Edit Vim Shortcuts for Mac

As a Vim user on a Mac, you may have noticed that your keyboard shortcuts can be quite different from those used by native Mac users. While Vim has its own set of shortcuts, understanding the Mac's default text editing keybindings can be beneficial when working with MacVim or typing in terminal windows.

One common behavior that many Mac users are familiar with is the use of the Shift key to modify left or right arrow key presses. In Mac text fields, this allows you to move to the start or end of a paragraph. Similarly, Command up and down can be used to navigate through an entire document, moving to the beginning (Command up) or end (Command down) respectively.

In Vim, these behaviors can be emulated in insert mode only by combining the Shift key with specific motions. For example, you can use Shift + Left Arrow to highlight text from the start of a paragraph, and Shift + Right Arrow to highlight text to the end of a paragraph.

Another useful shortcut is Command + Up or Command + Down to move to the beginning (Command up) or end (Command down) of an entire document. This is equivalent to using k0 and j$ in Vim, respectively.

When working with lines, Option up and down can be used to move to the start or end of a line, regardless of soft wrapping positions. Additionally, the Fn key can be combined with delete keys to delete text from the end of a word or soft-wrapped line, while Option or Command delete will delete from the beginning of a word or soft-wrapped line respectively.

Some specific key combinations worth noting include:

* Command + Left Arrow: moves to the soft-wrapped beginning of the line (akin to g0 in Vim)

* Command + Right Arrow: moves to the soft-wrapped end of the line, after the space

Overall, understanding these Mac-specific shortcuts can enhance your productivity and flexibility when working with Vim or typing in terminal windows on a Mac.

Edit vim shortcuts mac