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diff --git a/runtime/doc/usr_09.txt b/runtime/doc/usr_09.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a6f068d --- /dev/null +++ b/runtime/doc/usr_09.txt @@ -0,0 +1,290 @@ +*usr_09.txt* For Vim version 8.1. Last change: 2017 Aug 11 + + VIM USER MANUAL - by Bram Moolenaar + + Using the GUI + + +Vim works in an ordinary terminal, while gVim has a Graphical User Interface +(GUI). It can do the same things and a few more. The GUI offers menus, a +toolbar, scrollbars and other items. This chapter is about these extra things +that the GUI offers. + +|09.1| Parts of the GUI +|09.2| Using the mouse +|09.3| The clipboard +|09.4| Select mode + + Next chapter: |usr_10.txt| Making big changes + Previous chapter: |usr_08.txt| Splitting windows +Table of contents: |usr_toc.txt| + +============================================================================== +*09.1* Parts of the GUI + +You might have an icon on your desktop that starts gvim. Otherwise, one of +these commands should do it: > + + gvim file.txt + vim -g file.txt + +If this doesn't work you don't have a version of Vim with GUI support. You +will have to install one first. + Vim will open a window and display "file.txt" in it. What the window looks +like depends on the version of Vim. It should resemble the following picture +(for as far as this can be shown in ASCII!). + + +----------------------------------------------------+ + | file.txt + (~/dir) - VIM X | <- window title + +----------------------------------------------------+ + | File Edit Tools Syntax Buffers Window Help | <- menubar + +----------------------------------------------------+ + | aaa bbb ccc ddd eee fff ggg hhh iii jjj | <- toolbar + | aaa bbb ccc ddd eee fff ggg hhh iii jjj | + +----------------------------------------------------+ + | file text | ^ | + | ~ | # | + | ~ | # | <- scrollbar + | ~ | # | + | ~ | # | + | ~ | # | + | | V | + +----------------------------------------------------+ + +The largest space is occupied by the file text. This shows the file in the +same way as in a terminal. With some different colors and another font +perhaps. + + +THE WINDOW TITLE + +At the very top is the window title. This is drawn by your window system. +Vim will set the title to show the name of the current file. First comes the +name of the file. Then some special characters and the directory of the file +in parens. These special characters can be present: + + - The file cannot be modified (e.g., a help file) + + The file contains changes + = The file is read-only + =+ The file is read-only, contains changes anyway + +If nothing is shown you have an ordinary, unchanged file. + + +THE MENUBAR + +You know how menus work, right? Vim has the usual items, plus a few more. +Browse them to get an idea of what you can use them for. A relevant submenu +is Edit/Global Settings. You will find these entries: + + Toggle Toolbar make the toolbar appear/disappear + Toggle Bottom Scrollbar make a scrollbar appear/disappear at the bottom + Toggle Left Scrollbar make a scrollbar appear/disappear at the left + Toggle Right Scrollbar make a scrollbar appear/disappear at the right + +On most systems you can tear-off the menus. Select the top item of the menu, +the one that looks like a dashed line. You will get a separate window with +the items of the menu. It will hang around until you close the window. + + +THE TOOLBAR + +This contains icons for the most often used actions. Hopefully the icons are +self-explanatory. There are tooltips to get an extra hint (move the mouse +pointer to the icon without clicking and don't move it for a second). + +The "Edit/Global Settings/Toggle Toolbar" menu item can be used to make the +toolbar disappear. If you never want a toolbar, use this command in your +vimrc file: > + + :set guioptions-=T + +This removes the 'T' flag from the 'guioptions' option. Other parts of the +GUI can also be enabled or disabled with this option. See the help for it. + + +THE SCROLLBARS + +By default there is one scrollbar on the right. It does the obvious thing. +When you split the window, each window will get its own scrollbar. + You can make a horizontal scrollbar appear with the menu item +Edit/Global Settings/Toggle Bottom Scrollbar. This is useful in diff mode, or +when the 'wrap' option has been reset (more about that later). + +When there are vertically split windows, only the windows on the right side +will have a scrollbar. However, when you move the cursor to a window on the +left, it will be this one the that scrollbar controls. This takes a bit of +time to get used to. + When you work with vertically split windows, consider adding a scrollbar on +the left. This can be done with a menu item, or with the 'guioptions' option: +> + :set guioptions+=l + +This adds the 'l' flag to 'guioptions'. + +============================================================================== +*09.2* Using the mouse + +Standards are wonderful. In Microsoft Windows, you can use the mouse to +select text in a standard manner. The X Window system also has a standard +system for using the mouse. Unfortunately, these two standards are not the +same. + Fortunately, you can customize Vim. You can make the behavior of the mouse +work like an X Window system mouse or a Microsoft Windows mouse. The following +command makes the mouse behave like an X Window mouse: > + + :behave xterm + +The following command makes the mouse work like a Microsoft Windows mouse: > + + :behave mswin + +The default behavior of the mouse on UNIX systems is xterm. The default +behavior on a Microsoft Windows system is selected during the installation +process. For details about what the two behaviors are, see |:behave|. Here +follows a summary. + + +XTERM MOUSE BEHAVIOR + +Left mouse click position the cursor +Left mouse drag select text in Visual mode +Middle mouse click paste text from the clipboard +Right mouse click extend the selected text until the mouse + pointer + + +MSWIN MOUSE BEHAVIOR + +Left mouse click position the cursor +Left mouse drag select text in Select mode (see |09.4|) +Left mouse click, with Shift extend the selected text until the mouse + pointer +Middle mouse click paste text from the clipboard +Right mouse click display a pop-up menu + + +The mouse can be further tuned. Check out these options if you want to change +the way how the mouse works: + + 'mouse' in which mode the mouse is used by Vim + 'mousemodel' what effect a mouse click has + 'mousetime' time between clicks for a double-click + 'mousehide' hide the mouse while typing + 'selectmode' whether the mouse starts Visual or Select mode + +============================================================================== +*09.3* The clipboard + +In section |04.7| the basic use of the clipboard was explained. There is one +essential thing to explain about X-windows: There are actually two places to +exchange text between programs. MS-Windows doesn't have this. + +In X-Windows there is the "current selection". This is the text that is +currently highlighted. In Vim this is the Visual area (this assumes you are +using the default option settings). You can paste this selection in another +application without any further action. + For example, in this text select a few words with the mouse. Vim will +switch to Visual mode and highlight the text. Now start another gvim, without +a file name argument, so that it displays an empty window. Click the middle +mouse button. The selected text will be inserted. + +The "current selection" will only remain valid until some other text is +selected. After doing the paste in the other gvim, now select some characters +in that window. You will notice that the words that were previously selected +in the other gvim window are displayed differently. This means that it no +longer is the current selection. + +You don't need to select text with the mouse, using the keyboard commands for +Visual mode works just as well. + + +THE REAL CLIPBOARD + +Now for the other place with which text can be exchanged. We call this the +"real clipboard", to avoid confusion. Often both the "current selection" and +the "real clipboard" are called clipboard, you'll have to get used to that. + To put text on the real clipboard, select a few different words in one of +the gvims you have running. Then use the Edit/Copy menu entry. Now the text +has been copied to the real clipboard. You can't see this, unless you have +some application that shows the clipboard contents (e.g., KDE's Klipper). + Now select the other gvim, position the cursor somewhere and use the +Edit/Paste menu. You will see the text from the real clipboard is inserted. + + +USING BOTH + +This use of both the "current selection" and the "real clipboard" might sound +a bit confusing. But it is very useful. Let's show this with an example. +Use one gvim with a text file and perform these actions: + +- Select two words in Visual mode. +- Use the Edit/Copy menu to get these words onto the clipboard. +- Select one other word in Visual mode. +- Use the Edit/Paste menu item. What will happen is that the single selected + word is replaced with the two words from the clipboard. +- Move the mouse pointer somewhere else and click the middle button. You + will see that the word you just overwrote with the clipboard is inserted + here. + +If you use the "current selection" and the "real clipboard" with care, you can +do a lot of useful editing with them. + + +USING THE KEYBOARD + +If you don't like using the mouse, you can access the current selection and +the real clipboard with two registers. The "* register is for the current +selection. + To make text become the current selection, use Visual mode. For example, +to select a whole line just press "V". + To insert the current selection before the cursor: > + + "*P + +Notice the uppercase "P". The lowercase "p" puts the text after the cursor. + +The "+ register is used for the real clipboard. For example, to copy the text +from the cursor position until the end of the line to the clipboard: > + + "+y$ + +Remember, "y" is yank, which is Vim's copy command. + To insert the contents of the real clipboard before the cursor: > + + "+P + +It's the same as for the current selection, but uses the plus (+) register +instead of the star (*) register. + +============================================================================== +*09.4* Select mode + +And now something that is used more often on MS-Windows than on X-Windows. +But both can do it. You already know about Visual mode. Select mode is like +Visual mode, because it is also used to select text. But there is an obvious +difference: When typing text, the selected text is deleted and the typed text +replaces it. + +To start working with Select mode, you must first enable it (for MS-Windows +it is probably already enabled, but you can do this anyway): > + + :set selectmode+=mouse + +Now use the mouse to select some text. It is highlighted like in Visual mode. +Now press a letter. The selected text is deleted, and the single letter +replaces it. You are in Insert mode now, thus you can continue typing. + +Since typing normal text causes the selected text to be deleted, you can not +use the normal movement commands "hjkl", "w", etc. Instead, use the shifted +function keys. <S-Left> (shifted cursor left key) moves the cursor left. The +selected text is changed like in Visual mode. The other shifted cursor keys +do what you expect. <S-End> and <S-Home> also work. + +You can tune the way Select mode works with the 'selectmode' option. + +============================================================================== + +Next chapter: |usr_10.txt| Making big changes + +Copyright: see |manual-copyright| vim:tw=78:ts=8:noet:ft=help:norl: |