Lecture on Learning Vim by The Primagen

Introduction

• Presenter: The Primagen
• Experience: Using Vim for 10 years
• Objective: Teach Vim from basic to expert level
• Format: Multi-part series

Vim vs Vim Motions

• Vim Motions: Essential for programming; available in many editors (Vim, IntelliJ, Sublime, Atom, VS Code)
• Vim Editor: Requires customization and personal environment setup
• Focus: Series will emphasize Vim motions and basic Vim navigation

Getting Started with Vim

• Recommendation: Start with Vim mode in your current editor (VS Code, IntelliJ) rather than jumping directly into Vim
• Learning Approach: Avoid learning every key at once; focus on practical usage

Vim Basics

• Vim as a Modell Editor: Consists of different modes:
  • Normal Mode: Move cursor around
  • Insert Mode: Typing like a regular editor
  • Visual Mode: Highlighting text
  • Command Mode: Entering commands (e.g., :w to save, :wq to quit)

Navigating in Normal Mode

• Basic Movements:
  • j: Move down
  • k: Move up
  • h: Move left
  • l: Move right
• Advanced Movements:
  • w: Move one word forward
  • b: Move one word backward
• Augmenting Movements: Use counts to repeat actions (e.g., 8j, 16k)
• Game for Practice: :VimBeGood in Neovim helps practice movements

Commands and Motions

• Anatomy of a Motion: Command + Count + Motion
• Delete Command:
  • dd: Delete a line
  • d3j: Delete current line and three lines below
  • dw, d2w: Delete word(s)
  • db: Delete backward

Insert Mode

• Entering Insert Mode:
  • i: Start insert mode before cursor
  • a: Start insert mode after cursor
• Exiting Insert Mode: Esc, Ctrl+C, or Ctrl+[](streamdown:incomplete-link)

Visual Mode and Yank/Paste

• Entering Visual Mode:
  • v: Visual mode for character selection
  • Shift+v: Visual line mode for line selection
• Yank and Paste:
  • y: Yank (copy)
  • p: Paste
  • Interactive combinations with motions
• Yank/Delete Buffer: Yanking and deleting go to the same buffer

Tips for Mastering Vim

• Importance of Practice: Recommends practicing fundamentals for a week
• Using Vim as a Game: Treat learning Vim like a game to make it enjoyable

Conclusion

• Encouragement: Mastering Vim makes text editing quick and intuitive
• Next Steps: Move to the next video once comfortable with basics
• Series Expectation: 3 to 5 videos in total to cover comprehensive Vim usage
• Final Note: Practice, get comfortable, and prepare for subsequent lessons