Nano Or Vim? Which Terminal Text Editor Should You Use?
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- čas přidán 23. 07. 2024
- It is important for Linux users to be comfortable using a terminal-based text editor like GNU Nano or Vim, because sometimes you are going to have to edit configuration files without being in a graphical environment. But which terminal text editor is the right one for you?
REFERENCED:
► www.nano-editor.org/ - GNU Nano
► www.vim.org/ - Vim
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I expected this video to just start with you saying "Vim." then reading your pateron names lol
"Vim," while patreon names scroll over and over and DT plays Trombone for 19 minutes.
Made me chuckle :)
I thought he might say "Emacs" then thank the producers.
@@MichaelMantion except emacs isn't a terminal based editor.
😂😂😂
As a relatively long time vim user, I have learned to stay away from conversations like these.
I use Arch btw
“I use arch btw” you could have just said that
Stop using it instead use gentoo
@@RabindraNathMurmuready2upload Arch isnt just a meme. It is a damn fine distro.
”I have learned to stay away…” obviously not. ;)
@@ubbeus Just an excuse to let everyone know I use Arch ;)
I used nano for a few months until I forced myself to learn vim. Now I prefer vim, but it's good to know the basics of both just in case a certain machine doesn't have your preference
That's good but you can install it if a machine doesn't have it
@@ericks4774 not always
@@user-yz7fr6kd7yyea my school wants us to use nano so it shits the bed when u try to use like gedit or vim
Almost always you either have it installed (at least Vi), or you can install it @user-yz7fr6kd7y
Most who don’t know the diff: vim vs emacs?
Reality: bruh….vim vs nano
Vim vs nano is ofs...
Vim vs Nano is a comparison that makes sense.
Vim vs Emacs is comparing a whole OS to a text editor
@@auroradraco9974 its not an OS its a complete productivity suit
@@RabindraNathMurmuready2upload I can accept that, yes
I actually know someone IRL who uses emacs and it freaks me out every time I remember it, since I can barely learn Vi…
I'd say it's worth learning Vim if you do a lot of text editing. I'm a software engineer, so learning Vim keybindings is worth the investment. If you don't do a lot of text editing (other than word processing) I'd just stick with Nano unless you're willing to accept the learning curve of Vim.
Agreed.
I'm an English teacher, and the learning curve has been worth it.
Sick, this is basically the argument I was looking for. I haven't seen the need to move past nano. I edit and create text files on the reg but this is my hobby not my job.
@@lotekchapra micro is more powerful and easier to get used to if you like nano.
micro is better. i use nvim btw.
Looking at the thumbnail my immediate thought was
*Both , Both are great*
Sure, depends on what you want to do. I have both installed.
It's pronounced "pico" as in 1/1000 of a nano. "Peek-O"
yeah, i was thinking same.
I use both depending on what kind of stuff I am willing to do. But many times I end up with vim just because there's many more that can be achieved quickly with it. Thanks for this video DT!
I use emacs for mu4e, after himalaya 1.0 I will stop using emacs or use rarely
I personally like nano, but everybody should be familiar with vi, because often, in some basic environment, like some openwrt, docker containers, or any limited environment, vi 100% already available, but if we can install something -yeah, nano or vim or ...
I use both regularly. Vim is my go to for just about everything because I'm old and learned ex/vi decades ago, but something quick and dirty over ssh or whatever, usually nano is available bang bang done.
your not old , you're wise :D , I wish i can have your wisdom
@@dhyaneeshanand5648 why, what's stopping you?
I've never been in a situation where nano was available and vi wasn't though.
@@0xDEAD_Inside by wisdom I mean his experiences there's no way I could've lived through his life and learn lessons from them :((
@@belowaverageplayer717 pretty sure he meant the quick usability of nano
No linux channel is complete without a monitor running cmatrix in the background.
I have not been brave enough to give VIM a go yet. For my basic needs NANO is more than sufficient.
BUT i can see that VIM must be great for coding in the terminal. All the stuff you shown must give you next level powers when you need to edit code.
Vim + MarkdownPreview has completely changed how I take notes and plan lessons.
If I remember correctly you were using workman layout. How do you deal with vim's keys which scattered all around the keyboard?
I am very comfortable with Nano I don’t care for vim or Emacs because I’m a relatively basic user and nano is fine
I can see that vim would be good for a coder and such, but for people like you and me, nano works fine. At first some of the commands were awkward, but now it is easy. I'm sure vim users can say the same as well. It's all what you get used to using. But if I ever have a situation (hard to imagine what that might be) when I need to actually insert numbers in a file, I'll know what text editor can do it! ;)
Also, I believe I've only run into one distro that didn't have nano installed out of the box. Vim, on the other hand . . .
@@notalinuxguruguy8063 vi is always installed.
@@vorrnth8734 Thanks for the info. I checked my installations: Neptune OS, Lubuntu, and Salient OS, and all three are installed on all three distros except vi isn't installed on Salient. Go figure. :) (Note: I may have installed vim on Neptune, due to watching one of DT's other videos and deciding to go through the tutorial, I don't recall whether I installed it or it was already there, but I know I didn't install vi.)
@@LesterFernandezIO Ive used vim on an off for years ut i still use the arrow keys. I never did like the letter keys for navigation even in games.
Vim looks powerful, personally I gravitated towards Nano because it's been pre-installed on every distro I played with and normally I only use a terminal based editor for simple system config edits. Vim has always been a bit scary, but after seeing this I might play with it a bit more often. Thanks.
Vim is extremely powerful. Vim also comes with most distros, personally I don't care about that because almost everybody customizes their vim to the point they can't use the default anymore.
If you feel intimidated by the learning curve check out a 6 part playlist by ThePrimegean to get the basics. That's how I started.
That and the video from MAKC about vim and you will be faster than you ever have been.
Yup... been there done that and even tried neovim and a couple others... lasted about 2 months. Haven't touched a 'vim' of any kind since then.
@@user-he4ef9br7z Thanks, I will check that out along with DT's other videos
Just do yourself a favor and get through the Vim Tutor. You will thank yourself for sticking to it.
Hey DT! How did you make the tall letters at the top of your .bashrc file and what are they called. Thanks
hey there, I am using gnu Emacs (very new) and I have a question. How can I change the color of the banner text plugin.
when you gave that command to reverse the order of lines in VI, did it actually changed the document text or only the view?
I love using plain text for everything. Way more flexible and fast. I do all of my radio playlists in txt files. Makes my radio life so much easier!!😀
not to mention it works great wit git & diff. plain text is the future. word processors were a mistake.
DT, can you please do an updated video on this subject wit hall three? Vim, Nano and Emacs?
So, in Vim if I’m editing a word and need to skip a single letter I have to press “esc” then “k” then “i” and start typing? To do the same thing in Nano I simply press the right arrow once to get the same result. Might as well be using ed.
Edit your vimscript with nano! :]
Best of both worlds
i download microsoft word to edit my vimrc
@distrotube by default vim (at least that comes with Ubuntu) doesn't tell you what mode your in on the bottom. Were you running neovim or something?
If VIM didn’t have the such abstract key commands I’d use it, but nano has like 10 to know
and they're all sitting there on screen including the "get help" for the ones that don't fit, so every single day isn't a test; it's, at worst, a pop quiz with a cheat sheet on the back. you don't have to _memorize_ anything; you can just _learn_ it, and instantly look up new commands as you need them
And nano works without knowing a single key binding at all, apart from
Save and exit
Keybindings are just there to make your Life a little easier.
I like Micro, which you previously recommended. How do I get Git to default to it?
$> git config --global core.editor micro
what tyling manager did you use here?
Hi @DistroTube I saw the new animation that displayed the DistroTube channel. Going with the theme of the channel it would be awesome if you could have the train that is shown using the sl command carrying the channel banner
Config files are less susceptible to destruction with nano by a beginner.
Wasn't pico integrated with the email client pine?
I guess, if it is "one and done" type of very occasional quick file editing, nano is perfectly adequate. No bindings need be memorized.
If you spend any kind of time editing text files, then memorizing vim key bindings becomes worthwhile.
When I became a sysadmin, I had dozens of SUN clients and servers to administer, and vi was pre-installed on the OS and at the PROM level. So there was no choice but to learn it. PLUS I was handed a 1 page cheat sheet on paper. Yeah, I am old-old school.
Does nano even work with a language-server?
I recently have been trying out Micro, and like it pretty much. But, nano does everything it sets out to just fine.
Even macOS comes with nano and vim out of the box
Why so surprised!! It’s Unix for flip sake.
openSUSE either
I know this is probably gonna hurt you guys, but I think Linux became a better place when Nano became a part of the standard installation in most Distros.
Seriously I started on Suse in 2004 and the worst thing is when you end up in a tty, you don’t have a browser to get help and you cannot even use a text editor because the only installed one is vim.
I am on gentoo now 17 years later, but I still love and use Nano for its simplicity and don’t want to leave it ever. A text editor should be so easy to use and it should not require learning it.
You still have to learn something, you just cut off at a shallower level.
Great video, coming in 2 years later! You've convinced me to finally give vim a shot. Never wanted to memorize a bunch of random commands are only applicable to one thing, but such is life haha
Can you share how you got your status line to look the way it does? I installed power line, but can't get it configured to show "COMMAND" when I hit the colon
My preference is the text editor I can quit from.
In one or five ways? :)
Nano works in the same way of the first word processor of the MS-DOS era: WordStar
I still remember some commands, ctrl+K B = mark begin text, ctrl+K K = mark end text, ctrl+K C = copy marked text to current cursor position. Ahhhhh, what a memories!!!!
Thanks for this
For me: light editing: nano/heavy work that I want within my comfort zone: emacs -nw
If you are going to use command line text editors all the time and for important work , then it makes sense to learn vim ..
But if you use command line text editors once in a blue moon, then there's not a replacement for nano.....
You don't have to learn anything because all the key bindings and shortcuts etc are displayed at the bottom.....
Even a blind man could use nano for the first time without anybody teaching him or reading a book.....
There is no learning curve with nano.... But this is deep learning curve with VIM...
Not all of us are prepared to go up a learning curve for a command line text editor that we will use two or three times a year only ....
Terminal emacs is the chad's terminal text editor 😎.
But unironically, everyone should learn the basics of vim. Its so useful and saves infinite amounts of time imo.
When writing a program and maintaining it the most important thing isn't saving a few micro seconds through the use of short cuts in the editor or abbreviations in the language but to write an understandable code that can be maintained many years after you moved on to another work. The editor is only a tool. The biggest strength of vi or vim is that any Linux or Unix have them installed by default. If you like something else like emacs ... or nano you have to install it, if you know what you are doing installing is no problem.
You only need ssh access and Emacs on your personal computer to edit files in the server, like it was local.
I am sticking with 'nano' just because it has its cheat sheet displayed while editing. I am really bad at remembering things...😂😂😂
Hey guys have you ever tried vim tutor speedrun what's your score??
I prefer Nano, I even took a intro to unix course in college that the first half was all VI stuff. I just couldn't get used to the key shortcuts. Nano made things super easy for what I need. Everything else is sed, echo, and grep and tail and awk
exactly how i feel, nano is more simple and modern and there are other tools like you said for the complexities
I like using the dictionary in vim for spell checking.
I use vim for much of my use case except when it comes to copying and pasting from external sources like a web page, at that point nano(or micro) becomes my best friend.
your setup might be broken. you can copy and paste to and from the system clipboard in vim. on some cases you need to set it up while most modern vims like nvim have it out of the box. by default it's the + register. ie: "+p means paste from the clipboard register.
@@slipcurve1410 Figured it out by the end of the day had to install gvim for clipboard support to work on arch linux, nut still this one thing is pretty basic and easy to achieve in micro or nano as they can copy paste via the default terminal key bindings
Micro is a TUI text editor that doesn't require relearning - all the familiar shortcuts, amazing selection support.
7:16 I smell a vim productivity scientific study coming up!
i love vim, but honestly the nano goes beyond what you said like autocomplete and search.
autocomplete:
^]
Search for a string or a regular expression:
^W
Insert another file into the current one:
^R
and several other things, it's not as expansive and rich in possibilities as vim, neovim... , but it's not useless as it seemed in your video, I'm not correcting you, just bringing you information.
How long does it generally take you to become comfortable with Vim?
Can you take a look at stumpwm again
sometimes you dont want to frustrate yourself when you are editing some things in configurations, then you use nano for simplicity as you dont reqire :wq all the time. but writing a long code or long doucment requires vim
"Nanomachines, son."
I got so used to using vim even for coding, when I needed to move to vs code, the first extension I installed was vim keybindings. Once I figure out how to more efficiently use debugging, git, and docker in vim, I will ditch vs code and go back.
What about Micro?
I use nano because that what I first learn and almost all distro have it as default not need to install. I wanted to learn vim but procrastinated because seems to me a time consuming learning curve... Until now, DT has open my eyes. A side by side comparison make it looks easy to learn, which is maybe the same fear of many nano user, spend too much time learning a hard and complicating new way (before this video, vim looked alien to me).
Next Doom Emacs
Btw I’m wondering if you’ve ever taken a look at bedrock Linux. I know you don’t like distro reviews but it’s a meta distro that does things in a really unique way
Dollar sign gets you to the end? but on german keyboards I have to press shift and some number to write a dollar sign
Midnight Commander editor (mcedit) and micro are two other alternative to text editing in the terminal.
I recollect using pico editor, still prefer a cmd-line editor like nano/vi in kde :-) Also nice history talk.
I can see how powerful vim is, but it sounds like a pain to learn, nano is fine for my purposes though I've learnt things here that'll come in handy! Thanks for the video
I love vim I used to write python in vim. It's been a while since I've used it for other than changing a few lines.
Nano is great if you don't want to use VIM because it's modal. However, if you're skilled in VIM - no comparison, VIM all the way (windowed, tabbed, file explorer, programmable, etc)
What about the notepad?
VIM is fantastic when editing names of multiple files, music, or videos. Extremely convenient and time saving. I will admit it there was a learning curve to overcome, but time well spent learning the application. What would have taken hours took minutes with VIM.
You can DO THAT? Edit videos and music files with vim?
@@mikemarcum9407 yes, absolutely in batches no less. I had numerous media files that needed editing and would have taken days. I was introduced to the batch editing power of VIM. I'm sure there must be a CZcams video showing how to process this specific function
I was going to say that the old Apollo terminals didn't have arrows. I was looking for a picture of one but it does have arrow keys. And after seeing them I do remember using those to navigate around the screen at work. This was back in the mid 80s to late 90s when we had these Apollo terminals. Late 90s we switched to computers. Windows 98 was the OS of choice. I was hoping they would have stuck with Linux because all of their software had to be created (I worked for a major airline and whenever I flew on employee passes I would have to use Apollo to list myself). Linux would have been a great OS for personal company software I think but they didn't go that route.
I cant live without vim
I cant live without telescope
I can't live without flor de cana
How is vim "faster" if you have to keep switching modes? In nano, I just move where I need to go. Nano still has functions such as find, replace, undo, etc.
It really depends on what you prefer; I hate it when people insist one is better than the other. This whole video is basically Vim bias.
Now I understand why the default word replacement method in IRC is s/mistake/fixed
The need to use the command line also exists on windows. (For power users and the occasional system bonks)
If you rarely use the command line (terminal), then nano is sufficient and easy to learn (the commands are at the bottom of the screen). If you regularly work at the command line, then vim will ultimately be the better text editor to learn.
Because...???
@@mikemarcum9407 because what? I cannot answer your vague question without a question of my own which does not advance the discussion.
I love Nano, but Vim scares me.
considering I can't remember how to use vim, I will stick with nano or pico, thanks
For a user who doesn't constantly edits text, nano is the way to go, because it's simpler and doesn't have the overhead of the buttons + all the amount of shortcut keys you need to know beforehand just to change a value or a few on a text file, but if you are doing some serious work, VIM seems to be the way to go, different tools for different tasks.
What about micro?
sudo pacman -R nano
error: target not found: nano
Excellent
what distro? It's been on EVERY one I've ever tried from slackware to Arch to BSD... you name it, I've tried it... nano is the standard default. Hell, I've run into some distros over the years that didn't install vim ... Now that's a distro I can get into... lol
This is another video that discuss using two "cars": Mini (or Fiat500) vs Porsche.
Or a Fisher-Price tricycle vs a standard bicycle without training wheels.
8:39
Rally X is so cool
comparing vim with nano is like comparing a motor bike with a bicycle, both have two wheels and you can probably shift gears and to roll arround on your frontyard you can do with both, but if you want to go for a longer ride you use vim, even though the needed skill level is higher to start
I hate not being able to click around in a text editor and having to slowly move around with keys
For the user, that JUST needs a Text Editor, to change a line in a document and just do the basic stuff, that people would use a text editor for - Nano, absolutely, and without a doubt. Why? Because if you just started and JUST need quick access to a text editor, you absolutely don't wanna go trough the vim tutor. Before I'd do that, I'd get the file of the machine and edit it with any graphical text editor, as this is most likely still faster and easier.
Vim is great, but only if you actually use it. Meaning that you'll use it more often. I eventually started learning Vim, and to do the basics, it really ain't THAT hard. And it really is a great text editor. It really is better then nano, in almost every aspect. But then again, only if you use text editors enough. If you don't do a lot, just use nano.
Why use a terminal editor and a GUI editor when I can just use _vim_
Nano:
You hit the nail on the head. Nano for simple text files.... VIM for coding...
how is this even a question?
Vim, if only because it's less chordal and you can read command output into a buffer very easily.
“I don’t know why they use ctrl+k, ctrl+u because mnemonically the don’t make sense”
I find myself with the same problem when using pacman. That’s why I prefer apt based distros.
True!! I struggled a lot with pacman in the beginning but got the hang of it later.
@@shubhanshutomar7940 Same, now I just can't get comfortable with apt now that I've used pacman tho
emerge -paqvuND --with-bdeps=y @world
Hmm ... I understand, who can remember how to remove package using rpm, dnf, zypper, pacman, snapd, flatpak,....) just to realize that package is named differently and googling who owns certain file. Level 2: find manually installed packages, uninstall one of them and unistall libraries that no manually installed package depends on.
I used to be a big fan of apt. When i switched to arch I found pacman to be easier
i use both, nano on gentoo and vim on arch.
i use "ne - nice editor" or micro
Learn vi/vim and you will always be able to use the text editor on any Unix system.
I honestly prefer vim, but nano is okay too
Somehow I think this video was a bit bias.... LOL
Complains about having to press CTL plus something in Nano to do something and proceeds to type all kinds of keys to make a simple thing happen in VIM...
I was waiting for my screen to start flying... HaHaHAHA
Thanks for the video!
LLAP
Yes I use Nano BTW!!!
😆😆 _I was waiting for my screen to start flying_ hahahahaha
@@mitchelvalentino1569 :-D
absurd the way he pushes vim on everyone for everything but admits he doesn't even know how to really use nano. how the hell can you put out a video comparing one editor you use every day to one you admit to not using? Hey dude... the damn key bindings are at the bottom of the screen... ctl 'K" (kut maybe?) and ctl 'U' (UNcut maybe)... what a joke of a video.
@@mikemarcum9407 Yep thats for sure...
I don't get it either. I don't like vim and cant understand the keys usage. Makes less sense than Nano keys..
LLAP
What about “micro” - micro is great
used vi since 1992, next question.
First editor was Pico, as the diehards were still using ED at the time. Pico matured into Nano, and has and will be my goto editor. From not learning VIM keybindings, I literally forget them after a while as they are NOT intuitive! Using EMACS would be bloated overkill as it's just too much to learn and VIM at times seems the same way. If I can't get an easy GUI program to work (geany, gedit, kate), I'll just fire up nano and be done in a jiffy.
exactly dont follow the herd!
My Computer's teacher at college said: 'The old experienced ones, we use Vi, which has some defaults from another era that may be really strange for you, now for the pusillanimous, you get nano.'.
Meanwhile...
export EDITOR="emacsclient ... "
export VISUAL="emacsclient ... "
I came here looking for this comment :-)
export OS="emacsclient ..."
If anybody using emacs only for text editing then they should be switched to vim coz in comparison for speed edition vimer will be always ahead.
Use that, what best suit to you
Every one says VIM, but where are the people who have to use VI. Now that has a learning curve.
Not much of a difference, try ed for a learning curve