video (4 parts):

review: Nvim goals

push Vim into new territory
more-hackable vim
better UX
make vim (really) ubiquitous
grow the vim community
crush emacs

Nvim activity in 2017

nvim
- contributors: 330 (Sept 2016: 262)
- total commits: 9251 (Sept 2016: 6479) since 2014
vim
- total commits: 7732 (Sept 2016: 6553) since 2004

about me

Nvim maintainer.
I’m nobody. That’s a feature.

Nvim goals: initial fundraiser

🤏 New, modern multi-platform UI.
- oni?
✅ New testing UI written in Lua
✅ New plugin architecture, with legacy compat layer
✅ Full port of the editor IO to libuv
✅ Cross-platform job control
✅ Distributions for Windows, Linux, Mac. ««

Nvim 2017: hackable vim

hackable vim: https://github.com/neovim/neovim/wiki/Related-projects
- 24 API clients
- 18 UIs
easiest way to install vim on any major OS https://github.com/neovim/neovim/releases

Nvim 2017: API clients

new API client for racket https://gitlab.com/HiPhish/neovim.rkt
refactored node client: https://github.com/neovim/node-client

Nvim 2017: community

Drew Neil’s Modern Vim http://vimcasts.org/blog/2017/05/working-title-modern-vim/
Homebrew core formula http://formulae.brew.sh/formula/neovim
- 100k installs https://brew.sh/analytics/install

Nvim major features https://neovim.io

API
decoupled, evented UI
remote plugins, incl. lang host coprocesses
XDG support
Lua
shada
:terminal
inccommand

Review: :terminal

“It has a terminal, why not a web browser too?”

Last year: Terminal is an elementary component (like buffer, pipe, pty), not a sign of bloat.

terminal.c is ~1k LOC. Vim’s screen.c:win_update() function is 1197 LOC.

  $ ohcount nvim/src
  Language          Files       Code
  ----------------  -----  ---------
  c                   238     174837
  lua                   5       6461

  $ ohcount vim/src
  Language          Files       Code
  ----------------  -----  ---------
  c                   173     317691
  vim                 117      10353

vi evolution (identical slide from last year)

ed: line-addressable editing language
vi: normal-mode (AKA ex 2.0)
vim: +textobjects, +eval (VimL)
nvim: --embed, API

^ No mention of job control, :terminal. Those are features, not inflections.

Nvim goals: long-term

Ubiquity: Embed everywhere
- “Vim” => “vim”: commoditize vim
Flexibility: Extensible in any programming language
Flexibility: More powerful GUIs

https://neovim.io <= top of the page

Nvim 0.1.7 feature: ‘inccommand’

:help 'inccommand'
:%s/vim/Nnnnnnvim/g

Nvim 0.2.0 features

Windows support
- includes a GUI, curl.exe and other utilities
- :terminal in 0.2.1
externalized widgets: popupmenu, tabline
‘inccommand’
“Vim 8” features: partials, lambdas.

Nvim 0.2.0 feature: ‘guicursor’ in TUI

How do you feel about Internet Explorer 6?

How do you feel about urxvt, Konsole, and other non-xterm-compliant terminal emulators?

TUI: the hot new user interface

:help 'guicursor'

DECRQSS: a hot new vt100 terminal feature supported by:
- pangoterm
- xterm
not supported by:
- urxvt
- libVTE
- iTerm2
- Konsole
- alacritty

Lua: first-class alternative to VimL

Goal from last year! Implemented.

RPC API supports plugins in any language, but “ubiquity is king”. Lua is designed for embedding. Lua is fast; LuaJit is ridiculously fast.

Ideas:

init.vim -> init.lua
multi-line statements/strings
coroutines

VimL: feature

:help input()-highlight

VimL: future

parser, expose AST https://github.com/neovim/neovim/pull/7234

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: window-local syntax groups

Reassign built-in syntax groups, per-window.

:help 'winhighlight'

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: improved UI API

demo: ST ActualVim

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: improved UI API

demo: VSCodeVim

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: nvim_execute_lua()

n.request('nvim_execute_lua', 'return "foo"', [])

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: nvim_get_keymap()

:help nvim_get_keymap('')

Precursor to API for keymap docs.
Useful for:
- fuzzy finders/completion engines (fzf, denite)
- GUIs
- other clients

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: menu_get()

:help menu_get()

:runtime menu.vim
:echo menu_get('Syntax','')

Useful for:
- fuzzy finders/completion engines (fzf, denite)
- GUIs
- other clients

Nvim future: extended marks

https://github.com/neovim/neovim/pull/5031

unlimited marks
namespaced
marks follow line insertions/joins/deletes/splits, char inserts/deletes, blockwise inserts/deletes …

API:

create namespaced marks: nvim_buf_set_mark(buf, namespace, id)
get marks in a line range: nvim_buf_get_marks(buf, namespace, {id or range})

Nvim future: floating window

Show window at any (x,y) position. Useful for:

complex menus, selection UIs
dialogs

https://github.com/neovim/neovim/pull/6619

Vim development lifecycle

 receive bug report for :autocmd segfault
  \                                      \
   fix :autocmd segfaults                 |
   fix TINY build for Tony M.            /
    \                        ^._________/
     \
     Nvim designs, implements new feature
      that everyone wants but "no one needs".
       \
^       Goog coworkers ask about Neovim feature -.
|        \                                    ^._/
 \        Have a look at Neovim impl.
  \        Don't like it.
   \        \
    `------- commit WIP to Vim master branch

:smile

Feature that everyone wants but “no one needs”:

                job-control

:smile

Feature that everyone wants but “no one needs”:

                 :terminal

:smile

Feature that everyone wants but “no one needs”:

                multicursor

multiple cursors

You will love it. How do I know? From the Sublime Text docs:

Any praise for multiple cursors is an understatement.

multiple cursors

Multicursors are like “super marks”.
Like ‘inccommand’, zero-cost net gain
Semantic “ring” of recent actions is a killer feature.
Serendipitous results:
- Reuse shada work for save/restore of registers.
- Reuse mark_ext work for tracking edits.
- Manging “global state” as a context is key to p2p nvim …

Multiple … contexts

Replace “cursor” with “context”, now it’s obvious. (call it “multiple marks”, “enhanced macros”, whatever.)

Multicursor behavior

undo
redo
dot-repeat
cursor-local registers
macro
Q
q<BS>

Multicursor design: atoms

macro: lllljjj3jddukdiw
       ^^^ where are the atoms?

model: user actions are atoms

state machine: cascade atom at state transition

Multicursor demo

nvim_get_atoms()

:echo filter(nvim_get_atoms(),'v:val.keys!~#":"')[-1].keys

Multicursor design: mode?

Multicursor is not a “mode” in the Vim sense of a mode (Normal, Insert, Visual, Terminal, …). Multicursor means only this:

Buffer has multiple cursors (“super marks”)
Some (not all) user actions “cascade” to all cursors.

Normal-mode with multiple cursors is just normal-mode with extra effects.

No new “multicursor mode”.
No :mnoremap mapping namespace
No “– MULTICURSOR –” message.

Multicursor design: API

There is an API, of course!

User/scripts can add/remove cursors at any time.
Mappings are subject to debate, but we’ll offer mouse-placement by default, somehow.

multiple cursors

:cursordo (todo: :markdo)

Q: How does it differ from :global, or :for list_of_positions?
A: each iteration tracks edits

Nvim future

Muse for devs that want to implement major features in vim.

review: Nvim goals#

Nvim activity in 2017#

about me#

Nvim goals: initial fundraiser#

Nvim 2017: hackable vim#

Nvim 2017: API clients#

Nvim 2017: community#

Nvim major features https://neovim.io#

Review: :terminal#

vi evolution (identical slide from last year)#

Nvim goals: long-term#

Nvim 0.1.7 feature: ‘inccommand’#

Nvim 0.2.0 features#

Nvim 0.2.0 feature: ‘guicursor’ in TUI#

TUI: the hot new user interface#

Lua: first-class alternative to VimL#

VimL: feature#

VimL: future#

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: window-local syntax groups#

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: improved UI API#

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: improved UI API#

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: nvim_execute_lua()#

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: nvim_get_keymap()#

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: menu_get()#

Nvim future: extended marks#

Nvim future: floating window#

Vim development lifecycle#

:smile#

:smile#

:smile#

multiple cursors#

multiple cursors#

Multiple … contexts#

Multicursor behavior#

Multicursor design: atoms#

Multicursor demo#

Multicursor design: mode?#

Multicursor design: API#

multiple cursors#

Nvim future#

review: Nvim goals

Nvim activity in 2017

about me

Nvim goals: initial fundraiser

Nvim 2017: hackable vim

Nvim 2017: API clients

Nvim 2017: community

Nvim major features https://neovim.io

Review: :terminal

vi evolution (identical slide from last year)

Nvim goals: long-term

Nvim 0.1.7 feature: ‘inccommand’

Nvim 0.2.0 features

Nvim 0.2.0 feature: ‘guicursor’ in TUI

TUI: the hot new user interface

Lua: first-class alternative to VimL

VimL: feature

VimL: future

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: window-local syntax groups

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: improved UI API

Nvim 0.2.1 feature: improved UI API

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: nvim_execute_lua()

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: nvim_get_keymap()

Nvim 0.2.1 API feature: menu_get()

Nvim future: extended marks

Nvim future: floating window

Vim development lifecycle

:smile

:smile

:smile

multiple cursors

multiple cursors

Multiple … contexts

Multicursor behavior

Multicursor design: atoms

Multicursor demo

Multicursor design: mode?

Multicursor design: API

multiple cursors

Nvim future