[plug]

[tlee]

I am a newbie and have been suffering with Slackware, but not using Xfree I also
found joe to be the easiest editor. I thought that all of you would be using
Staroffice editor which I assumed would be similar to ms office word, and have a
facility for typing in non document mode? Why all the talk about an editor?

Jason Nicholls wrote:

> G'day,
> On Sun, Oct 01, 2000 at 02:26:18AM +0800, Beau Kuiper wrote:
> > Escape, the most common key used in vi, IS on the extreme top/left hand side
> > of the keyboard. Alt and ctrl are much closer. Vi also gets it wrong by:
>
> Good point ;)
>
> > 1) Assuming people use commands more than entering text. When using a text
> > editor, most of the time I am entering text, not running obscure commands.
> >
> > 2) Executing a command and doing stuff is far too slow and difficult. If I am
> > inserting text, and I need to delete a line, I must:
> >
> >       reach to the far end of the keyboard and press ESC
> >       position the cursor
> >       press d twice (the command to delete a line)
> >       press i to enter insert mode again.
>
> This is a matter of usage. It would certainly be slow to switch in and
> out of insert mode, but that's why you spend the time to become proficient
> (and find a more effective way to work the editor).
>
> > 3) The feedback vi (or even vim) gives back is far too terse to understand. Am
> > I in command or insert mode. Where exactly am I in the file I am working on.
> > What commands can I execute and how do I do them (I am not particularly fond
> > of remembering all of them)
>
> Vim is a little more friendly here. It has auto-completion of commands,
> displays that it's in insert/replace (or other) mode. The ruler option
> displays line/pos number. And ":help" is your friend, it remember the commands
> for you ;)
>
> > > [and before people begin to shout, there are CTRL/ALT combinations in vi
> > >  but it's usually possible to avoid (and I've excluded the use of
> > >  bindings etc...)]
> >
> > And before you complain about using CTRL or ALT, think about how many times
> > you have used SHIFT, right next to both of those keys in your original post.
>
> SHIFT is out to the side, but more accessible. Just try it, position your
> fingers on the "home" keys and see the difference in effort to SHIFT or the
> CTRL/ALT keys.
>
> > I agree that vi is far better than a no-frills text editors like kedit, but it
> > doesn't mean vi is efficient for most people.
>
> It has the potential to be more effective. That's why I urge people to learn
> how to use them (vi or others). After using VIM for more than a couple years,
> I'm still learning!
>
> Later,
>
> Jason Nicholls
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> Jason Nicholls    icq: 11745841    email: <jason at mindsocket.com.au>
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