Practical Vim, 2nd Edition

Notation for Simulating Vim on the Page

Vim’s modal interface sets it apart from most other text editors. To make a musical analogy, let’s compare the Qwerty and piano keyboards. A pianist can pick out a melody by playing one note at a time or he or she can hold down several keys at once to sound a chord. In most text editors, keyboard shortcuts are triggered by pressing a key while holding down one or more modifier buttons, such as the control and command keys. This is the Qwerty equivalent of playing a chord on the piano keyboard.

Some of Vim’s commands are also triggered by playing chords, but Normal mode commands are designed to be typed as a sequence of keystrokes. It’s the Qwerty equivalent of playing a melody on the piano keyboard. ...