Pasting in command line Vim doesn't have to suck(userobsessed.net)
userobsessed.net
Pasting in command line Vim doesn't have to suck
http://userobsessed.net/tips-and-tricks/2011/05/10/copy-and-paste-in-vim/
10 comments
It's only available when Vim is compiled with +xclipboard support. I actually found that on an older version of CentOS (v4, I don't know if it's different in newer versions), the 'vim' command and the 'gvim' command were separately compiled binaries so that 'vim' command didn't share the +xclipboard support. On Debian/Ubuntu, I believe they are the same binary.
Exactly. On my machine (Ubuntu 11.04) the binary (/usr/bin/vim.basic) provided by the vim package is compiled with -clipboard -xterm_clipboard, and the binary (/usr/bin/vim.gnome) provided by vim-gnome is compiled with +clipboard +xterm_clipboard.
Honest question: how is that faster than Ctrl+V? Is it because you don't need the mouse?
Its not. You usually do most of your copying and pasting within vim so you can just use the normal past command, but it is annoying when you want to do something with the system clipboard.
I'm sorry for the confusion. There are two ways it can be faster. The way you understood it, I guess, is in typing. The difference here is:
What I meant, though, is the actual input of text. When pasting with Ctrl+V, that's like one character at a time for Vim, and that's visible, so if you paste a large body of text you can actually see it scrolling past. When working with buffer commands, it works just any other internal Vim buffer operation, which is instantaneous.
i Ctrl v Esc
(Shift) " * p
What I meant, though, is the actual input of text. When pasting with Ctrl+V, that's like one character at a time for Vim, and that's visible, so if you paste a large body of text you can actually see it scrolling past. When working with buffer commands, it works just any other internal Vim buffer operation, which is instantaneous.
Vim has a built-in directive to toggle paste mode:
set pastetoggle=<F3>
http://vim.wikia.com/wiki/Toggle_auto-indenting_for_code_pas...
set pastetoggle=<F3>
http://vim.wikia.com/wiki/Toggle_auto-indenting_for_code_pas...
Another method I sometimes use for pasting large blocks of code:
:r !cat
(paste your stuff)
ctrl - D
When the author says "command line Vim" he means "Vim running in a terminal emulator".
And pasting to terminal Vim doesn't suck if your Vim is configured to detect mouse clicks or interface with the system clipboard. Using the system paste shortcut (command- or ctrl-V) in insert mode is not the way to do it.
And pasting to terminal Vim doesn't suck if your Vim is configured to detect mouse clicks or interface with the system clipboard. Using the system paste shortcut (command- or ctrl-V) in insert mode is not the way to do it.
Although if you're using Vim over SSH from a Windows box, the :set paste command is useful to know.
:set pastetoggle=<F5>
Sure, that works great if you want to reach for the mouse.
As mentioned elsewhere, if your vim is compiled with clipboard support(:version and look for +clipboard), you can copy/paste from the clipboard.
* is the Linux selection register.
+ is your clipboard.
So yanking is just set paste, "+y or " * y, set nopaste. Similarly you can do a "+d in vim and ctrl-v it in your browser or anywhere you can access the clipboard. You can " * d/" * y and paste it with your middle mouse button.
* is the Linux selection register.
+ is your clipboard.
So yanking is just set paste, "+y or " * y, set nopaste. Similarly you can do a "+d in vim and ctrl-v it in your browser or anywhere you can access the clipboard. You can " * d/" * y and paste it with your middle mouse button.
The mouse has nothing to do with it...
If you paste method doesn't let vim know what's going on, use pastetoggle, otherwise don't.
If you paste method doesn't let vim know what's going on, use pastetoggle, otherwise don't.
Or you can use shift+insert.
Unless, of course, the system clipboard is on a different machine than the running copy of Vim. This is useful advice, you really don't have to be so negative about it just because you aren't in a situation where it's applicable.
If your ssh session has X11 forwarding enabled, and the remote terminal Vim has +xclipboard support, then you can use the "+P keystroke to paste directly from the clipboard into Vim.
[deleted]
Good point on my wording, thank you. I will change that to make it less confusing. As for middle-click, I really don't want to use the mouse. I don't use it for pasting anywhere else, so why would I change that for Vim?
perhaps, I'm forgetting something, but these solutions seem overly complicated.
I just have this in my .vimrc, and pasting (with formatting), is as simple as copying text, going to vim and hitting 'p' in command mode.
note: I used unnamedplus for a bit, but found it to be much less desirable than using the unnamed middle-click buffer...YMMV
I just have this in my .vimrc, and pasting (with formatting), is as simple as copying text, going to vim and hitting 'p' in command mode.
for middle-click (system) clipboard:
:set clipboard=unnamed
for ctrl-c (X11) clipboard:
:set clipboard=unnamedplus
couple caveats:
* +xterm_clipboard
* 'unnamedplus' is only for >= 7.3.74
note: I used unnamedplus for a bit, but found it to be much less desirable than using the unnamed middle-click buffer...YMMV
[deleted]
You can also paste in "ex" mode.
ESC
Q --> to go to "ex" mode
i --> to start inserting
paste text here
. --> line containing a single period to exit "ex" insert mode
:vi --> to return to "vi" mode
...golfer, moi?
ESC
Q --> to go to "ex" mode
i --> to start inserting
paste text here
. --> line containing a single period to exit "ex" insert mode
:vi --> to return to "vi" mode
...golfer, moi?
On a mac, you can use :r !pbpaste
If you're ssh'd somewhere it's a different story. I've seen some things about sharing clipboards across shells, but I've never bothered to set it up.
Also, copy-pasta makes for bad code.
If you're ssh'd somewhere it's a different story. I've seen some things about sharing clipboards across shells, but I've never bothered to set it up.
Also, copy-pasta makes for bad code.
Thanks for the tip! I also learned you can do:
:a! <paste like normal> <C-c>
and that will paste with properly formatted text.
:a! <paste like normal> <C-c>
and that will paste with properly formatted text.
... and I thought it was how to paste in vim commandline after :
How to paste in vim commandline after :
q/ and q? to edit and execute search history.
[edit formatting]
<ESC>
(normal mode)
q:
(fully vim editable window of :command line history)
(edit one of the command lines, yank and put all you like)
(or edit the new blank command line at the bottom)
<ESC><ENTER>
(to execute the current line, or)
:q
(to quit without executing)
(normal mode)
q/ and q? to edit and execute search history.
[edit formatting]
ctrl-r <register> pastes that register into your command.
So I often need to find "where is this method defined" across a large project.
So I often need to find "where is this method defined" across a large project.
yw (yank word to get method into the " register)
:Ack <ctrl-r>" (ack plugin, paste that default " register)
<enter> yay! I found it.
/foo (attempt to find foo in this file. Whoops, not there, where is it!).
:Ack <ctrl-r>/ (last search is in the / register).
There it is!wow! this is exactly what i was looking for. thank you.
"Argh, how do I paste?!"
:h paste
or
And so on. Very convenient (and also much faster than Ctrl+V). On Ubuntu, this is only available in the Vim provided by vim-gnome or vim-gtk (even when running in a terminal).