Page 2 - Vi 101

I remember the g functionality for search and destroy missions as standing for "global"<br>

You didn't mention another handy command,
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<p><pre><font color=#008000><xmp>!!an OS command</xmp></font></pre><p>
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to put a command's output into the current document
and
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<p><pre><font color=#008000><xmp>ZZ</xmp></font></pre><p>
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to exit in a hurry with a save...

emacs is arguably more powerful than vi,
though I usually use vi, as I have to work
on so many different *nix machines, I'm sure that it is there, and vi always works.... and it's usuable over a slow telnet connection...

but emacs has quite a nice ability to write extensions in lisp, etc... just ask any cs dropout... er cs grad...

I couldn't agree more... I'd also like to learn how to alter the section delimiters, something that I haven't been able to find in ANY of the documentation.

An excellent tutorial! I look forward to more.

I think some readers don't understand the implications of calling vi a Ferrari. The name doesn't imply luxury or convenience: it implies performance in the hands of an expert driver. I've seen a UNIX programmer write code in vi so fast I couldn't keep track of what he was doing; lines were magically repeated, the cursor jumping to just the place where it needed to be to change the next word, creating a virtual symphony of intelligent thought.

As the salesman said, "Maybe a Ferrari is too much car for you. Can I interest you in something with an automatic transmission?"

vi was invented by the folks who invented UNIX. nuff said.

% is a shortcut for 1,$
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Example:
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%s/foo/bar/ is equivalent to 1,$s/foo/bar/
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Also, when editing multiple files, you can use :previous in addition to :next
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- Matt

Yes I agree! A very witty beginner's guide to Vi. Detailed and structured. How I wish I had such guides when i was learning many years ago....

I try to get into visual mode in vi installed by my ISP. I type v or V and I get a message telling me that it's not a command. Is visual mode something that I need Vim for?

How do you move to the beginning of the current line you are on?

Vi 101

Vi is probably the most powerful text editor for *NIX, but if you have ever tried to use it, you probably walked away frustrated. This article walks through all the capabilities and features of Vi - from the basics, such as saving and quitting, to the more advanced topics of searching for strings.

Please discuss this article in this thread. You can read the article here .

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