Read Command Output in Vim

In order to insert output of a command while in Vim
editor. Just give following command.

:r !any_command

Replace any_command with the command you want to use.


 22
 23 

Suppose we want insert date at line number 23,
goto line number 23, by pressing
G23
Then type following command
:r !date

 22
 23 Sat May  9 20:15:56 IST 2009

Undoing All Changes Made in a File

The command:
:e!
undoes all the changes made to the file.
I hope this command will save you sometime,
if you made many disastrous changes.

Going to Line Number

There are two ways for going to a line (say line number 149).
(i) Esc :149
(ii) Press 149G

PS: I would like to suggest that please enable the line number by pressing
Esc :set nu
in the Vim editor. Then you can use above trick efficiently and easily.

Auto Completion of Word in Vim

If you want to auto complete a word(or variable in a program), then just press Ctrl-P in the editing mode.

For example:

com<ctrl-p> => complete.

If there is more than one possible words for completion, then vim shows a drop down list, from where you can select the desired word.

Pasting in Vim without Formatting

If smartindent, autoindent, and/or cindent are enabled in VIM,
you find that pasting in the vim does a lot right indentation, which
is not desirable always.

Therefore, you may want to disable indentation while pasting.
This can be done as:

:set paste

Paste your buffer content in the VIM. Then revert back
to indentation mode as given below:

:set nopaste

I hope that this tip will help you in saving time and reducing key
presses.
Enjoy VIMming :)

Using VIM Command in BASH Command Line

You can use vim commands in the BASH
command line editing, like

• moving cursors, using l ;
• Changing word, using cw
• etc

For enabling vim mode in BASH, you have to append following
line in your bashrc file ~/.bashrc. Just type the command given
below:

$ echo 'set -o vi' >> ~/.bashrc
$ . ~/.bashrc

Now, you can use vim commands by pressing Esc (Escape)
button.

Sorting a Column in Vim

I am also learning the Visual mode in Vim.
If you want to sort a column (usually selected)
in a file.

$ vim unsorted.txt
2
3
1
5
4

Go to the line, from where you want to start
the sort. Press Ctrl-v, now select the column
using arrow keys.
2
3
1
5
4

Now, press :sort in command mode. You will get
1
2
3
4
5