Vim to the Rescue

I knew learning Vim would pay off.

I learned to use Vim efficiently in my last job. It wasn't a requirement or anything, I just thought it would be cool. I forced myself to stick with it. It was hard. I messed up files several times (never beyond repair) because I didn't know what was going on at first. So I practiced, and practiced and practiced some more. I could move quickly in the documents and edit text. However working with multiple files took some more time. Then came the extensions and the custom commands and life was good. I finally saw why some programmers like it so much and I'm one of them now.

I use Vim almost exclusively to program these days and I'm pretty efficient with it. However, I never really thought of another thing that I would benefit from knowing Vim. Sometimes I need to modify files quickly and right now I don't have set hours to work, sometimes I receive a call in the morning to make some changes, sometimes in the evenings, and I usually work in the middle of the night. And since I don't have set hours, every now and then when they call me, I'm not even home. I'm out somewhere. And if the change is urgent, I have to stop what I'm doing and make the change...in my phone. I log in remotely through my phone to the web server where the changes need to be made and open up Vim. Most smartphone keyboards don't have arrows, so moving with the keyboard comes in handy in those situations. Sure, it may not be ideal, and I've only really had to do it a couple of times, but it saved time and the trouble of going someplace with a computer and an internet connection.

Anyway, it's pretty cool :). Have a good day :D