Working with plain vi not vim
I was trying to learn working with vi, the plain 'vi' that ships with most of the operating system, but that 'vi' seems to be missing lot of features.
When I tried to excute ":ls", it gave me error E319: Sorry, the command is not available in this version.
Similarly for most of commands, When I tried :version, it returned Small version without GUI .
For now I just want to learn working with "vi" not "vim".
- So any nice place where I can learn from(I found most tutorials are for vim).
- Any easy ways to extend functionality of "vi" not "vim"
- Any tips if I'm going on wrong path
command-line server vi
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
add a comment |
I was trying to learn working with vi, the plain 'vi' that ships with most of the operating system, but that 'vi' seems to be missing lot of features.
When I tried to excute ":ls", it gave me error E319: Sorry, the command is not available in this version.
Similarly for most of commands, When I tried :version, it returned Small version without GUI .
For now I just want to learn working with "vi" not "vim".
- So any nice place where I can learn from(I found most tutorials are for vim).
- Any easy ways to extend functionality of "vi" not "vim"
- Any tips if I'm going on wrong path
command-line server vi
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
and when tried to load 5 files in "vi", they were not even working, ":bn" was also not available, any pointer on that . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 3:47
Mind to share where you got the plain vi? I know there exist nvi , elvis and some other clones, but which one you are using,? And where can I get it too?
– Sergiy Kolodyazhnyy
Oct 14 '14 at 4:05
I'm using the one which come with OS, and I'm using wheezy ! No extra "sudo apt-get install vim"
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:21
add a comment |
I was trying to learn working with vi, the plain 'vi' that ships with most of the operating system, but that 'vi' seems to be missing lot of features.
When I tried to excute ":ls", it gave me error E319: Sorry, the command is not available in this version.
Similarly for most of commands, When I tried :version, it returned Small version without GUI .
For now I just want to learn working with "vi" not "vim".
- So any nice place where I can learn from(I found most tutorials are for vim).
- Any easy ways to extend functionality of "vi" not "vim"
- Any tips if I'm going on wrong path
command-line server vi
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
I was trying to learn working with vi, the plain 'vi' that ships with most of the operating system, but that 'vi' seems to be missing lot of features.
When I tried to excute ":ls", it gave me error E319: Sorry, the command is not available in this version.
Similarly for most of commands, When I tried :version, it returned Small version without GUI .
For now I just want to learn working with "vi" not "vim".
- So any nice place where I can learn from(I found most tutorials are for vim).
- Any easy ways to extend functionality of "vi" not "vim"
- Any tips if I'm going on wrong path
command-line server vi
command-line server vi
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
asked Oct 14 '14 at 3:46
murarisumit
320112
320112
and when tried to load 5 files in "vi", they were not even working, ":bn" was also not available, any pointer on that . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 3:47
Mind to share where you got the plain vi? I know there exist nvi , elvis and some other clones, but which one you are using,? And where can I get it too?
– Sergiy Kolodyazhnyy
Oct 14 '14 at 4:05
I'm using the one which come with OS, and I'm using wheezy ! No extra "sudo apt-get install vim"
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:21
add a comment |
and when tried to load 5 files in "vi", they were not even working, ":bn" was also not available, any pointer on that . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 3:47
Mind to share where you got the plain vi? I know there exist nvi , elvis and some other clones, but which one you are using,? And where can I get it too?
– Sergiy Kolodyazhnyy
Oct 14 '14 at 4:05
I'm using the one which come with OS, and I'm using wheezy ! No extra "sudo apt-get install vim"
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:21
and when tried to load 5 files in "vi", they were not even working, ":bn" was also not available, any pointer on that . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 3:47
and when tried to load 5 files in "vi", they were not even working, ":bn" was also not available, any pointer on that . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 3:47
Mind to share where you got the plain vi? I know there exist nvi , elvis and some other clones, but which one you are using,? And where can I get it too?
– Sergiy Kolodyazhnyy
Oct 14 '14 at 4:05
Mind to share where you got the plain vi? I know there exist nvi , elvis and some other clones, but which one you are using,? And where can I get it too?
– Sergiy Kolodyazhnyy
Oct 14 '14 at 4:05
I'm using the one which come with OS, and I'm using wheezy ! No extra "sudo apt-get install vim"
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:21
I'm using the one which come with OS, and I'm using wheezy ! No extra "sudo apt-get install vim"
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:21
add a comment |
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
The "vi" command that comes with Ubuntu is actually just linked to vim, with options that disable several of its features, putting it in a sort of "vi compatibility mode", the same as using the :set compatible command.
The original "vi" itself is ancient, and has a license that would not allow it to be distributed with Ubuntu. It has a number of spiritual successors in the form of open source editors that emulate it, but the most popular of these is vim, followed by nvi and elvis.
vim is the most popular successor to vi, and adds many helpful features, many which you are used to and probably think of as being part of vi, but in reality are features added to vim. vim aims for improved usability.
nvi is another editor that attempts to more closely emulate the original vi, but has since gone on to add many improvements.
elvis is another editor that attempts to closely emulate the original vi but add extra features. elvis is the vi-like editor used by Slackware Linux.
busybox is a multi-purpose executable that includes a vi-like editor, but also includes a number of other command line tools. It is designed for embedded systems and devices with very low memory or storage space. Its vi-like editor is a vi clone optimised for very low size and memory use.
neovim is a fork of vim intended to implement some features vim is seen to lack. It's growing in popularity but is relatively new and it's hard to tell if distributions will ever replace vim with neovim as a default.
The reasons you're having problems is that you're trying to use vim commands in vim's "vi compatibility mode" which disables these features.
I don't see any value in limiting yourself to just the commands that were in the original vi, as that editor is not really relevant anymore and you may as well benefit from the increased usability and functionality of vim or one of the other clones.
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
add a comment |
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1 Answer
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votes
The "vi" command that comes with Ubuntu is actually just linked to vim, with options that disable several of its features, putting it in a sort of "vi compatibility mode", the same as using the :set compatible command.
The original "vi" itself is ancient, and has a license that would not allow it to be distributed with Ubuntu. It has a number of spiritual successors in the form of open source editors that emulate it, but the most popular of these is vim, followed by nvi and elvis.
vim is the most popular successor to vi, and adds many helpful features, many which you are used to and probably think of as being part of vi, but in reality are features added to vim. vim aims for improved usability.
nvi is another editor that attempts to more closely emulate the original vi, but has since gone on to add many improvements.
elvis is another editor that attempts to closely emulate the original vi but add extra features. elvis is the vi-like editor used by Slackware Linux.
busybox is a multi-purpose executable that includes a vi-like editor, but also includes a number of other command line tools. It is designed for embedded systems and devices with very low memory or storage space. Its vi-like editor is a vi clone optimised for very low size and memory use.
neovim is a fork of vim intended to implement some features vim is seen to lack. It's growing in popularity but is relatively new and it's hard to tell if distributions will ever replace vim with neovim as a default.
The reasons you're having problems is that you're trying to use vim commands in vim's "vi compatibility mode" which disables these features.
I don't see any value in limiting yourself to just the commands that were in the original vi, as that editor is not really relevant anymore and you may as well benefit from the increased usability and functionality of vim or one of the other clones.
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
add a comment |
The "vi" command that comes with Ubuntu is actually just linked to vim, with options that disable several of its features, putting it in a sort of "vi compatibility mode", the same as using the :set compatible command.
The original "vi" itself is ancient, and has a license that would not allow it to be distributed with Ubuntu. It has a number of spiritual successors in the form of open source editors that emulate it, but the most popular of these is vim, followed by nvi and elvis.
vim is the most popular successor to vi, and adds many helpful features, many which you are used to and probably think of as being part of vi, but in reality are features added to vim. vim aims for improved usability.
nvi is another editor that attempts to more closely emulate the original vi, but has since gone on to add many improvements.
elvis is another editor that attempts to closely emulate the original vi but add extra features. elvis is the vi-like editor used by Slackware Linux.
busybox is a multi-purpose executable that includes a vi-like editor, but also includes a number of other command line tools. It is designed for embedded systems and devices with very low memory or storage space. Its vi-like editor is a vi clone optimised for very low size and memory use.
neovim is a fork of vim intended to implement some features vim is seen to lack. It's growing in popularity but is relatively new and it's hard to tell if distributions will ever replace vim with neovim as a default.
The reasons you're having problems is that you're trying to use vim commands in vim's "vi compatibility mode" which disables these features.
I don't see any value in limiting yourself to just the commands that were in the original vi, as that editor is not really relevant anymore and you may as well benefit from the increased usability and functionality of vim or one of the other clones.
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
add a comment |
The "vi" command that comes with Ubuntu is actually just linked to vim, with options that disable several of its features, putting it in a sort of "vi compatibility mode", the same as using the :set compatible command.
The original "vi" itself is ancient, and has a license that would not allow it to be distributed with Ubuntu. It has a number of spiritual successors in the form of open source editors that emulate it, but the most popular of these is vim, followed by nvi and elvis.
vim is the most popular successor to vi, and adds many helpful features, many which you are used to and probably think of as being part of vi, but in reality are features added to vim. vim aims for improved usability.
nvi is another editor that attempts to more closely emulate the original vi, but has since gone on to add many improvements.
elvis is another editor that attempts to closely emulate the original vi but add extra features. elvis is the vi-like editor used by Slackware Linux.
busybox is a multi-purpose executable that includes a vi-like editor, but also includes a number of other command line tools. It is designed for embedded systems and devices with very low memory or storage space. Its vi-like editor is a vi clone optimised for very low size and memory use.
neovim is a fork of vim intended to implement some features vim is seen to lack. It's growing in popularity but is relatively new and it's hard to tell if distributions will ever replace vim with neovim as a default.
The reasons you're having problems is that you're trying to use vim commands in vim's "vi compatibility mode" which disables these features.
I don't see any value in limiting yourself to just the commands that were in the original vi, as that editor is not really relevant anymore and you may as well benefit from the increased usability and functionality of vim or one of the other clones.
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
The "vi" command that comes with Ubuntu is actually just linked to vim, with options that disable several of its features, putting it in a sort of "vi compatibility mode", the same as using the :set compatible command.
The original "vi" itself is ancient, and has a license that would not allow it to be distributed with Ubuntu. It has a number of spiritual successors in the form of open source editors that emulate it, but the most popular of these is vim, followed by nvi and elvis.
vim is the most popular successor to vi, and adds many helpful features, many which you are used to and probably think of as being part of vi, but in reality are features added to vim. vim aims for improved usability.
nvi is another editor that attempts to more closely emulate the original vi, but has since gone on to add many improvements.
elvis is another editor that attempts to closely emulate the original vi but add extra features. elvis is the vi-like editor used by Slackware Linux.
busybox is a multi-purpose executable that includes a vi-like editor, but also includes a number of other command line tools. It is designed for embedded systems and devices with very low memory or storage space. Its vi-like editor is a vi clone optimised for very low size and memory use.
neovim is a fork of vim intended to implement some features vim is seen to lack. It's growing in popularity but is relatively new and it's hard to tell if distributions will ever replace vim with neovim as a default.
The reasons you're having problems is that you're trying to use vim commands in vim's "vi compatibility mode" which disables these features.
I don't see any value in limiting yourself to just the commands that were in the original vi, as that editor is not really relevant anymore and you may as well benefit from the increased usability and functionality of vim or one of the other clones.
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
edited Dec 19 at 0:04
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
answered Oct 14 '14 at 4:01
thomasrutter
26.4k46389
26.4k46389
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
add a comment |
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
I was trying to learn editor which is working with all OS, without and extra download .! So I thought plain "vi" will be a good choice
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:23
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
vim is relatively universal these days, but yes, you can get pretty close to plain vi by using vim in compatible mode (which "vi" does by default in Ubuntu") or busybox vi.
– thomasrutter
Oct 14 '14 at 5:28
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
I installed wheezy, but it wasn't there, but no probs I got few shortcuts like ":n" , ":args" intead of ":ls" and now I can use ":!command", that will take care of my problems, and I'll keep on exploring .. Thanx for your answer . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 5:58
add a comment |
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and when tried to load 5 files in "vi", they were not even working, ":bn" was also not available, any pointer on that . !
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 3:47
Mind to share where you got the plain vi? I know there exist nvi , elvis and some other clones, but which one you are using,? And where can I get it too?
– Sergiy Kolodyazhnyy
Oct 14 '14 at 4:05
I'm using the one which come with OS, and I'm using wheezy ! No extra "sudo apt-get install vim"
– murarisumit
Oct 14 '14 at 4:21