.TH VIM 1 "10 December 1992"
.SH NAME
vim \- Vi IMitation, a programmers text editor
.SH SYNOPSIS
.B vim
[options] [file ..]
.br
.B vim
[options] \-t tag
.br
.B vim
[options] +[command] file ..
.br
.B vim
[options] \-c {command} file ..
.br
.B vim
[options] \-e
.SH DESCRIPTION
.B Vim
is a text editor that is upwards compatible to vi. It can be used to edit any 
ASCII text. It is especially useful for editing programs.
.PP
There are a lot of enhancements above vi: multi level undo, command line 
editing, filename completion, on line help, quoting, etc.. Read difference.doc 
for a summary of the differences between vi and Vim.
.PP
Most often
.B Vim
is started to edit a single file with the command
.PP
	vim file
.PP
More generally VIM is started with:
.PP
	vim [options] [filelist]
.PP
If the filelist is missing, the editor will start with an empty buffer.
Otherwise exactly one out of the following four may be used to choose one or
more files to be edited.
.TP 12
file ..
A list of file names. The first one (alphabetically) will be
the current file and read into the buffer. The cursor will be
positioned on the first line of the buffer. You can get to the other files
with the ":next" command.
.TP
+[num] file ..
Same as the above, but the cursor will be positioned on line
"num". If "num" is missing, the cursor will be positioned on
the last line.
.TP
+/pat file ..
Same as the above, but the cursor will be positioned on the
first occurrence of "pat" in the current file (see reference.doc, 
section "pattern searches" for the available search 
patterns).
.TP
+{command} file ..
.TP
-c {command} file ..
Same as the above, but {command} will be executed after the 
file has been read. {command} is interpreted as an Ex 
command. If the {command} contains spaces it must 
be enclosed in double quotes (this depends on the shell that 
is used).
Example: Vim "+set si" main.c
.TP
-t {tag}
A tag. {tag} is looked up in the tags file, the associated 
file becomes the current file and the associated command is 
executed. Mostly this is used for C programs. {tag} then 
should be a function name. The effect is that the file 
containing that function becomes the current file and the 
cursor is positioned on the start of the function (see reference.doc, 
section "tag searches").
.TP
-e
QuickFix mode. The error file "AztecC.Err" is read and the 
first error is displayed. See reference.doc section 5.6.
.SH OPTIONS
The options, if present, must precede the filelist. The options may be given 
in any order.
.TP 12
-r
Recovery mode. The autoscript file is read to recover a 
crashed editing session. It has almost the same effect as 
"-s file.vim". See reference.doc, chapter "Recovery after a crash".
.TP
-v
View mode. The 'readonly' option will be set. You can still 
edit the buffer, but will be prevented from accidental 
overwriting a file. If you do want to overwrite a file, add 
an exclamation mark to the Ex command, as in ":w!". The 
'readonly' option can be reset with ":set noro" (see reference.doc, 
options chapter).
.TP
-n
No autoscript file will be written. Recovery after a crash 
will be impossible. Handy if you want to edit a file on a 
very slow medium (e.g. floppy). Can also be done with ":set 
uc=0".
.TP
-s {scriptin}
The script file {scriptin} is read. The characters in the 
file are interpreted as if you had typed them. The same can 
be done with the command ":source! {scriptin}". If the end 
of the file is reached before the editor exits, further 
characters are read from the keyboard.
.TP
-w {scriptout}
All the characters that you type are recorded in the file
{scriptout}, until you exit VIM. This is useful if you want 
to create a script file to be used with "vim -s" or 
":source!".
.TP
-T terminal
Use terminal settings for "terminal".
.TP
-d device
Open "device" for use as a terminal. Only on the Amiga. Example:
"\-d con:20/30/600/150".
.SH SEE ALSO
Vim documentation: Reference.doc, index, difference.doc, unix.doc, vim.hlp.
.SH AUTHOR
Most of VIM was made by Bram Moolenaar.
.br
VIM is based on Stevie, worked on by: Tim Thompson,
Tony Andrews and G.R. (Fred) Walter
.SH BUGS
Probably.