I can use taglist with gvim (launched from xterm) but not in vim(opened in putty). I get the following error when I try using taglist from vim Taglist: Failed to generate tags for /home/abbcd/abcd/XXXX.c
ctags: unrecognized option '--format=2'^#^ITry 'ctags --help' for a complete list of options.^#
Wondering why it works fine with gvim and not in vim.
From the comments, the difference is in how $PATH is being set depending on how you connect.
The taglist.vim plugin file has a comment that says:
If the exuberant ctags utility is not present in your PATH, then set the
Tlist_Ctags_Cmd variable to point to the location of the exuberant ctags utility (not to the directory) in the .vimrc file.
So add a line to your .vimrc file with something like:
let g:Tlist_Ctags_Cmd = '/usr/local/bin/ctags'
Use the path to the ctags binary that is working correctly for you. (The one returned by which ctags in the xterm.)
I am debugging a plugin and start vim with vim --servername VIM -u minimal.vim minimal.tex. The plugin is loaded automatically and the plugin's name is in the output of :scriptnames, :h local-additions and :set runtimepath? commands, but no command defined by the plugin works: E492: Not an editor command:. Issuing a :packadd <packagename> does not change the situation.
What am I doing wrong? What do I need to do to load that plugin? How to use a plugin with as pure vim config as possible?
The minimal vimrc:
set nocompatible
let &runtimepath = '~/.vim/bundle/vimtex,' . &runtimepath
let &runtimepath .= ',~/.vim/bundle/vimtex/after'
filetype plugin indent on
syntax enable
Update: When I looked a little deeper into it next day, I realized that other plugins are working. Since it reduces the issue from a general vim debug question to a plugin specific one, I would contact the creator of the plugin. I will post the solution when I will have one. (The plugin in question is vimtex)
I know how to turn syntax highlighting on and off in vim by running this in the editor:
:syntax on/off
But I want syntax highlighting to be enabled by default, so I don't have to turn it on every time I run vim.
How do I do this?
Edit your $HOME/.vimrc (Unix/Linux/OSX) or $HOME/_vimrc (Windows) to include the following line:
syntax on
EDIT
If your syntax highlighting doesn't work when you start Vim, you probably don't have a
$HOME/.vimrc or $HOME/_vimrc (known collectively as vimrc from now on). In that case, you have two options:
Create an empty vimrc.
Copy vimrc_example.vim as your vimrc (recommended, thanks #oyenamit). You can find vimrc_example.vim in the runtime directory.
The location of the runtime directory varies between operating systems:
On my system (Arch Linux, and Mac, thanks #totophe), it's in /usr/share/vim/vim73.
On Windows, it's in \Program Files\Vim\vim73.
Also, to highlight the syntax of a Specific File TYPE (or programming language extension), you can use following commands, while file is already opened in Vim and you want to try syntax highlighting on the fly:
:set filetype=php
OR shortcut:
:se ft=php
Above commands will change the syntax-highlighting for currently opened file as it should be for PHP code.
Uncommenting the "syntax on" in vimrc file.
Move to the directory,
cd /etc/vim/
vim vimrc
now search "syntax" and uncomment it. Save it and reopen the file in vim.
For anyone that gets here because of TurnKeyLinux using vim-tiny which doesn't have the syntax module enabled try this article to install full vim
http://www.turnkeylinux.org/forum/support/20140108/solved-bash-command-not-found-after-replacing-package
tl;dr
# apt-get remove vim-tiny
# apt-get install vim
# hash vim
# vim
I also found that this is one of the lessons in vimtutor.
To find it, you can type command vimtutor in your Terminal (I used on Mac), and scroll down to see if there is a lesson called CREATE A STARTUP SCRIPT (for me it was Lesson 7.2), where it describes how to set up an initial vimrc file.
In my $HOME/.vimrc I load a color scheme (solarized) and found that I need to place syntax on after I load the plugin. If it's before loading the plugin it doesn't work.
" this turns syntax highlighting on by default
set rtp+=~/.vim/bundle/Vundle.vim
call vundle#begin()
Plugin 'lifepillar/vim-solarized8'
syntax on
" this does not turn syntax highlighting on by default
syntax on
set rtp+=~/.vim/bundle/Vundle.vim
call vundle#begin()
Plugin 'lifepillar/vim-solarized8'
To Find the vimrc_example.vim as suggested in answers above
Command : sudo find /usr -iname "vimrc_example.vim"
I have been using Vim, and I would really like to save my settings. The problem I am having is that I cannot find my .vimrc file, and it is not in the standard /home/user/.vimrc location. How might I find this file?
You need to create it. In most installations I've used it hasn't been created by default.
You usually create it as ~/.vimrc.
These methods work, if you already have a .vimrc file:
:scriptnames list all the .vim files that Vim loaded for you, including your .vimrc file.
:e $MYVIMRC open & edit the current .vimrc that you are using, then use Ctrl + G to view the path in status bar.
Short answer:
To create your vimrc, start up Vim and do one of the following:
:e $HOME/.vimrc " on Unix, Mac or OS/2
:e $HOME/_vimrc " on Windows
:e s:.vimrc " on Amiga
Insert the settings you want, and save the file.
Note that exisitence of this file will disable the compatible option. See below for details.
Long answer:
There are two kinds of vimrc:
the user vimrc in $HOME
the system vimrc in $VIM (on Amiga systems, s:.vimrc is considered a user vimrc)
The user vimrc file often does not exist until created by the user. If you cannot find $HOME/.vimrc (or $HOME/_vimrc on Windows) then you can, and probably should, just create it.
The system vimrc should normally be left unmodified and is located in the $VIM* directory. The system vimrc is not a good place you keep your personal settings. If you modify this file your changes may be overwritten if you ever upgrade Vim. Also, changes here will affect other users on a multi-user system. In most cases, settings in the user vimrc will override settings in the system vimrc.
From :help vimrc:
A file that contains initialization commands is called a "vimrc" file.
Each line in a vimrc file is executed as an Ex command line. It is
sometimes also referred to as "exrc" file. They are the same type of
file, but "exrc" is what Vi always used, "vimrc" is a Vim specific
name. Also see |vimrc-intro|.
Places for your personal initializations:
Unix $HOME/.vimrc or $HOME/.vim/vimrc
OS/2 $HOME/.vimrc, $HOME/vimfiles/vimrc
or $VIM/.vimrc (or _vimrc)
MS-Windows $HOME/_vimrc, $HOME/vimfiles/vimrc
or $VIM/_vimrc
Amiga s:.vimrc, home:.vimrc, home:vimfiles:vimrc
or $VIM/.vimrc
The files are searched in the order specified above and only the first
one that is found is read.
(MacOS counts as Unix for the above.)
Note that the mere existence of a user vimrc will change Vim's behavior by turning off the compatible option. From :help compatible-default:
When Vim starts, the 'compatible' option is on. This will be used when Vim
starts its initializations. But as soon as a user vimrc file is found, or a
vimrc file in the current directory, or the "VIMINIT" environment variable is
set, it will be set to 'nocompatible'. This has the side effect of setting or
resetting other options (see 'compatible'). But only the options that have
not been set or reset will be changed.
* $VIM may not be set in your shell, but is always set inside Vim. If you want to see what it's set to, start up Vim and use the command :echo $VIM
As additional information, mostly in macOS, the .vimrc file is located at directory:
/usr/share/vim/.vimrc
:echo($MYVIMRC)
will give you the location of your .vimrc file.
:e $MYVIMRC
will open it.
For whatever reason, these answers didn't quite work for me. This is what worked for me instead:
In Vim, the :version command gives you the paths of system and user vimrc and gvimrc files (among other things), and the output looks something like this:
system vimrc file: "$VIM/vimrc"
user vimrc file: "$HOME/.vimrc"
user exrc file: "$HOME/.exrc"
system gvimrc file: "$VIM/gvimrc"
user gvimrc file: "$HOME/.gvimrc"
The one you want is user vimrc file: "$HOME/.vimrc"
So to edit the file: vim $HOME/.vimrc
Source: Open vimrc file
on unix vim --version tells you the various locations of the vim config files :
system vimrc file: "$VIM/vimrc"
user vimrc file: "$HOME/.vimrc"
2nd user vimrc file: "~/.vim/vimrc"
user exrc file: "$HOME/.exrc"
defaults file: "$VIMRUNTIME/defaults.vim"
fall-back for $VIM: "/usr/share/vim"
Open Vim, and in normal mode type:
:echo $VIM
Useful Information can be obtained using the find command
find / -iname "*vimrc*" -type f 2>/dev/null
There are many answers already, but it can sometimes be useful to simply run a "find" for anything containing the name "vimrc".
The reason is that this will show you what files you actualy have available on the system currently, rather than what you might put on your system. (The information for which you would obtain from :version as explained in other answers.)
Example result on my system
On my system this produces
/usr/share/vim/vim82/vimrc_example.vim
/usr/share/vim/vim82/gvimrc_example.vim
/etc/vim/gvimrc
/etc/vim/vimrc
/etc/vim/vimrc.tiny
Which is quite useful because it tells us that there are 2 example files installed in the share directorys for both gvim and vim, and that there are also some system-wide config files below /etc/.
On my system, I also have a file at ~/.vimrc but this does not appear in this list because it is a link to another file, stored under ~/Linux-Config. But you won't have this directory, it's specific to machines I use on my own network.
Detailed Explanation of find syntax used
Explanation:
find starting at the root directory / (find works recursively)
anything containing the case insensitive regex *vimrc* which means any name with vimrc (case insensitive) in it somewhere, can be preceeded or followed by anything or nothing (*)
type = files (not directory/symlink etc)
throw all errors to /dev/null otherwise the output is spammed with unreadable errors from /proc
Here are a few more tips:
In Arch Linux the global one is at /etc/vimrc. There are some comments in there with helpful details.
Since the filename starts with a ., it's hidden unless you use ls -a to show ALL files.
Typing :version while in Vim will show you a bunch of interesting information including the file location.
If you're not sure what ~/.vimrc means look at this question.
Where is the .vimrc file? It depends on the OS. As you can see, you were looking for /home/$user/.vimrc, which probably means you are using BSD / Linux. Here are the locations for each OS...
BSD / Linux : /home/$user/.vimrc
SunOS / Solaris : /export/home/$user/.vimrc
MacOS : /Users/$user/.vimrc
Android : /data/media/$userid/.vimrc
Unix : $root/home/$user/.vimrc
AT&T Unix : $root/usr/$user/.vimrc
Unix-Derived :
/var/users/$user/.vimrc
/u01/$user/.vimrc
/usr/$user/.vimrc
/user/$user/.vimrc
/users/$user/.vimrc (Source: Wikipedia: Default home directory per operating system.)
If it doesn't exist, create it with ~/.vimrc.
In addition, the root user has their own special .vimrc file, which can be found in /root/.vimrc on BSD / Linux (and in equivalent locations for the other OS's).
The location is set in the $HOME variable, which is always set in Linux environments. (Source: StackExchange->Unix & Linux.)
I'd like to share how I set showing the line number as the default on Mac.
In a terminal, type cd. This will help you go to the home folder.
In the terminal, type vi .vimrc. This will create an empty vimrc system file which you want to use.
In the file, type set number, and then hit Esc on the keyboard and type in :wq. This will set the line number shown in the default setting file vimrc and save it.
vi something to see if this works. If not, try to restart the terminal completely.
If in a terminal, type in cd /usr/share/vim/, go to that folder, and type in ls. You can directly see a file named vimrc. But it's a system file that says read only. I feel it's not a good idea to try modify it. So following the above steps to create a vimrc by yourself is better. It worked for me.
actually you have one vimrc in
/etc/vimrc
when you edit something in there the changes will effect all users
if you don't want that you can create a local vimrc in
~/.vimrc
the changes here will only effect the one user
I tried everything in the previous answer and couldn't find a .vimrc file, so I had to make one.
I copied the example file, cp vimrc_example.vim ~/.vimrc.
I had to create the file, copying from /usr/share/vim/vim74/vimrc_example.vim to ~/.vimrc. Those were the instructions in the vimrc_example file.
My solution is for Unix for other operating systems. According to the Vim documentation, your destination path should be as follows:
For Unix and OS/2 : ~/.vimrc
For Amiga : s:.vimrc
For MS-DOS and Win32: $VIM\_vimrc
For OpenVMS : sys$login:.vimrc
The vimrc file in Ubuntu (12.04 (Precise Pangolin)): I tried :scriptnames in Vim, and it shows both /usr/share/vim/vimrc and ~/.vimrc.
But I had manually created ~/.vimrc.
In SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) and openSUSE the global one is located at /etc/vimrc.
To edit it, simply do vi /etc/vimrc.
From cmd (Windows):
C\Users\You> `vim foo.txt`
Now in Vim, enter command mode by typing: ":" (i.e. Shift + ;)
:tabedit $HOME/.vimrc
Unfortunately, there are so many answers and none of them helped me.
Until I ran
:checkhealth
in vim and found out that in my case, the vim config file should be named init.vim (under ~/.config/nvim/init.vim).
the name of the file in my system, installed with Garuda Linux is file:///etc/xdg/nvim/sysinit.vim, so try to find this file and add your custom changes.
I was attempting to edit my .vimrc file and this worked for me (macOS Ventura 13.0.1 December 2022).
touch ~/.vimrc
vim ~/.vimrc
I was then able to edit the file to my heart's content, and the next time I ran vim it picked up my changes.
if in Windows, it could be in your C directory under Program Files(x86) in the folder "vim"
3.3 in cywing 2.721, the installation was made using cywing, every thing works but when I try to use the following command.
:Explore
vim said E492: Not an editor command
also neither :Sexplore or :Hexplore works.
is there any way to activate this functionality?
This is in machine with windows xp.
Well I solved reading the
:help usr_01.txt
It said that is necessary to run this command !cp -i $VIMRUNTIME/vimrc_example.vim ~/.vimrc inside vim, it just copy a .vimrc to home user.
I close and opened vim and :Explore, Hexplore, Vexplore worked.
I had the same problem as well. Since it's a fresh install of Vim you don't have a .vimrc (or _vimrc on Windows). A vimrc is Vim's configuration file, and once you have one Vim will no longer try to be compatible with Vi (usually what you want).
So all you have to do is create a vimrc file and you should be ready to :Explore all you want. Below are locations you can put your vimrc file, and the filename to use for it. (depending on your system)
Unix/Linux/OSX: $HOME/.vimrc or $HOME/.vim/vimrc
MS-Windows: $HOME/_vimrc, $HOME/vimfiles/vimrc
or $VIM/_vimrc
sources:
* :help 'compatible'
* :help 'vimrc'
I also recommend following atomsfat's answer as well to give you a simple vimrc to start out with.
Those commands are provided by the netrw plugin. Check :scriptnames to see if that plugin is loaded.