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[REBOL] Re: GVIM Editor

From: chris:starforge:demon at: 13-Mar-2002 17:53

#Wednesday 13 March 2002 13:10# Message from Joel Neely:
> To be fair, I must admit that I've purchased the O'Reilly book > on GNU Emacs and plan to start (again) trying it out for some > things. However, I've never understood why some folks think > > control-x control-f <filename> > > is easier than > > :e <filename>
The main difference here is that, unless you're using the Version Of Emacs For The Psychotically Masocistic (ie: running it in a plain tty), you have the option of using a mouse and menu in emacs. When I started learning emacs I didn't use the keyboard shortcuts - I didn't know most of them. Instead I used the menus: they provide access to the options most people need when they're just starting to use an editor. With vim you're dropped in at the deep end - you either learn the commands quickly, or you get stuck.
> to open a file, or why > control-b control-n control-p control-f > are easier than > h j k l > to move left, down, up, and right, respectively.
Can't say I use them at all - I just use the cursor keys ;)
> That certainly isn't the case today, although it is still the > case that vi/vim has a much smaller footprint than emacs.
Definately, especially comparing a full install of emacs on Linux (around 48Mb) to vim (about 400k).
> AFAICT, both allow you to start doing elementary text editing > with only about a dozen or so commands,
Yes, although as I say IMO emacs is easier to start with as the basic (and some not so basic) options are usually avilable in a menu.
> while emacs has *lots* of modes, having to do with what kind > of data it assumes you are editing and whether it should be > doing context-dependent things (and allowing context-dependent > commands?) based on the kind of data (e.g. c source versus > lisp source versus English text, etc...)
It's a bit more complex than that, because you have major modes (which are chosen basedon the type of data in the buffer) and minor modes which modify or add functionality to the major mode. For example, when I load a c file emacs switches to c-mode, but I can also start hs-minor-mode on top of that (which allows blocks of code to be "folded"). Chris -- .------{ http://www.starforge.co.uk }-----. .---------------------------. =[ Explorer2260, Designer and Coder \=\ P: TexMaker, Draktar \ =[_[ You will obey the corporate masters. ]_]==[ Stack: EEOeOeOeTmTmDD---- ] -- Fifth Law of Procrastination: Procrastination avoids boredom; one never has the feeling that there is nothing important to do.