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iggredible/Learn-Vim

A free, open-source book that teaches Vim and Vimscript by focusing on the most useful parts of the editor.

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What is it?

Learn Vim (the Smart Way) is a structured guide to Vim, aimed at readers who find vimtutor too shallow and the built-in help manual too exhaustive. It covers the everyday editing model, from starting Vim and managing buffers, windows and tabs to grammar, motions, insert mode, the dot command, registers, macros, undo and visual mode.

The later chapters move into search and substitute, the global command, external commands, tags, folds, Git and compiling from inside Vim, plus sessions and multi-file operations. A second part covers customization with vimrc, packages and the runtime path, and a third part introduces Vimscript data types, control flow, variable scopes and functions, ending with a worked plugin example.

The book is written to be read from start to finish, starting with broad concepts and moving to advanced topics. It can be read locally with Docker, and community translations exist in Chinese and Spanish.

Key features

  • 01Covers core Vim editing concepts from basics to advanced usage
  • 02Includes chapters on macros, registers, search and substitute, and the global command
  • 03Explains Vimscript data types, control flow, scopes and functions
  • 04Ends with a worked example of writing a Vim plugin
  • 05Can be read locally in a browser using Docker

Use cases

  • Moving beyond vimtutor to learn Vim efficiently as a beginner
  • Refreshing advanced editing techniques such as macros and registers
  • Learning Vimscript to write or customize Vim plugins
  • Studying Vim as a reference while teaching others the editor

Quick start

  1. 1

    Install Docker

  2. 2

    Build and start the local book server from the repo root

    docker compose -f book/docker-compose.yml up --build
  3. 3

    Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser

Things to know

  • The content is licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, which prohibits commercial use.

In collections

CLI & terminal tools

Topics

#vim#vimscript#text-editor#tutorial#learning-resources#terminal#command-line#advanced#beginner#book

FAQ

What is Learn-Vim?
A free, open-source book that teaches Vim and Vimscript by focusing on the most useful parts of the editor. Learn Vim (the Smart Way) is a structured guide to Vim, aimed at readers who find vimtutor too shallow and the built-in help manual too exhaustive. It covers the everyday editing model, from starting Vim and managing buffers, windows and tabs to grammar, motions, insert mode, the dot command, registers, macros, undo and visual mode.
Is Learn-Vim free to use? What license does it have?
Learn-Vim is open source under the Other license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is Learn-Vim still maintained?
Updated within 6 months. The last commit to Learn-Vim was on Sep 7, 2026.
What can I use Learn-Vim for?
Moving beyond vimtutor to learn Vim efficiently as a beginner Refreshing advanced editing techniques such as macros and registers Learning Vimscript to write or customize Vim plugins Studying Vim as a reference while teaching others the editor
How do I install Learn-Vim?
Install Docker Build and start the local book server from the repo root: docker compose -f book/docker-compose.yml up --build Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser
Where can I get Learn-Vim?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/iggredible/Learn-Vim

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