \<C-R>%\<C-V>\<CR>\<CR>"</B>
For a real buffer menu, user <A HREF="eval.html#functions">functions</A> should be used (see |<A HREF="eval.html#:function">:function</A>|), but
then the <A HREF="intro.html#<>"><></A> <A HREF="intro.html#notation">notation</A> isn't used, which defeats using <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> <A HREF="motion.html#as">as</A> an example here.
==============================================================================
Highlighting matching parens *<A NAME="match-parens"></A><B>match-parens</B>*
This example shows the use of a few advanced tricks:
- using the |<A HREF="autocmd.html#CursorMoved">CursorMoved</A>| <A HREF="autocmd.html#autocommand">autocommand</A> event
- using |<A HREF="eval.html#searchpairpos()">searchpairpos()</A>| to find a matching paren
- using |<A HREF="eval.html#synID()">synID()</A>| to detect whether the cursor is in a <A HREF="eval.html#string">string</A> or comment
- using |<A HREF="pattern.html#:match">:match</A>| to highlight something
- using a |<A HREF="pattern.html#pattern">pattern</A>| to match a specific position in the file.
This should be put in a Vim <A HREF="usr_41.html#script">script</A> file, since <A HREF="motion.html#it">it</A> uses <A HREF="map.html#script-local">script-local</A> <A HREF="eval.html#variables">variables</A>.
It skips matches in strings or comments, unless the cursor started in <A HREF="eval.html#string">string</A>
or comment. This requires <A HREF="syntax.html#syntax">syntax</A> highlighting.
A slightly more advanced version is used in the |<A HREF="pi_paren.html#matchparen">matchparen</A>| <A HREF="usr_05.html#plugin">plugin</A>.
<B> let s:paren_hl_on = 0</B>
<B> function s:Highlight_Matching_Paren()</B>
<B> if s:paren_hl_on</B>
<B> match none</B>
<B> let s:paren_hl_on = 0</B>
<B> endif</B>
<B> let c_lnum = line('.')</B>
<B> let c_col = col('.')</B>
<B> let c = getline(c_lnum)[c_col - 1]</B>
<B> let plist = split(&matchpairs, ':\|,')</B>
<B> let i = index(plist, c)</B>
<B> if i < 0</B>
<B> return</B>
<B> endif</B>
<B> if i % 2 == 0</B>
<B> let s_flags = 'nW'</B>
<B> let c2 = plist[i + 1]</B>
<B> else</B>
<B> let s_flags = 'nbW'</B>
<B> let c2 = c</B>
<B> let c = plist[i - 1]</B>
<B> endif</B>
<B> if c == '['</B>
<B> let c = '\['</B>
<B> let c2 = '\]'</B>
<B> endif</B>
<B> let s_skip ='synIDattr(synID(line("."), col("."), 0), "name") ' .</B>
<B> \ '=~? "string\\|comment"'</B>
<B> execute 'if' s_skip '| let s_skip = 0 | endif'</B>
<B> let [m_lnum, m_col] = searchpairpos(c, '', c2, s_flags, s_skip)</B>
<B> if m_lnum > 0 && m_lnum >= line('w0') && m_lnum <= line('w$')</B>
<B> exe 'match Search /\(\%' . c_lnum . 'l\%' . c_col .</B>
<B> \ 'c\)\|\(\%' . m_lnum . 'l\%' . m_col . 'c\)/'</B>
<B> let s:paren_hl_on = 1</B>
<B> endif</B>
<B> endfunction</B>
<B> autocmd CursorMoved,CursorMovedI * call s:Highlight_Matching_Paren()</B>
<B> autocmd InsertEnter * match none</B>
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