{"id":10805,"date":"2024-02-13T13:48:31","date_gmt":"2024-02-13T13:48:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/youstable.com\/blog\/?p=10805"},"modified":"2024-05-01T08:41:10","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T08:41:10","slug":"how-to-install-vim-editor-on-ubuntu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/how-to-install-vim-editor-on-ubuntu\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Install Vim Editor on Ubuntu and Master Basic Commands"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I love VIM Editor<\/strong> over NANO Editor<\/strong> in Linux, but both are not preinstalled on the Ubuntu Operating system. As a Linux system administrator, having a robust text editor is essential for your day-to-day tasks, and Vim stands out as one of the most powerful and versatile editors available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Linux<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Vim, which stands for VI IMproved, is an enhanced version of the vi editor, with additional features<\/a> designed to make editing more efficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Installing Vim on Ubuntu<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The process of installing<\/a> Vim on Ubuntu is straightforward thanks to the apt package manager<\/strong>. Here are the steps to install Vim:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Update Your Package List:<\/strong> To ensure you have the latest versions of packages and their dependencies, update your package list with the following command:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

sudo apt update<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Install Vim:<\/strong> Once the package list is updated, install Vim by running:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
sudo apt install vim<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
This command will download and install the Vim editor along with any necessary dependencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Verify Installation:<\/strong> To ensure Vim has been installed successfully, you can check its version by typing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"Verify<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
vim --version<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
If Vim is installed, you’ll see the version information and additional details about the configuration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lets Understand Basic VIM use cases<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Vim operates in several modes, the primary ones being Normal Mode, Insert Mode, and Command Mode. Understanding these modes is key to efficiently using Vim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Entering Editor Mode<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  • i:<\/strong> Enter Insert Mode to start editing the text. In this mode, you can type text normally.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • o:<\/strong> Open a new line below the current line and enter Insert Mode.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
    Navigating in Normal Mode<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    • h, j, k, l:<\/strong> Navigate left, down, up, and right, respectively. Vim encourages using these keys for navigation instead of the arrow keys to keep your fingers on the home row.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • w:<\/strong> Move to the beginning of the next word.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • b:<\/strong> Move back to the beginning of the preceding word.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • 0 (zero):<\/strong> Move to the beginning of the line.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • $:<\/strong> Move to the end of the line.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
      Editing Text<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      • dd:<\/strong> Delete the current line.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • yy:<\/strong> Yank (copy) the current line.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • p:<\/strong> Paste the yanked or deleted text below the cursor.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • u:<\/strong> Undo the last operation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Ctrl + r:<\/strong> Redo the last undo.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
        Saving and Exiting in VIM<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
          \n
        • :w:<\/strong> Save the file without exiting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • :q:<\/strong> Quit Vim. If you’ve made changes, Vim will warn you. To quit without saving changes, use :q!<\/code>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • :wq or :x:<\/strong> Save changes and exit Vim.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
          Finding Text<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
            \n
          • \/text:<\/strong> Search for “text” in the document. Press n<\/code> to move to the next occurrence and N<\/code> to move to the previous occurrence.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
            Replacing Text<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
              \n
            • :%s\/old\/new\/g:<\/strong> Replace all occurrences of “old” with “new” throughout the document.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
              Linux VIM Editor Alternatives<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
                \n
              • Emacs:<\/strong> More than just a text editor, Emacs is nearly an entire operating system. It’s highly extensible, allowing for customization and extension through Emacs Lisp.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                <\/p>\n\n\n\n
                  \n
                • Nano:<\/strong> Nano is an easy-to-use, modeless editor, making it a favorite for beginners and those who prefer a straightforward editing tool.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                  <\/p>\n\n\n\n
                    \n
                  • Neovim:<\/strong> A project that seeks to extend Vim by adding new features, such as asynchronous plugins and a more powerful plugin architecture, while maintaining compatibility with Vim’s editing model.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                    <\/p>\n\n\n\n
                      \n
                    • Micro:<\/strong> A modern and intuitive terminal-based text editor that aims to be easy to use and configure while offering more sophisticated features like mouse support and plugin extensions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                      Vim is an incredibly powerful editor that offers a wide range of features to streamline your workflow. While it has a steep learning curve, mastering the basic commands is the first step toward leveraging its full potential.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
                      I love VIM Editor over NANO Editor in Linux, but both are not preinstalled on the Ubuntu Operating system. As […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"iawp_total_views":175,"footnotes":""},"categories":[350,1134,2259],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-knowledgebase","category-linux","category-kb-linux"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10805","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10805"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10805\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10805"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10805"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youstable.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10805"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}