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vim Advanced: When You're Ready for More

Once you know vim basics, you can learn advanced features. They make you faster. Much faster.

Here's the thing: Advanced vim is powerful. But you don't need it to start. Learn basics first. Then come back here.

Advanced Navigation​

Word Movement​

w                                # Next word start
W                                # Next WORD (ignores punctuation)
e                                # End of word
E                                # End of WORD
b                                # Previous word
B                                # Previous WORD

The difference: w treats punctuation as word boundaries. W ignores punctuation.

My take: Use w most of the time. W is useful when punctuation gets in the way.

Line Movement​

0                                # Beginning of line
^                                # First non-blank character
$                                # End of line
g_                               # Last non-blank character

My take: ^ and $ are useful. Skip leading/trailing spaces.

Screen Movement​

H                                # Top of screen
M                                # Middle of screen
L                                # Bottom of screen
zz                               # Center cursor

My take: zz centers the cursor. Useful when you're lost.

Advanced Editing​

Text Objects​

ci"                              # Change inside quotes
ci(                              # Change inside parentheses
ci{                              # Change inside braces
ca"                              # Change around quotes (includes quotes)

The ci and ca: ci = change inside, ca = change around.

Real example:

# Text: "Hello World"
# Cursor on Hello
ci"                              # Changes to: ""
# Type: Hi
# Result: "Hi World"

My take: Text objects are powerful. Learn them. They save time.

More Text Objects​

diw                              # Delete inner word
daw                              # Delete around word
ciw                              # Change inner word
yiw                              # Yank inner word

My take: Text objects work with any command. d, c, y. Powerful.

Macros​

Recording Macros​

qa                               # Start recording macro 'a'
# Do your edits
q                                # Stop recording
@a                               # Play macro 'a'
@@                               # Repeat last macro

Real example:

# Record macro to add semicolon to end of line
qa                               # Start recording
A;                               # Append semicolon
<Esc>                            # Back to normal mode
j                                # Next line
q                                # Stop recording

# Now use it
@a                               # Execute macro
10@a                             # Execute 10 times

My take: Macros automate repetitive edits. Learn them. They're powerful.

Search and Replace​

/pattern                         # Search forward
?pattern                         # Search backward
n                                # Next match
N                                # Previous match
*                                # Search for word under cursor
#                                # Search backward for word

My take: * searches for the word under cursor. Very useful.

Replace​

:s/old/new                       # Replace first in line
:s/old/new/g                     # Replace all in line
:%s/old/new/g                    # Replace all in file
:%s/old/new/gc                   # Replace with confirmation

Real example:

:%s/oldhost/newhost/g            # Replace all occurrences

My take: :%s replaces everywhere. Be careful. Use c for confirmation.

Visual Mode​

Visual Selection​

v                                # Character visual mode
V                                # Line visual mode
Ctrl+v                           # Block visual mode

My take: Visual mode selects text. Then you can delete, change, yank.

Visual Commands​

# Select text, then:
d                                # Delete
c                                # Change
y                                # Yank
>                                # Indent right
<                                # Indent left

My take: Visual mode + commands = powerful editing.

Registers​

Using Registers​

"ayy                             # Yank line to register 'a'
"ap                              # Paste from register 'a'
"a10yy                           # Yank 10 lines to register 'a'

My take: Registers store text. Useful for multiple clipboard items.

Marks​

Setting Marks​

ma                               # Set mark 'a' at cursor
'a                               # Jump to mark 'a'
``                               # Jump to previous position

My take: Marks remember positions. Jump back quickly.

What You'll Actually Use​

Daily use:

  • Text objects (ci", diw)
  • Visual mode (v, V)
  • Search and replace (:%s)
  • Macros (for repetitive tasks)

The rest? Learn when you need them.

Common Patterns​

Change Inside Quotes​

ci"                              # Change inside quotes

Delete Word​

diw                              # Delete inner word

Indent Block​

# Visual mode, select lines
>                                # Indent right

What's Next?​

Now that you know advanced vim, you're fast. Or stick with basics. They're enough for most things.

Personal note: I learned vim basics first. Then I learned advanced features slowly. As I needed them. Don't try to learn everything at once. Learn basics. Use them. Then learn more.