Aligning text with Tabular.vim
There are times when you can improve the readability of your code by lining up the elements on neighbouring lines. In this episode, I demonstrate how this can be achieved using the Tabular plugin.
Continue reading…Refining search patterns with the command-line window
When you need to build a complex command, or devise a non-trivial search pattern, Vim’s command-line mode can be rather limiting. In this episode, I will introduce the command-line window, which allows you to use the full power of Vim when editing search queries and commands.
Continue reading…Synchronizing plugins with git submodules and pathogen
If you use Vim on muliple machines, it can be difficult to keep your configuration files synchronized across them. One solution is to put your dotfiles under version control. In this episode, I demonstrate how to keep your vimrc and plugins synchronized using git submodules and the pathogen plugin.
Continue reading…Bubbling text
TextMate has a few built in commands for moving selected text around a document. The end end result of using these commands can be achieved by cutting and pasting, but the visual feedback they provide is quite helpful. In this episode, I will show how to replicate these commands in Vim.
Continue reading…Creating colorschemes for Vim
Choosing a colorscheme that you find pleasing to look at is essential if you want to be comfortable working with Vim. There are hundreds of colorschemes available, but what if you can’t find one that you like? In this episode, I’ll share a few tips that make it easy to create colorschemes for Vim.
Continue reading…Updating your vimrc file on the fly
The vimrc file allows you to preserve your settings so that they are restored each time you launch Vim. But what if you want to update your vimrc file in the middle of an editing session? This episode demonstrates a couple of tricks that make it easy to customize Vim on the fly.
Continue reading…Converting HAML to ERB with Vim macros
HAML and ERB are two commonly used ruby templating languages. You may have a strong preference for one or the other, but it’s not always up to you which one you use. I was recently asked to convert several HAML files to ERB format. In this episode, I will demonstrate a couple of Vim macros that helped make short work of the task.
Continue reading…Selecting columns with visual block mode
If you want to edit several adjacent lines with a similar format, you might save a lot of time by making a columnar selection. This episode will demonstrate how to achieve this using Vim’s visual block mode.
Continue reading…Converting markdown to structured HTML with a macro
Recording your keystrokes as a macro can be a great timesaver, but you have to be careful that you use commands in such a way that they can be reused. In this episode, I construct a fairly complex macro to build a structural HTML document from markdown.
Continue reading…Running Vim within IRB
If you work with ruby you will know that the interactive ruby shell, or ‘IRB’ for short, is a useful sketchpad for coding. But the command line interface of IRB can feel quite limiting in comparison with the power of your text editor. In this episode, I’m going to demonstrate how you can get the best of both worlds, by loading Vim from inside IRB.
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