An example vim vimrc configuration file

vim/vimrc FAQ: Can you share an example vim vimrc configuration file?

Sure. I don't use vim for programming much these days, so I don't have the vimrc configuration commands I used to use with various programming languages, but I'll be glad to share my vimrc configuration file that I use every day, along with a few extra lines to demonstrate some of the vim configuration possibilities.

Example vim vimrc configuration file

Here's an example vimrc file:

" alvin alexander's sample .vimrc file

" --- configure syntax highlighting ---

" possible cterm colors:
" black, blue, cyan, gray, green, magenta, red, white, yellow

" possible cterm, gui, and term settings:
" bold, underline, reverse, italic, none

" possible Groups and Colors are shown on this page:
" http://vimdoc.sourceforge.net/htmldoc/syntax.html

colo delek


" --- other vim configuration commands ---

" enable syntax highlighting
syntax on

" show the editing mode on the last line
set showmode

" tell vim to keep a backup file
set backup

" tell vim where to put its backup files
set backupdir=/private/tmp

" tell vim where to put swap files
set dir=/private/tmp


"--- common vim commands i don't use

" i don't use autoindent, but here's how to configure it:
" set autoindent

" you can show line numbers
" set number

" highlight matching search strings
" set hlsearch

" make searches case insensitive
" set ignorecase


" --- vim map (macro) commands ---
map #1 :!more ~/.vi_help^M
map #2 :set number
map #3 :set nonumber
map #4 o<table>^M  <tr>^M    <td>^M    </td>^M  </tr>^M</table>
map #5 o<ul>^M  <li></li>^M</ul>
map #6 o<ul>^M  <li><a href=""></a></li>^M</ul>

vim vimrc configuration commands

Several of these vim vimrc configuration commands are discussed in different vim tutorials on this website:

• Vim backup files are discussed in my Vim backup files tutorial.
• Vim map commands are discussed in my How to create vim macros tutorial.
• Vim color settings are discussed in many articles, including Vim color syntax, How to use a vim color scheme, and How to configure a gVim color scheme (colorscheme).
• Vim autoindent is discussed in my Vim autoindent tutorial.

vim vimrc configuration file summary

I hope this example vim vimrc configuration file has been helpful. If you have any questions, comments, or additions, please leave a note in the Comments section below.