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1 *usr_41.txt* For Vim version 7.2. Last change: 2008 Jun 21
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2
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3 VIM USER MANUAL - by Bram Moolenaar
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4
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5 Write a Vim script
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6
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7
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8 The Vim script language is used for the startup vimrc file, syntax files, and
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9 many other things. This chapter explains the items that can be used in a Vim
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10 script. There are a lot of them, thus this is a long chapter.
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11
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12 |41.1| Introduction
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13 |41.2| Variables
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14 |41.3| Expressions
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15 |41.4| Conditionals
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16 |41.5| Executing an expression
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17 |41.6| Using functions
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18 |41.7| Defining a function
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19 |41.8| Lists and Dictionaries
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20 |41.9| Exceptions
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21 |41.10| Various remarks
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22 |41.11| Writing a plugin
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23 |41.12| Writing a filetype plugin
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24 |41.13| Writing a compiler plugin
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25 |41.14| Writing a plugin that loads quickly
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26 |41.15| Writing library scripts
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27 |41.16| Distributing Vim scripts
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28
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29 Next chapter: |usr_42.txt| Add new menus
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30 Previous chapter: |usr_40.txt| Make new commands
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31 Table of contents: |usr_toc.txt|
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32
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33 ==============================================================================
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34 *41.1* Introduction *vim-script-intro* *script*
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35
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36 Your first experience with Vim scripts is the vimrc file. Vim reads it when
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37 it starts up and executes the commands. You can set options to values you
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38 prefer. And you can use any colon command in it (commands that start with a
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39 ":"; these are sometimes referred to as Ex commands or command-line commands).
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40 Syntax files are also Vim scripts. As are files that set options for a
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41 specific file type. A complicated macro can be defined by a separate Vim
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42 script file. You can think of other uses yourself.
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43
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44 Let's start with a simple example: >
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45
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46 :let i = 1
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47 :while i < 5
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48 : echo "count is" i
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49 : let i += 1
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50 :endwhile
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51 <
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52 Note:
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53 The ":" characters are not really needed here. You only need to use
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54 them when you type a command. In a Vim script file they can be left
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55 out. We will use them here anyway to make clear these are colon
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56 commands and make them stand out from Normal mode commands.
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57 Note:
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58 You can try out the examples by yanking the lines from the text here
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59 and executing them with :@"
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60
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61 The output of the example code is:
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62
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63 count is 1 ~
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64 count is 2 ~
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65 count is 3 ~
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66 count is 4 ~
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67
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68 In the first line the ":let" command assigns a value to a variable. The
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69 generic form is: >
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70
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71 :let {variable} = {expression}
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72
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73 In this case the variable name is "i" and the expression is a simple value,
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74 the number one.
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75 The ":while" command starts a loop. The generic form is: >
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76
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77 :while {condition}
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78 : {statements}
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79 :endwhile
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80
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81 The statements until the matching ":endwhile" are executed for as long as the
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82 condition is true. The condition used here is the expression "i < 5". This
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83 is true when the variable i is smaller than five.
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84 Note:
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85 If you happen to write a while loop that keeps on running, you can
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86 interrupt it by pressing CTRL-C (CTRL-Break on MS-Windows).
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87
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88 The ":echo" command prints its arguments. In this case the string "count is"
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89 and the value of the variable i. Since i is one, this will print:
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90
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91 count is 1 ~
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92
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93 Then there is the ":let i += 1" command. This does the same thing as
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94 ":let i = i + 1". This adds one to the variable i and assigns the new value
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95 to the same variable.
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96
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97 The example was given to explain the commands, but would you really want to
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98 make such a loop it can be written much more compact: >
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99
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100 :for i in range(1, 4)
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101 : echo "count is" i
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102 :endfor
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103
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104 We won't explain how |:for| and |range()| work until later. Follow the links
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105 if you are impatient.
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106
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107
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108 THREE KINDS OF NUMBERS
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109
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110 Numbers can be decimal, hexadecimal or octal. A hexadecimal number starts
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111 with "0x" or "0X". For example "0x1f" is decimal 31. An octal number starts
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112 with a zero. "017" is decimal 15. Careful: don't put a zero before a decimal
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113 number, it will be interpreted as an octal number!
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114 The ":echo" command always prints decimal numbers. Example: >
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115
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116 :echo 0x7f 036
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117 < 127 30 ~
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118
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119 A number is made negative with a minus sign. This also works for hexadecimal
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120 and octal numbers. A minus sign is also used for subtraction. Compare this
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121 with the previous example: >
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122
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123 :echo 0x7f -036
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124 < 97 ~
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125
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126 White space in an expression is ignored. However, it's recommended to use it
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127 for separating items, to make the expression easier to read. For example, to
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128 avoid the confusion with a negative number above, put a space between the
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129 minus sign and the following number: >
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130
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131 :echo 0x7f - 036
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132
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133 ==============================================================================
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134 *41.2* Variables
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135
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136 A variable name consists of ASCII letters, digits and the underscore. It
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137 cannot start with a digit. Valid variable names are:
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138
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139 counter
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140 _aap3
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141 very_long_variable_name_with_underscores
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142 FuncLength
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143 LENGTH
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144
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145 Invalid names are "foo+bar" and "6var".
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146 These variables are global. To see a list of currently defined variables
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147 use this command: >
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148
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149 :let
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150
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151 You can use global variables everywhere. This also means that when the
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152 variable "count" is used in one script file, it might also be used in another
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153 file. This leads to confusion at least, and real problems at worst. To avoid
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154 this, you can use a variable local to a script file by prepending "s:". For
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155 example, one script contains this code: >
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156
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157 :let s:count = 1
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158 :while s:count < 5
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159 : source other.vim
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161
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160 : let s:count += 1
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161 :endwhile
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162
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163 Since "s:count" is local to this script, you can be sure that sourcing the
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164 "other.vim" script will not change this variable. If "other.vim" also uses an
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165 "s:count" variable, it will be a different copy, local to that script. More
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166 about script-local variables here: |script-variable|.
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167
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168 There are more kinds of variables, see |internal-variables|. The most often
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169 used ones are:
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170
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171 b:name variable local to a buffer
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172 w:name variable local to a window
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173 g:name global variable (also in a function)
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174 v:name variable predefined by Vim
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175
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176
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177 DELETING VARIABLES
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178
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179 Variables take up memory and show up in the output of the ":let" command. To
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180 delete a variable use the ":unlet" command. Example: >
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181
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182 :unlet s:count
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183
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184 This deletes the script-local variable "s:count" to free up the memory it
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185 uses. If you are not sure if the variable exists, and don't want an error
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186 message when it doesn't, append !: >
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187
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188 :unlet! s:count
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189
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190 When a script finishes, the local variables used there will not be
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191 automatically freed. The next time the script executes, it can still use the
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192 old value. Example: >
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193
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194 :if !exists("s:call_count")
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195 : let s:call_count = 0
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196 :endif
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197 :let s:call_count = s:call_count + 1
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198 :echo "called" s:call_count "times"
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199
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200 The "exists()" function checks if a variable has already been defined. Its
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201 argument is the name of the variable you want to check. Not the variable
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202 itself! If you would do this: >
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203
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204 :if !exists(s:call_count)
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205
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206 Then the value of s:call_count will be used as the name of the variable that
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207 exists() checks. That's not what you want.
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208 The exclamation mark ! negates a value. When the value was true, it
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209 becomes false. When it was false, it becomes true. You can read it as "not".
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210 Thus "if !exists()" can be read as "if not exists()".
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211 What Vim calls true is anything that is not zero. Zero is false.
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212 Note:
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213 Vim automatically converts a string to a number when it is looking for
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214 a number. When using a string that doesn't start with a digit the
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215 resulting number is zero. Thus look out for this: >
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216 :if "true"
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217 < The "true" will be interpreted as a zero, thus as false!
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218
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219
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220 STRING VARIABLES AND CONSTANTS
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221
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222 So far only numbers were used for the variable value. Strings can be used as
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223 well. Numbers and strings are the basic types of variables that Vim supports.
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224 The type is dynamic, it is set each time when assigning a value to the
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225 variable with ":let". More about types in |41.8|.
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226 To assign a string value to a variable, you need to use a string constant.
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227 There are two types of these. First the string in double quotes: >
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228
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229 :let name = "peter"
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230 :echo name
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231 < peter ~
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232
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233 If you want to include a double quote inside the string, put a backslash in
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234 front of it: >
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235
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236 :let name = "\"peter\""
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237 :echo name
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238 < "peter" ~
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239
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240 To avoid the need for a backslash, you can use a string in single quotes: >
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241
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242 :let name = '"peter"'
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243 :echo name
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244 < "peter" ~
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245
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246 Inside a single-quote string all the characters are as they are. Only the
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247 single quote itself is special: you need to use two to get one. A backslash
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248 is taken literally, thus you can't use it to change the meaning of the
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249 character after it.
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250 In double-quote strings it is possible to use special characters. Here are
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251 a few useful ones:
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252
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253 \t <Tab>
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254 \n <NL>, line break
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255 \r <CR>, <Enter>
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256 \e <Esc>
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257 \b <BS>, backspace
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258 \" "
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259 \\ \, backslash
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260 \<Esc> <Esc>
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261 \<C-W> CTRL-W
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262
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263 The last two are just examples. The "\<name>" form can be used to include
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264 the special key "name".
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265 See |expr-quote| for the full list of special items in a string.
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266
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267 ==============================================================================
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268 *41.3* Expressions
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269
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270 Vim has a rich, yet simple way to handle expressions. You can read the
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271 definition here: |expression-syntax|. Here we will show the most common
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272 items.
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273 The numbers, strings and variables mentioned above are expressions by
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274 themselves. Thus everywhere an expression is expected, you can use a number,
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275 string or variable. Other basic items in an expression are:
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276
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277 $NAME environment variable
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278 &name option
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279 @r register
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280
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281 Examples: >
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282
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283 :echo "The value of 'tabstop' is" &ts
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284 :echo "Your home directory is" $HOME
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285 :if @a > 5
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286
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287 The &name form can be used to save an option value, set it to a new value,
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288 do something and restore the old value. Example: >
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289
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290 :let save_ic = &ic
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291 :set noic
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292 :/The Start/,$delete
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293 :let &ic = save_ic
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294
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295 This makes sure the "The Start" pattern is used with the 'ignorecase' option
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296 off. Still, it keeps the value that the user had set. (Another way to do
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297 this would be to add "\C" to the pattern, see |/\C|.)
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298
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299
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300 MATHEMATICS
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301
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302 It becomes more interesting if we combine these basic items. Let's start with
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303 mathematics on numbers:
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304
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305 a + b add
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306 a - b subtract
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307 a * b multiply
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308 a / b divide
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309 a % b modulo
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310
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311 The usual precedence is used. Example: >
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312
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313 :echo 10 + 5 * 2
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314 < 20 ~
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315
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316 Grouping is done with braces. No surprises here. Example: >
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317
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318 :echo (10 + 5) * 2
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319 < 30 ~
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320
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321 Strings can be concatenated with ".". Example: >
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322
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323 :echo "foo" . "bar"
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324 < foobar ~
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325
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326 When the ":echo" command gets multiple arguments, it separates them with a
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327 space. In the example the argument is a single expression, thus no space is
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328 inserted.
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329
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330 Borrowed from the C language is the conditional expression:
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331
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332 a ? b : c
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333
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334 If "a" evaluates to true "b" is used, otherwise "c" is used. Example: >
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335
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336 :let i = 4
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337 :echo i > 5 ? "i is big" : "i is small"
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338 < i is small ~
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339
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340 The three parts of the constructs are always evaluated first, thus you could
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341 see it work as:
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342
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343 (a) ? (b) : (c)
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344
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345 ==============================================================================
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346 *41.4* Conditionals
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347
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348 The ":if" commands executes the following statements, until the matching
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349 ":endif", only when a condition is met. The generic form is:
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350
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351 :if {condition}
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352 {statements}
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353 :endif
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354
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355 Only when the expression {condition} evaluates to true (non-zero) will the
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356 {statements} be executed. These must still be valid commands. If they
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357 contain garbage, Vim won't be able to find the ":endif".
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358 You can also use ":else". The generic form for this is:
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359
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360 :if {condition}
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361 {statements}
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362 :else
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363 {statements}
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364 :endif
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365
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366 The second {statements} is only executed if the first one isn't.
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367 Finally, there is ":elseif":
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368
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369 :if {condition}
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370 {statements}
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371 :elseif {condition}
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372 {statements}
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373 :endif
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374
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375 This works just like using ":else" and then "if", but without the need for an
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376 extra ":endif".
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377 A useful example for your vimrc file is checking the 'term' option and
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378 doing something depending upon its value: >
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379
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380 :if &term == "xterm"
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381 : " Do stuff for xterm
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382 :elseif &term == "vt100"
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383 : " Do stuff for a vt100 terminal
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384 :else
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385 : " Do something for other terminals
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386 :endif
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387
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388
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389 LOGIC OPERATIONS
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390
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391 We already used some of them in the examples. These are the most often used
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392 ones:
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393
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394 a == b equal to
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395 a != b not equal to
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396 a > b greater than
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397 a >= b greater than or equal to
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398 a < b less than
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399 a <= b less than or equal to
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400
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401 The result is one if the condition is met and zero otherwise. An example: >
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402
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403 :if v:version >= 700
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404 : echo "congratulations"
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405 :else
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406 : echo "you are using an old version, upgrade!"
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407 :endif
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408
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409 Here "v:version" is a variable defined by Vim, which has the value of the Vim
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410 version. 600 is for version 6.0. Version 6.1 has the value 601. This is
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411 very useful to write a script that works with multiple versions of Vim.
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412 |v:version|
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413
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414 The logic operators work both for numbers and strings. When comparing two
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415 strings, the mathematical difference is used. This compares byte values,
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416 which may not be right for some languages.
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417 When comparing a string with a number, the string is first converted to a
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418 number. This is a bit tricky, because when a string doesn't look like a
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419 number, the number zero is used. Example: >
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420
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421 :if 0 == "one"
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422 : echo "yes"
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423 :endif
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424
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425 This will echo "yes", because "one" doesn't look like a number, thus it is
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426 converted to the number zero.
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427
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428 For strings there are two more items:
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429
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430 a =~ b matches with
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431 a !~ b does not match with
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432
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433 The left item "a" is used as a string. The right item "b" is used as a
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434 pattern, like what's used for searching. Example: >
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435
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436 :if str =~ " "
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437 : echo "str contains a space"
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438 :endif
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439 :if str !~ '\.$'
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440 : echo "str does not end in a full stop"
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441 :endif
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442
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443 Notice the use of a single-quote string for the pattern. This is useful,
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444 because backslashes would need to be doubled in a double-quote string and
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445 patterns tend to contain many backslashes.
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446
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447 The 'ignorecase' option is used when comparing strings. When you don't want
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448 that, append "#" to match case and "?" to ignore case. Thus "==?" compares
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449 two strings to be equal while ignoring case. And "!~#" checks if a pattern
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450 doesn't match, also checking the case of letters. For the full table see
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451 |expr-==|.
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452
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453
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454 MORE LOOPING
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455
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456 The ":while" command was already mentioned. Two more statements can be used
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457 in between the ":while" and the ":endwhile":
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458
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459 :continue Jump back to the start of the while loop; the
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460 loop continues.
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461 :break Jump forward to the ":endwhile"; the loop is
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462 discontinued.
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463
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464 Example: >
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465
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466 :while counter < 40
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467 : call do_something()
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468 : if skip_flag
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469 : continue
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470 : endif
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471 : if finished_flag
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472 : break
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473 : endif
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474 : sleep 50m
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475 :endwhile
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476
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477 The ":sleep" command makes Vim take a nap. The "50m" specifies fifty
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478 milliseconds. Another example is ":sleep 4", which sleeps for four seconds.
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479
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480 Even more looping can be done with the ":for" command, see below in |41.8|.
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481
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482 ==============================================================================
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483 *41.5* Executing an expression
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484
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485 So far the commands in the script were executed by Vim directly. The
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486 ":execute" command allows executing the result of an expression. This is a
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487 very powerful way to build commands and execute them.
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488 An example is to jump to a tag, which is contained in a variable: >
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489
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490 :execute "tag " . tag_name
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491
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492 The "." is used to concatenate the string "tag " with the value of variable
|
|
493 "tag_name". Suppose "tag_name" has the value "get_cmd", then the command that
|
|
494 will be executed is: >
|
|
495
|
|
496 :tag get_cmd
|
|
497
|
|
498 The ":execute" command can only execute colon commands. The ":normal" command
|
|
499 executes Normal mode commands. However, its argument is not an expression but
|
|
500 the literal command characters. Example: >
|
|
501
|
|
502 :normal gg=G
|
|
503
|
|
504 This jumps to the first line and formats all lines with the "=" operator.
|
|
505 To make ":normal" work with an expression, combine ":execute" with it.
|
|
506 Example: >
|
|
507
|
|
508 :execute "normal " . normal_commands
|
|
509
|
|
510 The variable "normal_commands" must contain the Normal mode commands.
|
|
511 Make sure that the argument for ":normal" is a complete command. Otherwise
|
|
512 Vim will run into the end of the argument and abort the command. For example,
|
|
513 if you start Insert mode, you must leave Insert mode as well. This works: >
|
|
514
|
|
515 :execute "normal Inew text \<Esc>"
|
|
516
|
|
517 This inserts "new text " in the current line. Notice the use of the special
|
|
518 key "\<Esc>". This avoids having to enter a real <Esc> character in your
|
|
519 script.
|
|
520
|
161
|
521 If you don't want to execute a string but evaluate it to get its expression
|
|
522 value, you can use the eval() function: >
|
|
523
|
|
524 :let optname = "path"
|
|
525 :let optval = eval('&' . optname)
|
|
526
|
|
527 A "&" character is prepended to "path", thus the argument to eval() is
|
|
528 "&path". The result will then be the value of the 'path' option.
|
|
529 The same thing can be done with: >
|
|
530 :exe 'let optval = &' . optname
|
|
531
|
7
|
532 ==============================================================================
|
|
533 *41.6* Using functions
|
|
534
|
|
535 Vim defines many functions and provides a large amount of functionality that
|
|
536 way. A few examples will be given in this section. You can find the whole
|
|
537 list here: |functions|.
|
|
538
|
|
539 A function is called with the ":call" command. The parameters are passed in
|
|
540 between braces, separated by commas. Example: >
|
|
541
|
|
542 :call search("Date: ", "W")
|
|
543
|
|
544 This calls the search() function, with arguments "Date: " and "W". The
|
|
545 search() function uses its first argument as a search pattern and the second
|
|
546 one as flags. The "W" flag means the search doesn't wrap around the end of
|
|
547 the file.
|
|
548
|
|
549 A function can be called in an expression. Example: >
|
|
550
|
|
551 :let line = getline(".")
|
|
552 :let repl = substitute(line, '\a', "*", "g")
|
|
553 :call setline(".", repl)
|
|
554
|
161
|
555 The getline() function obtains a line from the current buffer. Its argument
|
|
556 is a specification of the line number. In this case "." is used, which means
|
|
557 the line where the cursor is.
|
7
|
558 The substitute() function does something similar to the ":substitute"
|
|
559 command. The first argument is the string on which to perform the
|
|
560 substitution. The second argument is the pattern, the third the replacement
|
|
561 string. Finally, the last arguments are the flags.
|
|
562 The setline() function sets the line, specified by the first argument, to a
|
|
563 new string, the second argument. In this example the line under the cursor is
|
|
564 replaced with the result of the substitute(). Thus the effect of the three
|
|
565 statements is equal to: >
|
|
566
|
|
567 :substitute/\a/*/g
|
|
568
|
|
569 Using the functions becomes more interesting when you do more work before and
|
|
570 after the substitute() call.
|
|
571
|
|
572
|
|
573 FUNCTIONS *function-list*
|
|
574
|
|
575 There are many functions. We will mention them here, grouped by what they are
|
|
576 used for. You can find an alphabetical list here: |functions|. Use CTRL-] on
|
|
577 the function name to jump to detailed help on it.
|
|
578
|
|
579 String manipulation:
|
824
|
580 nr2char() get a character by its ASCII value
|
7
|
581 char2nr() get ASCII value of a character
|
1620
|
582 str2nr() convert a string to a Number
|
|
583 str2float() convert a string to a Float
|
824
|
584 printf() format a string according to % items
|
7
|
585 escape() escape characters in a string with a '\'
|
1620
|
586 shellescape() escape a string for use with a shell command
|
|
587 fnameescape() escape a file name for use with a Vim command
|
824
|
588 tr() translate characters from one set to another
|
7
|
589 strtrans() translate a string to make it printable
|
|
590 tolower() turn a string to lowercase
|
|
591 toupper() turn a string to uppercase
|
|
592 match() position where a pattern matches in a string
|
|
593 matchend() position where a pattern match ends in a string
|
|
594 matchstr() match of a pattern in a string
|
824
|
595 matchlist() like matchstr() and also return submatches
|
7
|
596 stridx() first index of a short string in a long string
|
|
597 strridx() last index of a short string in a long string
|
|
598 strlen() length of a string
|
|
599 substitute() substitute a pattern match with a string
|
|
600 submatch() get a specific match in a ":substitute"
|
|
601 strpart() get part of a string
|
|
602 expand() expand special keywords
|
|
603 iconv() convert text from one encoding to another
|
824
|
604 byteidx() byte index of a character in a string
|
|
605 repeat() repeat a string multiple times
|
|
606 eval() evaluate a string expression
|
7
|
607
|
112
|
608 List manipulation:
|
|
609 get() get an item without error for wrong index
|
|
610 len() number of items in a List
|
|
611 empty() check if List is empty
|
|
612 insert() insert an item somewhere in a List
|
|
613 add() append an item to a List
|
|
614 extend() append a List to a List
|
|
615 remove() remove one or more items from a List
|
|
616 copy() make a shallow copy of a List
|
|
617 deepcopy() make a full copy of a List
|
|
618 filter() remove selected items from a List
|
|
619 map() change each List item
|
|
620 sort() sort a List
|
|
621 reverse() reverse the order of a List
|
|
622 split() split a String into a List
|
|
623 join() join List items into a String
|
824
|
624 range() return a List with a sequence of numbers
|
112
|
625 string() String representation of a List
|
|
626 call() call a function with List as arguments
|
323
|
627 index() index of a value in a List
|
112
|
628 max() maximum value in a List
|
|
629 min() minimum value in a List
|
|
630 count() count number of times a value appears in a List
|
824
|
631 repeat() repeat a List multiple times
|
112
|
632
|
|
633 Dictionary manipulation:
|
323
|
634 get() get an entry without an error for a wrong key
|
112
|
635 len() number of entries in a Dictionary
|
|
636 has_key() check whether a key appears in a Dictionary
|
|
637 empty() check if Dictionary is empty
|
|
638 remove() remove an entry from a Dictionary
|
|
639 extend() add entries from one Dictionary to another
|
|
640 filter() remove selected entries from a Dictionary
|
|
641 map() change each Dictionary entry
|
|
642 keys() get List of Dictionary keys
|
|
643 values() get List of Dictionary values
|
|
644 items() get List of Dictionary key-value pairs
|
|
645 copy() make a shallow copy of a Dictionary
|
|
646 deepcopy() make a full copy of a Dictionary
|
|
647 string() String representation of a Dictionary
|
|
648 max() maximum value in a Dictionary
|
|
649 min() minimum value in a Dictionary
|
|
650 count() count number of times a value appears
|
|
651
|
1620
|
652 Floating point computation:
|
|
653 float2nr() convert Float to Number
|
|
654 abs() absolute value (also works for Number)
|
|
655 round() round off
|
|
656 ceil() round up
|
|
657 floor() round down
|
|
658 trunc() remove value after decimal point
|
|
659 log10() logarithm to base 10
|
|
660 pow() value of x to the exponent y
|
|
661 sqrt() square root
|
|
662 sin() sine
|
|
663 cos() cosine
|
|
664 atan() arc tangent
|
|
665
|
824
|
666 Variables:
|
|
667 type() type of a variable
|
|
668 islocked() check if a variable is locked
|
|
669 function() get a Funcref for a function name
|
|
670 getbufvar() get a variable value from a specific buffer
|
|
671 setbufvar() set a variable in a specific buffer
|
831
|
672 getwinvar() get a variable from specific window
|
|
673 gettabwinvar() get a variable from specific window & tab page
|
824
|
674 setwinvar() set a variable in a specific window
|
831
|
675 settabwinvar() set a variable in a specific window & tab page
|
824
|
676 garbagecollect() possibly free memory
|
|
677
|
|
678 Cursor and mark position:
|
7
|
679 col() column number of the cursor or a mark
|
|
680 virtcol() screen column of the cursor or a mark
|
|
681 line() line number of the cursor or mark
|
|
682 wincol() window column number of the cursor
|
|
683 winline() window line number of the cursor
|
|
684 cursor() position the cursor at a line/column
|
824
|
685 getpos() get position of cursor, mark, etc.
|
|
686 setpos() set position of cursor, mark, etc.
|
|
687 byte2line() get line number at a specific byte count
|
|
688 line2byte() byte count at a specific line
|
|
689 diff_filler() get the number of filler lines above a line
|
|
690
|
|
691 Working with text in the current buffer:
|
161
|
692 getline() get a line or list of lines from the buffer
|
7
|
693 setline() replace a line in the buffer
|
161
|
694 append() append line or list of lines in the buffer
|
7
|
695 indent() indent of a specific line
|
|
696 cindent() indent according to C indenting
|
|
697 lispindent() indent according to Lisp indenting
|
|
698 nextnonblank() find next non-blank line
|
|
699 prevnonblank() find previous non-blank line
|
|
700 search() find a match for a pattern
|
667
|
701 searchpos() find a match for a pattern
|
7
|
702 searchpair() find the other end of a start/skip/end
|
667
|
703 searchpairpos() find the other end of a start/skip/end
|
824
|
704 searchdecl() search for the declaration of a name
|
7
|
705
|
|
706 System functions and manipulation of files:
|
|
707 glob() expand wildcards
|
|
708 globpath() expand wildcards in a number of directories
|
824
|
709 findfile() find a file in a list of directories
|
|
710 finddir() find a directory in a list of directories
|
7
|
711 resolve() find out where a shortcut points to
|
|
712 fnamemodify() modify a file name
|
824
|
713 pathshorten() shorten directory names in a path
|
|
714 simplify() simplify a path without changing its meaning
|
7
|
715 executable() check if an executable program exists
|
|
716 filereadable() check if a file can be read
|
|
717 filewritable() check if a file can be written to
|
824
|
718 getfperm() get the permissions of a file
|
|
719 getftype() get the kind of a file
|
7
|
720 isdirectory() check if a directory exists
|
|
721 getfsize() get the size of a file
|
824
|
722 getcwd() get the current working directory
|
1104
|
723 haslocaldir() check if current window used |:lcd|
|
7
|
724 tempname() get the name of a temporary file
|
824
|
725 mkdir() create a new directory
|
7
|
726 delete() delete a file
|
|
727 rename() rename a file
|
|
728 system() get the result of a shell command
|
|
729 hostname() name of the system
|
158
|
730 readfile() read a file into a List of lines
|
|
731 writefile() write a List of lines into a file
|
7
|
732
|
824
|
733 Date and Time:
|
|
734 getftime() get last modification time of a file
|
|
735 localtime() get current time in seconds
|
|
736 strftime() convert time to a string
|
|
737 reltime() get the current or elapsed time accurately
|
|
738 reltimestr() convert reltime() result to a string
|
|
739
|
7
|
740 Buffers, windows and the argument list:
|
|
741 argc() number of entries in the argument list
|
|
742 argidx() current position in the argument list
|
|
743 argv() get one entry from the argument list
|
|
744 bufexists() check if a buffer exists
|
|
745 buflisted() check if a buffer exists and is listed
|
|
746 bufloaded() check if a buffer exists and is loaded
|
|
747 bufname() get the name of a specific buffer
|
|
748 bufnr() get the buffer number of a specific buffer
|
824
|
749 tabpagebuflist() return List of buffers in a tab page
|
|
750 tabpagenr() get the number of a tab page
|
|
751 tabpagewinnr() like winnr() for a specified tab page
|
7
|
752 winnr() get the window number for the current window
|
|
753 bufwinnr() get the window number of a specific buffer
|
|
754 winbufnr() get the buffer number of a specific window
|
434
|
755 getbufline() get a list of lines from the specified buffer
|
824
|
756
|
|
757 Command line:
|
|
758 getcmdline() get the current command line
|
|
759 getcmdpos() get position of the cursor in the command line
|
|
760 setcmdpos() set position of the cursor in the command line
|
|
761 getcmdtype() return the current command-line type
|
|
762
|
|
763 Quickfix and location lists:
|
|
764 getqflist() list of quickfix errors
|
|
765 setqflist() modify a quickfix list
|
|
766 getloclist() list of location list items
|
|
767 setloclist() modify a location list
|
|
768
|
|
769 Insert mode completion:
|
|
770 complete() set found matches
|
|
771 complete_add() add to found matches
|
|
772 complete_check() check if completion should be aborted
|
|
773 pumvisible() check if the popup menu is displayed
|
7
|
774
|
|
775 Folding:
|
|
776 foldclosed() check for a closed fold at a specific line
|
|
777 foldclosedend() like foldclosed() but return the last line
|
|
778 foldlevel() check for the fold level at a specific line
|
|
779 foldtext() generate the line displayed for a closed fold
|
824
|
780 foldtextresult() get the text displayed for a closed fold
|
|
781
|
|
782 Syntax and highlighting:
|
1326
|
783 clearmatches() clear all matches defined by |matchadd()| and
|
|
784 the |:match| commands
|
|
785 getmatches() get all matches defined by |matchadd()| and
|
|
786 the |:match| commands
|
7
|
787 hlexists() check if a highlight group exists
|
|
788 hlID() get ID of a highlight group
|
|
789 synID() get syntax ID at a specific position
|
|
790 synIDattr() get a specific attribute of a syntax ID
|
|
791 synIDtrans() get translated syntax ID
|
824
|
792 diff_hlID() get highlight ID for diff mode at a position
|
1326
|
793 matchadd() define a pattern to highlight (a "match")
|
824
|
794 matcharg() get info about |:match| arguments
|
1326
|
795 matchdelete() delete a match defined by |matchadd()| or a
|
|
796 |:match| command
|
|
797 setmatches() restore a list of matches saved by
|
|
798 |getmatches()|
|
824
|
799
|
|
800 Spelling:
|
|
801 spellbadword() locate badly spelled word at or after cursor
|
|
802 spellsuggest() return suggested spelling corrections
|
|
803 soundfold() return the sound-a-like equivalent of a word
|
7
|
804
|
|
805 History:
|
|
806 histadd() add an item to a history
|
|
807 histdel() delete an item from a history
|
|
808 histget() get an item from a history
|
|
809 histnr() get highest index of a history list
|
|
810
|
|
811 Interactive:
|
824
|
812 browse() put up a file requester
|
|
813 browsedir() put up a directory requester
|
7
|
814 confirm() let the user make a choice
|
|
815 getchar() get a character from the user
|
|
816 getcharmod() get modifiers for the last typed character
|
1620
|
817 feedkeys() put characters in the typeahead queue
|
7
|
818 input() get a line from the user
|
824
|
819 inputlist() let the user pick an entry from a list
|
7
|
820 inputsecret() get a line from the user without showing it
|
|
821 inputdialog() get a line from the user in a dialog
|
230
|
822 inputsave() save and clear typeahead
|
7
|
823 inputrestore() restore typeahead
|
|
824
|
824
|
825 GUI:
|
|
826 getfontname() get name of current font being used
|
|
827 getwinposx() X position of the GUI Vim window
|
|
828 getwinposy() Y position of the GUI Vim window
|
|
829
|
7
|
830 Vim server:
|
|
831 serverlist() return the list of server names
|
|
832 remote_send() send command characters to a Vim server
|
|
833 remote_expr() evaluate an expression in a Vim server
|
|
834 server2client() send a reply to a client of a Vim server
|
|
835 remote_peek() check if there is a reply from a Vim server
|
|
836 remote_read() read a reply from a Vim server
|
|
837 foreground() move the Vim window to the foreground
|
|
838 remote_foreground() move the Vim server window to the foreground
|
|
839
|
824
|
840 Window size and position:
|
|
841 winheight() get height of a specific window
|
|
842 winwidth() get width of a specific window
|
|
843 winrestcmd() return command to restore window sizes
|
|
844 winsaveview() get view of current window
|
|
845 winrestview() restore saved view of current window
|
|
846
|
7
|
847 Various:
|
|
848 mode() get current editing mode
|
|
849 visualmode() last visual mode used
|
|
850 hasmapto() check if a mapping exists
|
|
851 mapcheck() check if a matching mapping exists
|
|
852 maparg() get rhs of a mapping
|
|
853 exists() check if a variable, function, etc. exists
|
|
854 has() check if a feature is supported in Vim
|
824
|
855 changenr() return number of most recent change
|
7
|
856 cscope_connection() check if a cscope connection exists
|
|
857 did_filetype() check if a FileType autocommand was used
|
|
858 eventhandler() check if invoked by an event handler
|
1620
|
859 getpid() get process ID of Vim
|
824
|
860
|
7
|
861 libcall() call a function in an external library
|
|
862 libcallnr() idem, returning a number
|
824
|
863
|
7
|
864 getreg() get contents of a register
|
|
865 getregtype() get type of a register
|
|
866 setreg() set contents and type of a register
|
824
|
867
|
211
|
868 taglist() get list of matching tags
|
824
|
869 tagfiles() get a list of tags files
|
7
|
870
|
|
871 ==============================================================================
|
|
872 *41.7* Defining a function
|
|
873
|
|
874 Vim enables you to define your own functions. The basic function declaration
|
|
875 begins as follows: >
|
|
876
|
|
877 :function {name}({var1}, {var2}, ...)
|
|
878 : {body}
|
|
879 :endfunction
|
|
880 <
|
|
881 Note:
|
|
882 Function names must begin with a capital letter.
|
|
883
|
|
884 Let's define a short function to return the smaller of two numbers. It starts
|
|
885 with this line: >
|
|
886
|
|
887 :function Min(num1, num2)
|
|
888
|
|
889 This tells Vim that the function is named "Min" and it takes two arguments:
|
|
890 "num1" and "num2".
|
|
891 The first thing you need to do is to check to see which number is smaller:
|
|
892 >
|
|
893 : if a:num1 < a:num2
|
|
894
|
|
895 The special prefix "a:" tells Vim that the variable is a function argument.
|
|
896 Let's assign the variable "smaller" the value of the smallest number: >
|
|
897
|
|
898 : if a:num1 < a:num2
|
|
899 : let smaller = a:num1
|
|
900 : else
|
|
901 : let smaller = a:num2
|
|
902 : endif
|
|
903
|
|
904 The variable "smaller" is a local variable. Variables used inside a function
|
|
905 are local unless prefixed by something like "g:", "a:", or "s:".
|
|
906
|
|
907 Note:
|
|
908 To access a global variable from inside a function you must prepend
|
1620
|
909 "g:" to it. Thus "g:today" inside a function is used for the global
|
|
910 variable "today", and "today" is another variable, local to the
|
7
|
911 function.
|
|
912
|
|
913 You now use the ":return" statement to return the smallest number to the user.
|
|
914 Finally, you end the function: >
|
|
915
|
|
916 : return smaller
|
|
917 :endfunction
|
|
918
|
|
919 The complete function definition is as follows: >
|
|
920
|
|
921 :function Min(num1, num2)
|
|
922 : if a:num1 < a:num2
|
|
923 : let smaller = a:num1
|
|
924 : else
|
|
925 : let smaller = a:num2
|
|
926 : endif
|
|
927 : return smaller
|
|
928 :endfunction
|
|
929
|
161
|
930 For people who like short functions, this does the same thing: >
|
|
931
|
|
932 :function Min(num1, num2)
|
|
933 : if a:num1 < a:num2
|
|
934 : return a:num1
|
|
935 : endif
|
|
936 : return a:num2
|
|
937 :endfunction
|
|
938
|
681
|
939 A user defined function is called in exactly the same way as a built-in
|
7
|
940 function. Only the name is different. The Min function can be used like
|
|
941 this: >
|
|
942
|
|
943 :echo Min(5, 8)
|
|
944
|
|
945 Only now will the function be executed and the lines be interpreted by Vim.
|
|
946 If there are mistakes, like using an undefined variable or function, you will
|
|
947 now get an error message. When defining the function these errors are not
|
|
948 detected.
|
|
949
|
|
950 When a function reaches ":endfunction" or ":return" is used without an
|
|
951 argument, the function returns zero.
|
|
952
|
|
953 To redefine a function that already exists, use the ! for the ":function"
|
|
954 command: >
|
|
955
|
|
956 :function! Min(num1, num2, num3)
|
|
957
|
|
958
|
|
959 USING A RANGE
|
|
960
|
|
961 The ":call" command can be given a line range. This can have one of two
|
|
962 meanings. When a function has been defined with the "range" keyword, it will
|
|
963 take care of the line range itself.
|
|
964 The function will be passed the variables "a:firstline" and "a:lastline".
|
|
965 These will have the line numbers from the range the function was called with.
|
|
966 Example: >
|
|
967
|
|
968 :function Count_words() range
|
1620
|
969 : let lnum = a:firstline
|
|
970 : let n = 0
|
|
971 : while lnum <= a:lastline
|
|
972 : let n = n + len(split(getline(lnum)))
|
|
973 : let lnum = lnum + 1
|
7
|
974 : endwhile
|
1620
|
975 : echo "found " . n . " words"
|
7
|
976 :endfunction
|
|
977
|
|
978 You can call this function with: >
|
|
979
|
|
980 :10,30call Count_words()
|
|
981
|
|
982 It will be executed once and echo the number of words.
|
|
983 The other way to use a line range is by defining a function without the
|
|
984 "range" keyword. The function will be called once for every line in the
|
|
985 range, with the cursor in that line. Example: >
|
|
986
|
|
987 :function Number()
|
|
988 : echo "line " . line(".") . " contains: " . getline(".")
|
|
989 :endfunction
|
|
990
|
|
991 If you call this function with: >
|
|
992
|
|
993 :10,15call Number()
|
|
994
|
|
995 The function will be called six times.
|
|
996
|
|
997
|
|
998 VARIABLE NUMBER OF ARGUMENTS
|
|
999
|
|
1000 Vim enables you to define functions that have a variable number of arguments.
|
|
1001 The following command, for instance, defines a function that must have 1
|
|
1002 argument (start) and can have up to 20 additional arguments: >
|
|
1003
|
|
1004 :function Show(start, ...)
|
|
1005
|
|
1006 The variable "a:1" contains the first optional argument, "a:2" the second, and
|
|
1007 so on. The variable "a:0" contains the number of extra arguments.
|
|
1008 For example: >
|
|
1009
|
|
1010 :function Show(start, ...)
|
|
1011 : echohl Title
|
|
1012 : echo "Show is " . a:start
|
|
1013 : echohl None
|
|
1014 : let index = 1
|
|
1015 : while index <= a:0
|
|
1016 : echo " Arg " . index . " is " . a:{index}
|
|
1017 : let index = index + 1
|
|
1018 : endwhile
|
|
1019 : echo ""
|
|
1020 :endfunction
|
|
1021
|
|
1022 This uses the ":echohl" command to specify the highlighting used for the
|
|
1023 following ":echo" command. ":echohl None" stops it again. The ":echon"
|
|
1024 command works like ":echo", but doesn't output a line break.
|
|
1025
|
161
|
1026 You can also use the a:000 variable, it is a List of all the "..." arguments.
|
|
1027 See |a:000|.
|
|
1028
|
7
|
1029
|
|
1030 LISTING FUNCTIONS
|
|
1031
|
|
1032 The ":function" command lists the names and arguments of all user-defined
|
|
1033 functions: >
|
|
1034
|
|
1035 :function
|
|
1036 < function Show(start, ...) ~
|
|
1037 function GetVimIndent() ~
|
|
1038 function SetSyn(name) ~
|
|
1039
|
|
1040 To see what a function does, use its name as an argument for ":function": >
|
|
1041
|
|
1042 :function SetSyn
|
|
1043 < 1 if &syntax == '' ~
|
|
1044 2 let &syntax = a:name ~
|
|
1045 3 endif ~
|
|
1046 endfunction ~
|
|
1047
|
|
1048
|
|
1049 DEBUGGING
|
|
1050
|
|
1051 The line number is useful for when you get an error message or when debugging.
|
|
1052 See |debug-scripts| about debugging mode.
|
|
1053 You can also set the 'verbose' option to 12 or higher to see all function
|
|
1054 calls. Set it to 15 or higher to see every executed line.
|
|
1055
|
|
1056
|
|
1057 DELETING A FUNCTION
|
|
1058
|
|
1059 To delete the Show() function: >
|
|
1060
|
|
1061 :delfunction Show
|
|
1062
|
|
1063 You get an error when the function doesn't exist.
|
|
1064
|
161
|
1065
|
|
1066 FUNCTION REFERENCES
|
|
1067
|
|
1068 Sometimes it can be useful to have a variable point to one function or
|
|
1069 another. You can do it with the function() function. It turns the name of a
|
|
1070 function into a reference: >
|
|
1071
|
|
1072 :let result = 0 " or 1
|
|
1073 :function! Right()
|
|
1074 : return 'Right!'
|
|
1075 :endfunc
|
|
1076 :function! Wrong()
|
|
1077 : return 'Wrong!'
|
|
1078 :endfunc
|
|
1079 :
|
|
1080 :if result == 1
|
|
1081 : let Afunc = function('Right')
|
|
1082 :else
|
|
1083 : let Afunc = function('Wrong')
|
|
1084 :endif
|
|
1085 :echo call(Afunc, [])
|
|
1086 < Wrong! ~
|
|
1087
|
|
1088 Note that the name of a variable that holds a function reference must start
|
|
1089 with a capital. Otherwise it could be confused with the name of a builtin
|
|
1090 function.
|
|
1091 The way to invoke a function that a variable refers to is with the call()
|
|
1092 function. Its first argument is the function reference, the second argument
|
|
1093 is a List with arguments.
|
|
1094
|
|
1095 Function references are most useful in combination with a Dictionary, as is
|
|
1096 explained in the next section.
|
|
1097
|
7
|
1098 ==============================================================================
|
161
|
1099 *41.8* Lists and Dictionaries
|
|
1100
|
|
1101 So far we have used the basic types String and Number. Vim also supports two
|
|
1102 composite types: List and Dictionary.
|
|
1103
|
|
1104 A List is an ordered sequence of things. The things can be any kind of value,
|
|
1105 thus you can make a List of numbers, a List of Lists and even a List of mixed
|
|
1106 items. To create a List with three strings: >
|
|
1107
|
856
|
1108 :let alist = ['aap', 'mies', 'noot']
|
161
|
1109
|
|
1110 The List items are enclosed in square brackets and separated by commas. To
|
|
1111 create an empty List: >
|
|
1112
|
856
|
1113 :let alist = []
|
161
|
1114
|
|
1115 You can add items to a List with the add() function: >
|
|
1116
|
856
|
1117 :let alist = []
|
161
|
1118 :call add(alist, 'foo')
|
|
1119 :call add(alist, 'bar')
|
|
1120 :echo alist
|
|
1121 < ['foo', 'bar'] ~
|
|
1122
|
|
1123 List concatenation is done with +: >
|
|
1124
|
|
1125 :echo alist + ['foo', 'bar']
|
|
1126 < ['foo', 'bar', 'foo', 'bar'] ~
|
|
1127
|
|
1128 Or, if you want to extend a List directly: >
|
|
1129
|
856
|
1130 :let alist = ['one']
|
161
|
1131 :call extend(alist, ['two', 'three'])
|
|
1132 :echo alist
|
|
1133 < ['one', 'two', 'three'] ~
|
|
1134
|
|
1135 Notice that using add() will have a different effect: >
|
|
1136
|
856
|
1137 :let alist = ['one']
|
161
|
1138 :call add(alist, ['two', 'three'])
|
|
1139 :echo alist
|
|
1140 < ['one', ['two', 'three']] ~
|
|
1141
|
|
1142 The second argument of add() is added as a single item.
|
|
1143
|
|
1144
|
|
1145 FOR LOOP
|
|
1146
|
|
1147 One of the nice things you can do with a List is iterate over it: >
|
|
1148
|
|
1149 :let alist = ['one', 'two', 'three']
|
|
1150 :for n in alist
|
|
1151 : echo n
|
|
1152 :endfor
|
|
1153 < one ~
|
|
1154 two ~
|
|
1155 three ~
|
|
1156
|
|
1157 This will loop over each element in List "alist", assigning the value to
|
|
1158 variable "n". The generic form of a for loop is: >
|
|
1159
|
|
1160 :for {varname} in {listexpression}
|
|
1161 : {commands}
|
|
1162 :endfor
|
|
1163
|
|
1164 To loop a certain number of times you need a List of a specific length. The
|
|
1165 range() function creates one for you: >
|
|
1166
|
|
1167 :for a in range(3)
|
|
1168 : echo a
|
|
1169 :endfor
|
|
1170 < 0 ~
|
|
1171 1 ~
|
|
1172 2 ~
|
|
1173
|
|
1174 Notice that the first item of the List that range() produces is zero, thus the
|
|
1175 last item is one less than the length of the list.
|
|
1176 You can also specify the maximum value, the stride and even go backwards: >
|
|
1177
|
|
1178 :for a in range(8, 4, -2)
|
|
1179 : echo a
|
|
1180 :endfor
|
|
1181 < 8 ~
|
|
1182 6 ~
|
|
1183 4 ~
|
|
1184
|
|
1185 A more useful example, looping over lines in the buffer: >
|
|
1186
|
856
|
1187 :for line in getline(1, 20)
|
|
1188 : if line =~ "Date: "
|
|
1189 : echo matchstr(line, 'Date: \zs.*')
|
|
1190 : endif
|
|
1191 :endfor
|
161
|
1192
|
|
1193 This looks into lines 1 to 20 (inclusive) and echoes any date found in there.
|
|
1194
|
|
1195
|
|
1196 DICTIONARIES
|
|
1197
|
|
1198 A Dictionary stores key-value pairs. You can quickly lookup a value if you
|
|
1199 know the key. A Dictionary is created with curly braces: >
|
856
|
1200
|
161
|
1201 :let uk2nl = {'one': 'een', 'two': 'twee', 'three': 'drie'}
|
|
1202
|
164
|
1203 Now you can lookup words by putting the key in square brackets: >
|
161
|
1204
|
|
1205 :echo uk2nl['two']
|
|
1206 < twee ~
|
|
1207
|
|
1208 The generic form for defining a Dictionary is: >
|
|
1209
|
|
1210 {<key> : <value>, ...}
|
|
1211
|
|
1212 An empty Dictionary is one without any keys: >
|
|
1213
|
|
1214 {}
|
|
1215
|
|
1216 The possibilities with Dictionaries are numerous. There are various functions
|
|
1217 for them as well. For example, you can obtain a list of the keys and loop
|
|
1218 over them: >
|
|
1219
|
|
1220 :for key in keys(uk2nl)
|
|
1221 : echo key
|
|
1222 :endfor
|
|
1223 < three ~
|
|
1224 one ~
|
|
1225 two ~
|
|
1226
|
1620
|
1227 You will notice the keys are not ordered. You can sort the list to get a
|
161
|
1228 specific order: >
|
|
1229
|
|
1230 :for key in sort(keys(uk2nl))
|
|
1231 : echo key
|
|
1232 :endfor
|
|
1233 < one ~
|
|
1234 three ~
|
|
1235 two ~
|
|
1236
|
|
1237 But you can never get back the order in which items are defined. For that you
|
|
1238 need to use a List, it stores items in an ordered sequence.
|
|
1239
|
|
1240
|
|
1241 DICTIONARY FUNCTIONS
|
|
1242
|
|
1243 The items in a Dictionary can normally be obtained with an index in square
|
|
1244 brackets: >
|
|
1245
|
|
1246 :echo uk2nl['one']
|
|
1247 < een ~
|
|
1248
|
|
1249 A method that does the same, but without so many punctuation characters: >
|
|
1250
|
|
1251 :echo uk2nl.one
|
|
1252 < een ~
|
|
1253
|
|
1254 This only works for a key that is made of ASCII letters, digits and the
|
|
1255 underscore. You can also assign a new value this way: >
|
|
1256
|
|
1257 :let uk2nl.four = 'vier'
|
|
1258 :echo uk2nl
|
|
1259 < {'three': 'drie', 'four': 'vier', 'one': 'een', 'two': 'twee'} ~
|
|
1260
|
|
1261 And now for something special: you can directly define a function and store a
|
|
1262 reference to it in the dictionary: >
|
|
1263
|
|
1264 :function uk2nl.translate(line) dict
|
|
1265 : return join(map(split(a:line), 'get(self, v:val, "???")'))
|
|
1266 :endfunction
|
|
1267
|
|
1268 Let's first try it out: >
|
|
1269
|
|
1270 :echo uk2nl.translate('three two five one')
|
|
1271 < drie twee ??? een ~
|
|
1272
|
|
1273 The first special thing you notice is the "dict" at the end of the ":function"
|
|
1274 line. This marks the function as being used from a Dictionary. The "self"
|
|
1275 local variable will then refer to that Dictionary.
|
|
1276 Now let's break up the complicated return command: >
|
|
1277
|
|
1278 split(a:line)
|
|
1279
|
|
1280 The split() function takes a string, chops it into white separated words
|
|
1281 and returns a list with these words. Thus in the example it returns: >
|
|
1282
|
|
1283 :echo split('three two five one')
|
|
1284 < ['three', 'two', 'five', 'one'] ~
|
|
1285
|
|
1286 This list is the first argument to the map() function. This will go through
|
|
1287 the list, evaluating its second argument with "v:val" set to the value of each
|
|
1288 item. This is a shortcut to using a for loop. This command: >
|
|
1289
|
|
1290 :let alist = map(split(a:line), 'get(self, v:val, "???")')
|
|
1291
|
|
1292 Is equivalent to: >
|
|
1293
|
|
1294 :let alist = split(a:line)
|
|
1295 :for idx in range(len(alist))
|
|
1296 : let alist[idx] = get(self, alist[idx], "???")
|
|
1297 :endfor
|
|
1298
|
|
1299 The get() function checks if a key is present in a Dictionary. If it is, then
|
|
1300 the value is retrieved. If it isn't, then the default value is returned, in
|
164
|
1301 the example it's '???'. This is a convenient way to handle situations where a
|
161
|
1302 key may not be present and you don't want an error message.
|
|
1303
|
|
1304 The join() function does the opposite of split(): it joins together a list of
|
|
1305 words, putting a space in between.
|
|
1306 This combination of split(), map() and join() is a nice way to filter a line
|
|
1307 of words in a very compact way.
|
|
1308
|
|
1309
|
|
1310 OBJECT ORIENTED PROGRAMMING
|
|
1311
|
|
1312 Now that you can put both values and functions in a Dictionary, you can
|
|
1313 actually use a Dictionary like an object.
|
|
1314 Above we used a Dictionary for translating Dutch to English. We might want
|
|
1315 to do the same for other languages. Let's first make an object (aka
|
|
1316 Dictionary) that has the translate function, but no words to translate: >
|
|
1317
|
|
1318 :let transdict = {}
|
|
1319 :function transdict.translate(line) dict
|
|
1320 : return join(map(split(a:line), 'get(self.words, v:val, "???")'))
|
|
1321 :endfunction
|
|
1322
|
|
1323 It's slightly different from the function above, using 'self.words' to lookup
|
|
1324 word translations. But we don't have a self.words. Thus you could call this
|
|
1325 an abstract class.
|
|
1326
|
|
1327 Now we can instantiate a Dutch translation object: >
|
|
1328
|
|
1329 :let uk2nl = copy(transdict)
|
|
1330 :let uk2nl.words = {'one': 'een', 'two': 'twee', 'three': 'drie'}
|
|
1331 :echo uk2nl.translate('three one')
|
|
1332 < drie een ~
|
|
1333
|
|
1334 And a German translator: >
|
|
1335
|
|
1336 :let uk2de = copy(transdict)
|
|
1337 :let uk2de.words = {'one': 'ein', 'two': 'zwei', 'three': 'drei'}
|
|
1338 :echo uk2de.translate('three one')
|
|
1339 < drei ein ~
|
|
1340
|
|
1341 You see that the copy() function is used to make a copy of the "transdict"
|
|
1342 Dictionary and then the copy is changed to add the words. The original
|
|
1343 remains the same, of course.
|
|
1344
|
|
1345 Now you can go one step further, and use your preferred translator: >
|
|
1346
|
|
1347 :if $LANG =~ "de"
|
|
1348 : let trans = uk2de
|
|
1349 :else
|
|
1350 : let trans = uk2nl
|
|
1351 :endif
|
|
1352 :echo trans.translate('one two three')
|
|
1353 < een twee drie ~
|
|
1354
|
|
1355 Here "trans" refers to one of the two objects (Dictionaries). No copy is
|
|
1356 made. More about List and Dictionary identity can be found at |list-identity|
|
|
1357 and |dict-identity|.
|
|
1358
|
|
1359 Now you might use a language that isn't supported. You can overrule the
|
|
1360 translate() function to do nothing: >
|
|
1361
|
|
1362 :let uk2uk = copy(transdict)
|
|
1363 :function! uk2uk.translate(line)
|
|
1364 : return a:line
|
|
1365 :endfunction
|
|
1366 :echo uk2uk.translate('three one wladiwostok')
|
|
1367 < three one wladiwostok ~
|
|
1368
|
|
1369 Notice that a ! was used to overwrite the existing function reference. Now
|
|
1370 use "uk2uk" when no recognized language is found: >
|
|
1371
|
|
1372 :if $LANG =~ "de"
|
|
1373 : let trans = uk2de
|
|
1374 :elseif $LANG =~ "nl"
|
|
1375 : let trans = uk2nl
|
|
1376 :else
|
|
1377 : let trans = uk2uk
|
|
1378 :endif
|
|
1379 :echo trans.translate('one two three')
|
|
1380 < one two three ~
|
|
1381
|
|
1382 For further reading see |Lists| and |Dictionaries|.
|
|
1383
|
|
1384 ==============================================================================
|
|
1385 *41.9* Exceptions
|
7
|
1386
|
|
1387 Let's start with an example: >
|
|
1388
|
|
1389 :try
|
|
1390 : read ~/templates/pascal.tmpl
|
|
1391 :catch /E484:/
|
|
1392 : echo "Sorry, the Pascal template file cannot be found."
|
|
1393 :endtry
|
|
1394
|
|
1395 The ":read" command will fail if the file does not exist. Instead of
|
|
1396 generating an error message, this code catches the error and gives the user a
|
|
1397 nice message instead.
|
|
1398
|
|
1399 For the commands in between ":try" and ":endtry" errors are turned into
|
|
1400 exceptions. An exception is a string. In the case of an error the string
|
|
1401 contains the error message. And every error message has a number. In this
|
|
1402 case, the error we catch contains "E484:". This number is guaranteed to stay
|
|
1403 the same (the text may change, e.g., it may be translated).
|
|
1404
|
|
1405 When the ":read" command causes another error, the pattern "E484:" will not
|
|
1406 match in it. Thus this exception will not be caught and result in the usual
|
|
1407 error message.
|
|
1408
|
|
1409 You might be tempted to do this: >
|
|
1410
|
|
1411 :try
|
|
1412 : read ~/templates/pascal.tmpl
|
|
1413 :catch
|
|
1414 : echo "Sorry, the Pascal template file cannot be found."
|
|
1415 :endtry
|
|
1416
|
|
1417 This means all errors are caught. But then you will not see errors that are
|
|
1418 useful, such as "E21: Cannot make changes, 'modifiable' is off".
|
|
1419
|
|
1420 Another useful mechanism is the ":finally" command: >
|
|
1421
|
|
1422 :let tmp = tempname()
|
|
1423 :try
|
|
1424 : exe ".,$write " . tmp
|
|
1425 : exe "!filter " . tmp
|
|
1426 : .,$delete
|
|
1427 : exe "$read " . tmp
|
|
1428 :finally
|
|
1429 : call delete(tmp)
|
|
1430 :endtry
|
|
1431
|
|
1432 This filters the lines from the cursor until the end of the file through the
|
|
1433 "filter" command, which takes a file name argument. No matter if the
|
|
1434 filtering works, something goes wrong in between ":try" and ":finally" or the
|
|
1435 user cancels the filtering by pressing CTRL-C, the "call delete(tmp)" is
|
|
1436 always executed. This makes sure you don't leave the temporary file behind.
|
|
1437
|
|
1438 More information about exception handling can be found in the reference
|
|
1439 manual: |exception-handling|.
|
|
1440
|
|
1441 ==============================================================================
|
161
|
1442 *41.10* Various remarks
|
7
|
1443
|
|
1444 Here is a summary of items that apply to Vim scripts. They are also mentioned
|
|
1445 elsewhere, but form a nice checklist.
|
|
1446
|
|
1447 The end-of-line character depends on the system. For Unix a single <NL>
|
|
1448 character is used. For MS-DOS, Windows, OS/2 and the like, <CR><LF> is used.
|
|
1449 This is important when using mappings that end in a <CR>. See |:source_crnl|.
|
|
1450
|
|
1451
|
|
1452 WHITE SPACE
|
|
1453
|
|
1454 Blank lines are allowed and ignored.
|
|
1455
|
|
1456 Leading whitespace characters (blanks and TABs) are always ignored. The
|
|
1457 whitespaces between parameters (e.g. between the 'set' and the 'cpoptions' in
|
|
1458 the example below) are reduced to one blank character and plays the role of a
|
|
1459 separator, the whitespaces after the last (visible) character may or may not
|
|
1460 be ignored depending on the situation, see below.
|
|
1461
|
|
1462 For a ":set" command involving the "=" (equal) sign, such as in: >
|
|
1463
|
|
1464 :set cpoptions =aABceFst
|
|
1465
|
|
1466 the whitespace immediately before the "=" sign is ignored. But there can be
|
|
1467 no whitespace after the "=" sign!
|
|
1468
|
|
1469 To include a whitespace character in the value of an option, it must be
|
|
1470 escaped by a "\" (backslash) as in the following example: >
|
|
1471
|
|
1472 :set tags=my\ nice\ file
|
|
1473
|
|
1474 The same example written as >
|
|
1475
|
|
1476 :set tags=my nice file
|
|
1477
|
|
1478 will issue an error, because it is interpreted as: >
|
|
1479
|
|
1480 :set tags=my
|
|
1481 :set nice
|
|
1482 :set file
|
|
1483
|
|
1484
|
|
1485 COMMENTS
|
|
1486
|
|
1487 The character " (the double quote mark) starts a comment. Everything after
|
|
1488 and including this character until the end-of-line is considered a comment and
|
|
1489 is ignored, except for commands that don't consider comments, as shown in
|
|
1490 examples below. A comment can start on any character position on the line.
|
|
1491
|
|
1492 There is a little "catch" with comments for some commands. Examples: >
|
|
1493
|
|
1494 :abbrev dev development " shorthand
|
|
1495 :map <F3> o#include " insert include
|
|
1496 :execute cmd " do it
|
|
1497 :!ls *.c " list C files
|
|
1498
|
|
1499 The abbreviation 'dev' will be expanded to 'development " shorthand'. The
|
|
1500 mapping of <F3> will actually be the whole line after the 'o# ....' including
|
|
1501 the '" insert include'. The "execute" command will give an error. The "!"
|
|
1502 command will send everything after it to the shell, causing an error for an
|
|
1503 unmatched '"' character.
|
|
1504 There can be no comment after ":map", ":abbreviate", ":execute" and "!"
|
|
1505 commands (there are a few more commands with this restriction). For the
|
|
1506 ":map", ":abbreviate" and ":execute" commands there is a trick: >
|
|
1507
|
|
1508 :abbrev dev development|" shorthand
|
|
1509 :map <F3> o#include|" insert include
|
|
1510 :execute cmd |" do it
|
|
1511
|
|
1512 With the '|' character the command is separated from the next one. And that
|
1146
|
1513 next command is only a comment. For the last command you need to do two
|
|
1514 things: |:execute| and use '|': >
|
|
1515 :exe '!ls *.c' |" list C files
|
7
|
1516
|
|
1517 Notice that there is no white space before the '|' in the abbreviation and
|
|
1518 mapping. For these commands, any character until the end-of-line or '|' is
|
|
1519 included. As a consequence of this behavior, you don't always see that
|
|
1520 trailing whitespace is included: >
|
|
1521
|
|
1522 :map <F4> o#include
|
|
1523
|
1146
|
1524 To spot these problems, you can set the 'list' option when editing vimrc
|
7
|
1525 files.
|
|
1526
|
1146
|
1527 For Unix there is one special way to comment a line, that allows making a Vim
|
|
1528 script executable: >
|
|
1529 #!/usr/bin/env vim -S
|
|
1530 echo "this is a Vim script"
|
|
1531 quit
|
|
1532
|
|
1533 The "#" command by itself lists a line with the line number. Adding an
|
|
1534 exclamation mark changes it into doing nothing, so that you can add the shell
|
|
1535 command to execute the rest of the file. |:#!| |-S|
|
|
1536
|
7
|
1537
|
|
1538 PITFALLS
|
|
1539
|
|
1540 Even bigger problem arises in the following example: >
|
|
1541
|
|
1542 :map ,ab o#include
|
|
1543 :unmap ,ab
|
|
1544
|
|
1545 Here the unmap command will not work, because it tries to unmap ",ab ". This
|
|
1546 does not exist as a mapped sequence. An error will be issued, which is very
|
|
1547 hard to identify, because the ending whitespace character in ":unmap ,ab " is
|
|
1548 not visible.
|
|
1549
|
|
1550 And this is the same as what happens when one uses a comment after an 'unmap'
|
|
1551 command: >
|
|
1552
|
|
1553 :unmap ,ab " comment
|
|
1554
|
|
1555 Here the comment part will be ignored. However, Vim will try to unmap
|
|
1556 ',ab ', which does not exist. Rewrite it as: >
|
|
1557
|
|
1558 :unmap ,ab| " comment
|
|
1559
|
|
1560
|
|
1561 RESTORING THE VIEW
|
|
1562
|
|
1563 Sometimes you want to make a change and go back to where cursor was.
|
|
1564 Restoring the relative position would also be nice, so that the same line
|
|
1565 appears at the top of the window.
|
|
1566 This example yanks the current line, puts it above the first line in the
|
|
1567 file and then restores the view: >
|
|
1568
|
|
1569 map ,p ma"aYHmbgg"aP`bzt`a
|
|
1570
|
|
1571 What this does: >
|
|
1572 ma"aYHmbgg"aP`bzt`a
|
|
1573 < ma set mark a at cursor position
|
|
1574 "aY yank current line into register a
|
|
1575 Hmb go to top line in window and set mark b there
|
|
1576 gg go to first line in file
|
|
1577 "aP put the yanked line above it
|
|
1578 `b go back to top line in display
|
|
1579 zt position the text in the window as before
|
|
1580 `a go back to saved cursor position
|
|
1581
|
|
1582
|
|
1583 PACKAGING
|
|
1584
|
|
1585 To avoid your function names to interfere with functions that you get from
|
|
1586 others, use this scheme:
|
|
1587 - Prepend a unique string before each function name. I often use an
|
|
1588 abbreviation. For example, "OW_" is used for the option window functions.
|
|
1589 - Put the definition of your functions together in a file. Set a global
|
|
1590 variable to indicate that the functions have been loaded. When sourcing the
|
|
1591 file again, first unload the functions.
|
|
1592 Example: >
|
|
1593
|
|
1594 " This is the XXX package
|
|
1595
|
|
1596 if exists("XXX_loaded")
|
|
1597 delfun XXX_one
|
|
1598 delfun XXX_two
|
|
1599 endif
|
|
1600
|
|
1601 function XXX_one(a)
|
|
1602 ... body of function ...
|
|
1603 endfun
|
|
1604
|
|
1605 function XXX_two(b)
|
|
1606 ... body of function ...
|
|
1607 endfun
|
|
1608
|
|
1609 let XXX_loaded = 1
|
|
1610
|
|
1611 ==============================================================================
|
161
|
1612 *41.11* Writing a plugin *write-plugin*
|
7
|
1613
|
|
1614 You can write a Vim script in such a way that many people can use it. This is
|
|
1615 called a plugin. Vim users can drop your script in their plugin directory and
|
|
1616 use its features right away |add-plugin|.
|
|
1617
|
|
1618 There are actually two types of plugins:
|
|
1619
|
|
1620 global plugins: For all types of files.
|
|
1621 filetype plugins: Only for files of a specific type.
|
|
1622
|
|
1623 In this section the first type is explained. Most items are also relevant for
|
|
1624 writing filetype plugins. The specifics for filetype plugins are in the next
|
|
1625 section |write-filetype-plugin|.
|
|
1626
|
|
1627
|
|
1628 NAME
|
|
1629
|
|
1630 First of all you must choose a name for your plugin. The features provided
|
|
1631 by the plugin should be clear from its name. And it should be unlikely that
|
|
1632 someone else writes a plugin with the same name but which does something
|
|
1633 different. And please limit the name to 8 characters, to avoid problems on
|
|
1634 old Windows systems.
|
|
1635
|
|
1636 A script that corrects typing mistakes could be called "typecorr.vim". We
|
|
1637 will use it here as an example.
|
|
1638
|
|
1639 For the plugin to work for everybody, it should follow a few guidelines. This
|
|
1640 will be explained step-by-step. The complete example plugin is at the end.
|
|
1641
|
|
1642
|
|
1643 BODY
|
|
1644
|
|
1645 Let's start with the body of the plugin, the lines that do the actual work: >
|
|
1646
|
|
1647 14 iabbrev teh the
|
|
1648 15 iabbrev otehr other
|
|
1649 16 iabbrev wnat want
|
|
1650 17 iabbrev synchronisation
|
|
1651 18 \ synchronization
|
|
1652 19 let s:count = 4
|
|
1653
|
|
1654 The actual list should be much longer, of course.
|
|
1655
|
|
1656 The line numbers have only been added to explain a few things, don't put them
|
|
1657 in your plugin file!
|
|
1658
|
|
1659
|
|
1660 HEADER
|
|
1661
|
|
1662 You will probably add new corrections to the plugin and soon have several
|
|
1663 versions laying around. And when distributing this file, people will want to
|
|
1664 know who wrote this wonderful plugin and where they can send remarks.
|
|
1665 Therefore, put a header at the top of your plugin: >
|
|
1666
|
|
1667 1 " Vim global plugin for correcting typing mistakes
|
|
1668 2 " Last Change: 2000 Oct 15
|
|
1669 3 " Maintainer: Bram Moolenaar <Bram@vim.org>
|
|
1670
|
|
1671 About copyright and licensing: Since plugins are very useful and it's hardly
|
|
1672 worth restricting their distribution, please consider making your plugin
|
|
1673 either public domain or use the Vim |license|. A short note about this near
|
|
1674 the top of the plugin should be sufficient. Example: >
|
|
1675
|
|
1676 4 " License: This file is placed in the public domain.
|
|
1677
|
|
1678
|
|
1679 LINE CONTINUATION, AVOIDING SIDE EFFECTS *use-cpo-save*
|
|
1680
|
|
1681 In line 18 above, the line-continuation mechanism is used |line-continuation|.
|
|
1682 Users with 'compatible' set will run into trouble here, they will get an error
|
|
1683 message. We can't just reset 'compatible', because that has a lot of side
|
|
1684 effects. To avoid this, we will set the 'cpoptions' option to its Vim default
|
|
1685 value and restore it later. That will allow the use of line-continuation and
|
|
1686 make the script work for most people. It is done like this: >
|
|
1687
|
|
1688 11 let s:save_cpo = &cpo
|
|
1689 12 set cpo&vim
|
|
1690 ..
|
|
1691 42 let &cpo = s:save_cpo
|
|
1692
|
|
1693 We first store the old value of 'cpoptions' in the s:save_cpo variable. At
|
|
1694 the end of the plugin this value is restored.
|
|
1695
|
|
1696 Notice that a script-local variable is used |s:var|. A global variable could
|
|
1697 already be in use for something else. Always use script-local variables for
|
|
1698 things that are only used in the script.
|
|
1699
|
|
1700
|
|
1701 NOT LOADING
|
|
1702
|
|
1703 It's possible that a user doesn't always want to load this plugin. Or the
|
|
1704 system administrator has dropped it in the system-wide plugin directory, but a
|
|
1705 user has his own plugin he wants to use. Then the user must have a chance to
|
|
1706 disable loading this specific plugin. This will make it possible: >
|
|
1707
|
|
1708 6 if exists("loaded_typecorr")
|
|
1709 7 finish
|
|
1710 8 endif
|
|
1711 9 let loaded_typecorr = 1
|
|
1712
|
|
1713 This also avoids that when the script is loaded twice it would cause error
|
|
1714 messages for redefining functions and cause trouble for autocommands that are
|
|
1715 added twice.
|
|
1716
|
|
1717
|
|
1718 MAPPING
|
|
1719
|
|
1720 Now let's make the plugin more interesting: We will add a mapping that adds a
|
|
1721 correction for the word under the cursor. We could just pick a key sequence
|
|
1722 for this mapping, but the user might already use it for something else. To
|
|
1723 allow the user to define which keys a mapping in a plugin uses, the <Leader>
|
|
1724 item can be used: >
|
|
1725
|
|
1726 22 map <unique> <Leader>a <Plug>TypecorrAdd
|
|
1727
|
|
1728 The "<Plug>TypecorrAdd" thing will do the work, more about that further on.
|
|
1729
|
|
1730 The user can set the "mapleader" variable to the key sequence that he wants
|
|
1731 this mapping to start with. Thus if the user has done: >
|
|
1732
|
|
1733 let mapleader = "_"
|
|
1734
|
|
1735 the mapping will define "_a". If the user didn't do this, the default value
|
|
1736 will be used, which is a backslash. Then a map for "\a" will be defined.
|
|
1737
|
|
1738 Note that <unique> is used, this will cause an error message if the mapping
|
|
1739 already happened to exist. |:map-<unique>|
|
|
1740
|
|
1741 But what if the user wants to define his own key sequence? We can allow that
|
|
1742 with this mechanism: >
|
|
1743
|
|
1744 21 if !hasmapto('<Plug>TypecorrAdd')
|
|
1745 22 map <unique> <Leader>a <Plug>TypecorrAdd
|
|
1746 23 endif
|
|
1747
|
|
1748 This checks if a mapping to "<Plug>TypecorrAdd" already exists, and only
|
|
1749 defines the mapping from "<Leader>a" if it doesn't. The user then has a
|
|
1750 chance of putting this in his vimrc file: >
|
|
1751
|
|
1752 map ,c <Plug>TypecorrAdd
|
|
1753
|
|
1754 Then the mapped key sequence will be ",c" instead of "_a" or "\a".
|
|
1755
|
|
1756
|
|
1757 PIECES
|
|
1758
|
|
1759 If a script gets longer, you often want to break up the work in pieces. You
|
|
1760 can use functions or mappings for this. But you don't want these functions
|
|
1761 and mappings to interfere with the ones from other scripts. For example, you
|
|
1762 could define a function Add(), but another script could try to define the same
|
|
1763 function. To avoid this, we define the function local to the script by
|
|
1764 prepending it with "s:".
|
|
1765
|
|
1766 We will define a function that adds a new typing correction: >
|
|
1767
|
|
1768 30 function s:Add(from, correct)
|
|
1769 31 let to = input("type the correction for " . a:from . ": ")
|
|
1770 32 exe ":iabbrev " . a:from . " " . to
|
|
1771 ..
|
|
1772 36 endfunction
|
|
1773
|
|
1774 Now we can call the function s:Add() from within this script. If another
|
|
1775 script also defines s:Add(), it will be local to that script and can only
|
|
1776 be called from the script it was defined in. There can also be a global Add()
|
|
1777 function (without the "s:"), which is again another function.
|
|
1778
|
|
1779 <SID> can be used with mappings. It generates a script ID, which identifies
|
|
1780 the current script. In our typing correction plugin we use it like this: >
|
|
1781
|
|
1782 24 noremap <unique> <script> <Plug>TypecorrAdd <SID>Add
|
|
1783 ..
|
|
1784 28 noremap <SID>Add :call <SID>Add(expand("<cword>"), 1)<CR>
|
|
1785
|
|
1786 Thus when a user types "\a", this sequence is invoked: >
|
|
1787
|
|
1788 \a -> <Plug>TypecorrAdd -> <SID>Add -> :call <SID>Add()
|
|
1789
|
|
1790 If another script would also map <SID>Add, it would get another script ID and
|
|
1791 thus define another mapping.
|
|
1792
|
|
1793 Note that instead of s:Add() we use <SID>Add() here. That is because the
|
|
1794 mapping is typed by the user, thus outside of the script. The <SID> is
|
|
1795 translated to the script ID, so that Vim knows in which script to look for
|
|
1796 the Add() function.
|
|
1797
|
|
1798 This is a bit complicated, but it's required for the plugin to work together
|
|
1799 with other plugins. The basic rule is that you use <SID>Add() in mappings and
|
|
1800 s:Add() in other places (the script itself, autocommands, user commands).
|
|
1801
|
|
1802 We can also add a menu entry to do the same as the mapping: >
|
|
1803
|
|
1804 26 noremenu <script> Plugin.Add\ Correction <SID>Add
|
|
1805
|
|
1806 The "Plugin" menu is recommended for adding menu items for plugins. In this
|
|
1807 case only one item is used. When adding more items, creating a submenu is
|
|
1808 recommended. For example, "Plugin.CVS" could be used for a plugin that offers
|
|
1809 CVS operations "Plugin.CVS.checkin", "Plugin.CVS.checkout", etc.
|
|
1810
|
|
1811 Note that in line 28 ":noremap" is used to avoid that any other mappings cause
|
|
1812 trouble. Someone may have remapped ":call", for example. In line 24 we also
|
|
1813 use ":noremap", but we do want "<SID>Add" to be remapped. This is why
|
|
1814 "<script>" is used here. This only allows mappings which are local to the
|
|
1815 script. |:map-<script>| The same is done in line 26 for ":noremenu".
|
|
1816 |:menu-<script>|
|
|
1817
|
|
1818
|
|
1819 <SID> AND <Plug> *using-<Plug>*
|
|
1820
|
|
1821 Both <SID> and <Plug> are used to avoid that mappings of typed keys interfere
|
|
1822 with mappings that are only to be used from other mappings. Note the
|
|
1823 difference between using <SID> and <Plug>:
|
|
1824
|
|
1825 <Plug> is visible outside of the script. It is used for mappings which the
|
|
1826 user might want to map a key sequence to. <Plug> is a special code
|
|
1827 that a typed key will never produce.
|
|
1828 To make it very unlikely that other plugins use the same sequence of
|
|
1829 characters, use this structure: <Plug> scriptname mapname
|
|
1830 In our example the scriptname is "Typecorr" and the mapname is "Add".
|
|
1831 This results in "<Plug>TypecorrAdd". Only the first character of
|
|
1832 scriptname and mapname is uppercase, so that we can see where mapname
|
|
1833 starts.
|
|
1834
|
|
1835 <SID> is the script ID, a unique identifier for a script.
|
|
1836 Internally Vim translates <SID> to "<SNR>123_", where "123" can be any
|
|
1837 number. Thus a function "<SID>Add()" will have a name "<SNR>11_Add()"
|
|
1838 in one script, and "<SNR>22_Add()" in another. You can see this if
|
|
1839 you use the ":function" command to get a list of functions. The
|
|
1840 translation of <SID> in mappings is exactly the same, that's how you
|
|
1841 can call a script-local function from a mapping.
|
|
1842
|
|
1843
|
|
1844 USER COMMAND
|
|
1845
|
|
1846 Now let's add a user command to add a correction: >
|
|
1847
|
|
1848 38 if !exists(":Correct")
|
|
1849 39 command -nargs=1 Correct :call s:Add(<q-args>, 0)
|
|
1850 40 endif
|
|
1851
|
|
1852 The user command is defined only if no command with the same name already
|
|
1853 exists. Otherwise we would get an error here. Overriding the existing user
|
|
1854 command with ":command!" is not a good idea, this would probably make the user
|
|
1855 wonder why the command he defined himself doesn't work. |:command|
|
|
1856
|
|
1857
|
|
1858 SCRIPT VARIABLES
|
|
1859
|
|
1860 When a variable starts with "s:" it is a script variable. It can only be used
|
|
1861 inside a script. Outside the script it's not visible. This avoids trouble
|
|
1862 with using the same variable name in different scripts. The variables will be
|
|
1863 kept as long as Vim is running. And the same variables are used when sourcing
|
|
1864 the same script again. |s:var|
|
|
1865
|
|
1866 The fun is that these variables can also be used in functions, autocommands
|
|
1867 and user commands that are defined in the script. In our example we can add
|
|
1868 a few lines to count the number of corrections: >
|
|
1869
|
|
1870 19 let s:count = 4
|
|
1871 ..
|
|
1872 30 function s:Add(from, correct)
|
|
1873 ..
|
|
1874 34 let s:count = s:count + 1
|
|
1875 35 echo s:count . " corrections now"
|
|
1876 36 endfunction
|
|
1877
|
|
1878 First s:count is initialized to 4 in the script itself. When later the
|
|
1879 s:Add() function is called, it increments s:count. It doesn't matter from
|
|
1880 where the function was called, since it has been defined in the script, it
|
|
1881 will use the local variables from this script.
|
|
1882
|
|
1883
|
|
1884 THE RESULT
|
|
1885
|
|
1886 Here is the resulting complete example: >
|
|
1887
|
|
1888 1 " Vim global plugin for correcting typing mistakes
|
|
1889 2 " Last Change: 2000 Oct 15
|
|
1890 3 " Maintainer: Bram Moolenaar <Bram@vim.org>
|
|
1891 4 " License: This file is placed in the public domain.
|
|
1892 5
|
|
1893 6 if exists("loaded_typecorr")
|
|
1894 7 finish
|
|
1895 8 endif
|
|
1896 9 let loaded_typecorr = 1
|
|
1897 10
|
|
1898 11 let s:save_cpo = &cpo
|
|
1899 12 set cpo&vim
|
|
1900 13
|
|
1901 14 iabbrev teh the
|
|
1902 15 iabbrev otehr other
|
|
1903 16 iabbrev wnat want
|
|
1904 17 iabbrev synchronisation
|
|
1905 18 \ synchronization
|
|
1906 19 let s:count = 4
|
|
1907 20
|
|
1908 21 if !hasmapto('<Plug>TypecorrAdd')
|
|
1909 22 map <unique> <Leader>a <Plug>TypecorrAdd
|
|
1910 23 endif
|
|
1911 24 noremap <unique> <script> <Plug>TypecorrAdd <SID>Add
|
|
1912 25
|
|
1913 26 noremenu <script> Plugin.Add\ Correction <SID>Add
|
|
1914 27
|
|
1915 28 noremap <SID>Add :call <SID>Add(expand("<cword>"), 1)<CR>
|
|
1916 29
|
|
1917 30 function s:Add(from, correct)
|
|
1918 31 let to = input("type the correction for " . a:from . ": ")
|
|
1919 32 exe ":iabbrev " . a:from . " " . to
|
|
1920 33 if a:correct | exe "normal viws\<C-R>\" \b\e" | endif
|
|
1921 34 let s:count = s:count + 1
|
|
1922 35 echo s:count . " corrections now"
|
|
1923 36 endfunction
|
|
1924 37
|
|
1925 38 if !exists(":Correct")
|
|
1926 39 command -nargs=1 Correct :call s:Add(<q-args>, 0)
|
|
1927 40 endif
|
|
1928 41
|
|
1929 42 let &cpo = s:save_cpo
|
|
1930
|
|
1931 Line 33 wasn't explained yet. It applies the new correction to the word under
|
|
1932 the cursor. The |:normal| command is used to use the new abbreviation. Note
|
|
1933 that mappings and abbreviations are expanded here, even though the function
|
|
1934 was called from a mapping defined with ":noremap".
|
|
1935
|
|
1936 Using "unix" for the 'fileformat' option is recommended. The Vim scripts will
|
|
1937 then work everywhere. Scripts with 'fileformat' set to "dos" do not work on
|
|
1938 Unix. Also see |:source_crnl|. To be sure it is set right, do this before
|
|
1939 writing the file: >
|
|
1940
|
|
1941 :set fileformat=unix
|
|
1942
|
|
1943
|
|
1944 DOCUMENTATION *write-local-help*
|
|
1945
|
|
1946 It's a good idea to also write some documentation for your plugin. Especially
|
|
1947 when its behavior can be changed by the user. See |add-local-help| for how
|
|
1948 they are installed.
|
|
1949
|
|
1950 Here is a simple example for a plugin help file, called "typecorr.txt": >
|
|
1951
|
|
1952 1 *typecorr.txt* Plugin for correcting typing mistakes
|
|
1953 2
|
|
1954 3 If you make typing mistakes, this plugin will have them corrected
|
|
1955 4 automatically.
|
|
1956 5
|
|
1957 6 There are currently only a few corrections. Add your own if you like.
|
|
1958 7
|
|
1959 8 Mappings:
|
|
1960 9 <Leader>a or <Plug>TypecorrAdd
|
|
1961 10 Add a correction for the word under the cursor.
|
|
1962 11
|
|
1963 12 Commands:
|
|
1964 13 :Correct {word}
|
|
1965 14 Add a correction for {word}.
|
|
1966 15
|
|
1967 16 *typecorr-settings*
|
|
1968 17 This plugin doesn't have any settings.
|
|
1969
|
|
1970 The first line is actually the only one for which the format matters. It will
|
|
1971 be extracted from the help file to be put in the "LOCAL ADDITIONS:" section of
|
|
1972 help.txt |local-additions|. The first "*" must be in the first column of the
|
|
1973 first line. After adding your help file do ":help" and check that the entries
|
|
1974 line up nicely.
|
|
1975
|
|
1976 You can add more tags inside ** in your help file. But be careful not to use
|
|
1977 existing help tags. You would probably use the name of your plugin in most of
|
|
1978 them, like "typecorr-settings" in the example.
|
|
1979
|
|
1980 Using references to other parts of the help in || is recommended. This makes
|
|
1981 it easy for the user to find associated help.
|
|
1982
|
|
1983
|
|
1984 FILETYPE DETECTION *plugin-filetype*
|
|
1985
|
|
1986 If your filetype is not already detected by Vim, you should create a filetype
|
|
1987 detection snippet in a separate file. It is usually in the form of an
|
|
1988 autocommand that sets the filetype when the file name matches a pattern.
|
|
1989 Example: >
|
|
1990
|
|
1991 au BufNewFile,BufRead *.foo set filetype=foofoo
|
|
1992
|
|
1993 Write this single-line file as "ftdetect/foofoo.vim" in the first directory
|
|
1994 that appears in 'runtimepath'. For Unix that would be
|
|
1995 "~/.vim/ftdetect/foofoo.vim". The convention is to use the name of the
|
|
1996 filetype for the script name.
|
|
1997
|
|
1998 You can make more complicated checks if you like, for example to inspect the
|
|
1999 contents of the file to recognize the language. Also see |new-filetype|.
|
|
2000
|
|
2001
|
|
2002 SUMMARY *plugin-special*
|
|
2003
|
|
2004 Summary of special things to use in a plugin:
|
|
2005
|
|
2006 s:name Variables local to the script.
|
|
2007
|
|
2008 <SID> Script-ID, used for mappings and functions local to
|
|
2009 the script.
|
|
2010
|
|
2011 hasmapto() Function to test if the user already defined a mapping
|
|
2012 for functionality the script offers.
|
|
2013
|
|
2014 <Leader> Value of "mapleader", which the user defines as the
|
|
2015 keys that plugin mappings start with.
|
|
2016
|
|
2017 :map <unique> Give a warning if a mapping already exists.
|
|
2018
|
|
2019 :noremap <script> Use only mappings local to the script, not global
|
|
2020 mappings.
|
|
2021
|
|
2022 exists(":Cmd") Check if a user command already exists.
|
|
2023
|
|
2024 ==============================================================================
|
161
|
2025 *41.12* Writing a filetype plugin *write-filetype-plugin* *ftplugin*
|
7
|
2026
|
|
2027 A filetype plugin is like a global plugin, except that it sets options and
|
|
2028 defines mappings for the current buffer only. See |add-filetype-plugin| for
|
|
2029 how this type of plugin is used.
|
|
2030
|
161
|
2031 First read the section on global plugins above |41.11|. All that is said there
|
7
|
2032 also applies to filetype plugins. There are a few extras, which are explained
|
|
2033 here. The essential thing is that a filetype plugin should only have an
|
|
2034 effect on the current buffer.
|
|
2035
|
|
2036
|
|
2037 DISABLING
|
|
2038
|
|
2039 If you are writing a filetype plugin to be used by many people, they need a
|
|
2040 chance to disable loading it. Put this at the top of the plugin: >
|
|
2041
|
|
2042 " Only do this when not done yet for this buffer
|
|
2043 if exists("b:did_ftplugin")
|
|
2044 finish
|
|
2045 endif
|
|
2046 let b:did_ftplugin = 1
|
|
2047
|
|
2048 This also needs to be used to avoid that the same plugin is executed twice for
|
|
2049 the same buffer (happens when using an ":edit" command without arguments).
|
|
2050
|
|
2051 Now users can disable loading the default plugin completely by making a
|
|
2052 filetype plugin with only this line: >
|
|
2053
|
|
2054 let b:did_ftplugin = 1
|
|
2055
|
|
2056 This does require that the filetype plugin directory comes before $VIMRUNTIME
|
|
2057 in 'runtimepath'!
|
|
2058
|
|
2059 If you do want to use the default plugin, but overrule one of the settings,
|
|
2060 you can write the different setting in a script: >
|
|
2061
|
|
2062 setlocal textwidth=70
|
|
2063
|
|
2064 Now write this in the "after" directory, so that it gets sourced after the
|
|
2065 distributed "vim.vim" ftplugin |after-directory|. For Unix this would be
|
|
2066 "~/.vim/after/ftplugin/vim.vim". Note that the default plugin will have set
|
|
2067 "b:did_ftplugin", but it is ignored here.
|
|
2068
|
|
2069
|
|
2070 OPTIONS
|
|
2071
|
|
2072 To make sure the filetype plugin only affects the current buffer use the >
|
|
2073
|
|
2074 :setlocal
|
|
2075
|
|
2076 command to set options. And only set options which are local to a buffer (see
|
|
2077 the help for the option to check that). When using |:setlocal| for global
|
|
2078 options or options local to a window, the value will change for many buffers,
|
|
2079 and that is not what a filetype plugin should do.
|
|
2080
|
|
2081 When an option has a value that is a list of flags or items, consider using
|
|
2082 "+=" and "-=" to keep the existing value. Be aware that the user may have
|
|
2083 changed an option value already. First resetting to the default value and
|
|
2084 then changing it often a good idea. Example: >
|
|
2085
|
|
2086 :setlocal formatoptions& formatoptions+=ro
|
|
2087
|
|
2088
|
|
2089 MAPPINGS
|
|
2090
|
|
2091 To make sure mappings will only work in the current buffer use the >
|
|
2092
|
|
2093 :map <buffer>
|
|
2094
|
|
2095 command. This needs to be combined with the two-step mapping explained above.
|
|
2096 An example of how to define functionality in a filetype plugin: >
|
|
2097
|
|
2098 if !hasmapto('<Plug>JavaImport')
|
|
2099 map <buffer> <unique> <LocalLeader>i <Plug>JavaImport
|
|
2100 endif
|
|
2101 noremap <buffer> <unique> <Plug>JavaImport oimport ""<Left><Esc>
|
|
2102
|
|
2103 |hasmapto()| is used to check if the user has already defined a map to
|
|
2104 <Plug>JavaImport. If not, then the filetype plugin defines the default
|
|
2105 mapping. This starts with |<LocalLeader>|, which allows the user to select
|
|
2106 the key(s) he wants filetype plugin mappings to start with. The default is a
|
|
2107 backslash.
|
|
2108 "<unique>" is used to give an error message if the mapping already exists or
|
|
2109 overlaps with an existing mapping.
|
|
2110 |:noremap| is used to avoid that any other mappings that the user has defined
|
|
2111 interferes. You might want to use ":noremap <script>" to allow remapping
|
|
2112 mappings defined in this script that start with <SID>.
|
|
2113
|
|
2114 The user must have a chance to disable the mappings in a filetype plugin,
|
|
2115 without disabling everything. Here is an example of how this is done for a
|
|
2116 plugin for the mail filetype: >
|
|
2117
|
|
2118 " Add mappings, unless the user didn't want this.
|
|
2119 if !exists("no_plugin_maps") && !exists("no_mail_maps")
|
|
2120 " Quote text by inserting "> "
|
|
2121 if !hasmapto('<Plug>MailQuote')
|
|
2122 vmap <buffer> <LocalLeader>q <Plug>MailQuote
|
|
2123 nmap <buffer> <LocalLeader>q <Plug>MailQuote
|
|
2124 endif
|
|
2125 vnoremap <buffer> <Plug>MailQuote :s/^/> /<CR>
|
|
2126 nnoremap <buffer> <Plug>MailQuote :.,$s/^/> /<CR>
|
|
2127 endif
|
|
2128
|
|
2129 Two global variables are used:
|
|
2130 no_plugin_maps disables mappings for all filetype plugins
|
|
2131 no_mail_maps disables mappings for a specific filetype
|
|
2132
|
|
2133
|
|
2134 USER COMMANDS
|
|
2135
|
|
2136 To add a user command for a specific file type, so that it can only be used in
|
|
2137 one buffer, use the "-buffer" argument to |:command|. Example: >
|
|
2138
|
|
2139 :command -buffer Make make %:r.s
|
|
2140
|
|
2141
|
|
2142 VARIABLES
|
|
2143
|
|
2144 A filetype plugin will be sourced for each buffer of the type it's for. Local
|
|
2145 script variables |s:var| will be shared between all invocations. Use local
|
|
2146 buffer variables |b:var| if you want a variable specifically for one buffer.
|
|
2147
|
|
2148
|
|
2149 FUNCTIONS
|
|
2150
|
|
2151 When defining a function, this only needs to be done once. But the filetype
|
|
2152 plugin will be sourced every time a file with this filetype will be opened.
|
|
2153 This construct make sure the function is only defined once: >
|
|
2154
|
|
2155 :if !exists("*s:Func")
|
|
2156 : function s:Func(arg)
|
|
2157 : ...
|
|
2158 : endfunction
|
|
2159 :endif
|
|
2160 <
|
|
2161
|
|
2162 UNDO *undo_ftplugin*
|
|
2163
|
|
2164 When the user does ":setfiletype xyz" the effect of the previous filetype
|
|
2165 should be undone. Set the b:undo_ftplugin variable to the commands that will
|
|
2166 undo the settings in your filetype plugin. Example: >
|
|
2167
|
|
2168 let b:undo_ftplugin = "setlocal fo< com< tw< commentstring<"
|
|
2169 \ . "| unlet b:match_ignorecase b:match_words b:match_skip"
|
|
2170
|
|
2171 Using ":setlocal" with "<" after the option name resets the option to its
|
|
2172 global value. That is mostly the best way to reset the option value.
|
|
2173
|
|
2174 This does require removing the "C" flag from 'cpoptions' to allow line
|
|
2175 continuation, as mentioned above |use-cpo-save|.
|
|
2176
|
|
2177
|
|
2178 FILE NAME
|
|
2179
|
|
2180 The filetype must be included in the file name |ftplugin-name|. Use one of
|
|
2181 these three forms:
|
|
2182
|
|
2183 .../ftplugin/stuff.vim
|
|
2184 .../ftplugin/stuff_foo.vim
|
|
2185 .../ftplugin/stuff/bar.vim
|
|
2186
|
|
2187 "stuff" is the filetype, "foo" and "bar" are arbitrary names.
|
|
2188
|
|
2189
|
|
2190 SUMMARY *ftplugin-special*
|
|
2191
|
|
2192 Summary of special things to use in a filetype plugin:
|
|
2193
|
|
2194 <LocalLeader> Value of "maplocalleader", which the user defines as
|
|
2195 the keys that filetype plugin mappings start with.
|
|
2196
|
|
2197 :map <buffer> Define a mapping local to the buffer.
|
|
2198
|
|
2199 :noremap <script> Only remap mappings defined in this script that start
|
|
2200 with <SID>.
|
|
2201
|
|
2202 :setlocal Set an option for the current buffer only.
|
|
2203
|
|
2204 :command -buffer Define a user command local to the buffer.
|
|
2205
|
|
2206 exists("*s:Func") Check if a function was already defined.
|
|
2207
|
|
2208 Also see |plugin-special|, the special things used for all plugins.
|
|
2209
|
|
2210 ==============================================================================
|
161
|
2211 *41.13* Writing a compiler plugin *write-compiler-plugin*
|
7
|
2212
|
|
2213 A compiler plugin sets options for use with a specific compiler. The user can
|
|
2214 load it with the |:compiler| command. The main use is to set the
|
|
2215 'errorformat' and 'makeprg' options.
|
|
2216
|
|
2217 Easiest is to have a look at examples. This command will edit all the default
|
|
2218 compiler plugins: >
|
|
2219
|
|
2220 :next $VIMRUNTIME/compiler/*.vim
|
|
2221
|
|
2222 Use |:next| to go to the next plugin file.
|
|
2223
|
|
2224 There are two special items about these files. First is a mechanism to allow
|
|
2225 a user to overrule or add to the default file. The default files start with: >
|
|
2226
|
|
2227 :if exists("current_compiler")
|
|
2228 : finish
|
|
2229 :endif
|
|
2230 :let current_compiler = "mine"
|
|
2231
|
|
2232 When you write a compiler file and put it in your personal runtime directory
|
|
2233 (e.g., ~/.vim/compiler for Unix), you set the "current_compiler" variable to
|
|
2234 make the default file skip the settings.
|
570
|
2235 *:CompilerSet*
|
7
|
2236 The second mechanism is to use ":set" for ":compiler!" and ":setlocal" for
|
|
2237 ":compiler". Vim defines the ":CompilerSet" user command for this. However,
|
|
2238 older Vim versions don't, thus your plugin should define it then. This is an
|
|
2239 example: >
|
|
2240
|
|
2241 if exists(":CompilerSet") != 2
|
|
2242 command -nargs=* CompilerSet setlocal <args>
|
|
2243 endif
|
|
2244 CompilerSet errorformat& " use the default 'errorformat'
|
|
2245 CompilerSet makeprg=nmake
|
|
2246
|
|
2247 When you write a compiler plugin for the Vim distribution or for a system-wide
|
|
2248 runtime directory, use the mechanism mentioned above. When
|
|
2249 "current_compiler" was already set by a user plugin nothing will be done.
|
|
2250
|
|
2251 When you write a compiler plugin to overrule settings from a default plugin,
|
|
2252 don't check "current_compiler". This plugin is supposed to be loaded
|
|
2253 last, thus it should be in a directory at the end of 'runtimepath'. For Unix
|
|
2254 that could be ~/.vim/after/compiler.
|
|
2255
|
|
2256 ==============================================================================
|
170
|
2257 *41.14* Writing a plugin that loads quickly *write-plugin-quickload*
|
|
2258
|
|
2259 A plugin may grow and become quite long. The startup delay may become
|
1620
|
2260 noticeable, while you hardly ever use the plugin. Then it's time for a
|
170
|
2261 quickload plugin.
|
|
2262
|
|
2263 The basic idea is that the plugin is loaded twice. The first time user
|
|
2264 commands and mappings are defined that offer the functionality. The second
|
|
2265 time the functions that implement the functionality are defined.
|
|
2266
|
|
2267 It may sound surprising that quickload means loading a script twice. What we
|
|
2268 mean is that it loads quickly the first time, postponing the bulk of the
|
|
2269 script to the second time, which only happens when you actually use it. When
|
|
2270 you always use the functionality it actually gets slower!
|
|
2271
|
793
|
2272 Note that since Vim 7 there is an alternative: use the |autoload|
|
|
2273 functionality |41.15|.
|
|
2274
|
170
|
2275 The following example shows how it's done: >
|
|
2276
|
|
2277 " Vim global plugin for demonstrating quick loading
|
|
2278 " Last Change: 2005 Feb 25
|
|
2279 " Maintainer: Bram Moolenaar <Bram@vim.org>
|
|
2280 " License: This file is placed in the public domain.
|
|
2281
|
|
2282 if !exists("s:did_load")
|
|
2283 command -nargs=* BNRead call BufNetRead(<f-args>)
|
|
2284 map <F19> :call BufNetWrite('something')<CR>
|
|
2285
|
|
2286 let s:did_load = 1
|
|
2287 exe 'au FuncUndefined BufNet* source ' . expand('<sfile>')
|
|
2288 finish
|
|
2289 endif
|
|
2290
|
|
2291 function BufNetRead(...)
|
|
2292 echo 'BufNetRead(' . string(a:000) . ')'
|
|
2293 " read functionality here
|
|
2294 endfunction
|
|
2295
|
|
2296 function BufNetWrite(...)
|
|
2297 echo 'BufNetWrite(' . string(a:000) . ')'
|
|
2298 " write functionality here
|
|
2299 endfunction
|
|
2300
|
|
2301 When the script is first loaded "s:did_load" is not set. The commands between
|
|
2302 the "if" and "endif" will be executed. This ends in a |:finish| command, thus
|
|
2303 the rest of the script is not executed.
|
|
2304
|
|
2305 The second time the script is loaded "s:did_load" exists and the commands
|
|
2306 after the "endif" are executed. This defines the (possible long)
|
|
2307 BufNetRead() and BufNetWrite() functions.
|
|
2308
|
|
2309 If you drop this script in your plugin directory Vim will execute it on
|
|
2310 startup. This is the sequence of events that happens:
|
|
2311
|
|
2312 1. The "BNRead" command is defined and the <F19> key is mapped when the script
|
|
2313 is sourced at startup. A |FuncUndefined| autocommand is defined. The
|
|
2314 ":finish" command causes the script to terminate early.
|
|
2315
|
|
2316 2. The user types the BNRead command or presses the <F19> key. The
|
|
2317 BufNetRead() or BufNetWrite() function will be called.
|
856
|
2318
|
170
|
2319 3. Vim can't find the function and triggers the |FuncUndefined| autocommand
|
|
2320 event. Since the pattern "BufNet*" matches the invoked function, the
|
|
2321 command "source fname" will be executed. "fname" will be equal to the name
|
|
2322 of the script, no matter where it is located, because it comes from
|
|
2323 expanding "<sfile>" (see |expand()|).
|
|
2324
|
|
2325 4. The script is sourced again, the "s:did_load" variable exists and the
|
|
2326 functions are defined.
|
|
2327
|
|
2328 Notice that the functions that are loaded afterwards match the pattern in the
|
|
2329 |FuncUndefined| autocommand. You must make sure that no other plugin defines
|
|
2330 functions that match this pattern.
|
|
2331
|
|
2332 ==============================================================================
|
|
2333 *41.15* Writing library scripts *write-library-script*
|
|
2334
|
|
2335 Some functionality will be required in several places. When this becomes more
|
|
2336 than a few lines you will want to put it in one script and use it from many
|
|
2337 scripts. We will call that one script a library script.
|
|
2338
|
|
2339 Manually loading a library script is possible, so long as you avoid loading it
|
|
2340 when it's already done. You can do this with the |exists()| function.
|
|
2341 Example: >
|
|
2342
|
|
2343 if !exists('*MyLibFunction')
|
|
2344 runtime library/mylibscript.vim
|
|
2345 endif
|
|
2346 call MyLibFunction(arg)
|
|
2347
|
|
2348 Here you need to know that MyLibFunction() is defined in a script
|
|
2349 "library/mylibscript.vim" in one of the directories in 'runtimepath'.
|
|
2350
|
|
2351 To make this a bit simpler Vim offers the autoload mechanism. Then the
|
|
2352 example looks like this: >
|
|
2353
|
270
|
2354 call mylib#myfunction(arg)
|
170
|
2355
|
|
2356 That's a lot simpler, isn't it? Vim will recognize the function name and when
|
|
2357 it's not defined search for the script "autoload/mylib.vim" in 'runtimepath'.
|
270
|
2358 That script must define the "mylib#myfunction()" function.
|
170
|
2359
|
|
2360 You can put many other functions in the mylib.vim script, you are free to
|
|
2361 organize your functions in library scripts. But you must use function names
|
323
|
2362 where the part before the '#' matches the script name. Otherwise Vim would
|
|
2363 not know what script to load.
|
170
|
2364
|
681
|
2365 If you get really enthusiastic and write lots of library scripts, you may
|
170
|
2366 want to use subdirectories. Example: >
|
|
2367
|
270
|
2368 call netlib#ftp#read('somefile')
|
170
|
2369
|
|
2370 For Unix the library script used for this could be:
|
|
2371
|
|
2372 ~/.vim/autoload/netlib/ftp.vim
|
|
2373
|
|
2374 Where the function is defined like this: >
|
|
2375
|
270
|
2376 function netlib#ftp#read(fname)
|
170
|
2377 " Read the file fname through ftp
|
|
2378 endfunction
|
|
2379
|
|
2380 Notice that the name the function is defined with is exactly the same as the
|
323
|
2381 name used for calling the function. And the part before the last '#'
|
170
|
2382 exactly matches the subdirectory and script name.
|
|
2383
|
|
2384 You can use the same mechanism for variables: >
|
|
2385
|
270
|
2386 let weekdays = dutch#weekdays
|
170
|
2387
|
|
2388 This will load the script "autoload/dutch.vim", which should contain something
|
|
2389 like: >
|
|
2390
|
270
|
2391 let dutch#weekdays = ['zondag', 'maandag', 'dinsdag', 'woensdag',
|
170
|
2392 \ 'donderdag', 'vrijdag', 'zaterdag']
|
|
2393
|
|
2394 Further reading: |autoload|.
|
|
2395
|
|
2396 ==============================================================================
|
793
|
2397 *41.16* Distributing Vim scripts *distribute-script*
|
|
2398
|
|
2399 Vim users will look for scripts on the Vim website: http://www.vim.org.
|
|
2400 If you made something that is useful for others, share it!
|
|
2401
|
|
2402 Vim scripts can be used on any system. There might not be a tar or gzip
|
|
2403 command. If you want to pack files together and/or compress them the "zip"
|
|
2404 utility is recommended.
|
|
2405
|
|
2406 For utmost portability use Vim itself to pack scripts together. This can be
|
|
2407 done with the Vimball utility. See |vimball|.
|
|
2408
|
799
|
2409 It's good if you add a line to allow automatic updating. See |glvs-plugins|.
|
|
2410
|
793
|
2411 ==============================================================================
|
7
|
2412
|
|
2413 Next chapter: |usr_42.txt| Add new menus
|
|
2414
|
|
2415 Copyright: see |manual-copyright| vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl:
|