root `index` legacy
Learning Vim Key Bindings I would never go back. Walking you through my journey of learning Vim key bindings, from discovering the essence of Vim to a reflection on what I learned. `2021-10-27` Some Backstory About one and a half years ago, I created a program called Caps Hotkeys. In short, it is a system of key bindings that would remap common navigation operations such as the arrow keys or the `Page Up` and `Page Down` keys to more convenient shortcuts. But then a few months ago, when exploring alternatives to my program, I stumbled upon the set of key bindings used by the Vim editor. The underlying principle of Vim is the operator-motion pair. [...] For Vim, `d` is the delete operator, and `_` is the line motion. So, typing `d_` will delete a line. This is the essence of Vim. Instead of trying to memorize hundreds of commands, you learn the verbs and nouns that make up the language, and then combine together. Marcus Kazmierczak When I first read this paragraph, it was truly eye-opening. At that moment, I knew I had to learn Vim key bindings. Learing Vim Key Bindings Learning key bindings is very similar to learning a new keyboard layout or a new writing system such as shorthand (which you can learn more about here). When the learning curve isn't too steep, the best way to do so is to commit to the new system entirely. With this in mind, I spent the last few months programming exclusively with Vim key bindings. Since I already had a lot of experience with VSCode, I decided to use the Vim extension to be able to use its bindings outside of the Vim editor itself. Here is a list of a few of the resources I used to learn them: Vim Tutorial by Ben Awad — for learning basic bindings and use cases Mastering the Vim Language by Chris Toomey — for understanding real-world uses of Vim Vim Cheat Sheet by rtorr — just a very comprehensive Vim cheat sheet And, as honorable mentions, this answer by Alex Fedotov for remapping the `Caps Lock` key to `Escape` system-wide on Linux and this answer by JoePerkins for switching to relative line numbers on VSCode. Final Words It might not seem like it at a first glance, but learning any set of key bindings will make you way more efficient of a programmer. It won't allow you to type faster, but it'll allow you to manipulate text in a very efficient manner. It is said to be impossible to master Vim. Some people that have more than `30 years` of experience with it claim that they are still constantly learning new techniques. Regardless, I have no idea how I used to program without a proper set of key bindings: not using them genuinely feels like a handicap. After having used Vim for only a few months, I can confirm the legend is true — I would never go back.
© 2025 Emilien Breton `legacy/Learning-Vim-Key-Bindings/index.md`

Learning Vim Key Bindings

I would never go back. Walking you through my journey of learning Vim key bindings, from discovering the essence of Vim to a reflection on what I learned. 2021-10-27

Some Backstory

About one and a half years ago, I created a program called Caps Hotkeys. In short, it is a system of key bindings that would remap common navigation operations such as the arrow keys or the Page Up and Page Down keys to more convenient shortcuts. But then a few months ago, when exploring alternatives to my program, I stumbled upon the set of key bindings used by the Vim editor.

The underlying principle of Vim is the operator-motion pair. [...] For Vim, d is the delete operator, and _ is the line motion. So, typing d_ will delete a line. This is the essence of Vim. Instead of trying to memorize hundreds of commands, you learn the verbs and nouns that make up the language, and then combine together.

Marcus Kazmierczak

When I first read this paragraph, it was truly eye-opening. At that moment, I knew I had to learn Vim key bindings.

Learing Vim Key Bindings

Learning key bindings is very similar to learning a new keyboard layout or a new writing system such as shorthand (which you can learn more about here). When the learning curve isn't too steep, the best way to do so is to commit to the new system entirely.

With this in mind, I spent the last few months programming exclusively with Vim key bindings. Since I already had a lot of experience with VSCode, I decided to use the Vim extension to be able to use its bindings outside of the Vim editor itself. Here is a list of a few of the resources I used to learn them:

Vim Tutorial by Ben Awad — for learning basic bindings and use cases
Mastering the Vim Language by Chris Toomey — for understanding real-world uses of Vim
Vim Cheat Sheet by rtorr — just a very comprehensive Vim cheat sheet

And, as honorable mentions, this answer by Alex Fedotov for remapping the Caps Lock key to Escape system-wide on Linux and this answer by JoePerkins for switching to relative line numbers on VSCode.

Final Words

It might not seem like it at a first glance, but learning any set of key bindings will make you way more efficient of a programmer. It won't allow you to type faster, but it'll allow you to manipulate text in a very efficient manner.

It is said to be impossible to master Vim. Some people that have more than 30 years of experience with it claim that they are still constantly learning new techniques. Regardless, I have no idea how I used to program without a proper set of key bindings: not using them genuinely feels like a handicap. After having used Vim for only a few months, I can confirm the legend is true — I would never go back.