this post was submitted on 10 Sep 2023
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General Programming Discussion
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People have a weird obsession with typing speed it seems haha
When I'm coding I tend to do more thinking than typing so I don't see the benefit. Being able to reason about code is much easier with syntax highlighting and go to definition etc.
Vi is the default for Linux and you're essentially forced to learn it as it may be the only editor on a server you're working on. Then it feels like Stockholm syndrome.
The appeal of vim is actually the opposite of just fast typitg speed. Vim's default mode is one where you can't type, you can only edit. The reasoning is that when coding as you said, you tend to think more and edit existing code, rather than writing completely new code. I find that vim has a lot more features for navigating and editing code than any other editor
Replacing typing speed with editing speed and it's the same argument.
How is it across multiple files or in projects?
In my neovim setup I have basically the same functionality as vscode. with the added benefit of not having to reach for my mouse to navigate the cursor to a certain location. Vim has a steep learning curve, but all the hotkeys let you navigate way more quickly than you could with a mouse (or with arrow keys)
Edit: By "same functionality as vscode" I mean file tree, quickly finding files by searching, fuzzy finding terms in the project, syntax highlighting, linting, intelli sense, and all the qol features the modern developer wants like auto-closing brackets etc. Really the main reason I use vim is just the hotkeys. I've gotten used to them and wouldn't wanna go back to using my mouse that much. And ofc vim is a lot more lightweight than vscode
Is the overall question here which has more features? It's Vim - syntax highlighting, go to, lots of other things. It's either built in or there's a plug in for everything. Some are a PITA to set up, but I would bet that some things in VS Code are a pain too.
Just fine. The built-in file browser combined with a tags file works very well for project navigation in most circumstances.