Shortcut to open file in Vim

Question

I want to open a file in Vim like in Eclipse using Ctrl + Shift + R, or via the Ctrl + N option of autofill. Invoke a

Answer 1

I installed FuzzyFinder. However, the limitation is that it only finds files in the current dir. One workaround to that is to add FuzzyFinderTextmate. However, based on the docs and commentary, that doesn't work reliably. You need the right version of FuzzyFinder and you need your copy of Vim to be compiled with Ruby support.

A different workaround I'm trying out now is to open all the files I'm likely to need at the beginning of the editing session. E.g., open all the files in key directories...

:args app/**
:args config/**
:args test/**
etc...

(This means I would have possibly scores of files open, however so far it still seems to work OK.)

After that, I can use FuzzyFinder in buffer mode and it will act somewhat like TextMate's command-o shortcut...

:FuzzyFinderBuffer

Answer 2

If you're editing files in a common directory, you can :cd to that directory, then use :e on just the filename.

For example, rather than:

:e /big/long/path/that/takes/a/while/to/type/or/tab/complete/thingy.rb
:sp /big/long/path/that/takes/a/while/to/type/or/tab/complete/other_thingy.c
:vs /big/long/path/that/takes/a/while/to/type/or/tab/complete/one_more_thingy.java

You can do:

:cd /big/long/path/that/takes/a/while/to/type/or/tab/complete/
:e thingy.rb
:sp other_thingy.c
:vs one_more_thingy.java

Or, if you already have a file in the desired directory open, you can use the % shorthand for the current filename, and trim it to the current directory with the :h modifier (:help :_%:) :

:e /big/long/path/that/takes/a/while/to/type/or/tab/complete/thingy.rb
:cd %:h
:sp other_thingy.c
:vs one_more_thingy.java

And, like others have said, you can tab-complete file names on the ex-line (see :help cmdline-completion for more).

Answer 3

• you can use (set wildmenu)
• you can use tab to autocomplete filenames
• you can also use matching, for example :e p*.dat or something like that (like in old' dos)

• you could also :browse confirm e (for a graphical window)

• but you should also probably specify what vim version you're using, and how that thing in emacs works. Maybe we could find you an exact vim alternative.

Answer 4

I use a couple of shortcuts in my .vimrc file (exact syntax below).

They are based on the fact that in 90% of the cases, I want to open another file in the same directory as the file that I am currently editing, or in a directory that is very close in the hierarchy to that edited file.

Here's what the commands do do:

,cd : Change the current working directory to the directory that the current file you are editing is in.

,e : Opens a file with the current working directory already filled in so you have to specify only the filename.

Put these into your .vimrc:

map ,e :e <C-R>=expand("%:p:h") . "/" <CR>

map ,cd :cd %:p:h <CR>

Here's a sequence of events:

---

1. You are editing a file called test.java in "/home/prog"
2. ,cd -> Current working directory now becomes "/home/prog"
3. ,e -> Expands to ":e /home/prog" so that you can just fill in the file name, say test.h.

---

1. ,e -> Expands to ":e /home"
2. tab -> Cycle through subdirectories of /home
3. enter -> cd to the directory you want say /home/prog
4. ,e -> Expands to ":e /home/prog"

Answer 5

Consider using CtrlP plug-in.

It is included in Janus Distributive.

Allows you to find files in the current directory, open buffers or most recently used files using "fuzzy matching" or regular expression.

Answer 6

I know three plugins that permit to open files, support auto-completion, and don't require to enter the full path name of the file(s) to open (as long as the files are under one of the directories from &path vim option):

• searchInRuntime that I'm maintaining (the completion is not on :e/:find, but on split actions)
• fuzzy finder as it has been already pointed out,
• lookupfile.

Lately, I've seen another plugin with a similar feature, but I don't remember the name.

Soon, :find is likely support auto-completion -- patches on this topic are circulating on vim_dev mailing-list these days.