Koffeinfrei

show / hide line numbers

:set number

:set nonumber

enable / disable syntax highlighting

:syntax on

:syntax off

If vim does not recognize the filetype, set the filetype manually

:set filetype=filetype

example

:set filetype=php

show ruler (cursor coordinates)

:set ruler

show vim mode (INSERT / REPLACE / ...)

:set showmode

show matching parentheses

:set showmatch

replace tabs with spaces

:set expandtab

number of spaces per tab

:set shiftwidth=2

As expandtab is not always desired (e.g. for Makefiles tabs are necessary and would lead to a syntax error when replaced by spaces) you can use autocmdto set it only for certain filetypes. example

:filetype on

:autocmd FileType php :set expandtab

automatic indentation (e.g. code blocks between braces)

:set cindent

Use this option with caution (same as with expandtab) case insensitive search

:set ignorecase

show invisible characters

:set list

custom shortcuts for string insertion

The following command sets a custom String that will be inserted every time shortcut and a word delimiter (like space or enter) is entered in insert mode.

:abbreviate shortcut string-to-be-inserted

example

:abbreviate iios #include <iostream><RETURN>

If you want to return directly into command mode after insertion, append

<ESC>to the string-to-be-inserted

custom shortcuts for complex commands

With the mapcommand you can store complex command sequences in a shortcut.

:map shortcut command-sequence

Unmap the command (free the shortcut)

:unmap shortcut

If you use :noremapinstead of :mapthe mapped command only applies in command mode and will not be evaluated at the right side of another map expression (this avoids that if you have some map expression that contains it its name the name of another map expression not both will be applied). example

:map FN o<ESC>30i*<ESC>0i/<ESC>o * function description<ENTER>

<ESC>i/<ESC>30i*<ESC>0i <ESC>ofunction {<ENTER><ESC>k$i

This example inserts with [SHIFT] + [F] + [N] a comment block and the skeleton for a new function definition and places the cursor after the function keyword. Consult some vim reference to understand the particular commands. The output looks like this:

/******************************
* function description
******************************/
function {

macros

To avoid having to type down the whole command above before seeing what comes out, you can "record" with macros what you're typing while usual work with vim.
Enable macro recorder a

qa

Disable macro recorder a

q

Apply recorded macro a

@a

Now everything you did between enabling and disabling the macro recorder has been recorded and can be reapplied.

formatting / editing

Export source code (or whatever) as syntax highlighted html
enable syntax highlighting

:syntax on

display line numbers in html

let html_number_lines=1

format html using css

let html_use_css=1

generate html code (opens in a new vim window)

:so $VIMRUNTIME/syntax/2html.vim

finally, export to a html file

:w filename.html

(to close the html window afterwards, enter :q) Code blocks indentation
To indent a whole code block (between braces), enter the following in command mode

>i{

unindent (shift to left) a code block

<i{

Find the corresponding parentheses (command mode)

%

Enter special characters

[CTRL] + [K] + character combination

find out the corresponding character combination

:digraphs

example (insert Ä)

[CTRL] + [K] + [A] + [:]

Autocompletion for keywords (e.g. for variable names)

[CTRL] + [N]

If there are more that one possibility, step through them with

[CTRL] + [N](forward) [CTRL] + [P](backward).

executing

Insert content of an external file

:r filename

Insert output of external shell command

:r !command

example (insert date)

:r !date

Set the shell to be used for !

:set shell=sh

Executing external commands

:! command

example (save and php syntax with the shortcut [SHIFT] + [T])

:noremap T :w <ENTER>:!php -l %<ENTER>

% will be replaced with the file name of the edited file.

To make settings persistent and to avoid having to enter all settings again and again everytime vim is started, you can put them all in a file called .vimrc in your home directory.
Lines beginning with " are comments.
To generate a .vimrc file with the current settings instead of entering them manually to the file, use the following command.

:mkvimrc

example .vimrc

" automatic indentation
set cindent

" replace tabs with spaces
set expandtab
" number of spaces per tab
set shiftwidth=2

" case insensitive search
set ignorecase

" whow line numbers
set number

" syntax highlighting
syntax on

" show cursor coordinates
set ruler

" executing shell
set shell=sh

" show matching parentheses
set showmatch

" show INSERT/REPLACE/...
set showmode