How to use Vim: Examples and tips for Beginners

Published on March 24, 2023 · Updated on March 24, 2023

How Does Vim Work?

Vim has several modes: Insert, Normal, Visual, and Command. By default, Vim starts in Normal mode. You can switch between modes by pressing Esc or Ctrl+[. In Normal mode, you can use commands to navigate and manipulate the text. In Insert mode, you can type text. In Visual mode, you can select text. In Command mode, you can execute external commands.

Learning Vim with the Vim Tutor

The Vim Tutor is a built-in tutorial that can help you learn the basics of Vim. To start the Vim Tutor, open a terminal and type:

vimtutor

The Vim Tutor will guide you through a series of lessons that teach you how to use Vim.

How to Exit Vim?

Exiting Vim can be confusing for beginners. To exit Vim, you need to be in Normal mode. To make sure you are in normal mode you can press the “ESC” key on your keyboard then, type:

:q!

This will discard any changes and quit Vim. If you want to save changes before quitting, type:

:wq

Another way to quickly save and exit vim is to press Uppercase “Z” twice, when being in normal mode:

ZZ

Note: You don’t need a colon : to use this command

How to Use Vim in Insert Mode?

In Insert mode, you can type text. To enter Insert mode, press the i key. To exit Insert mode and return to Normal mode, press Esc or Ctrl+[.

How to Use Vim in Normal Mode?

In Normal mode, you can use commands to navigate and manipulate the text. Here are some examples:

Move the cursor left: h
Move the cursor right: l
Move the cursor up: k
Move the cursor down: j
Move to the beginning of the line: 0
Move to the end of the line: $
Move to the beginning of the next word: w
Move to the beginning of the previous word: b
Delete a character: x
Delete a line: dd
Undo the last change: u

How to Use Vim in Visual Mode?

In Visual mode, you can select text. To enter Visual mode, press the v key. Then, use the navigation commands to select the text. Once you have selected the text, you can manipulate it using the same commands as in Normal mode.

How to Use Vim Command Mode?

In Command mode, you can execute external commands. To enter Command mode, press the : key. Then, type the command and press Enter. Here are some examples:

Save the file: :w
Quit without saving: :q
Save and quit: :wq

Deleting a Line

In Normal mode, you can delete a line by typing dd. This will delete the current line.

Deleting a Line Break

In Normal mode, you can delete a line break by typing J. This will join the current line with the next line.

Basic Searching in Vim

In Normal mode, you can search for text by typing / followed by the search term. For example, to search for the word “example”, type:

/example

Then, press Enter. Vim will highlight the first match. To find the next match, type n. To find the previous match, type N.

Appending

In Normal mode, you can append text after the cursor by typing a. To append text at the end of the line, type A. To append text before the cursor, type i.

Mastering Vim Basics

These are just a few basic examples of how to use Vim. Once you are comfortable with these commands, you can start exploring more advanced features, such as macros, registers, and plugins.

Vim is a highly customizable editor, and you can configure it to suit your needs. You can change the appearance, the behavior, and the key bindings. You can also create your own commands and mappings.

If you want to become a Vim power user, it’s a good idea to read the documentation and experiment with different settings and plugins. There are also many online resources and communities where you can ask for help and share your knowledge.

In conclusion, Vim is a powerful and efficient text editor that can be intimidating for beginners. But with practice and patience, you can learn how to use Vim and become more productive in your work. We hope that this tutorial has given you a good starting point for exploring the world of Vim.

The MOTD (Message of the Day) is a customizable message that is displayed to users when they log in to a Linux system. The MOTD can be used to display system information, notifications, or other custom messages. In this tutorial, we will show you how to change the MOTD in Linux.

Setting a Basic Text MOTD in Linux

The easiest way to change the MOTD in Linux is to edit the /etc/motd file. This file contains the default MOTD message that is displayed to users when they log in.

To edit the MOTD message, open a terminal and run the following command:

sudo nano /etc/motd

Edit the text in the file to display your custom message. Save and close the file.

The next time a user logs in, they will see the updated MOTD message.

How to Append Additional Information to MOTD Message

You can also append additional information to the default MOTD message by editing the /etc/update-motd.d/ directory. This directory contains scripts that are executed to generate the MOTD message.

To add additional information to the MOTD message, create a new script in the /etc/update-motd.d/ directory. For example, you can create a new script called 99-custom:

sudo nano /etc/update-motd.d/99-custom

Add the following lines to the script to display additional information:

#!/bin/bash
echo "Welcome to my Linux system"
echo "System uptime: $(uptime)"

Make the script executable:

sudo chmod +x /etc/update-motd.d/99-custom

The next time a user logs in, they will see the updated MOTD message with the additional information.

Another way to customize the MOTD message is to create a custom login script in the /etc/profile file. This script will be executed when a user logs in.

To create a custom login script, open the /etc/profile file in a text editor:

sudo nano /etc/profile

Add the following lines to the file to display a custom message:

echo "Welcome to my Linux system"
echo "System uptime: $(uptime)"

Save and close the file.

The next time a user logs in, they will see the custom message.

You can also create a custom MOTD or login banner in Linux by using ASCII art or other graphics. There are several ways to do this.

One way to create an ASCII art login banner is to use the figlet command. The figlet command can be used to create large ASCII art text.

To install the figlet command, run the following command:

sudo apt-get install figlet

Create a custom banner using figlet:

figlet "Welcome to my Linux system"

Copy the output of the figlet command and paste it into the /etc/motd file or the /etc/profile file.

The next time a user logs in, they will see the custom banner.

Another way to create a custom login banner is to use neofetch. neofetch is a command-line tool that displays system information in a visually appealing way.

To install neofetch, run the following command:

sudo apt-get install neofetch

Create a custom login banner using neofetch:

neofetch --ascii /path/to/custom/ascii-art

Replace /path/to/custom/ascii-art with the path to your custom ASCII art file.

Copy the output of the neofetch command and paste it into the /etc/motd file or the /etc/profile file.

The next time a user logs in, they will see the custom banner.

How to Disable MOTD Message

If you want to disable the MOTD message, you can delete or rename the /etc/motd file. This will prevent the default MOTD message from being displayed.

sudo rm /etc/motd

Alternatively, you can remove execute permission from all scripts in the /etc/update-motd.d/ directory:

sudo chmod -x /etc/update-motd.d/*

This will prevent the scripts from being executed and the MOTD message from being generated.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, we have shown you how to change the MOTD message in Linux. You can set a basic text MOTD message, append additional information to the MOTD message, create a custom login script, or create a custom login banner using ASCII art or neofetch. If you want to disable the MOTD message, you can delete or rename the /etc/motd file or remove execute permission from all scripts in the /etc/update-motd.d/ directory.

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