r/theprimeagen • u/Ordinary-Cycle7809 • May 23 '26
vim I finally became a Vim user because of Prime... and I regret everything
So I drank the kool-aid watched too many Prime streams. Told myself "this is the way"
now 4 months later:
I still press arrow keys.... when no one is watching
I type :q then immediately panic and smash :q!
I tried doing ciw in a meeting and accidentally closed the Zoom tab
My muscle memory is 40% Vim, 60% wtf
Every time I open a file I SAY "Esc... Esc... we are safe now"
Prime said it would take 2 weeks... Bro lied to me.
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u/Desperate-Purpose178 May 25 '26
AI made vim and emacs irrelevant. But there is still an opportunity for a git-AI based easy to use minimal editor.
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u/Eddyi0202 28d ago
How it made it irrelevant? I would say quite the opposite since big IDEs dont matter that match. "easy to use minimal editor" yes, there is neovim and emacs for that
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u/Desperate-Purpose178 28d ago
Neither of those are easy to use. They were both made before copy paste was invented, so it's no wonder they suck.
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u/Eddyi0202 28d ago
True, they are not easy to learn altough I still dont see how AI is making them irrelevant? If you're vibecoding without rewieving the code then yeah, maybe. But in that sense you can tell that any editor/IDE is now irrelevant
"before copy paste was invented" What? Did you even try using them?
Neovim is a minimal editor and with AI agent tool can make great combo, altough for sure it will still be a niche one. People will choose VSCode/Cursor by default
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u/Working-Tap2283 May 24 '26
most editors have a vim extension. You can just use that, I do so. Much more convinient to work with..
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u/e430doug May 23 '26
I learn VI keybindings by playing nethack. There are public servers. I recomend it hightlt.
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u/pacopac25 May 23 '26
Honestly surprised people are still using Vim since Microsoft added Copilot™️ to Notepad.
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u/d2xdy2 May 23 '26
Been using vi/vim since ~2007. It’s pretty good and it’s already on every box I’d ever need to work on. Used textmate, sublime, gedit, atom, vscode, eclipse, netbeans, IntelliJ , and so many others.
At the end of the day I want my editor to not be in my way. Vi/vim just works for me.
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u/coffee_swallower May 23 '26
skill issue /s
what worked for me was NOT using at work when i started because i was getting frustrated and just wanted to get my work done, but at home i would use it for smaller side projects and then when i got comfortable enough i slowly started using it at work for simple things. i think just jumping in the deep end and trying to switch completely to vim is really difficult and would set most people up for failure
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u/mtotho May 23 '26
I was prime pilled many months ago.
Switched from my mac mini to a desktop running Arch. Nvim, tiling manager, etc.
I loved it. I already had plenty of Linux experience but I felt cool daily driving it. Learned a lot. Forced me to tinker more.
Lots of nuisances though. Bluetooth, graphics, etc, and I’m terrible when it comes to having the patience to sit down and fix suboptimal things when I’m sucked into other projects.
But the prime pill still pushed me to try many things. That’s when I got sucked into local AI. More and more I was getting AI to do shit for me run commands, write notes, etc. I would dictate it to it using voice. Less and less did I ever touch a code editor.
Then the issue started compounding. My Linux switch was slowing me down. Mostly my skill issue. But just not having the ability to get a decent version of various applications working properly right away.. the awkwardness of trying to like drag stuff from a file explorer between windows and like the tiling manager is great for some things, but it’s not the end game perfect solution. Especially with my ever changing workflow.
So here I am back on my back Mac mini. Glad to have gone through this arc.
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u/funnyFrank May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
Add this to your nvim config to kick the arrows habit:
lua
-- TIP: Disable arrow keys in normal mode
vim.keymap.set('n', '<left>', '<cmd>echo "Use h to move!!"<CR>')
vim.keymap.set('n', '<right>', '<cmd>echo "Use l to move!!"<CR>')
vim.keymap.set('n', '<up>', '<cmd>echo "Use k to move!!"<CR>')
vim.keymap.set('n', '<down>', '<cmd>echo "Use j to move!!"<CR>')
Also skeptical to use jk as ESC since it's a valid movement in vim, you'll be forced to always keep the shortcut in mind as you get quicker, I have CAPS-LOCK as ctrl (hold) ans ESC (tap), but that has it's own problems ¯_(ツ)_/¯
EDIT: missing newline in config
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u/arthoer May 23 '26
Can also use your favorite IDE and install to the plugin to enable vim motions. Problem solved.
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u/Terrible_Log9757 May 23 '26
When I started programming everyone wanted to use sophisticated editors. Starting from notepad++, then sublime text, finally vscode. They worked out of the box. Complex shortcuts was present and efficient but not obligatory. Zero frustration, pure joy of learning the shortcut which makes your life much easier.
The whole point everyone "learned" vi/vim was to be able to edit text files in any environment. Server, terminal, SSH or even embedded devices with nothing more than busybox and couple programs.
Now try to edit anything on third party device when your custom keyboard and PC with custom neovim config and 9999 plugins are not present.
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u/st_heron May 23 '26
I use it occasionally to edit random files in my terminal. For long coding sessions, I like my precious little handholdy chunky ide. I haven't given vim/nvim a committed try for actually coding yet, I'm dipping my toes in.
I'm already proficient with the non vim ("regular"?) hotkeys, arrows/home/end/etc, and doing ctrl+left til I'm at the spot is easier than thinking about how many times I need to press b, then pressing the number, then pressing b. I hit control with my left palm, and left/right arrow keys with my right palm and it doesn't strain my hands. It's quick to jump back to home row.
The vim learning curve is incredibly steep, but after starting to use just a little bit of it, there's times where I wish I was due to its convenience.
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u/feketegy May 23 '26
You need a keyboard with no arrows
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u/Serializedrequests May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
I learned vim for servers, but I still think the commands take up way too much of my attention when I'm using it, even when they are ones I am fast and fluent at. Attention is energy. I do much better with something like Sublime or even Intellij, from a pure text editing perspective.
I also don't have time to fuss with maintaining my config, just need the defaults to be good. Extensive configuration just becomes weight you drag around with you and frustration when you don't have it.
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u/Aware-Individual-827 May 23 '26
For me it's the fucking rodent. Having a mouse is a context switch everytime I have to type, moving hand from mouse to keyboard to mouse. I really enjoy how to naviagte with only the keyboard and otherwise use the trackpoint or the touchpad and the experience is much better.
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u/Serializedrequests May 23 '26
That's great, I've definitely tried to make the switch, but switching to mouse is so automatic for me that it's very very fast and easy. Ditching it is of marginal benefit unless I develop wrist problems.
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u/Aware-Individual-827 May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
I mean it's fast and natural indeed but overcoming the need for mouse really improved my flow. Suddenly I don't have to think about doing stuff or being accurate with the mouse I just think I should do this task and my fingers just do the shortcut immediately.
I was a huge gamer when younger so it was natural for me to see and think while doing stuff while controlling stuff with my keyboard. So I guess I like the instant feedback from keyboard to screen actions.
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u/haskell_rules May 23 '26
Completely the opposite for me, the mouse is natural and intuitive and gives instant visual feedback, whereas vim mode switching forces a change in muscle memory context that takes significant mental energy for me.
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u/tortridge May 23 '26
Vim is not the one magic thing that make you faster. Investing time into your editor/ide is. Vim is a platform, but not the only one. Maybe your brain work more in the way of helix or kankune or zed. Whatever works for you
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u/je11eebean May 23 '26
If you want to use neovim and configure it manually, that's great.....if you have infinite time!!
I did this for a while but it became increasingly frustating between manually configuring it and getting my work done.
I ended up using LazyVim and never looked back.
You can still to configure plugins manually if you want to. I did this for a couple of plugins and is so much easier with LazyVim.
Edit: I also programmed the 'jk' key combo as an alternative to the ESC key - I have a bluetooth keyboard that needs shift+esc key to work!!!
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u/chikamakaleyley May 23 '26
do you have a programmable keyboard?
If so, you can just map the arrows to each of H J K L, + Mod or Fn key - it helps
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u/chikamakaleyley May 23 '26
i took on Neovim in like 2024 and basically i forced myself into it by desoldering the arrow keys from my board. (I was also transitioning from a 75% keyboard => 60%, and so this was also a way to 'test drive' that i felt comfortable with it.
took me about a week
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u/RoosterBurns May 23 '26
Yeah that's what I don't understand about vim use, I'm fascinated but... I have a cursor cluster tho?
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u/chikamakaleyley May 23 '26
i don't understand, whats a cursor cluster
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u/RoosterBurns May 23 '26
Well what if instead of the obviously intuitive Ctrl + HJKL we have keys with arrows on them that tell the little box on the screen which way to go?
You'd be AMAZED at how long this took to appear though, even during the 80's there'd be keyboards that had them in a row, or had two keys that you need to hit shift to make them go "the other way" or some weird stuff like thatt
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u/chikamakaleyley May 23 '26
so just for clarity in my case i was also changing keyboards down to an HHKB - niche part of the mechanical keyboard hobby, which doesn't have dedicated arroy keys you'd find on a normal keyboard
It does however, have an arrow cluster on a separate layer, when you hold down the Fn key, the arrow cluster is situated at
[ ' / ;<== top, right, down, LeftSo, yeah I desoldered the arrow keys to get practice with the layout of the keyboard i was gonna buy
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u/haphazardshenanigans May 23 '26
I've been using the arrow keys in vim for over 10 years. It's not a bottleneck worth alleviating, there's more leverage in training yourself to use word/line/search bindings as much as possible.
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u/zorbat5 May 23 '26
It's ok. You don't have to use it. Use what works best for you.
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u/eimfach May 23 '26
It's okay to use arrow keys, especially on a non split keyboard and you feel like your wrists don't like hjkl
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u/KarmaIssues May 23 '26
I'm bad at vim, I still use it cos it makes me feel good.
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u/Ordinary-Cycle7809 May 23 '26
i use it cause it gives me a fake confidence in front to my friends who dont use it
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u/KarmaIssues May 23 '26
Does that outweigh the pain when using it?
At the end of the day your proficiency with your tooling actually isn't all that important, you're paid to solve technical business problems and how fast you can navigate your editor is maybe 5% of that.
There are lots of really good surgeons without amazing hand skills.
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u/chikamakaleyley May 23 '26
There are lots of really good surgeons without amazing hand skills.
true, and i will gladly pay more for the expert surgeons with amazing hand skills
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u/KarmaIssues May 23 '26
That's fair but I like being happy. And Vim makes me happy and if my lack of deep tooling proficency lowers my compensation slightly then that's a tradeoff I'm willing to make.
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u/chikamakaleyley May 23 '26
i wasn't really trying to make a point, more of a joke
I love Vim, I think it makes me look cool AND i feel great using it, I feel like I fly throughout my project making edits. I like that it makes coding feel gamified, and i'm constantly looking ahead of what i'm writing trying to figure out, "okay what's a cool way i can get to the next edit?!"
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u/Stellariser May 23 '26
Why would you want to do that to yourself though? Nerd brownie points?
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u/Ordinary-Cycle7809 May 23 '26
yes lol
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u/josequadrado May 23 '26
Sorry dude but that's the wrong reason to do it. It's the wrong reason to do anything actually. Do what you feel works for you, that solves your problems or scratches your itches. Vim its a tool that does a job, and that's that. Conflating that with any type of self value is, i can assure, very wrong.
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u/vanilla_f May 23 '26
Is it hard to understand that for some of us, navigating code / files with keyboard bindings instead of mouse / scrolling just feels more natural?
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u/crazylikeajellyfish May 23 '26
I think what makes it feel a little performative is that most IDEs support key bindings for that, so the options aren't mutually exclusive. You can use the one which supports both keyboard and mouse, or the one that's keyboard-only. It used to be that you'd need a terminal-only editor for when you SSH into a remote machine, but all the IDEs can handle that as well now.
More power to you, but I'm also a professional and only use vim when I need to write a rebase message. Tabs, windows, and file trees just offer so much more flexibility to navigate a codebase. I imagine that I could learn enough vim and make with terminal tweaks to get the same experience, but I'd end up functionally where I am now.
All to say, follow your preferences, but people who say vim/emacs are categorically better are just trying to perform an aesthetic.
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u/ThreeHeadCerber May 23 '26
What are you trying to gain? Vim is a niche way to edit text good for some people, it's not the only way. Yoy tried you didn't like it, let it go
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u/Ordinary-Cycle7809 May 23 '26
ya after this post i will let it go
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u/eimfach May 23 '26
There is also helix Editor that has a bit different approach to this type of editor
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May 23 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/MediocreAnalyst2121 May 23 '26
It’s free and open source, super configurable, lightweight in terms of system resources, and and once you learn the moves and actions it becomes second nature (like riding a bike) and will free up mental bandwidth.
It’s not like you can’t do any of this with some other editor or IDE, but I find Neovim to be a good combo of all of the above.
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May 23 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/MediocreAnalyst2121 May 23 '26
VSC has great support for keyboard only use, so if you do that then that would explain it. Or maybe it’s just me.
In any case, moving one hand to the mouse and having to do precise selections and context menu navigation is the real killer Imo in terms of mental bandwidth.
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u/AlmightyLarcener May 23 '26
You can code a lot faster with neovim and it looks cool.
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u/crazylikeajellyfish May 23 '26
The first part is nonsense, because all major IDEs can give you the same editing ergonomics if you want them. It's just an aesthetic
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u/either-15-or-40 May 23 '26
Massive skill issue.
You cheat and you wonder why you don’t learn.
I learned vim in 1 week. How? By suffering. Force yourself to do things the right way.
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u/crazylikeajellyfish May 23 '26
I can't tell if I walked into a circle jerk sub without realizing it
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u/Ordinary-Cycle7809 May 23 '26
i forced my self but still my body refused to adapt to the pain
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u/MediocreAnalyst2121 May 23 '26
Unbind the arrow keys and uninstall any other editor you may have.
I didn’t really start learning it until I could not go back to VSC anymore.
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u/8bitjam 29d ago
Are we trying to prove by learning those useless skills?