Key reference¶

Every binding, by mode. :help inside the editor prints a one-line version of this.

Normal mode¶

Motions¶

Key
`h` `j` `k` `l`	left, down, up, right
`←` `↓` `↑` `→`	the same
`w` `b` `e`	word forwards, back, to the end of one
`W` `B` `E`	the same, punctuation counted as part of the word
`0`	the first column
`^`	the first non-blank
`$`	the end of the line
`+` `Enter`-ish `-`	first non-blank of the next line, of the previous
`Space`	forward one character
`_`	the first non-blank of this line
`gg` `G`	the first line, the last
`{` `}`	back and forward a paragraph
`f`c `F`c	to the next c on this line, or the previous
`t`c `T`c	to just before it, either way
`%`	to the bracket matching the next one on this line
`a `'`a	to mark a: the character, or the line's first non-blank

Paging and scrolling¶

Key
`Ctrl`+`F` `Ctrl`+`B`	forward, back a screenful
`PgDn` `PgUp`	the same
`Ctrl`+`D` `Ctrl`+`U`	half a screenful
`Ctrl`+`E` `Ctrl`+`Y`	move the view, not the cursor

Operators¶

Key
`d` `c` `y`	delete, change, yank
`>` `<`	indent, outdent
`dd` `cc` `yy` `>>` `<<`	the same, on the whole line

Each takes a count on either side and a motion or text object after: d2w, 2dw, ci", y}.

Text objects¶

Key
`iw` `aw` `iW` `aW`	a word, inner or around
`i(` `a(` `i)` `a)` `ib` `ab`	parentheses
`i{` `a{` `i}` `a}` `iB` `aB`	braces
`i[` `a[` `i]` `a]`	brackets
`i"` `a"` `i'` `a'`	i` a`

Single-key edits¶

Key
`x` `X`	delete the character under the cursor, or before it
`D` `C`	delete, change to the end of the line
`s` `S`	substitute the character, the line
`r`c	replace the character with c
`~`	swap its case
`J`	join the next line on
`Y`	yank the whole line — vi's `Y` is `yy`, not `y$`
`p` `P`	put after the cursor, before it
`o` `O`	open a line below, above

Entering insert mode¶

Key
`i` `I`	before the cursor, before the first non-blank
`a` `A`	after the cursor, at the end of the line
`o` `O`	on a new line below, above

Undo, repeat, macros, marks¶

Key
`u`	undo
`Ctrl`+`R`	redo
`.`	repeat the last change
`q`a … `q`	record keystrokes into register a
`@`a	play them; `3@a` three times
`@@`	play the last one again
`m`a	put mark a here
`a `'`a	go to it
``	back to where the last jump started

Registers¶

Key
`"`x	send the next command's text to register x
`"+y` `"+p`	the system clipboard; `"*` is the same

Visual mode¶

Key
`v`	select characters
`V`	select lines
`Esc`	stop

Any motion extends the selection; any operator applies to it.

Files, windows and search¶

Key
`/` `?`	search forwards, backwards
`n` `N`	the next match, the previous
`Ctrl`+`P`	the fuzzy file picker
`Ctrl`+`G`	find in project
`Ctrl`+`W` then `w`	the next window
`Ctrl`+`W` then `h` `j` `k` `l`	the window left, down, up, right
`Ctrl`+`W` then `s` `v`	split horizontally, vertically
`Ctrl`+`W` then `c` `q`	close this window
`Ctrl`+`W` then `o`	close every other one
`ZZ`	write and quit
`:`	the command line
`Ctrl`+`C`	says `type :q to exit`; it does not quit

The mouse belongs to your terminal¶

What you get¶

TurboVI does not turn on mouse reporting, so the pointer does what it does everywhere else: double-click a word, triple-click a line, drag to select, Cmd+C to copy, and paste it into another application.

That is a choice, and it is one or the other. Mouse reporting is a mode of the terminal, not a feature of a program: switching it on hands this editor click coordinates and takes selecting and copying away from the terminal, because the terminal no longer sees the clicks. Placing the cursor with a click is worth less than being able to copy a line out, so the mouse stays where it was.

Copying a line without its number¶

A terminal selects rectangles of the screen, and the gutter is part of the screen, so an ordinary drag takes the line numbers with the text. Hold Option while you drag — iTerm2 and Terminal.app both read that as a rectangular selection — and you can start it at the first column of the text and leave the numbers behind.

Or turn them off. :set nonu for this session, or set nonu in $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/turbovi/config for good, which is vi's own default and makes every drag clean.

Scrolling¶

The wheel scrolls the way your terminal scrolls an alternate-screen program, which in iTerm2 and Terminal.app means it sends ↑ and ↓ and moves the cursor. Ctrl+E and Ctrl+Y move the view without the cursor, and Ctrl+F and Ctrl+B go by the screenful.

Pasting from outside¶

Cmd+V, Ctrl+Shift+V, middle click — whatever your terminal pastes with — inserts the text, in any mode. It arrives as one paste rather than as a key press per character, which is what makes a big one instant instead of taking seconds.

Because it arrives as a paste, the characters are text rather than commands: pasting dd in normal mode types dd instead of deleting a line, and one u takes the whole paste back.

"+p is the other way in, and the one a macro can use.

Insert mode¶

Key
`Esc`	back to normal mode
`Enter`	split the line
`Backspace`	delete backwards
`Tab`	insert what the file indents with (see settings)
`←` `↓` `↑` `→`	move without leaving insert mode

There are no other commands in insert mode: everything else you press is text.

The command line¶

Key
`Enter`	run it
`Esc`	abandon it
`Backspace`	delete backwards; on an empty line, abandon

The find dialog¶

Key
`↑` `↓`	move through the hits
`PgUp` `PgDn`	a windowful at a time
`Enter`	open the hit, fill the quickfix list
`Esc`	close
`Ctrl`+`A`	ignore case
`Ctrl`+`W`	whole words
`Ctrl`+`R`	regular expression, on by default

The quickfix pane¶

Key
`Enter`	go to the entry under the cursor

Everything else is an ordinary buffer, so the motions all work.