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Bram Moolenaar488c6512005-08-11 20:09:58 +00001*eval.txt* For Vim version 7.0aa. Last change: 2005 Aug 11
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002
3
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
5
6
7Expression evaluation *expression* *expr* *E15* *eval*
8
9Using expressions is introduced in chapter 41 of the user manual |usr_41.txt|.
10
11Note: Expression evaluation can be disabled at compile time. If this has been
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +000012done, the features in this document are not available. See |+eval| and
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000013|no-eval-feature|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000014
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000151. Variables |variables|
16 1.1 Variable types
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +000017 1.2 Function references |Funcref|
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +000018 1.3 Lists |Lists|
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000019 1.4 Dictionaries |Dictionaries|
20 1.5 More about variables |more-variables|
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000212. Expression syntax |expression-syntax|
223. Internal variable |internal-variables|
234. Builtin Functions |functions|
245. Defining functions |user-functions|
256. Curly braces names |curly-braces-names|
267. Commands |expression-commands|
278. Exception handling |exception-handling|
289. Examples |eval-examples|
2910. No +eval feature |no-eval-feature|
3011. The sandbox |eval-sandbox|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000031
32{Vi does not have any of these commands}
33
34==============================================================================
351. Variables *variables*
36
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000371.1 Variable types ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +000038 *E712*
Bram Moolenaar39a58ca2005-06-27 22:42:44 +000039There are five types of variables:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000040
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000041Number A 32 bit signed number.
42 Examples: -123 0x10 0177
43
44String A NUL terminated string of 8-bit unsigned characters (bytes).
45 Examples: "ab\txx\"--" 'x-z''a,c'
46
47Funcref A reference to a function |Funcref|.
48 Example: function("strlen")
49
50List An ordered sequence of items |List|.
51 Example: [1, 2, ['a', 'b']]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000052
Bram Moolenaar39a58ca2005-06-27 22:42:44 +000053Dictionary An associative, unordered array: Each entry has a key and a
54 value. |Dictionary|
55 Example: {'blue': "#0000ff", 'red': "#ff0000"}
56
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +000057The Number and String types are converted automatically, depending on how they
58are used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000059
60Conversion from a Number to a String is by making the ASCII representation of
61the Number. Examples: >
62 Number 123 --> String "123"
63 Number 0 --> String "0"
64 Number -1 --> String "-1"
65
66Conversion from a String to a Number is done by converting the first digits
67to a number. Hexadecimal "0xf9" and Octal "017" numbers are recognized. If
68the String doesn't start with digits, the result is zero. Examples: >
69 String "456" --> Number 456
70 String "6bar" --> Number 6
71 String "foo" --> Number 0
72 String "0xf1" --> Number 241
73 String "0100" --> Number 64
74 String "-8" --> Number -8
75 String "+8" --> Number 0
76
77To force conversion from String to Number, add zero to it: >
78 :echo "0100" + 0
79
80For boolean operators Numbers are used. Zero is FALSE, non-zero is TRUE.
81
82Note that in the command >
83 :if "foo"
84"foo" is converted to 0, which means FALSE. To test for a non-empty string,
85use strlen(): >
86 :if strlen("foo")
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +000087< *E745* *E728* *E703* *E729* *E730* *E731*
88List, Dictionary and Funcref types are not automatically converted.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +000089
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +000090 *E706*
91You will get an error if you try to change the type of a variable. You need
92to |:unlet| it first to avoid this error. String and Number are considered
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000093equivalent though. Consider this sequence of commands: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +000094 :let l = "string"
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +000095 :let l = 44 " changes type from String to Number
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +000096 :let l = [1, 2, 3] " error!
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +000097
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +000098
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000991.2 Function references ~
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +0000100 *Funcref* *E695* *E718*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000101A Funcref variable is obtained with the |function()| function. It can be used
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000102in an expression in the place of a function name, before the parenthesis
103around the arguments, to invoke the function it refers to. Example: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000104
105 :let Fn = function("MyFunc")
106 :echo Fn()
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000107< *E704* *E705* *E707*
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000108A Funcref variable must start with a capital, "s:", "w:" or "b:". You cannot
109have both a Funcref variable and a function with the same name.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000110
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000111A special case is defining a function and directly assigning its Funcref to a
112Dictionary entry. Example: >
113 :function dict.init() dict
114 : let self.val = 0
115 :endfunction
116
117The key of the Dictionary can start with a lower case letter. The actual
118function name is not used here. Also see |numbered-function|.
119
120A Funcref can also be used with the |:call| command: >
121 :call Fn()
122 :call dict.init()
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000123
124The name of the referenced function can be obtained with |string()|. >
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000125 :let func = string(Fn)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000126
127You can use |call()| to invoke a Funcref and use a list variable for the
128arguments: >
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000129 :let r = call(Fn, mylist)
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000130
131
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00001321.3 Lists ~
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +0000133 *List* *Lists* *E686*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000134A List is an ordered sequence of items. An item can be of any type. Items
135can be accessed by their index number. Items can be added and removed at any
136position in the sequence.
137
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000138
139List creation ~
140 *E696* *E697*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000141A List is created with a comma separated list of items in square brackets.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000142Examples: >
143 :let mylist = [1, two, 3, "four"]
144 :let emptylist = []
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000145
146An item can be any expression. Using a List for an item creates a
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000147nested List: >
148 :let nestlist = [[11, 12], [21, 22], [31, 32]]
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000149
150An extra comma after the last item is ignored.
151
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000152
153List index ~
154 *list-index* *E684*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000155An item in the List can be accessed by putting the index in square brackets
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000156after the List. Indexes are zero-based, thus the first item has index zero. >
157 :let item = mylist[0] " get the first item: 1
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000158 :let item = mylist[2] " get the third item: 3
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000159
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000160When the resulting item is a list this can be repeated: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000161 :let item = nestlist[0][1] " get the first list, second item: 12
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000162<
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000163A negative index is counted from the end. Index -1 refers to the last item in
164the List, -2 to the last but one item, etc. >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000165 :let last = mylist[-1] " get the last item: "four"
166
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000167To avoid an error for an invalid index use the |get()| function. When an item
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000168is not available it returns zero or the default value you specify: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000169 :echo get(mylist, idx)
170 :echo get(mylist, idx, "NONE")
171
172
173List concatenation ~
174
175Two lists can be concatenated with the "+" operator: >
176 :let longlist = mylist + [5, 6]
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000177 :let mylist += [7, 8]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000178
179To prepend or append an item turn the item into a list by putting [] around
180it. To change a list in-place see |list-modification| below.
181
182
183Sublist ~
184
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000185A part of the List can be obtained by specifying the first and last index,
186separated by a colon in square brackets: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000187 :let shortlist = mylist[2:-1] " get List [3, "four"]
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000188
189Omitting the first index is similar to zero. Omitting the last index is
190similar to -1. The difference is that there is no error if the items are not
191available. >
Bram Moolenaar540d6e32005-01-09 21:20:18 +0000192 :let endlist = mylist[2:] " from item 2 to the end: [3, "four"]
193 :let shortlist = mylist[2:2] " List with one item: [3]
194 :let otherlist = mylist[:] " make a copy of the List
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000195
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000196The second index can be just before the first index. In that case the result
197is an empty list. If the second index is lower, this results in an error. >
198 :echo mylist[2:1] " result: []
199 :echo mylist[2:0] " error!
200
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +0000201NOTE: mylist[s:e] means using the variable "s:e" as index. Watch out for
202using a single letter variable before the ":". Insert a space when needed:
203mylist[s : e].
204
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000205
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000206List identity ~
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000207 *list-identity*
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000208When variable "aa" is a list and you assign it to another variable "bb", both
209variables refer to the same list. Thus changing the list "aa" will also
210change "bb": >
211 :let aa = [1, 2, 3]
212 :let bb = aa
213 :call add(aa, 4)
214 :echo bb
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000215< [1, 2, 3, 4]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000216
217Making a copy of a list is done with the |copy()| function. Using [:] also
218works, as explained above. This creates a shallow copy of the list: Changing
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000219a list item in the list will also change the item in the copied list: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000220 :let aa = [[1, 'a'], 2, 3]
221 :let bb = copy(aa)
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000222 :call add(aa, 4)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000223 :let aa[0][1] = 'aaa'
224 :echo aa
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000225< [[1, aaa], 2, 3, 4] >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000226 :echo bb
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000227< [[1, aaa], 2, 3]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000228
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000229To make a completely independent list use |deepcopy()|. This also makes a
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000230copy of the values in the list, recursively. Up to a hundred levels deep.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000231
232The operator "is" can be used to check if two variables refer to the same
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000233List. "isnot" does the opposite. In contrast "==" compares if two lists have
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000234the same value. >
235 :let alist = [1, 2, 3]
236 :let blist = [1, 2, 3]
237 :echo alist is blist
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000238< 0 >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000239 :echo alist == blist
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000240< 1
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000241
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000242Note about comparing lists: Two lists are considered equal if they have the
243same length and all items compare equal, as with using "==". There is one
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000244exception: When comparing a number with a string they are considered
245different. There is no automatic type conversion, as with using "==" on
246variables. Example: >
247 echo 4 == "4"
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000248< 1 >
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000249 echo [4] == ["4"]
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000250< 0
251
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000252Thus comparing Lists is more strict than comparing numbers and strings. You
253can compare simple values this way too by putting them in a string: >
254
255 :let a = 5
256 :let b = "5"
257 echo a == b
258< 1 >
259 echo [a] == [b]
260< 0
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000261
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000262
263List unpack ~
264
265To unpack the items in a list to individual variables, put the variables in
266square brackets, like list items: >
267 :let [var1, var2] = mylist
268
269When the number of variables does not match the number of items in the list
270this produces an error. To handle any extra items from the list append ";"
271and a variable name: >
272 :let [var1, var2; rest] = mylist
273
274This works like: >
275 :let var1 = mylist[0]
276 :let var2 = mylist[1]
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000277 :let rest = mylist[2:]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000278
279Except that there is no error if there are only two items. "rest" will be an
280empty list then.
281
282
283List modification ~
284 *list-modification*
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000285To change a specific item of a list use |:let| this way: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000286 :let list[4] = "four"
287 :let listlist[0][3] = item
288
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000289To change part of a list you can specify the first and last item to be
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000290modified. The value must at least have the number of items in the range: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000291 :let list[3:5] = [3, 4, 5]
292
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000293Adding and removing items from a list is done with functions. Here are a few
294examples: >
295 :call insert(list, 'a') " prepend item 'a'
296 :call insert(list, 'a', 3) " insert item 'a' before list[3]
297 :call add(list, "new") " append String item
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000298 :call add(list, [1, 2]) " append a List as one new item
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000299 :call extend(list, [1, 2]) " extend the list with two more items
300 :let i = remove(list, 3) " remove item 3
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +0000301 :unlet list[3] " idem
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000302 :let l = remove(list, 3, -1) " remove items 3 to last item
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +0000303 :unlet list[3 : ] " idem
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000304 :call filter(list, 'v:val !~ "x"') " remove items with an 'x'
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000305
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000306Changing the order of items in a list: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000307 :call sort(list) " sort a list alphabetically
308 :call reverse(list) " reverse the order of items
309
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000310
311For loop ~
312
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000313The |:for| loop executes commands for each item in a list. A variable is set
314to each item in the list in sequence. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000315 :for item in mylist
316 : call Doit(item)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000317 :endfor
318
319This works like: >
320 :let index = 0
321 :while index < len(mylist)
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000322 : let item = mylist[index]
323 : :call Doit(item)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000324 : let index = index + 1
325 :endwhile
326
327Note that all items in the list should be of the same type, otherwise this
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000328results in error |E706|. To avoid this |:unlet| the variable at the end of
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000329the loop.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000330
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000331If all you want to do is modify each item in the list then the |map()|
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000332function will be a simpler method than a for loop.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000333
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000334Just like the |:let| command, |:for| also accepts a list of variables. This
335requires the argument to be a list of lists. >
336 :for [lnum, col] in [[1, 3], [2, 8], [3, 0]]
337 : call Doit(lnum, col)
338 :endfor
339
340This works like a |:let| command is done for each list item. Again, the types
341must remain the same to avoid an error.
342
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000343It is also possible to put remaining items in a List variable: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000344 :for [i, j; rest] in listlist
345 : call Doit(i, j)
346 : if !empty(rest)
347 : echo "remainder: " . string(rest)
348 : endif
349 :endfor
350
351
352List functions ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000353 *E714*
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000354Functions that are useful with a List: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000355 :let r = call(funcname, list) " call a function with an argument list
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000356 :if empty(list) " check if list is empty
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000357 :let l = len(list) " number of items in list
358 :let big = max(list) " maximum value in list
359 :let small = min(list) " minimum value in list
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000360 :let xs = count(list, 'x') " count nr of times 'x' appears in list
361 :let i = index(list, 'x') " index of first 'x' in list
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000362 :let lines = getline(1, 10) " get ten text lines from buffer
363 :call append('$', lines) " append text lines in buffer
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000364 :let list = split("a b c") " create list from items in a string
365 :let string = join(list, ', ') " create string from list items
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000366 :let s = string(list) " String representation of list
367 :call map(list, '">> " . v:val') " prepend ">> " to each item
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000368
Bram Moolenaar0cb032e2005-04-23 20:52:00 +0000369Don't forget that a combination of features can make things simple. For
370example, to add up all the numbers in a list: >
371 :exe 'let sum = ' . join(nrlist, '+')
372
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000373
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003741.4 Dictionaries ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000375 *Dictionaries* *Dictionary*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000376A Dictionary is an associative array: Each entry has a key and a value. The
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000377entry can be located with the key. The entries are stored without a specific
378ordering.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000379
380
381Dictionary creation ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000382 *E720* *E721* *E722* *E723*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000383A Dictionary is created with a comma separated list of entries in curly
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000384braces. Each entry has a key and a value, separated by a colon. Each key can
385only appear once. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000386 :let mydict = {1: 'one', 2: 'two', 3: 'three'}
387 :let emptydict = {}
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000388< *E713* *E716* *E717*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000389A key is always a String. You can use a Number, it will be converted to a
390String automatically. Thus the String '4' and the number 4 will find the same
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000391entry. Note that the String '04' and the Number 04 are different, since the
392Number will be converted to the String '4'.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000393
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000394A value can be any expression. Using a Dictionary for a value creates a
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000395nested Dictionary: >
396 :let nestdict = {1: {11: 'a', 12: 'b'}, 2: {21: 'c'}}
397
398An extra comma after the last entry is ignored.
399
400
401Accessing entries ~
402
403The normal way to access an entry is by putting the key in square brackets: >
404 :let val = mydict["one"]
405 :let mydict["four"] = 4
406
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000407You can add new entries to an existing Dictionary this way, unlike Lists.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000408
409For keys that consist entirely of letters, digits and underscore the following
410form can be used |expr-entry|: >
411 :let val = mydict.one
412 :let mydict.four = 4
413
414Since an entry can be any type, also a List and a Dictionary, the indexing and
415key lookup can be repeated: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000416 :echo dict.key[idx].key
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000417
418
419Dictionary to List conversion ~
420
421You may want to loop over the entries in a dictionary. For this you need to
422turn the Dictionary into a List and pass it to |:for|.
423
424Most often you want to loop over the keys, using the |keys()| function: >
425 :for key in keys(mydict)
426 : echo key . ': ' . mydict[key]
427 :endfor
428
429The List of keys is unsorted. You may want to sort them first: >
430 :for key in sort(keys(mydict))
431
432To loop over the values use the |values()| function: >
433 :for v in values(mydict)
434 : echo "value: " . v
435 :endfor
436
437If you want both the key and the value use the |items()| function. It returns
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000438a List in which each item is a List with two items, the key and the value: >
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000439 :for entry in items(mydict)
440 : echo entry[0] . ': ' . entry[1]
441 :endfor
442
443
444Dictionary identity ~
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +0000445 *dict-identity*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000446Just like Lists you need to use |copy()| and |deepcopy()| to make a copy of a
447Dictionary. Otherwise, assignment results in referring to the same
448Dictionary: >
449 :let onedict = {'a': 1, 'b': 2}
450 :let adict = onedict
451 :let adict['a'] = 11
452 :echo onedict['a']
453 11
454
Bram Moolenaarf3bd51a2005-06-14 22:11:18 +0000455Two Dictionaries compare equal if all the key-value pairs compare equal. For
456more info see |list-identity|.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000457
458
459Dictionary modification ~
460 *dict-modification*
461To change an already existing entry of a Dictionary, or to add a new entry,
462use |:let| this way: >
463 :let dict[4] = "four"
464 :let dict['one'] = item
465
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +0000466Removing an entry from a Dictionary is done with |remove()| or |:unlet|.
467Three ways to remove the entry with key "aaa" from dict: >
468 :let i = remove(dict, 'aaa')
469 :unlet dict.aaa
470 :unlet dict['aaa']
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000471
472Merging a Dictionary with another is done with |extend()|: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000473 :call extend(adict, bdict)
474This extends adict with all entries from bdict. Duplicate keys cause entries
475in adict to be overwritten. An optional third argument can change this.
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000476Note that the order of entries in a Dictionary is irrelevant, thus don't
477expect ":echo adict" to show the items from bdict after the older entries in
478adict.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000479
480Weeding out entries from a Dictionary can be done with |filter()|: >
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +0000481 :call filter(dict 'v:val =~ "x"')
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000482This removes all entries from "dict" with a value not matching 'x'.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000483
484
485Dictionary function ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000486 *Dictionary-function* *self* *E725*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000487When a function is defined with the "dict" attribute it can be used in a
488special way with a dictionary. Example: >
489 :function Mylen() dict
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000490 : return len(self.data)
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000491 :endfunction
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000492 :let mydict = {'data': [0, 1, 2, 3], 'len': function("Mylen")}
493 :echo mydict.len()
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000494
495This is like a method in object oriented programming. The entry in the
496Dictionary is a |Funcref|. The local variable "self" refers to the dictionary
497the function was invoked from.
498
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000499It is also possible to add a function without the "dict" attribute as a
500Funcref to a Dictionary, but the "self" variable is not available then.
501
502 *numbered-function*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000503To avoid the extra name for the function it can be defined and directly
504assigned to a Dictionary in this way: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000505 :let mydict = {'data': [0, 1, 2, 3]}
506 :function mydict.len() dict
507 : return len(self.data)
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000508 :endfunction
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000509 :echo mydict.len()
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000510
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000511The function will then get a number and the value of dict.len is a |Funcref|
512that references this function. The function can only be used through a
513|Funcref|. It will automatically be deleted when there is no |Funcref|
514remaining that refers to it.
515
516It is not necessary to use the "dict" attribute for a numbered function.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000517
518
519Functions for Dictionaries ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000520 *E715*
521Functions that can be used with a Dictionary: >
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000522 :if has_key(dict, 'foo') " TRUE if dict has entry with key "foo"
523 :if empty(dict) " TRUE if dict is empty
524 :let l = len(dict) " number of items in dict
525 :let big = max(dict) " maximum value in dict
526 :let small = min(dict) " minimum value in dict
527 :let xs = count(dict, 'x') " count nr of times 'x' appears in dict
528 :let s = string(dict) " String representation of dict
529 :call map(dict, '">> " . v:val') " prepend ">> " to each item
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000530
531
5321.5 More about variables ~
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000533 *more-variables*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000534If you need to know the type of a variable or expression, use the |type()|
535function.
536
537When the '!' flag is included in the 'viminfo' option, global variables that
538start with an uppercase letter, and don't contain a lowercase letter, are
539stored in the viminfo file |viminfo-file|.
540
541When the 'sessionoptions' option contains "global", global variables that
542start with an uppercase letter and contain at least one lowercase letter are
543stored in the session file |session-file|.
544
545variable name can be stored where ~
546my_var_6 not
547My_Var_6 session file
548MY_VAR_6 viminfo file
549
550
551It's possible to form a variable name with curly braces, see
552|curly-braces-names|.
553
554==============================================================================
5552. Expression syntax *expression-syntax*
556
557Expression syntax summary, from least to most significant:
558
559|expr1| expr2 ? expr1 : expr1 if-then-else
560
561|expr2| expr3 || expr3 .. logical OR
562
563|expr3| expr4 && expr4 .. logical AND
564
565|expr4| expr5 == expr5 equal
566 expr5 != expr5 not equal
567 expr5 > expr5 greater than
568 expr5 >= expr5 greater than or equal
569 expr5 < expr5 smaller than
570 expr5 <= expr5 smaller than or equal
571 expr5 =~ expr5 regexp matches
572 expr5 !~ expr5 regexp doesn't match
573
574 expr5 ==? expr5 equal, ignoring case
575 expr5 ==# expr5 equal, match case
576 etc. As above, append ? for ignoring case, # for
577 matching case
578
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000579 expr5 is expr5 same List instance
580 expr5 isnot expr5 different List instance
581
582|expr5| expr6 + expr6 .. number addition or list concatenation
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000583 expr6 - expr6 .. number subtraction
584 expr6 . expr6 .. string concatenation
585
586|expr6| expr7 * expr7 .. number multiplication
587 expr7 / expr7 .. number division
588 expr7 % expr7 .. number modulo
589
590|expr7| ! expr7 logical NOT
591 - expr7 unary minus
592 + expr7 unary plus
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000593
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000594
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000595|expr8| expr8[expr1] byte of a String or item of a List
596 expr8[expr1 : expr1] substring of a String or sublist of a List
597 expr8.name entry in a Dictionary
598 expr8(expr1, ...) function call with Funcref variable
599
600|expr9| number number constant
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +0000601 "string" string constant, backslash is special
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000602 'string' string constant, ' is doubled
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000603 [expr1, ...] List
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000604 {expr1: expr1, ...} Dictionary
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000605 &option option value
606 (expr1) nested expression
607 variable internal variable
608 va{ria}ble internal variable with curly braces
609 $VAR environment variable
610 @r contents of register 'r'
611 function(expr1, ...) function call
612 func{ti}on(expr1, ...) function call with curly braces
613
614
615".." indicates that the operations in this level can be concatenated.
616Example: >
617 &nu || &list && &shell == "csh"
618
619All expressions within one level are parsed from left to right.
620
621
622expr1 *expr1* *E109*
623-----
624
625expr2 ? expr1 : expr1
626
627The expression before the '?' is evaluated to a number. If it evaluates to
628non-zero, the result is the value of the expression between the '?' and ':',
629otherwise the result is the value of the expression after the ':'.
630Example: >
631 :echo lnum == 1 ? "top" : lnum
632
633Since the first expression is an "expr2", it cannot contain another ?:. The
634other two expressions can, thus allow for recursive use of ?:.
635Example: >
636 :echo lnum == 1 ? "top" : lnum == 1000 ? "last" : lnum
637
638To keep this readable, using |line-continuation| is suggested: >
639 :echo lnum == 1
640 :\ ? "top"
641 :\ : lnum == 1000
642 :\ ? "last"
643 :\ : lnum
644
645
646expr2 and expr3 *expr2* *expr3*
647---------------
648
649 *expr-barbar* *expr-&&*
650The "||" and "&&" operators take one argument on each side. The arguments
651are (converted to) Numbers. The result is:
652
653 input output ~
654n1 n2 n1 || n2 n1 && n2 ~
655zero zero zero zero
656zero non-zero non-zero zero
657non-zero zero non-zero zero
658non-zero non-zero non-zero non-zero
659
660The operators can be concatenated, for example: >
661
662 &nu || &list && &shell == "csh"
663
664Note that "&&" takes precedence over "||", so this has the meaning of: >
665
666 &nu || (&list && &shell == "csh")
667
668Once the result is known, the expression "short-circuits", that is, further
669arguments are not evaluated. This is like what happens in C. For example: >
670
671 let a = 1
672 echo a || b
673
674This is valid even if there is no variable called "b" because "a" is non-zero,
675so the result must be non-zero. Similarly below: >
676
677 echo exists("b") && b == "yes"
678
679This is valid whether "b" has been defined or not. The second clause will
680only be evaluated if "b" has been defined.
681
682
683expr4 *expr4*
684-----
685
686expr5 {cmp} expr5
687
688Compare two expr5 expressions, resulting in a 0 if it evaluates to false, or 1
689if it evaluates to true.
690
691 *expr-==* *expr-!=* *expr->* *expr->=*
692 *expr-<* *expr-<=* *expr-=~* *expr-!~*
693 *expr-==#* *expr-!=#* *expr->#* *expr->=#*
694 *expr-<#* *expr-<=#* *expr-=~#* *expr-!~#*
695 *expr-==?* *expr-!=?* *expr->?* *expr->=?*
696 *expr-<?* *expr-<=?* *expr-=~?* *expr-!~?*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000697 *expr-is*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000698 use 'ignorecase' match case ignore case ~
699equal == ==# ==?
700not equal != !=# !=?
701greater than > ># >?
702greater than or equal >= >=# >=?
703smaller than < <# <?
704smaller than or equal <= <=# <=?
705regexp matches =~ =~# =~?
706regexp doesn't match !~ !~# !~?
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000707same instance is
708different instance isnot
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000709
710Examples:
711"abc" ==# "Abc" evaluates to 0
712"abc" ==? "Abc" evaluates to 1
713"abc" == "Abc" evaluates to 1 if 'ignorecase' is set, 0 otherwise
714
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000715 *E691* *E692*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000716A List can only be compared with a List and only "equal", "not equal" and "is"
717can be used. This compares the values of the list, recursively. Ignoring
718case means case is ignored when comparing item values.
719
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000720 *E735* *E736*
721A Dictionary can only be compared with a Dictionary and only "equal", "not
722equal" and "is" can be used. This compares the key/values of the Dictionary,
723recursively. Ignoring case means case is ignored when comparing item values.
724
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000725 *E693* *E694*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000726A Funcref can only be compared with a Funcref and only "equal" and "not equal"
727can be used. Case is never ignored.
728
729When using "is" or "isnot" with a List this checks if the expressions are
730referring to the same List instance. A copy of a List is different from the
731original List. When using "is" without a List it is equivalent to using
732"equal", using "isnot" equivalent to using "not equal". Except that a
733different type means the values are different. "4 == '4'" is true, "4 is '4'"
734is false.
735
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000736When comparing a String with a Number, the String is converted to a Number,
737and the comparison is done on Numbers. This means that "0 == 'x'" is TRUE,
738because 'x' converted to a Number is zero.
739
740When comparing two Strings, this is done with strcmp() or stricmp(). This
741results in the mathematical difference (comparing byte values), not
742necessarily the alphabetical difference in the local language.
743
744When using the operators with a trailing '#", or the short version and
745'ignorecase' is off, the comparing is done with strcmp().
746
747When using the operators with a trailing '?', or the short version and
748'ignorecase' is set, the comparing is done with stricmp().
749
750The "=~" and "!~" operators match the lefthand argument with the righthand
751argument, which is used as a pattern. See |pattern| for what a pattern is.
752This matching is always done like 'magic' was set and 'cpoptions' is empty, no
753matter what the actual value of 'magic' or 'cpoptions' is. This makes scripts
754portable. To avoid backslashes in the regexp pattern to be doubled, use a
755single-quote string, see |literal-string|.
756Since a string is considered to be a single line, a multi-line pattern
757(containing \n, backslash-n) will not match. However, a literal NL character
758can be matched like an ordinary character. Examples:
759 "foo\nbar" =~ "\n" evaluates to 1
760 "foo\nbar" =~ "\\n" evaluates to 0
761
762
763expr5 and expr6 *expr5* *expr6*
764---------------
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000765expr6 + expr6 .. Number addition or List concatenation *expr-+*
766expr6 - expr6 .. Number subtraction *expr--*
767expr6 . expr6 .. String concatenation *expr-.*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000768
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000769For Lists only "+" is possible and then both expr6 must be a list. The result
770is a new list with the two lists Concatenated.
771
772expr7 * expr7 .. number multiplication *expr-star*
773expr7 / expr7 .. number division *expr-/*
774expr7 % expr7 .. number modulo *expr-%*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000775
776For all, except ".", Strings are converted to Numbers.
777
778Note the difference between "+" and ".":
779 "123" + "456" = 579
780 "123" . "456" = "123456"
781
782When the righthand side of '/' is zero, the result is 0x7fffffff.
783When the righthand side of '%' is zero, the result is 0.
784
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000785None of these work for Funcrefs.
786
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000787
788expr7 *expr7*
789-----
790! expr7 logical NOT *expr-!*
791- expr7 unary minus *expr-unary--*
792+ expr7 unary plus *expr-unary-+*
793
794For '!' non-zero becomes zero, zero becomes one.
795For '-' the sign of the number is changed.
796For '+' the number is unchanged.
797
798A String will be converted to a Number first.
799
800These three can be repeated and mixed. Examples:
801 !-1 == 0
802 !!8 == 1
803 --9 == 9
804
805
806expr8 *expr8*
807-----
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000808expr8[expr1] item of String or List *expr-[]* *E111*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000809
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000810If expr8 is a Number or String this results in a String that contains the
811expr1'th single byte from expr8. expr8 is used as a String, expr1 as a
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000812Number. Note that this doesn't recognize multi-byte encodings.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000813
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000814Index zero gives the first character. This is like it works in C. Careful:
815text column numbers start with one! Example, to get the character under the
816cursor: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000817 :let c = getline(line("."))[col(".") - 1]
818
819If the length of the String is less than the index, the result is an empty
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000820String. A negative index always results in an empty string (reason: backwards
821compatibility). Use [-1:] to get the last byte.
822
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000823If expr8 is a List then it results the item at index expr1. See |list-index|
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000824for possible index values. If the index is out of range this results in an
825error. Example: >
826 :let item = mylist[-1] " get last item
827
828Generally, if a List index is equal to or higher than the length of the List,
829or more negative than the length of the List, this results in an error.
830
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000831
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000832expr8[expr1a : expr1b] substring or sublist *expr-[:]*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000833
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000834If expr8 is a Number or String this results in the substring with the bytes
835from expr1a to and including expr1b. expr8 is used as a String, expr1a and
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000836expr1b are used as a Number. Note that this doesn't recognize multi-byte
837encodings.
838
839If expr1a is omitted zero is used. If expr1b is omitted the length of the
840string minus one is used.
841
842A negative number can be used to measure from the end of the string. -1 is
843the last character, -2 the last but one, etc.
844
845If an index goes out of range for the string characters are omitted. If
846expr1b is smaller than expr1a the result is an empty string.
847
848Examples: >
849 :let c = name[-1:] " last byte of a string
850 :let c = name[-2:-2] " last but one byte of a string
851 :let s = line(".")[4:] " from the fifth byte to the end
852 :let s = s[:-3] " remove last two bytes
853
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000854If expr8 is a List this results in a new List with the items indicated by the
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000855indexes expr1a and expr1b. This works like with a String, as explained just
856above, except that indexes out of range cause an error. Examples: >
857 :let l = mylist[:3] " first four items
858 :let l = mylist[4:4] " List with one item
859 :let l = mylist[:] " shallow copy of a List
860
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000861Using expr8[expr1] or expr8[expr1a : expr1b] on a Funcref results in an error.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000862
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000863
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000864expr8.name entry in a Dictionary *expr-entry*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000865
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000866If expr8 is a Dictionary and it is followed by a dot, then the following name
867will be used as a key in the Dictionary. This is just like: expr8[name].
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000868
869The name must consist of alphanumeric characters, just like a variable name,
870but it may start with a number. Curly braces cannot be used.
871
872There must not be white space before or after the dot.
873
874Examples: >
875 :let dict = {"one": 1, 2: "two"}
876 :echo dict.one
877 :echo dict .2
878
879Note that the dot is also used for String concatenation. To avoid confusion
880always put spaces around the dot for String concatenation.
881
882
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000883expr8(expr1, ...) Funcref function call
884
885When expr8 is a |Funcref| type variable, invoke the function it refers to.
886
887
888
889 *expr9*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000890number
891------
892number number constant *expr-number*
893
894Decimal, Hexadecimal (starting with 0x or 0X), or Octal (starting with 0).
895
896
897string *expr-string* *E114*
898------
899"string" string constant *expr-quote*
900
901Note that double quotes are used.
902
903A string constant accepts these special characters:
904\... three-digit octal number (e.g., "\316")
905\.. two-digit octal number (must be followed by non-digit)
906\. one-digit octal number (must be followed by non-digit)
907\x.. byte specified with two hex numbers (e.g., "\x1f")
908\x. byte specified with one hex number (must be followed by non-hex char)
909\X.. same as \x..
910\X. same as \x.
911\u.... character specified with up to 4 hex numbers, stored according to the
912 current value of 'encoding' (e.g., "\u02a4")
913\U.... same as \u....
914\b backspace <BS>
915\e escape <Esc>
916\f formfeed <FF>
917\n newline <NL>
918\r return <CR>
919\t tab <Tab>
920\\ backslash
921\" double quote
922\<xxx> Special key named "xxx". e.g. "\<C-W>" for CTRL-W.
923
924Note that "\000" and "\x00" force the end of the string.
925
926
927literal-string *literal-string* *E115*
928---------------
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +0000929'string' string constant *expr-'*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000930
931Note that single quotes are used.
932
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +0000933This string is taken as it is. No backslashes are removed or have a special
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000934meaning. The only exception is that two quotes stand for one quote.
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +0000935
936Single quoted strings are useful for patterns, so that backslashes do not need
937to be doubled. These two commands are equivalent: >
938 if a =~ "\\s*"
939 if a =~ '\s*'
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000940
941
942option *expr-option* *E112* *E113*
943------
944&option option value, local value if possible
945&g:option global option value
946&l:option local option value
947
948Examples: >
949 echo "tabstop is " . &tabstop
950 if &insertmode
951
952Any option name can be used here. See |options|. When using the local value
953and there is no buffer-local or window-local value, the global value is used
954anyway.
955
956
957register *expr-register*
958--------
959@r contents of register 'r'
960
961The result is the contents of the named register, as a single string.
962Newlines are inserted where required. To get the contents of the unnamed
Bram Moolenaare7566042005-06-17 22:00:15 +0000963register use @" or @@. See |registers| for an explanation of the available
964registers.
965
966When using the '=' register you get the expression itself, not what it
967evaluates to. Use |eval()| to evaluate it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000968
969
970nesting *expr-nesting* *E110*
971-------
972(expr1) nested expression
973
974
975environment variable *expr-env*
976--------------------
977$VAR environment variable
978
979The String value of any environment variable. When it is not defined, the
980result is an empty string.
981 *expr-env-expand*
982Note that there is a difference between using $VAR directly and using
983expand("$VAR"). Using it directly will only expand environment variables that
984are known inside the current Vim session. Using expand() will first try using
985the environment variables known inside the current Vim session. If that
986fails, a shell will be used to expand the variable. This can be slow, but it
987does expand all variables that the shell knows about. Example: >
988 :echo $version
989 :echo expand("$version")
990The first one probably doesn't echo anything, the second echoes the $version
991variable (if your shell supports it).
992
993
994internal variable *expr-variable*
995-----------------
996variable internal variable
997See below |internal-variables|.
998
999
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00001000function call *expr-function* *E116* *E118* *E119* *E120*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001001-------------
1002function(expr1, ...) function call
1003See below |functions|.
1004
1005
1006==============================================================================
10073. Internal variable *internal-variables* *E121*
1008 *E461*
1009An internal variable name can be made up of letters, digits and '_'. But it
1010cannot start with a digit. It's also possible to use curly braces, see
1011|curly-braces-names|.
1012
1013An internal variable is created with the ":let" command |:let|.
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00001014An internal variable is explicitly destroyed with the ":unlet" command
1015|:unlet|.
1016Using a name that is not an internal variable or refers to a variable that has
1017been destroyed results in an error.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001018
1019There are several name spaces for variables. Which one is to be used is
1020specified by what is prepended:
1021
1022 (nothing) In a function: local to a function; otherwise: global
1023|buffer-variable| b: Local to the current buffer.
1024|window-variable| w: Local to the current window.
1025|global-variable| g: Global.
1026|local-variable| l: Local to a function.
1027|script-variable| s: Local to a |:source|'ed Vim script.
1028|function-argument| a: Function argument (only inside a function).
1029|vim-variable| v: Global, predefined by Vim.
1030
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00001031The scope name by itself can be used as a Dictionary. For example, to delete
1032all script-local variables: >
1033 :for k in keys(s:)
1034 : unlet s:[k]
1035 :endfor
1036<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001037 *buffer-variable* *b:var*
1038A variable name that is preceded with "b:" is local to the current buffer.
1039Thus you can have several "b:foo" variables, one for each buffer.
1040This kind of variable is deleted when the buffer is wiped out or deleted with
1041|:bdelete|.
1042
1043One local buffer variable is predefined:
1044 *b:changedtick-variable* *changetick*
1045b:changedtick The total number of changes to the current buffer. It is
1046 incremented for each change. An undo command is also a change
1047 in this case. This can be used to perform an action only when
1048 the buffer has changed. Example: >
1049 :if my_changedtick != b:changedtick
1050 : let my_changedtick = b:changedtick
1051 : call My_Update()
1052 :endif
1053<
1054 *window-variable* *w:var*
1055A variable name that is preceded with "w:" is local to the current window. It
1056is deleted when the window is closed.
1057
1058 *global-variable* *g:var*
1059Inside functions global variables are accessed with "g:". Omitting this will
1060access a variable local to a function. But "g:" can also be used in any other
1061place if you like.
1062
1063 *local-variable* *l:var*
1064Inside functions local variables are accessed without prepending anything.
1065But you can also prepend "l:" if you like.
1066
1067 *script-variable* *s:var*
1068In a Vim script variables starting with "s:" can be used. They cannot be
1069accessed from outside of the scripts, thus are local to the script.
1070
1071They can be used in:
1072- commands executed while the script is sourced
1073- functions defined in the script
1074- autocommands defined in the script
1075- functions and autocommands defined in functions and autocommands which were
1076 defined in the script (recursively)
1077- user defined commands defined in the script
1078Thus not in:
1079- other scripts sourced from this one
1080- mappings
1081- etc.
1082
1083script variables can be used to avoid conflicts with global variable names.
1084Take this example:
1085
1086 let s:counter = 0
1087 function MyCounter()
1088 let s:counter = s:counter + 1
1089 echo s:counter
1090 endfunction
1091 command Tick call MyCounter()
1092
1093You can now invoke "Tick" from any script, and the "s:counter" variable in
1094that script will not be changed, only the "s:counter" in the script where
1095"Tick" was defined is used.
1096
1097Another example that does the same: >
1098
1099 let s:counter = 0
1100 command Tick let s:counter = s:counter + 1 | echo s:counter
1101
1102When calling a function and invoking a user-defined command, the context for
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00001103script variables is set to the script where the function or command was
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001104defined.
1105
1106The script variables are also available when a function is defined inside a
1107function that is defined in a script. Example: >
1108
1109 let s:counter = 0
1110 function StartCounting(incr)
1111 if a:incr
1112 function MyCounter()
1113 let s:counter = s:counter + 1
1114 endfunction
1115 else
1116 function MyCounter()
1117 let s:counter = s:counter - 1
1118 endfunction
1119 endif
1120 endfunction
1121
1122This defines the MyCounter() function either for counting up or counting down
1123when calling StartCounting(). It doesn't matter from where StartCounting() is
1124called, the s:counter variable will be accessible in MyCounter().
1125
1126When the same script is sourced again it will use the same script variables.
1127They will remain valid as long as Vim is running. This can be used to
1128maintain a counter: >
1129
1130 if !exists("s:counter")
1131 let s:counter = 1
1132 echo "script executed for the first time"
1133 else
1134 let s:counter = s:counter + 1
1135 echo "script executed " . s:counter . " times now"
1136 endif
1137
1138Note that this means that filetype plugins don't get a different set of script
1139variables for each buffer. Use local buffer variables instead |b:var|.
1140
1141
1142Predefined Vim variables: *vim-variable* *v:var*
1143
Bram Moolenaare4efc3b2005-03-07 23:16:51 +00001144 *v:beval_col* *beval_col-variable*
1145v:beval_col The number of the column, over which the mouse pointer is.
1146 This is the byte index in the |v:beval_lnum| line.
1147 Only valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1148
1149 *v:beval_bufnr* *beval_bufnr-variable*
1150v:beval_bufnr The number of the buffer, over which the mouse pointer is. Only
1151 valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1152
1153 *v:beval_lnum* *beval_lnum-variable*
1154v:beval_lnum The number of the line, over which the mouse pointer is. Only
1155 valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1156
1157 *v:beval_text* *beval_text-variable*
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00001158v:beval_text The text under or after the mouse pointer. Usually a word as
1159 it is useful for debugging a C program. 'iskeyword' applies,
1160 but a dot and "->" before the position is included. When on a
1161 ']' the text before it is used, including the matching '[' and
Bram Moolenaare4efc3b2005-03-07 23:16:51 +00001162 word before it. When on a Visual area within one line the
1163 highlighted text is used.
1164 Only valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1165
1166 *v:beval_winnr* *beval_winnr-variable*
1167v:beval_winnr The number of the window, over which the mouse pointer is. Only
1168 valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1169
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001170 *v:charconvert_from* *charconvert_from-variable*
1171v:charconvert_from
1172 The name of the character encoding of a file to be converted.
1173 Only valid while evaluating the 'charconvert' option.
1174
1175 *v:charconvert_to* *charconvert_to-variable*
1176v:charconvert_to
1177 The name of the character encoding of a file after conversion.
1178 Only valid while evaluating the 'charconvert' option.
1179
1180 *v:cmdarg* *cmdarg-variable*
1181v:cmdarg This variable is used for two purposes:
1182 1. The extra arguments given to a file read/write command.
1183 Currently these are "++enc=" and "++ff=". This variable is
1184 set before an autocommand event for a file read/write
1185 command is triggered. There is a leading space to make it
1186 possible to append this variable directly after the
1187 read/write command. Note: The "+cmd" argument isn't
1188 included here, because it will be executed anyway.
1189 2. When printing a PostScript file with ":hardcopy" this is
1190 the argument for the ":hardcopy" command. This can be used
1191 in 'printexpr'.
1192
1193 *v:cmdbang* *cmdbang-variable*
1194v:cmdbang Set like v:cmdarg for a file read/write command. When a "!"
1195 was used the value is 1, otherwise it is 0. Note that this
1196 can only be used in autocommands. For user commands |<bang>|
1197 can be used.
1198
1199 *v:count* *count-variable*
1200v:count The count given for the last Normal mode command. Can be used
1201 to get the count before a mapping. Read-only. Example: >
1202 :map _x :<C-U>echo "the count is " . v:count<CR>
1203< Note: The <C-U> is required to remove the line range that you
1204 get when typing ':' after a count.
1205 "count" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1206
1207 *v:count1* *count1-variable*
1208v:count1 Just like "v:count", but defaults to one when no count is
1209 used.
1210
1211 *v:ctype* *ctype-variable*
1212v:ctype The current locale setting for characters of the runtime
1213 environment. This allows Vim scripts to be aware of the
1214 current locale encoding. Technical: it's the value of
1215 LC_CTYPE. When not using a locale the value is "C".
1216 This variable can not be set directly, use the |:language|
1217 command.
1218 See |multi-lang|.
1219
1220 *v:dying* *dying-variable*
1221v:dying Normally zero. When a deadly signal is caught it's set to
1222 one. When multiple signals are caught the number increases.
1223 Can be used in an autocommand to check if Vim didn't
1224 terminate normally. {only works on Unix}
1225 Example: >
1226 :au VimLeave * if v:dying | echo "\nAAAAaaaarrrggghhhh!!!\n" | endif
1227<
1228 *v:errmsg* *errmsg-variable*
1229v:errmsg Last given error message. It's allowed to set this variable.
1230 Example: >
1231 :let v:errmsg = ""
1232 :silent! next
1233 :if v:errmsg != ""
1234 : ... handle error
1235< "errmsg" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1236
1237 *v:exception* *exception-variable*
1238v:exception The value of the exception most recently caught and not
1239 finished. See also |v:throwpoint| and |throw-variables|.
1240 Example: >
1241 :try
1242 : throw "oops"
1243 :catch /.*/
1244 : echo "caught" v:exception
1245 :endtry
1246< Output: "caught oops".
1247
Bram Moolenaar19a09a12005-03-04 23:39:37 +00001248 *v:fcs_reason* *fcs_reason-variable*
1249v:fcs_reason The reason why the |FileChangedShell| event was triggered.
1250 Can be used in an autocommand to decide what to do and/or what
1251 to set v:fcs_choice to. Possible values:
1252 deleted file no longer exists
1253 conflict file contents, mode or timestamp was
1254 changed and buffer is modified
1255 changed file contents has changed
1256 mode mode of file changed
1257 time only file timestamp changed
1258
1259 *v:fcs_choice* *fcs_choice-variable*
1260v:fcs_choice What should happen after a |FileChangedShell| event was
1261 triggered. Can be used in an autocommand to tell Vim what to
1262 do with the affected buffer:
1263 reload Reload the buffer (does not work if
1264 the file was deleted).
1265 ask Ask the user what to do, as if there
1266 was no autocommand. Except that when
1267 only the timestamp changed nothing
1268 will happen.
1269 <empty> Nothing, the autocommand should do
1270 everything that needs to be done.
1271 The default is empty. If another (invalid) value is used then
1272 Vim behaves like it is empty, there is no warning message.
1273
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001274 *v:fname_in* *fname_in-variable*
1275v:fname_in The name of the input file. Only valid while evaluating:
1276 option used for ~
1277 'charconvert' file to be converted
1278 'diffexpr' original file
1279 'patchexpr' original file
1280 'printexpr' file to be printed
1281
1282 *v:fname_out* *fname_out-variable*
1283v:fname_out The name of the output file. Only valid while
1284 evaluating:
1285 option used for ~
1286 'charconvert' resulting converted file (*)
1287 'diffexpr' output of diff
1288 'patchexpr' resulting patched file
1289 (*) When doing conversion for a write command (e.g., ":w
1290 file") it will be equal to v:fname_in. When doing conversion
1291 for a read command (e.g., ":e file") it will be a temporary
1292 file and different from v:fname_in.
1293
1294 *v:fname_new* *fname_new-variable*
1295v:fname_new The name of the new version of the file. Only valid while
1296 evaluating 'diffexpr'.
1297
1298 *v:fname_diff* *fname_diff-variable*
1299v:fname_diff The name of the diff (patch) file. Only valid while
1300 evaluating 'patchexpr'.
1301
1302 *v:folddashes* *folddashes-variable*
1303v:folddashes Used for 'foldtext': dashes representing foldlevel of a closed
1304 fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001305 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001306
1307 *v:foldlevel* *foldlevel-variable*
1308v:foldlevel Used for 'foldtext': foldlevel of closed fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001309 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001310
1311 *v:foldend* *foldend-variable*
1312v:foldend Used for 'foldtext': last line of closed fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001313 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001314
1315 *v:foldstart* *foldstart-variable*
1316v:foldstart Used for 'foldtext': first line of closed fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001317 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001318
Bram Moolenaar843ee412004-06-30 16:16:41 +00001319 *v:insertmode* *insertmode-variable*
1320v:insertmode Used for the |InsertEnter| and |InsertChange| autocommand
1321 events. Values:
1322 i Insert mode
1323 r Replace mode
1324 v Virtual Replace mode
1325
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001326 *v:key* *key-variable*
1327v:key Key of the current item of a Dictionary. Only valid while
1328 evaluating the expression used with |map()| and |filter()|.
1329 Read-only.
1330
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001331 *v:lang* *lang-variable*
1332v:lang The current locale setting for messages of the runtime
1333 environment. This allows Vim scripts to be aware of the
1334 current language. Technical: it's the value of LC_MESSAGES.
1335 The value is system dependent.
1336 This variable can not be set directly, use the |:language|
1337 command.
1338 It can be different from |v:ctype| when messages are desired
1339 in a different language than what is used for character
1340 encoding. See |multi-lang|.
1341
1342 *v:lc_time* *lc_time-variable*
1343v:lc_time The current locale setting for time messages of the runtime
1344 environment. This allows Vim scripts to be aware of the
1345 current language. Technical: it's the value of LC_TIME.
1346 This variable can not be set directly, use the |:language|
1347 command. See |multi-lang|.
1348
1349 *v:lnum* *lnum-variable*
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001350v:lnum Line number for the 'foldexpr' |fold-expr| and 'indentexpr'
1351 expressions. Only valid while one of these expressions is
1352 being evaluated. Read-only when in the |sandbox|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001353
1354 *v:prevcount* *prevcount-variable*
1355v:prevcount The count given for the last but one Normal mode command.
1356 This is the v:count value of the previous command. Useful if
1357 you want to cancel Visual mode and then use the count. >
1358 :vmap % <Esc>:call MyFilter(v:prevcount)<CR>
1359< Read-only.
1360
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00001361 *v:profiling* *profiling-variable*
1362v:profiling Normally zero. Set to one after using ":profile start".
1363 See |profiling|.
1364
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001365 *v:progname* *progname-variable*
1366v:progname Contains the name (with path removed) with which Vim was
1367 invoked. Allows you to do special initialisations for "view",
1368 "evim" etc., or any other name you might symlink to Vim.
1369 Read-only.
1370
1371 *v:register* *register-variable*
1372v:register The name of the register supplied to the last normal mode
1373 command. Empty if none were supplied. |getreg()| |setreg()|
1374
1375 *v:servername* *servername-variable*
1376v:servername The resulting registered |x11-clientserver| name if any.
1377 Read-only.
1378
1379 *v:shell_error* *shell_error-variable*
1380v:shell_error Result of the last shell command. When non-zero, the last
1381 shell command had an error. When zero, there was no problem.
1382 This only works when the shell returns the error code to Vim.
1383 The value -1 is often used when the command could not be
1384 executed. Read-only.
1385 Example: >
1386 :!mv foo bar
1387 :if v:shell_error
1388 : echo 'could not rename "foo" to "bar"!'
1389 :endif
1390< "shell_error" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1391
1392 *v:statusmsg* *statusmsg-variable*
1393v:statusmsg Last given status message. It's allowed to set this variable.
1394
1395 *v:termresponse* *termresponse-variable*
1396v:termresponse The escape sequence returned by the terminal for the |t_RV|
1397 termcap entry. It is set when Vim receives an escape sequence
1398 that starts with ESC [ or CSI and ends in a 'c', with only
1399 digits, ';' and '.' in between.
1400 When this option is set, the TermResponse autocommand event is
1401 fired, so that you can react to the response from the
1402 terminal.
1403 The response from a new xterm is: "<Esc>[ Pp ; Pv ; Pc c". Pp
1404 is the terminal type: 0 for vt100 and 1 for vt220. Pv is the
1405 patch level (since this was introduced in patch 95, it's
1406 always 95 or bigger). Pc is always zero.
1407 {only when compiled with |+termresponse| feature}
1408
1409 *v:this_session* *this_session-variable*
1410v:this_session Full filename of the last loaded or saved session file. See
1411 |:mksession|. It is allowed to set this variable. When no
1412 session file has been saved, this variable is empty.
1413 "this_session" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1414
1415 *v:throwpoint* *throwpoint-variable*
1416v:throwpoint The point where the exception most recently caught and not
1417 finished was thrown. Not set when commands are typed. See
1418 also |v:exception| and |throw-variables|.
1419 Example: >
1420 :try
1421 : throw "oops"
1422 :catch /.*/
1423 : echo "Exception from" v:throwpoint
1424 :endtry
1425< Output: "Exception from test.vim, line 2"
1426
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001427 *v:val* *val-variable*
1428v:val Value of the current item of a List or Dictionary. Only valid
1429 while evaluating the expression used with |map()| and
1430 |filter()|. Read-only.
1431
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001432 *v:version* *version-variable*
1433v:version Version number of Vim: Major version number times 100 plus
1434 minor version number. Version 5.0 is 500. Version 5.1 (5.01)
1435 is 501. Read-only. "version" also works, for backwards
1436 compatibility.
1437 Use |has()| to check if a certain patch was included, e.g.: >
1438 if has("patch123")
1439< Note that patch numbers are specific to the version, thus both
1440 version 5.0 and 5.1 may have a patch 123, but these are
1441 completely different.
1442
1443 *v:warningmsg* *warningmsg-variable*
1444v:warningmsg Last given warning message. It's allowed to set this variable.
1445
1446==============================================================================
14474. Builtin Functions *functions*
1448
1449See |function-list| for a list grouped by what the function is used for.
1450
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001451(Use CTRL-] on the function name to jump to the full explanation.)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001452
1453USAGE RESULT DESCRIPTION ~
1454
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001455add( {list}, {item}) List append {item} to List {list}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001456append( {lnum}, {string}) Number append {string} below line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00001457append( {lnum}, {list}) Number append lines {list} below line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001458argc() Number number of files in the argument list
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001459argidx() Number current index in the argument list
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001460argv( {nr}) String {nr} entry of the argument list
1461browse( {save}, {title}, {initdir}, {default})
1462 String put up a file requester
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001463browsedir( {title}, {initdir}) String put up a directory requester
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001464bufexists( {expr}) Number TRUE if buffer {expr} exists
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001465buflisted( {expr}) Number TRUE if buffer {expr} is listed
1466bufloaded( {expr}) Number TRUE if buffer {expr} is loaded
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001467bufname( {expr}) String Name of the buffer {expr}
1468bufnr( {expr}) Number Number of the buffer {expr}
1469bufwinnr( {expr}) Number window number of buffer {expr}
1470byte2line( {byte}) Number line number at byte count {byte}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001471byteidx( {expr}, {nr}) Number byte index of {nr}'th char in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001472call( {func}, {arglist} [, {dict}])
1473 any call {func} with arguments {arglist}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001474char2nr( {expr}) Number ASCII value of first char in {expr}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001475cindent( {lnum}) Number C indent for line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001476col( {expr}) Number column nr of cursor or mark
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00001477complete_add( {expr}) Number add completion match
1478complete_check() Number check for key typed during completion
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001479confirm( {msg} [, {choices} [, {default} [, {type}]]])
1480 Number number of choice picked by user
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001481copy( {expr}) any make a shallow copy of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001482count( {list}, {expr} [, {start} [, {ic}]])
1483 Number count how many {expr} are in {list}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001484cscope_connection( [{num} , {dbpath} [, {prepend}]])
1485 Number checks existence of cscope connection
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001486cursor( {lnum}, {col}) Number position cursor at {lnum}, {col}
1487deepcopy( {expr}) any make a full copy of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001488delete( {fname}) Number delete file {fname}
1489did_filetype() Number TRUE if FileType autocommand event used
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001490diff_filler( {lnum}) Number diff filler lines about {lnum}
1491diff_hlID( {lnum}, {col}) Number diff highlighting at {lnum}/{col}
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00001492empty( {expr}) Number TRUE if {expr} is empty
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001493escape( {string}, {chars}) String escape {chars} in {string} with '\'
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00001494eval( {string}) any evaluate {string} into its value
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001495eventhandler( ) Number TRUE if inside an event handler
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001496executable( {expr}) Number 1 if executable {expr} exists
1497exists( {expr}) Number TRUE if {expr} exists
1498expand( {expr}) String expand special keywords in {expr}
1499filereadable( {file}) Number TRUE if {file} is a readable file
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001500filter( {expr}, {string}) List/Dict remove items from {expr} where
1501 {string} is 0
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001502finddir( {name}[, {path}[, {count}]])
1503 String Find directory {name} in {path}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001504findfile( {name}[, {path}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001505 String Find file {name} in {path}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001506filewritable( {file}) Number TRUE if {file} is a writable file
1507fnamemodify( {fname}, {mods}) String modify file name
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001508foldclosed( {lnum}) Number first line of fold at {lnum} if closed
1509foldclosedend( {lnum}) Number last line of fold at {lnum} if closed
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001510foldlevel( {lnum}) Number fold level at {lnum}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001511foldtext( ) String line displayed for closed fold
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001512foreground( ) Number bring the Vim window to the foreground
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001513function( {name}) Funcref reference to function {name}
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001514get( {list}, {idx} [, {def}]) any get item {idx} from {list} or {def}
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001515get( {dict}, {key} [, {def}]) any get item {key} from {dict} or {def}
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00001516getbufline( {expr}, {lnum} [, {end}])
1517 List lines {lnum} to {end} of buffer {expr}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001518getchar( [expr]) Number get one character from the user
1519getcharmod( ) Number modifiers for the last typed character
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001520getbufvar( {expr}, {varname}) variable {varname} in buffer {expr}
1521getcmdline() String return the current command-line
1522getcmdpos() Number return cursor position in command-line
1523getcwd() String the current working directory
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00001524getfperm( {fname}) String file permissions of file {fname}
1525getfsize( {fname}) Number size in bytes of file {fname}
Bram Moolenaard8b0cf12004-12-12 11:33:30 +00001526getfontname( [{name}]) String name of font being used
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001527getftime( {fname}) Number last modification time of file
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00001528getftype( {fname}) String description of type of file {fname}
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00001529getline( {lnum}) String line {lnum} of current buffer
1530getline( {lnum}, {end}) List lines {lnum} to {end} of current buffer
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00001531getqflist() List list of quickfix items
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00001532getreg( [{regname} [, 1]]) String contents of register
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001533getregtype( [{regname}]) String type of register
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001534getwinposx() Number X coord in pixels of GUI Vim window
1535getwinposy() Number Y coord in pixels of GUI Vim window
1536getwinvar( {nr}, {varname}) variable {varname} in window {nr}
1537glob( {expr}) String expand file wildcards in {expr}
1538globpath( {path}, {expr}) String do glob({expr}) for all dirs in {path}
1539has( {feature}) Number TRUE if feature {feature} supported
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001540has_key( {dict}, {key}) Number TRUE if {dict} has entry {key}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001541hasmapto( {what} [, {mode}]) Number TRUE if mapping to {what} exists
1542histadd( {history},{item}) String add an item to a history
1543histdel( {history} [, {item}]) String remove an item from a history
1544histget( {history} [, {index}]) String get the item {index} from a history
1545histnr( {history}) Number highest index of a history
1546hlexists( {name}) Number TRUE if highlight group {name} exists
1547hlID( {name}) Number syntax ID of highlight group {name}
1548hostname() String name of the machine Vim is running on
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001549iconv( {expr}, {from}, {to}) String convert encoding of {expr}
1550indent( {lnum}) Number indent of line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001551index( {list}, {expr} [, {start} [, {ic}]])
1552 Number index in {list} where {expr} appears
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001553input( {prompt} [, {text}]) String get input from the user
1554inputdialog( {p} [, {t} [, {c}]]) String like input() but in a GUI dialog
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001555inputrestore() Number restore typeahead
1556inputsave() Number save and clear typeahead
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001557inputsecret( {prompt} [, {text}]) String like input() but hiding the text
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001558insert( {list}, {item} [, {idx}]) List insert {item} in {list} [before {idx}]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001559isdirectory( {directory}) Number TRUE if {directory} is a directory
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00001560islocked( {expr}) Number TRUE if {expr} is locked
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00001561items( {dict}) List List of key-value pairs in {dict}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001562join( {list} [, {sep}]) String join {list} items into one String
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00001563keys( {dict}) List List of keys in {dict}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001564len( {expr}) Number the length of {expr}
1565libcall( {lib}, {func}, {arg}) String call {func} in library {lib} with {arg}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001566libcallnr( {lib}, {func}, {arg}) Number idem, but return a Number
1567line( {expr}) Number line nr of cursor, last line or mark
1568line2byte( {lnum}) Number byte count of line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001569lispindent( {lnum}) Number Lisp indent for line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001570localtime() Number current time
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001571map( {expr}, {string}) List/Dict change each item in {expr} to {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001572maparg( {name}[, {mode}]) String rhs of mapping {name} in mode {mode}
1573mapcheck( {name}[, {mode}]) String check for mappings matching {name}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001574match( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001575 Number position where {pat} matches in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001576matchend( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001577 Number position where {pat} ends in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00001578matchlist( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
1579 List match and submatches of {pat} in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001580matchstr( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
1581 String {count}'th match of {pat} in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00001582max({list}) Number maximum value of items in {list}
1583min({list}) Number minumum value of items in {list}
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00001584mkdir({name} [, {path} [, {prot}]])
1585 Number create directory {name}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001586mode() String current editing mode
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001587nextnonblank( {lnum}) Number line nr of non-blank line >= {lnum}
1588nr2char( {expr}) String single char with ASCII value {expr}
1589prevnonblank( {lnum}) Number line nr of non-blank line <= {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00001590printf( {fmt}, {expr1}...) String format text
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00001591range( {expr} [, {max} [, {stride}]])
1592 List items from {expr} to {max}
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00001593readfile({fname} [, {binary} [, {max}]])
1594 List get list of lines from file {fname}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001595remote_expr( {server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
1596 String send expression
1597remote_foreground( {server}) Number bring Vim server to the foreground
1598remote_peek( {serverid} [, {retvar}])
1599 Number check for reply string
1600remote_read( {serverid}) String read reply string
1601remote_send( {server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
1602 String send key sequence
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00001603remove( {list}, {idx} [, {end}]) any remove items {idx}-{end} from {list}
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00001604remove( {dict}, {key}) any remove entry {key} from {dict}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001605rename( {from}, {to}) Number rename (move) file from {from} to {to}
1606repeat( {expr}, {count}) String repeat {expr} {count} times
1607resolve( {filename}) String get filename a shortcut points to
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001608reverse( {list}) List reverse {list} in-place
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001609search( {pattern} [, {flags}]) Number search for {pattern}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001610searchpair( {start}, {middle}, {end} [, {flags} [, {skip}]])
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001611 Number search for other end of start/end pair
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001612server2client( {clientid}, {string})
1613 Number send reply string
1614serverlist() String get a list of available servers
1615setbufvar( {expr}, {varname}, {val}) set {varname} in buffer {expr} to {val}
1616setcmdpos( {pos}) Number set cursor position in command-line
1617setline( {lnum}, {line}) Number set line {lnum} to {line}
Bram Moolenaar35c54e52005-05-20 21:25:31 +00001618setqflist( {list}[, {action}]) Number set list of quickfix items using {list}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001619setreg( {n}, {v}[, {opt}]) Number set register to value and type
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001620setwinvar( {nr}, {varname}, {val}) set {varname} in window {nr} to {val}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001621simplify( {filename}) String simplify filename as much as possible
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001622sort( {list} [, {func}]) List sort {list}, using {func} to compare
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00001623soundfold( {word}) String sound-fold {word}
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00001624spellbadword() String badly spelled word at cursor
1625spellsuggest({word} [, {max}]) List spelling suggestions
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00001626split( {expr} [, {pat} [, {keepempty}]])
1627 List make List from {pat} separated {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001628strftime( {format}[, {time}]) String time in specified format
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00001629stridx( {haystack}, {needle}[, {start}])
1630 Number index of {needle} in {haystack}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001631string( {expr}) String String representation of {expr} value
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001632strlen( {expr}) Number length of the String {expr}
1633strpart( {src}, {start}[, {len}])
1634 String {len} characters of {src} at {start}
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00001635strridx( {haystack}, {needle} [, {start}])
1636 Number last index of {needle} in {haystack}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001637strtrans( {expr}) String translate string to make it printable
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001638submatch( {nr}) String specific match in ":substitute"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001639substitute( {expr}, {pat}, {sub}, {flags})
1640 String all {pat} in {expr} replaced with {sub}
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00001641synID( {lnum}, {col}, {trans}) Number syntax ID at {lnum} and {col}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001642synIDattr( {synID}, {what} [, {mode}])
1643 String attribute {what} of syntax ID {synID}
1644synIDtrans( {synID}) Number translated syntax ID of {synID}
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00001645system( {expr} [, {input}]) String output of shell command/filter {expr}
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00001646taglist({expr}) List list of tags matching {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001647tempname() String name for a temporary file
1648tolower( {expr}) String the String {expr} switched to lowercase
1649toupper( {expr}) String the String {expr} switched to uppercase
Bram Moolenaar8299df92004-07-10 09:47:34 +00001650tr( {src}, {fromstr}, {tostr}) String translate chars of {src} in {fromstr}
1651 to chars in {tostr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001652type( {name}) Number type of variable {name}
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00001653values( {dict}) List List of values in {dict}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001654virtcol( {expr}) Number screen column of cursor or mark
1655visualmode( [expr]) String last visual mode used
1656winbufnr( {nr}) Number buffer number of window {nr}
1657wincol() Number window column of the cursor
1658winheight( {nr}) Number height of window {nr}
1659winline() Number window line of the cursor
1660winnr() Number number of current window
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001661winrestcmd() String returns command to restore window sizes
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001662winwidth( {nr}) Number width of window {nr}
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00001663writefile({list}, {fname} [, {binary}])
1664 Number write list of lines to file {fname}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001665
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001666add({list}, {expr}) *add()*
1667 Append the item {expr} to List {list}. Returns the resulting
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001668 List. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001669 :let alist = add([1, 2, 3], item)
1670 :call add(mylist, "woodstock")
1671< Note that when {expr} is a List it is appended as a single
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001672 item. Use |extend()| to concatenate Lists.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00001673 Use |insert()| to add an item at another position.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001674
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001675
1676append({lnum}, {expr}) *append()*
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00001677 When {expr} is a List: Append each item of the List as a text
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001678 line below line {lnum} in the current buffer.
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00001679 Otherwise append {expr} as one text line below line {lnum} in
1680 the current buffer.
1681 {lnum} can be zero to insert a line before the first one.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001682 Returns 1 for failure ({lnum} out of range or out of memory),
1683 0 for success. Example: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001684 :let failed = append(line('$'), "# THE END")
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001685 :let failed = append(0, ["Chapter 1", "the beginning"])
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001686<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001687 *argc()*
1688argc() The result is the number of files in the argument list of the
1689 current window. See |arglist|.
1690
1691 *argidx()*
1692argidx() The result is the current index in the argument list. 0 is
1693 the first file. argc() - 1 is the last one. See |arglist|.
1694
1695 *argv()*
1696argv({nr}) The result is the {nr}th file in the argument list of the
1697 current window. See |arglist|. "argv(0)" is the first one.
1698 Example: >
1699 :let i = 0
1700 :while i < argc()
1701 : let f = escape(argv(i), '. ')
1702 : exe 'amenu Arg.' . f . ' :e ' . f . '<CR>'
1703 : let i = i + 1
1704 :endwhile
1705<
1706 *browse()*
1707browse({save}, {title}, {initdir}, {default})
1708 Put up a file requester. This only works when "has("browse")"
1709 returns non-zero (only in some GUI versions).
1710 The input fields are:
1711 {save} when non-zero, select file to write
1712 {title} title for the requester
1713 {initdir} directory to start browsing in
1714 {default} default file name
1715 When the "Cancel" button is hit, something went wrong, or
1716 browsing is not possible, an empty string is returned.
1717
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001718 *browsedir()*
1719browsedir({title}, {initdir})
1720 Put up a directory requester. This only works when
1721 "has("browse")" returns non-zero (only in some GUI versions).
1722 On systems where a directory browser is not supported a file
1723 browser is used. In that case: select a file in the directory
1724 to be used.
1725 The input fields are:
1726 {title} title for the requester
1727 {initdir} directory to start browsing in
1728 When the "Cancel" button is hit, something went wrong, or
1729 browsing is not possible, an empty string is returned.
1730
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001731bufexists({expr}) *bufexists()*
1732 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a buffer called
1733 {expr} exists.
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00001734 If the {expr} argument is a number, buffer numbers are used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001735 If the {expr} argument is a string it must match a buffer name
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00001736 exactly. The name can be:
1737 - Relative to the current directory.
1738 - A full path.
1739 - The name of a buffer with 'filetype' set to "nofile".
1740 - A URL name.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001741 Unlisted buffers will be found.
1742 Note that help files are listed by their short name in the
1743 output of |:buffers|, but bufexists() requires using their
1744 long name to be able to find them.
1745 Use "bufexists(0)" to test for the existence of an alternate
1746 file name.
1747 *buffer_exists()*
1748 Obsolete name: buffer_exists().
1749
1750buflisted({expr}) *buflisted()*
1751 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a buffer called
1752 {expr} exists and is listed (has the 'buflisted' option set).
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00001753 The {expr} argument is used like with |bufexists()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001754
1755bufloaded({expr}) *bufloaded()*
1756 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a buffer called
1757 {expr} exists and is loaded (shown in a window or hidden).
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00001758 The {expr} argument is used like with |bufexists()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001759
1760bufname({expr}) *bufname()*
1761 The result is the name of a buffer, as it is displayed by the
1762 ":ls" command.
1763 If {expr} is a Number, that buffer number's name is given.
1764 Number zero is the alternate buffer for the current window.
1765 If {expr} is a String, it is used as a |file-pattern| to match
1766 with the buffer names. This is always done like 'magic' is
1767 set and 'cpoptions' is empty. When there is more than one
1768 match an empty string is returned.
1769 "" or "%" can be used for the current buffer, "#" for the
1770 alternate buffer.
1771 A full match is preferred, otherwise a match at the start, end
1772 or middle of the buffer name is accepted.
1773 Listed buffers are found first. If there is a single match
1774 with a listed buffer, that one is returned. Next unlisted
1775 buffers are searched for.
1776 If the {expr} is a String, but you want to use it as a buffer
1777 number, force it to be a Number by adding zero to it: >
1778 :echo bufname("3" + 0)
1779< If the buffer doesn't exist, or doesn't have a name, an empty
1780 string is returned. >
1781 bufname("#") alternate buffer name
1782 bufname(3) name of buffer 3
1783 bufname("%") name of current buffer
1784 bufname("file2") name of buffer where "file2" matches.
1785< *buffer_name()*
1786 Obsolete name: buffer_name().
1787
1788 *bufnr()*
1789bufnr({expr}) The result is the number of a buffer, as it is displayed by
1790 the ":ls" command. For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()|
1791 above. If the buffer doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
1792 bufnr("$") is the last buffer: >
1793 :let last_buffer = bufnr("$")
1794< The result is a Number, which is the highest buffer number
1795 of existing buffers. Note that not all buffers with a smaller
1796 number necessarily exist, because ":bwipeout" may have removed
1797 them. Use bufexists() to test for the existence of a buffer.
1798 *buffer_number()*
1799 Obsolete name: buffer_number().
1800 *last_buffer_nr()*
1801 Obsolete name for bufnr("$"): last_buffer_nr().
1802
1803bufwinnr({expr}) *bufwinnr()*
1804 The result is a Number, which is the number of the first
1805 window associated with buffer {expr}. For the use of {expr},
1806 see |bufname()| above. If buffer {expr} doesn't exist or
1807 there is no such window, -1 is returned. Example: >
1808
1809 echo "A window containing buffer 1 is " . (bufwinnr(1))
1810
1811< The number can be used with |CTRL-W_w| and ":wincmd w"
1812 |:wincmd|.
1813
1814
1815byte2line({byte}) *byte2line()*
1816 Return the line number that contains the character at byte
1817 count {byte} in the current buffer. This includes the
1818 end-of-line character, depending on the 'fileformat' option
1819 for the current buffer. The first character has byte count
1820 one.
1821 Also see |line2byte()|, |go| and |:goto|.
1822 {not available when compiled without the |+byte_offset|
1823 feature}
1824
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00001825byteidx({expr}, {nr}) *byteidx()*
1826 Return byte index of the {nr}'th character in the string
1827 {expr}. Use zero for the first character, it returns zero.
1828 This function is only useful when there are multibyte
1829 characters, otherwise the returned value is equal to {nr}.
1830 Composing characters are counted as a separate character.
1831 Example : >
1832 echo matchstr(str, ".", byteidx(str, 3))
1833< will display the fourth character. Another way to do the
1834 same: >
1835 let s = strpart(str, byteidx(str, 3))
1836 echo strpart(s, 0, byteidx(s, 1))
1837< If there are less than {nr} characters -1 is returned.
1838 If there are exactly {nr} characters the length of the string
1839 is returned.
1840
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001841call({func}, {arglist} [, {dict}]) *call()* *E699*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00001842 Call function {func} with the items in List {arglist} as
1843 arguments.
1844 {func} can either be a Funcref or the name of a function.
1845 a:firstline and a:lastline are set to the cursor line.
1846 Returns the return value of the called function.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001847 {dict} is for functions with the "dict" attribute. It will be
1848 used to set the local variable "self". |Dictionary-function|
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00001849
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001850char2nr({expr}) *char2nr()*
1851 Return number value of the first char in {expr}. Examples: >
1852 char2nr(" ") returns 32
1853 char2nr("ABC") returns 65
1854< The current 'encoding' is used. Example for "utf-8": >
1855 char2nr("á") returns 225
1856 char2nr("á"[0]) returns 195
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001857< nr2char() does the opposite.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001858
1859cindent({lnum}) *cindent()*
1860 Get the amount of indent for line {lnum} according the C
1861 indenting rules, as with 'cindent'.
1862 The indent is counted in spaces, the value of 'tabstop' is
1863 relevant. {lnum} is used just like in |getline()|.
1864 When {lnum} is invalid or Vim was not compiled the |+cindent|
1865 feature, -1 is returned.
1866
1867 *col()*
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00001868col({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the byte index of the column
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001869 position given with {expr}. The accepted positions are:
1870 . the cursor position
1871 $ the end of the cursor line (the result is the
1872 number of characters in the cursor line plus one)
1873 'x position of mark x (if the mark is not set, 0 is
1874 returned)
1875 For the screen column position use |virtcol()|.
1876 Note that only marks in the current file can be used.
1877 Examples: >
1878 col(".") column of cursor
1879 col("$") length of cursor line plus one
1880 col("'t") column of mark t
1881 col("'" . markname) column of mark markname
1882< The first column is 1. 0 is returned for an error.
1883 For the cursor position, when 'virtualedit' is active, the
1884 column is one higher if the cursor is after the end of the
1885 line. This can be used to obtain the column in Insert mode: >
1886 :imap <F2> <C-O>:let save_ve = &ve<CR>
1887 \<C-O>:set ve=all<CR>
1888 \<C-O>:echo col(".") . "\n" <Bar>
1889 \let &ve = save_ve<CR>
1890<
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00001891
1892complete_add({expr}) *complete_add()*
1893 Add {expr} to the list of matches. Only to be used by the
1894 function specified with the 'completefunc' option.
1895 Returns 0 for failure (empty string or out of memory),
1896 1 when the match was added, 2 when the match was already in
1897 the list.
1898
1899complete_check() *complete_check()*
1900 Check for a key typed while looking for completion matches.
1901 This is to be used when looking for matches takes some time.
1902 Returns non-zero when searching for matches is to be aborted,
1903 zero otherwise.
1904 Only to be used by the function specified with the
1905 'completefunc' option.
1906
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001907 *confirm()*
1908confirm({msg} [, {choices} [, {default} [, {type}]]])
1909 Confirm() offers the user a dialog, from which a choice can be
1910 made. It returns the number of the choice. For the first
1911 choice this is 1.
1912 Note: confirm() is only supported when compiled with dialog
1913 support, see |+dialog_con| and |+dialog_gui|.
1914 {msg} is displayed in a |dialog| with {choices} as the
1915 alternatives. When {choices} is missing or empty, "&OK" is
1916 used (and translated).
1917 {msg} is a String, use '\n' to include a newline. Only on
1918 some systems the string is wrapped when it doesn't fit.
1919 {choices} is a String, with the individual choices separated
1920 by '\n', e.g. >
1921 confirm("Save changes?", "&Yes\n&No\n&Cancel")
1922< The letter after the '&' is the shortcut key for that choice.
1923 Thus you can type 'c' to select "Cancel". The shortcut does
1924 not need to be the first letter: >
1925 confirm("file has been modified", "&Save\nSave &All")
1926< For the console, the first letter of each choice is used as
1927 the default shortcut key.
1928 The optional {default} argument is the number of the choice
1929 that is made if the user hits <CR>. Use 1 to make the first
1930 choice the default one. Use 0 to not set a default. If
1931 {default} is omitted, 1 is used.
1932 The optional {type} argument gives the type of dialog. This
1933 is only used for the icon of the Win32 GUI. It can be one of
1934 these values: "Error", "Question", "Info", "Warning" or
1935 "Generic". Only the first character is relevant. When {type}
1936 is omitted, "Generic" is used.
1937 If the user aborts the dialog by pressing <Esc>, CTRL-C,
1938 or another valid interrupt key, confirm() returns 0.
1939
1940 An example: >
1941 :let choice = confirm("What do you want?", "&Apples\n&Oranges\n&Bananas", 2)
1942 :if choice == 0
1943 : echo "make up your mind!"
1944 :elseif choice == 3
1945 : echo "tasteful"
1946 :else
1947 : echo "I prefer bananas myself."
1948 :endif
1949< In a GUI dialog, buttons are used. The layout of the buttons
1950 depends on the 'v' flag in 'guioptions'. If it is included,
1951 the buttons are always put vertically. Otherwise, confirm()
1952 tries to put the buttons in one horizontal line. If they
1953 don't fit, a vertical layout is used anyway. For some systems
1954 the horizontal layout is always used.
1955
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001956 *copy()*
1957copy({expr}) Make a copy of {expr}. For Numbers and Strings this isn't
1958 different from using {expr} directly.
1959 When {expr} is a List a shallow copy is created. This means
1960 that the original List can be changed without changing the
1961 copy, and vise versa. But the items are identical, thus
1962 changing an item changes the contents of both Lists. Also see
1963 |deepcopy()|.
1964
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001965count({comp}, {expr} [, {ic} [, {start}]]) *count()*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00001966 Return the number of times an item with value {expr} appears
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001967 in List or Dictionary {comp}.
1968 If {start} is given then start with the item with this index.
1969 {start} can only be used with a List.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00001970 When {ic} is given and it's non-zero then case is ignored.
1971
1972
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001973 *cscope_connection()*
1974cscope_connection([{num} , {dbpath} [, {prepend}]])
1975 Checks for the existence of a |cscope| connection. If no
1976 parameters are specified, then the function returns:
1977 0, if cscope was not available (not compiled in), or
1978 if there are no cscope connections;
1979 1, if there is at least one cscope connection.
1980
1981 If parameters are specified, then the value of {num}
1982 determines how existence of a cscope connection is checked:
1983
1984 {num} Description of existence check
1985 ----- ------------------------------
1986 0 Same as no parameters (e.g., "cscope_connection()").
1987 1 Ignore {prepend}, and use partial string matches for
1988 {dbpath}.
1989 2 Ignore {prepend}, and use exact string matches for
1990 {dbpath}.
1991 3 Use {prepend}, use partial string matches for both
1992 {dbpath} and {prepend}.
1993 4 Use {prepend}, use exact string matches for both
1994 {dbpath} and {prepend}.
1995
1996 Note: All string comparisons are case sensitive!
1997
1998 Examples. Suppose we had the following (from ":cs show"): >
1999
2000 # pid database name prepend path
2001 0 27664 cscope.out /usr/local
2002<
2003 Invocation Return Val ~
2004 ---------- ---------- >
2005 cscope_connection() 1
2006 cscope_connection(1, "out") 1
2007 cscope_connection(2, "out") 0
2008 cscope_connection(3, "out") 0
2009 cscope_connection(3, "out", "local") 1
2010 cscope_connection(4, "out") 0
2011 cscope_connection(4, "out", "local") 0
2012 cscope_connection(4, "cscope.out", "/usr/local") 1
2013<
2014cursor({lnum}, {col}) *cursor()*
2015 Positions the cursor at the column {col} in the line {lnum}.
2016 Does not change the jumplist.
2017 If {lnum} is greater than the number of lines in the buffer,
2018 the cursor will be positioned at the last line in the buffer.
2019 If {lnum} is zero, the cursor will stay in the current line.
2020 If {col} is greater than the number of characters in the line,
2021 the cursor will be positioned at the last character in the
2022 line.
2023 If {col} is zero, the cursor will stay in the current column.
2024
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002025
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00002026deepcopy({expr}[, {noref}]) *deepcopy()* *E698*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002027 Make a copy of {expr}. For Numbers and Strings this isn't
2028 different from using {expr} directly.
2029 When {expr} is a List a full copy is created. This means
2030 that the original List can be changed without changing the
2031 copy, and vise versa. When an item is a List, a copy for it
2032 is made, recursively. Thus changing an item in the copy does
2033 not change the contents of the original List.
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00002034 When {noref} is omitted or zero a contained List or Dictionary
2035 is only copied once. All references point to this single
2036 copy. With {noref} set to 1 every occurrence of a List or
2037 Dictionary results in a new copy. This also means that a
2038 cyclic reference causes deepcopy() to fail.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00002039 *E724*
2040 Nesting is possible up to 100 levels. When there is an item
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00002041 that refers back to a higher level making a deep copy with
2042 {noref} set to 1 will fail.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002043 Also see |copy()|.
2044
2045delete({fname}) *delete()*
2046 Deletes the file by the name {fname}. The result is a Number,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002047 which is 0 if the file was deleted successfully, and non-zero
2048 when the deletion failed.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002049 Use |remove()| to delete an item from a List.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002050
2051 *did_filetype()*
2052did_filetype() Returns non-zero when autocommands are being executed and the
2053 FileType event has been triggered at least once. Can be used
2054 to avoid triggering the FileType event again in the scripts
2055 that detect the file type. |FileType|
2056 When editing another file, the counter is reset, thus this
2057 really checks if the FileType event has been triggered for the
2058 current buffer. This allows an autocommand that starts
2059 editing another buffer to set 'filetype' and load a syntax
2060 file.
2061
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00002062diff_filler({lnum}) *diff_filler()*
2063 Returns the number of filler lines above line {lnum}.
2064 These are the lines that were inserted at this point in
2065 another diff'ed window. These filler lines are shown in the
2066 display but don't exist in the buffer.
2067 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|. Thus "." is the current
2068 line, "'m" mark m, etc.
2069 Returns 0 if the current window is not in diff mode.
2070
2071diff_hlID({lnum}, {col}) *diff_hlID()*
2072 Returns the highlight ID for diff mode at line {lnum} column
2073 {col} (byte index). When the current line does not have a
2074 diff change zero is returned.
2075 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|. Thus "." is the current
2076 line, "'m" mark m, etc.
2077 {col} is 1 for the leftmost column, {lnum} is 1 for the first
2078 line.
2079 The highlight ID can be used with |synIDattr()| to obtain
2080 syntax information about the highlighting.
2081
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00002082empty({expr}) *empty()*
2083 Return the Number 1 if {expr} is empty, zero otherwise.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002084 A List or Dictionary is empty when it does not have any items.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00002085 A Number is empty when its value is zero.
2086 For a long List this is much faster then comparing the length
2087 with zero.
2088
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002089escape({string}, {chars}) *escape()*
2090 Escape the characters in {chars} that occur in {string} with a
2091 backslash. Example: >
2092 :echo escape('c:\program files\vim', ' \')
2093< results in: >
2094 c:\\program\ files\\vim
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002095
2096< *eval()*
2097eval({string}) Evaluate {string} and return the result. Especially useful to
2098 turn the result of |string()| back into the original value.
2099 This works for Numbers, Strings and composites of them.
2100 Also works for Funcrefs that refer to existing functions.
2101
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002102eventhandler() *eventhandler()*
2103 Returns 1 when inside an event handler. That is that Vim got
2104 interrupted while waiting for the user to type a character,
2105 e.g., when dropping a file on Vim. This means interactive
2106 commands cannot be used. Otherwise zero is returned.
2107
2108executable({expr}) *executable()*
2109 This function checks if an executable with the name {expr}
2110 exists. {expr} must be the name of the program without any
Bram Moolenaarf4b8e572004-06-24 15:53:16 +00002111 arguments.
2112 executable() uses the value of $PATH and/or the normal
2113 searchpath for programs. *PATHEXT*
2114 On MS-DOS and MS-Windows the ".exe", ".bat", etc. can
2115 optionally be included. Then the extensions in $PATHEXT are
2116 tried. Thus if "foo.exe" does not exist, "foo.exe.bat" can be
2117 found. If $PATHEXT is not set then ".exe;.com;.bat;.cmd" is
2118 used. A dot by itself can be used in $PATHEXT to try using
2119 the name without an extension. When 'shell' looks like a
2120 Unix shell, then the name is also tried without adding an
2121 extension.
2122 On MS-DOS and MS-Windows it only checks if the file exists and
2123 is not a directory, not if it's really executable.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002124 The result is a Number:
2125 1 exists
2126 0 does not exist
2127 -1 not implemented on this system
2128
2129 *exists()*
2130exists({expr}) The result is a Number, which is non-zero if {expr} is
2131 defined, zero otherwise. The {expr} argument is a string,
2132 which contains one of these:
2133 &option-name Vim option (only checks if it exists,
2134 not if it really works)
2135 +option-name Vim option that works.
2136 $ENVNAME environment variable (could also be
2137 done by comparing with an empty
2138 string)
2139 *funcname built-in function (see |functions|)
2140 or user defined function (see
2141 |user-functions|).
2142 varname internal variable (see
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00002143 |internal-variables|). Also works
2144 for |curly-braces-names|, Dictionary
2145 entries, List items, etc. Beware that
2146 this may cause functions to be
2147 invoked cause an error message for an
2148 invalid expression.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002149 :cmdname Ex command: built-in command, user
2150 command or command modifier |:command|.
2151 Returns:
2152 1 for match with start of a command
2153 2 full match with a command
2154 3 matches several user commands
2155 To check for a supported command
2156 always check the return value to be 2.
2157 #event autocommand defined for this event
2158 #event#pattern autocommand defined for this event and
2159 pattern (the pattern is taken
2160 literally and compared to the
2161 autocommand patterns character by
2162 character)
2163 For checking for a supported feature use |has()|.
2164
2165 Examples: >
2166 exists("&shortname")
2167 exists("$HOSTNAME")
2168 exists("*strftime")
2169 exists("*s:MyFunc")
2170 exists("bufcount")
2171 exists(":Make")
2172 exists("#CursorHold");
2173 exists("#BufReadPre#*.gz")
2174< There must be no space between the symbol (&/$/*/#) and the
2175 name.
2176 Note that the argument must be a string, not the name of the
2177 variable itself! For example: >
2178 exists(bufcount)
2179< This doesn't check for existence of the "bufcount" variable,
2180 but gets the contents of "bufcount", and checks if that
2181 exists.
2182
2183expand({expr} [, {flag}]) *expand()*
2184 Expand wildcards and the following special keywords in {expr}.
2185 The result is a String.
2186
2187 When there are several matches, they are separated by <NL>
2188 characters. [Note: in version 5.0 a space was used, which
2189 caused problems when a file name contains a space]
2190
2191 If the expansion fails, the result is an empty string. A name
2192 for a non-existing file is not included.
2193
2194 When {expr} starts with '%', '#' or '<', the expansion is done
2195 like for the |cmdline-special| variables with their associated
2196 modifiers. Here is a short overview:
2197
2198 % current file name
2199 # alternate file name
2200 #n alternate file name n
2201 <cfile> file name under the cursor
2202 <afile> autocmd file name
2203 <abuf> autocmd buffer number (as a String!)
2204 <amatch> autocmd matched name
2205 <sfile> sourced script file name
2206 <cword> word under the cursor
2207 <cWORD> WORD under the cursor
2208 <client> the {clientid} of the last received
2209 message |server2client()|
2210 Modifiers:
2211 :p expand to full path
2212 :h head (last path component removed)
2213 :t tail (last path component only)
2214 :r root (one extension removed)
2215 :e extension only
2216
2217 Example: >
2218 :let &tags = expand("%:p:h") . "/tags"
2219< Note that when expanding a string that starts with '%', '#' or
2220 '<', any following text is ignored. This does NOT work: >
2221 :let doesntwork = expand("%:h.bak")
2222< Use this: >
2223 :let doeswork = expand("%:h") . ".bak"
2224< Also note that expanding "<cfile>" and others only returns the
2225 referenced file name without further expansion. If "<cfile>"
2226 is "~/.cshrc", you need to do another expand() to have the
2227 "~/" expanded into the path of the home directory: >
2228 :echo expand(expand("<cfile>"))
2229<
2230 There cannot be white space between the variables and the
2231 following modifier. The |fnamemodify()| function can be used
2232 to modify normal file names.
2233
2234 When using '%' or '#', and the current or alternate file name
2235 is not defined, an empty string is used. Using "%:p" in a
2236 buffer with no name, results in the current directory, with a
2237 '/' added.
2238
2239 When {expr} does not start with '%', '#' or '<', it is
2240 expanded like a file name is expanded on the command line.
2241 'suffixes' and 'wildignore' are used, unless the optional
2242 {flag} argument is given and it is non-zero. Names for
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00002243 non-existing files are included. The "**" item can be used to
2244 search in a directory tree. For example, to find all "README"
2245 files in the current directory and below: >
2246 :echo expand("**/README")
2247<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002248 Expand() can also be used to expand variables and environment
2249 variables that are only known in a shell. But this can be
2250 slow, because a shell must be started. See |expr-env-expand|.
2251 The expanded variable is still handled like a list of file
2252 names. When an environment variable cannot be expanded, it is
2253 left unchanged. Thus ":echo expand('$FOOBAR')" results in
2254 "$FOOBAR".
2255
2256 See |glob()| for finding existing files. See |system()| for
2257 getting the raw output of an external command.
2258
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002259extend({expr1}, {expr2} [, {expr3}]) *extend()*
2260 {expr1} and {expr2} must be both Lists or both Dictionaries.
2261
2262 If they are Lists: Append {expr2} to {expr1}.
2263 If {expr3} is given insert the items of {expr2} before item
2264 {expr3} in {expr1}. When {expr3} is zero insert before the
2265 first item. When {expr3} is equal to len({expr1}) then
2266 {expr2} is appended.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002267 Examples: >
2268 :echo sort(extend(mylist, [7, 5]))
2269 :call extend(mylist, [2, 3], 1)
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002270< Use |add()| to concatenate one item to a list. To concatenate
2271 two lists into a new list use the + operator: >
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002272 :let newlist = [1, 2, 3] + [4, 5]
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002273<
2274 If they are Dictionaries:
2275 Add all entries from {expr2} to {expr1}.
2276 If a key exists in both {expr1} and {expr2} then {expr3} is
2277 used to decide what to do:
2278 {expr3} = "keep": keep the value of {expr1}
2279 {expr3} = "force": use the value of {expr2}
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +00002280 {expr3} = "error": give an error message *E737*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002281 When {expr3} is omitted then "force" is assumed.
2282
2283 {expr1} is changed when {expr2} is not empty. If necessary
2284 make a copy of {expr1} first.
2285 {expr2} remains unchanged.
2286 Returns {expr1}.
2287
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002288
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002289filereadable({file}) *filereadable()*
2290 The result is a Number, which is TRUE when a file with the
2291 name {file} exists, and can be read. If {file} doesn't exist,
2292 or is a directory, the result is FALSE. {file} is any
2293 expression, which is used as a String.
2294 *file_readable()*
2295 Obsolete name: file_readable().
2296
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002297
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002298filter({expr}, {string}) *filter()*
2299 {expr} must be a List or a Dictionary.
2300 For each item in {expr} evaluate {string} and when the result
2301 is zero remove the item from the List or Dictionary.
2302 Inside {string} |v:val| has the value of the current item.
2303 For a Dictionary |v:key| has the key of the current item.
2304 Examples: >
2305 :call filter(mylist, 'v:val !~ "OLD"')
2306< Removes the items where "OLD" appears. >
2307 :call filter(mydict, 'v:key >= 8')
2308< Removes the items with a key below 8. >
2309 :call filter(var, 0)
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00002310< Removes all the items, thus clears the List or Dictionary.
2311
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002312 Note that {string} is the result of expression and is then
2313 used as an expression again. Often it is good to use a
2314 |literal-string| to avoid having to double backslashes.
2315
2316 The operation is done in-place. If you want a List or
2317 Dictionary to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00002318 :let l = filter(copy(mylist), '& =~ "KEEP"')
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002319
2320< Returns {expr}, the List or Dictionary that was filtered.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002321
2322
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00002323finddir({name}[, {path}[, {count}]]) *finddir()*
2324 Find directory {name} in {path}.
2325 If {path} is omitted or empty then 'path' is used.
2326 If the optional {count} is given, find {count}'s occurrence of
2327 {name} in {path}.
2328 This is quite similar to the ex-command |:find|.
2329 When the found directory is below the current directory a
2330 relative path is returned. Otherwise a full path is returned.
2331 Example: >
2332 :echo findfile("tags.vim", ".;")
2333< Searches from the current directory upwards until it finds
2334 the file "tags.vim".
2335 {only available when compiled with the +file_in_path feature}
2336
2337findfile({name}[, {path}[, {count}]]) *findfile()*
2338 Just like |finddir()|, but find a file instead of a directory.
2339
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002340filewritable({file}) *filewritable()*
2341 The result is a Number, which is 1 when a file with the
2342 name {file} exists, and can be written. If {file} doesn't
2343 exist, or is not writable, the result is 0. If (file) is a
2344 directory, and we can write to it, the result is 2.
2345
2346fnamemodify({fname}, {mods}) *fnamemodify()*
2347 Modify file name {fname} according to {mods}. {mods} is a
2348 string of characters like it is used for file names on the
2349 command line. See |filename-modifiers|.
2350 Example: >
2351 :echo fnamemodify("main.c", ":p:h")
2352< results in: >
2353 /home/mool/vim/vim/src
2354< Note: Environment variables and "~" don't work in {fname}, use
2355 |expand()| first then.
2356
2357foldclosed({lnum}) *foldclosed()*
2358 The result is a Number. If the line {lnum} is in a closed
2359 fold, the result is the number of the first line in that fold.
2360 If the line {lnum} is not in a closed fold, -1 is returned.
2361
2362foldclosedend({lnum}) *foldclosedend()*
2363 The result is a Number. If the line {lnum} is in a closed
2364 fold, the result is the number of the last line in that fold.
2365 If the line {lnum} is not in a closed fold, -1 is returned.
2366
2367foldlevel({lnum}) *foldlevel()*
2368 The result is a Number, which is the foldlevel of line {lnum}
2369 in the current buffer. For nested folds the deepest level is
2370 returned. If there is no fold at line {lnum}, zero is
2371 returned. It doesn't matter if the folds are open or closed.
2372 When used while updating folds (from 'foldexpr') -1 is
2373 returned for lines where folds are still to be updated and the
2374 foldlevel is unknown. As a special case the level of the
2375 previous line is usually available.
2376
2377 *foldtext()*
2378foldtext() Returns a String, to be displayed for a closed fold. This is
2379 the default function used for the 'foldtext' option and should
2380 only be called from evaluating 'foldtext'. It uses the
2381 |v:foldstart|, |v:foldend| and |v:folddashes| variables.
2382 The returned string looks like this: >
2383 +-- 45 lines: abcdef
2384< The number of dashes depends on the foldlevel. The "45" is
2385 the number of lines in the fold. "abcdef" is the text in the
2386 first non-blank line of the fold. Leading white space, "//"
2387 or "/*" and the text from the 'foldmarker' and 'commentstring'
2388 options is removed.
2389 {not available when compiled without the |+folding| feature}
2390
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00002391foldtextresult({lnum}) *foldtextresult()*
2392 Returns the text that is displayed for the closed fold at line
2393 {lnum}. Evaluates 'foldtext' in the appropriate context.
2394 When there is no closed fold at {lnum} an empty string is
2395 returned.
2396 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|. Thus "." is the current
2397 line, "'m" mark m, etc.
2398 Useful when exporting folded text, e.g., to HTML.
2399 {not available when compiled without the |+folding| feature}
2400
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002401 *foreground()*
2402foreground() Move the Vim window to the foreground. Useful when sent from
2403 a client to a Vim server. |remote_send()|
2404 On Win32 systems this might not work, the OS does not always
2405 allow a window to bring itself to the foreground. Use
2406 |remote_foreground()| instead.
2407 {only in the Win32, Athena, Motif and GTK GUI versions and the
2408 Win32 console version}
2409
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002410
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00002411function({name}) *function()* *E700*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002412 Return a Funcref variable that refers to function {name}.
2413 {name} can be a user defined function or an internal function.
2414
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002415
Bram Moolenaar39a58ca2005-06-27 22:42:44 +00002416garbagecollect() *garbagecollect()*
2417 Cleanup unused Lists and Dictionaries that have circular
2418 references. There is hardly ever a need to invoke this
2419 function, as it is automatically done when Vim runs out of
2420 memory or is waiting for the user to press a key after
2421 'updatetime'. Items without circular references are always
2422 freed when they become unused.
2423 This is useful if you have deleted a very big List and/or
2424 Dictionary with circular references in a script that runs for
2425 a long time.
2426
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00002427get({list}, {idx} [, {default}]) *get()*
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002428 Get item {idx} from List {list}. When this item is not
2429 available return {default}. Return zero when {default} is
2430 omitted.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002431get({dict}, {key} [, {default}])
2432 Get item with key {key} from Dictionary {dict}. When this
2433 item is not available return {default}. Return zero when
2434 {default} is omitted.
2435
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00002436 *getbufline()*
2437getbufline({expr}, {lnum} [, {end}])
Bram Moolenaar661b1822005-07-28 22:36:45 +00002438 Return a List with the lines starting from {lnum} to {end}
2439 (inclusive) in the buffer {expr}. If {end} is omitted, a List
2440 with only the line {lnum} is returned.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00002441
2442 For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()| above.
2443
Bram Moolenaar661b1822005-07-28 22:36:45 +00002444 For {lnum} and {end} "$" can be used for the last line of the
2445 buffer. Otherwise a number must be used.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00002446
2447 When {lnum} is smaller than 1 or bigger than the number of
2448 lines in the buffer, an empty List is returned.
2449
2450 When {end} is greater than the number of lines in the buffer,
2451 it is treated as {end} is set to the number of lines in the
Bram Moolenaar661b1822005-07-28 22:36:45 +00002452 buffer. When {end} is before {lnum} an empty List is
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00002453 returned.
2454
Bram Moolenaar661b1822005-07-28 22:36:45 +00002455 This function works only for loaded buffers. For unloaded and
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00002456 non-existing buffers, an empty List is returned.
2457
2458 Example: >
2459 :let lines = getbufline(bufnr("myfile"), 1, "$")
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002460
2461getbufvar({expr}, {varname}) *getbufvar()*
2462 The result is the value of option or local buffer variable
2463 {varname} in buffer {expr}. Note that the name without "b:"
2464 must be used.
Bram Moolenaar4317d9b2005-03-18 20:25:31 +00002465 This also works for a global or buffer-local option, but it
2466 doesn't work for a global variable, window-local variable or
2467 window-local option.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002468 For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()| above.
2469 When the buffer or variable doesn't exist an empty string is
2470 returned, there is no error message.
2471 Examples: >
2472 :let bufmodified = getbufvar(1, "&mod")
2473 :echo "todo myvar = " . getbufvar("todo", "myvar")
2474<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002475getchar([expr]) *getchar()*
2476 Get a single character from the user. If it is an 8-bit
2477 character, the result is a number. Otherwise a String is
2478 returned with the encoded character. For a special key it's a
2479 sequence of bytes starting with 0x80 (decimal: 128).
2480 If [expr] is omitted, wait until a character is available.
2481 If [expr] is 0, only get a character when one is available.
2482 If [expr] is 1, only check if a character is available, it is
2483 not consumed. If a normal character is
2484 available, it is returned, otherwise a
2485 non-zero value is returned.
2486 If a normal character available, it is returned as a Number.
2487 Use nr2char() to convert it to a String.
2488 The returned value is zero if no character is available.
2489 The returned value is a string of characters for special keys
2490 and when a modifier (shift, control, alt) was used.
2491 There is no prompt, you will somehow have to make clear to the
2492 user that a character has to be typed.
2493 There is no mapping for the character.
2494 Key codes are replaced, thus when the user presses the <Del>
2495 key you get the code for the <Del> key, not the raw character
2496 sequence. Examples: >
2497 getchar() == "\<Del>"
2498 getchar() == "\<S-Left>"
2499< This example redefines "f" to ignore case: >
2500 :nmap f :call FindChar()<CR>
2501 :function FindChar()
2502 : let c = nr2char(getchar())
2503 : while col('.') < col('$') - 1
2504 : normal l
2505 : if getline('.')[col('.') - 1] ==? c
2506 : break
2507 : endif
2508 : endwhile
2509 :endfunction
2510
2511getcharmod() *getcharmod()*
2512 The result is a Number which is the state of the modifiers for
2513 the last obtained character with getchar() or in another way.
2514 These values are added together:
2515 2 shift
2516 4 control
2517 8 alt (meta)
2518 16 mouse double click
2519 32 mouse triple click
2520 64 mouse quadruple click
2521 128 Macintosh only: command
2522 Only the modifiers that have not been included in the
2523 character itself are obtained. Thus Shift-a results in "A"
2524 with no modifier.
2525
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002526getcmdline() *getcmdline()*
2527 Return the current command-line. Only works when the command
2528 line is being edited, thus requires use of |c_CTRL-\_e| or
2529 |c_CTRL-R_=|.
2530 Example: >
2531 :cmap <F7> <C-\>eescape(getcmdline(), ' \')<CR>
2532< Also see |getcmdpos()| and |setcmdpos()|.
2533
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002534getcmdpos() *getcmdpos()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002535 Return the position of the cursor in the command line as a
2536 byte count. The first column is 1.
2537 Only works when editing the command line, thus requires use of
2538 |c_CTRL-\_e| or |c_CTRL-R_=|. Returns 0 otherwise.
2539 Also see |setcmdpos()| and |getcmdline()|.
2540
2541 *getcwd()*
2542getcwd() The result is a String, which is the name of the current
2543 working directory.
2544
2545getfsize({fname}) *getfsize()*
2546 The result is a Number, which is the size in bytes of the
2547 given file {fname}.
2548 If {fname} is a directory, 0 is returned.
2549 If the file {fname} can't be found, -1 is returned.
2550
Bram Moolenaard8b0cf12004-12-12 11:33:30 +00002551getfontname([{name}]) *getfontname()*
2552 Without an argument returns the name of the normal font being
2553 used. Like what is used for the Normal highlight group
2554 |hl-Normal|.
2555 With an argument a check is done whether {name} is a valid
2556 font name. If not then an empty string is returned.
2557 Otherwise the actual font name is returned, or {name} if the
2558 GUI does not support obtaining the real name.
2559 Only works when the GUI is running, thus not you your vimrc or
2560 Note that the GTK 2 GUI accepts any font name, thus checking
2561 for a valid name does not work.
2562 gvimrc file. Use the |GUIEnter| autocommand to use this
2563 function just after the GUI has started.
2564
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00002565getfperm({fname}) *getfperm()*
2566 The result is a String, which is the read, write, and execute
2567 permissions of the given file {fname}.
2568 If {fname} does not exist or its directory cannot be read, an
2569 empty string is returned.
2570 The result is of the form "rwxrwxrwx", where each group of
2571 "rwx" flags represent, in turn, the permissions of the owner
2572 of the file, the group the file belongs to, and other users.
2573 If a user does not have a given permission the flag for this
2574 is replaced with the string "-". Example: >
2575 :echo getfperm("/etc/passwd")
2576< This will hopefully (from a security point of view) display
2577 the string "rw-r--r--" or even "rw-------".
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00002578
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002579getftime({fname}) *getftime()*
2580 The result is a Number, which is the last modification time of
2581 the given file {fname}. The value is measured as seconds
2582 since 1st Jan 1970, and may be passed to strftime(). See also
2583 |localtime()| and |strftime()|.
2584 If the file {fname} can't be found -1 is returned.
2585
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00002586getftype({fname}) *getftype()*
2587 The result is a String, which is a description of the kind of
2588 file of the given file {fname}.
2589 If {fname} does not exist an empty string is returned.
2590 Here is a table over different kinds of files and their
2591 results:
2592 Normal file "file"
2593 Directory "dir"
2594 Symbolic link "link"
2595 Block device "bdev"
2596 Character device "cdev"
2597 Socket "socket"
2598 FIFO "fifo"
2599 All other "other"
2600 Example: >
2601 getftype("/home")
2602< Note that a type such as "link" will only be returned on
2603 systems that support it. On some systems only "dir" and
2604 "file" are returned.
2605
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002606 *getline()*
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002607getline({lnum} [, {end}])
2608 Without {end} the result is a String, which is line {lnum}
2609 from the current buffer. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002610 getline(1)
2611< When {lnum} is a String that doesn't start with a
2612 digit, line() is called to translate the String into a Number.
2613 To get the line under the cursor: >
2614 getline(".")
2615< When {lnum} is smaller than 1 or bigger than the number of
2616 lines in the buffer, an empty string is returned.
2617
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002618 When {end} is given the result is a List where each item is a
2619 line from the current buffer in the range {lnum} to {end},
2620 including line {end}.
2621 {end} is used in the same way as {lnum}.
2622 Non-existing lines are silently omitted.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00002623 When {end} is before {lnum} an empty List is returned.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002624 Example: >
2625 :let start = line('.')
2626 :let end = search("^$") - 1
2627 :let lines = getline(start, end)
2628
2629
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00002630getqflist() *getqflist()*
2631 Returns a list with all the current quickfix errors. Each
2632 list item is a dictionary with these entries:
2633 bufnr number of buffer that has the file name, use
2634 bufname() to get the name
2635 lnum line number in the buffer (first line is 1)
2636 col column number (first column is 1)
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00002637 vcol non-zero: "col" is visual column
2638 zero: "col" is byte index
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00002639 nr error number
2640 text description of the error
2641 type type of the error, 'E', '1', etc.
2642 valid non-zero: recognized error message
2643
2644 Useful application: Find pattern matches in multiple files and
2645 do something with them: >
2646 :vimgrep /theword/jg *.c
2647 :for d in getqflist()
2648 : echo bufname(d.bufnr) ':' d.lnum '=' d.text
2649 :endfor
2650
2651
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00002652getreg([{regname} [, 1]]) *getreg()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002653 The result is a String, which is the contents of register
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00002654 {regname}. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002655 :let cliptext = getreg('*')
2656< getreg('=') returns the last evaluated value of the expression
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00002657 register. (For use in maps.)
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00002658 getreg('=', 1) returns the expression itself, so that it can
2659 be restored with |setreg()|. For other registers the extra
2660 argument is ignored, thus you can always give it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002661 If {regname} is not specified, |v:register| is used.
2662
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002663
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002664getregtype([{regname}]) *getregtype()*
2665 The result is a String, which is type of register {regname}.
2666 The value will be one of:
2667 "v" for |characterwise| text
2668 "V" for |linewise| text
2669 "<CTRL-V>{width}" for |blockwise-visual| text
2670 0 for an empty or unknown register
2671 <CTRL-V> is one character with value 0x16.
2672 If {regname} is not specified, |v:register| is used.
2673
2674 *getwinposx()*
2675getwinposx() The result is a Number, which is the X coordinate in pixels of
2676 the left hand side of the GUI Vim window. The result will be
2677 -1 if the information is not available.
2678
2679 *getwinposy()*
2680getwinposy() The result is a Number, which is the Y coordinate in pixels of
2681 the top of the GUI Vim window. The result will be -1 if the
2682 information is not available.
2683
2684getwinvar({nr}, {varname}) *getwinvar()*
2685 The result is the value of option or local window variable
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +00002686 {varname} in window {nr}. When {nr} is zero the current
2687 window is used.
Bram Moolenaar4317d9b2005-03-18 20:25:31 +00002688 This also works for a global option, buffer-local option and
2689 window-local option, but it doesn't work for a global variable
2690 or buffer-local variable.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002691 Note that the name without "w:" must be used.
2692 Examples: >
2693 :let list_is_on = getwinvar(2, '&list')
2694 :echo "myvar = " . getwinvar(1, 'myvar')
2695<
2696 *glob()*
2697glob({expr}) Expand the file wildcards in {expr}. The result is a String.
2698 When there are several matches, they are separated by <NL>
2699 characters.
2700 If the expansion fails, the result is an empty string.
2701 A name for a non-existing file is not included.
2702
2703 For most systems backticks can be used to get files names from
2704 any external command. Example: >
2705 :let tagfiles = glob("`find . -name tags -print`")
2706 :let &tags = substitute(tagfiles, "\n", ",", "g")
2707< The result of the program inside the backticks should be one
2708 item per line. Spaces inside an item are allowed.
2709
2710 See |expand()| for expanding special Vim variables. See
2711 |system()| for getting the raw output of an external command.
2712
2713globpath({path}, {expr}) *globpath()*
2714 Perform glob() on all directories in {path} and concatenate
2715 the results. Example: >
2716 :echo globpath(&rtp, "syntax/c.vim")
2717< {path} is a comma-separated list of directory names. Each
2718 directory name is prepended to {expr} and expanded like with
2719 glob(). A path separator is inserted when needed.
2720 To add a comma inside a directory name escape it with a
2721 backslash. Note that on MS-Windows a directory may have a
2722 trailing backslash, remove it if you put a comma after it.
2723 If the expansion fails for one of the directories, there is no
2724 error message.
2725 The 'wildignore' option applies: Names matching one of the
2726 patterns in 'wildignore' will be skipped.
2727
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00002728 The "**" item can be used to search in a directory tree.
2729 For example, to find all "README.txt" files in the directories
2730 in 'runtimepath' and below: >
2731 :echo globpath(&rtp, "**/README.txt")
2732<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002733 *has()*
2734has({feature}) The result is a Number, which is 1 if the feature {feature} is
2735 supported, zero otherwise. The {feature} argument is a
2736 string. See |feature-list| below.
2737 Also see |exists()|.
2738
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002739
2740has_key({dict}, {key}) *has_key()*
2741 The result is a Number, which is 1 if Dictionary {dict} has an
2742 entry with key {key}. Zero otherwise.
2743
2744
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002745hasmapto({what} [, {mode}]) *hasmapto()*
2746 The result is a Number, which is 1 if there is a mapping that
2747 contains {what} in somewhere in the rhs (what it is mapped to)
2748 and this mapping exists in one of the modes indicated by
2749 {mode}.
2750 Both the global mappings and the mappings local to the current
2751 buffer are checked for a match.
2752 If no matching mapping is found 0 is returned.
2753 The following characters are recognized in {mode}:
2754 n Normal mode
2755 v Visual mode
2756 o Operator-pending mode
2757 i Insert mode
2758 l Language-Argument ("r", "f", "t", etc.)
2759 c Command-line mode
2760 When {mode} is omitted, "nvo" is used.
2761
2762 This function is useful to check if a mapping already exists
2763 to a function in a Vim script. Example: >
2764 :if !hasmapto('\ABCdoit')
2765 : map <Leader>d \ABCdoit
2766 :endif
2767< This installs the mapping to "\ABCdoit" only if there isn't
2768 already a mapping to "\ABCdoit".
2769
2770histadd({history}, {item}) *histadd()*
2771 Add the String {item} to the history {history} which can be
2772 one of: *hist-names*
2773 "cmd" or ":" command line history
2774 "search" or "/" search pattern history
2775 "expr" or "=" typed expression history
2776 "input" or "@" input line history
2777 If {item} does already exist in the history, it will be
2778 shifted to become the newest entry.
2779 The result is a Number: 1 if the operation was successful,
2780 otherwise 0 is returned.
2781
2782 Example: >
2783 :call histadd("input", strftime("%Y %b %d"))
2784 :let date=input("Enter date: ")
2785< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
2786
2787histdel({history} [, {item}]) *histdel()*
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00002788 Clear {history}, i.e. delete all its entries. See |hist-names|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002789 for the possible values of {history}.
2790
2791 If the parameter {item} is given as String, this is seen
2792 as regular expression. All entries matching that expression
2793 will be removed from the history (if there are any).
2794 Upper/lowercase must match, unless "\c" is used |/\c|.
2795 If {item} is a Number, it will be interpreted as index, see
2796 |:history-indexing|. The respective entry will be removed
2797 if it exists.
2798
2799 The result is a Number: 1 for a successful operation,
2800 otherwise 0 is returned.
2801
2802 Examples:
2803 Clear expression register history: >
2804 :call histdel("expr")
2805<
2806 Remove all entries starting with "*" from the search history: >
2807 :call histdel("/", '^\*')
2808<
2809 The following three are equivalent: >
2810 :call histdel("search", histnr("search"))
2811 :call histdel("search", -1)
2812 :call histdel("search", '^'.histget("search", -1).'$')
2813<
2814 To delete the last search pattern and use the last-but-one for
2815 the "n" command and 'hlsearch': >
2816 :call histdel("search", -1)
2817 :let @/ = histget("search", -1)
2818
2819histget({history} [, {index}]) *histget()*
2820 The result is a String, the entry with Number {index} from
2821 {history}. See |hist-names| for the possible values of
2822 {history}, and |:history-indexing| for {index}. If there is
2823 no such entry, an empty String is returned. When {index} is
2824 omitted, the most recent item from the history is used.
2825
2826 Examples:
2827 Redo the second last search from history. >
2828 :execute '/' . histget("search", -2)
2829
2830< Define an Ex command ":H {num}" that supports re-execution of
2831 the {num}th entry from the output of |:history|. >
2832 :command -nargs=1 H execute histget("cmd", 0+<args>)
2833<
2834histnr({history}) *histnr()*
2835 The result is the Number of the current entry in {history}.
2836 See |hist-names| for the possible values of {history}.
2837 If an error occurred, -1 is returned.
2838
2839 Example: >
2840 :let inp_index = histnr("expr")
2841<
2842hlexists({name}) *hlexists()*
2843 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a highlight group
2844 called {name} exists. This is when the group has been
2845 defined in some way. Not necessarily when highlighting has
2846 been defined for it, it may also have been used for a syntax
2847 item.
2848 *highlight_exists()*
2849 Obsolete name: highlight_exists().
2850
2851 *hlID()*
2852hlID({name}) The result is a Number, which is the ID of the highlight group
2853 with name {name}. When the highlight group doesn't exist,
2854 zero is returned.
2855 This can be used to retrieve information about the highlight
2856 group. For example, to get the background color of the
2857 "Comment" group: >
2858 :echo synIDattr(synIDtrans(hlID("Comment")), "bg")
2859< *highlightID()*
2860 Obsolete name: highlightID().
2861
2862hostname() *hostname()*
2863 The result is a String, which is the name of the machine on
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00002864 which Vim is currently running. Machine names greater than
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002865 256 characters long are truncated.
2866
2867iconv({expr}, {from}, {to}) *iconv()*
2868 The result is a String, which is the text {expr} converted
2869 from encoding {from} to encoding {to}.
2870 When the conversion fails an empty string is returned.
2871 The encoding names are whatever the iconv() library function
2872 can accept, see ":!man 3 iconv".
2873 Most conversions require Vim to be compiled with the |+iconv|
2874 feature. Otherwise only UTF-8 to latin1 conversion and back
2875 can be done.
2876 This can be used to display messages with special characters,
2877 no matter what 'encoding' is set to. Write the message in
2878 UTF-8 and use: >
2879 echo iconv(utf8_str, "utf-8", &enc)
2880< Note that Vim uses UTF-8 for all Unicode encodings, conversion
2881 from/to UCS-2 is automatically changed to use UTF-8. You
2882 cannot use UCS-2 in a string anyway, because of the NUL bytes.
2883 {only available when compiled with the +multi_byte feature}
2884
2885 *indent()*
2886indent({lnum}) The result is a Number, which is indent of line {lnum} in the
2887 current buffer. The indent is counted in spaces, the value
2888 of 'tabstop' is relevant. {lnum} is used just like in
2889 |getline()|.
2890 When {lnum} is invalid -1 is returned.
2891
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002892
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002893index({list}, {expr} [, {start} [, {ic}]]) *index()*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002894 Return the lowest index in List {list} where the item has a
2895 value equal to {expr}.
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00002896 If {start} is given then start looking at the item with index
2897 {start} (may be negative for an item relative to the end).
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002898 When {ic} is given and it is non-zero, ignore case. Otherwise
2899 case must match.
2900 -1 is returned when {expr} is not found in {list}.
2901 Example: >
2902 :let idx = index(words, "the")
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00002903 :if index(numbers, 123) >= 0
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002904
2905
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002906input({prompt} [, {text}]) *input()*
2907 The result is a String, which is whatever the user typed on
2908 the command-line. The parameter is either a prompt string, or
2909 a blank string (for no prompt). A '\n' can be used in the
2910 prompt to start a new line. The highlighting set with
2911 |:echohl| is used for the prompt. The input is entered just
2912 like a command-line, with the same editing commands and
2913 mappings. There is a separate history for lines typed for
2914 input().
2915 If the optional {text} is present, this is used for the
2916 default reply, as if the user typed this.
2917 NOTE: This must not be used in a startup file, for the
2918 versions that only run in GUI mode (e.g., the Win32 GUI).
2919 Note: When input() is called from within a mapping it will
2920 consume remaining characters from that mapping, because a
2921 mapping is handled like the characters were typed.
2922 Use |inputsave()| before input() and |inputrestore()|
2923 after input() to avoid that. Another solution is to avoid
2924 that further characters follow in the mapping, e.g., by using
2925 |:execute| or |:normal|.
2926
2927 Example: >
2928 :if input("Coffee or beer? ") == "beer"
2929 : echo "Cheers!"
2930 :endif
2931< Example with default text: >
2932 :let color = input("Color? ", "white")
2933< Example with a mapping: >
2934 :nmap \x :call GetFoo()<CR>:exe "/" . Foo<CR>
2935 :function GetFoo()
2936 : call inputsave()
2937 : let g:Foo = input("enter search pattern: ")
2938 : call inputrestore()
2939 :endfunction
2940
2941inputdialog({prompt} [, {text} [, {cancelreturn}]]) *inputdialog()*
2942 Like input(), but when the GUI is running and text dialogs are
2943 supported, a dialog window pops up to input the text.
2944 Example: >
2945 :let n = inputdialog("value for shiftwidth", &sw)
2946 :if n != ""
2947 : let &sw = n
2948 :endif
2949< When the dialog is cancelled {cancelreturn} is returned. When
2950 omitted an empty string is returned.
2951 Hitting <Enter> works like pressing the OK button. Hitting
2952 <Esc> works like pressing the Cancel button.
2953
2954inputrestore() *inputrestore()*
2955 Restore typeahead that was saved with a previous inputsave().
2956 Should be called the same number of times inputsave() is
2957 called. Calling it more often is harmless though.
2958 Returns 1 when there is nothing to restore, 0 otherwise.
2959
2960inputsave() *inputsave()*
2961 Preserve typeahead (also from mappings) and clear it, so that
2962 a following prompt gets input from the user. Should be
2963 followed by a matching inputrestore() after the prompt. Can
2964 be used several times, in which case there must be just as
2965 many inputrestore() calls.
2966 Returns 1 when out of memory, 0 otherwise.
2967
2968inputsecret({prompt} [, {text}]) *inputsecret()*
2969 This function acts much like the |input()| function with but
2970 two exceptions:
2971 a) the user's response will be displayed as a sequence of
2972 asterisks ("*") thereby keeping the entry secret, and
2973 b) the user's response will not be recorded on the input
2974 |history| stack.
2975 The result is a String, which is whatever the user actually
2976 typed on the command-line in response to the issued prompt.
2977
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002978insert({list}, {item} [, {idx}]) *insert()*
2979 Insert {item} at the start of List {list}.
2980 If {idx} is specified insert {item} before the item with index
2981 {idx}. If {idx} is zero it goes before the first item, just
2982 like omitting {idx}. A negative {idx} is also possible, see
2983 |list-index|. -1 inserts just before the last item.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00002984 Returns the resulting List. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002985 :let mylist = insert([2, 3, 5], 1)
2986 :call insert(mylist, 4, -1)
2987 :call insert(mylist, 6, len(mylist))
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002988< The last example can be done simpler with |add()|.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002989 Note that when {item} is a List it is inserted as a single
2990 item. Use |extend()| to concatenate Lists.
2991
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002992isdirectory({directory}) *isdirectory()*
2993 The result is a Number, which is non-zero when a directory
2994 with the name {directory} exists. If {directory} doesn't
2995 exist, or isn't a directory, the result is FALSE. {directory}
2996 is any expression, which is used as a String.
2997
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00002998islocked({expr}) *islocked()*
2999 The result is a Number, which is non-zero when {expr} is the
3000 name of a locked variable.
3001 {expr} must be the name of a variable, List item or Dictionary
3002 entry, not the variable itself! Example: >
3003 :let alist = [0, ['a', 'b'], 2, 3]
3004 :lockvar 1 alist
3005 :echo islocked('alist') " 1
3006 :echo islocked('alist[1]') " 0
3007
3008< When {expr} is a variable that does not exist you get an error
3009 message. Use |exists()| to check for existance.
3010
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00003011items({dict}) *items()*
3012 Return a List with all the key-value pairs of {dict}. Each
3013 List item is a list with two items: the key of a {dict} entry
3014 and the value of this entry. The List is in arbitrary order.
3015
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003016
3017join({list} [, {sep}]) *join()*
3018 Join the items in {list} together into one String.
3019 When {sep} is specified it is put in between the items. If
3020 {sep} is omitted a single space is used.
3021 Note that {sep} is not added at the end. You might want to
3022 add it there too: >
3023 let lines = join(mylist, "\n") . "\n"
3024< String items are used as-is. Lists and Dictionaries are
3025 converted into a string like with |string()|.
3026 The opposite function is |split()|.
3027
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003028keys({dict}) *keys()*
3029 Return a List with all the keys of {dict}. The List is in
3030 arbitrary order.
3031
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00003032 *len()* *E701*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00003033len({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the length of the argument.
3034 When {expr} is a String or a Number the length in bytes is
3035 used, as with |strlen()|.
3036 When {expr} is a List the number of items in the List is
3037 returned.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003038 When {expr} is a Dictionary the number of entries in the
3039 Dictionary is returned.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00003040 Otherwise an error is given.
3041
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003042 *libcall()* *E364* *E368*
3043libcall({libname}, {funcname}, {argument})
3044 Call function {funcname} in the run-time library {libname}
3045 with single argument {argument}.
3046 This is useful to call functions in a library that you
3047 especially made to be used with Vim. Since only one argument
3048 is possible, calling standard library functions is rather
3049 limited.
3050 The result is the String returned by the function. If the
3051 function returns NULL, this will appear as an empty string ""
3052 to Vim.
3053 If the function returns a number, use libcallnr()!
3054 If {argument} is a number, it is passed to the function as an
3055 int; if {argument} is a string, it is passed as a
3056 null-terminated string.
3057 This function will fail in |restricted-mode|.
3058
3059 libcall() allows you to write your own 'plug-in' extensions to
3060 Vim without having to recompile the program. It is NOT a
3061 means to call system functions! If you try to do so Vim will
3062 very probably crash.
3063
3064 For Win32, the functions you write must be placed in a DLL
3065 and use the normal C calling convention (NOT Pascal which is
3066 used in Windows System DLLs). The function must take exactly
3067 one parameter, either a character pointer or a long integer,
3068 and must return a character pointer or NULL. The character
3069 pointer returned must point to memory that will remain valid
3070 after the function has returned (e.g. in static data in the
3071 DLL). If it points to allocated memory, that memory will
3072 leak away. Using a static buffer in the function should work,
3073 it's then freed when the DLL is unloaded.
3074
3075 WARNING: If the function returns a non-valid pointer, Vim may
3076 crash! This also happens if the function returns a number,
3077 because Vim thinks it's a pointer.
3078 For Win32 systems, {libname} should be the filename of the DLL
3079 without the ".DLL" suffix. A full path is only required if
3080 the DLL is not in the usual places.
3081 For Unix: When compiling your own plugins, remember that the
3082 object code must be compiled as position-independent ('PIC').
3083 {only in Win32 on some Unix versions, when the |+libcall|
3084 feature is present}
3085 Examples: >
3086 :echo libcall("libc.so", "getenv", "HOME")
3087 :echo libcallnr("/usr/lib/libc.so", "getpid", "")
3088<
3089 *libcallnr()*
3090libcallnr({libname}, {funcname}, {argument})
3091 Just like libcall(), but used for a function that returns an
3092 int instead of a string.
3093 {only in Win32 on some Unix versions, when the |+libcall|
3094 feature is present}
3095 Example (not very useful...): >
3096 :call libcallnr("libc.so", "printf", "Hello World!\n")
3097 :call libcallnr("libc.so", "sleep", 10)
3098<
3099 *line()*
3100line({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the line number of the file
3101 position given with {expr}. The accepted positions are:
3102 . the cursor position
3103 $ the last line in the current buffer
3104 'x position of mark x (if the mark is not set, 0 is
3105 returned)
3106 Note that only marks in the current file can be used.
3107 Examples: >
3108 line(".") line number of the cursor
3109 line("'t") line number of mark t
3110 line("'" . marker) line number of mark marker
3111< *last-position-jump*
3112 This autocommand jumps to the last known position in a file
3113 just after opening it, if the '" mark is set: >
3114 :au BufReadPost * if line("'\"") > 0 && line("'\"") <= line("$") | exe "normal g'\"" | endif
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00003115
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003116line2byte({lnum}) *line2byte()*
3117 Return the byte count from the start of the buffer for line
3118 {lnum}. This includes the end-of-line character, depending on
3119 the 'fileformat' option for the current buffer. The first
3120 line returns 1.
3121 This can also be used to get the byte count for the line just
3122 below the last line: >
3123 line2byte(line("$") + 1)
3124< This is the file size plus one.
3125 When {lnum} is invalid, or the |+byte_offset| feature has been
3126 disabled at compile time, -1 is returned.
3127 Also see |byte2line()|, |go| and |:goto|.
3128
3129lispindent({lnum}) *lispindent()*
3130 Get the amount of indent for line {lnum} according the lisp
3131 indenting rules, as with 'lisp'.
3132 The indent is counted in spaces, the value of 'tabstop' is
3133 relevant. {lnum} is used just like in |getline()|.
3134 When {lnum} is invalid or Vim was not compiled the
3135 |+lispindent| feature, -1 is returned.
3136
3137localtime() *localtime()*
3138 Return the current time, measured as seconds since 1st Jan
3139 1970. See also |strftime()| and |getftime()|.
3140
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003141
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003142map({expr}, {string}) *map()*
3143 {expr} must be a List or a Dictionary.
3144 Replace each item in {expr} with the result of evaluating
3145 {string}.
3146 Inside {string} |v:val| has the value of the current item.
3147 For a Dictionary |v:key| has the key of the current item.
3148 Example: >
3149 :call map(mylist, '"> " . v:val . " <"')
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003150< This puts "> " before and " <" after each item in "mylist".
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003151
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00003152 Note that {string} is the result of an expression and is then
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003153 used as an expression again. Often it is good to use a
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00003154 |literal-string| to avoid having to double backslashes. You
3155 still have to double ' quotes
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003156
3157 The operation is done in-place. If you want a List or
3158 Dictionary to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003159 :let tlist = map(copy(mylist), ' & . "\t"')
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003160
3161< Returns {expr}, the List or Dictionary that was filtered.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003162
3163
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003164maparg({name}[, {mode}]) *maparg()*
3165 Return the rhs of mapping {name} in mode {mode}. When there
3166 is no mapping for {name}, an empty String is returned.
3167 These characters can be used for {mode}:
3168 "n" Normal
3169 "v" Visual
3170 "o" Operator-pending
3171 "i" Insert
3172 "c" Cmd-line
3173 "l" langmap |language-mapping|
3174 "" Normal, Visual and Operator-pending
3175 When {mode} is omitted, the modes from "" are used.
3176 The {name} can have special key names, like in the ":map"
3177 command. The returned String has special characters
3178 translated like in the output of the ":map" command listing.
3179 The mappings local to the current buffer are checked first,
3180 then the global mappings.
3181
3182mapcheck({name}[, {mode}]) *mapcheck()*
3183 Check if there is a mapping that matches with {name} in mode
3184 {mode}. See |maparg()| for {mode} and special names in
3185 {name}.
3186 A match happens with a mapping that starts with {name} and
3187 with a mapping which is equal to the start of {name}.
3188
3189 matches mapping "a" "ab" "abc" ~
3190 mapcheck("a") yes yes yes
3191 mapcheck("abc") yes yes yes
3192 mapcheck("ax") yes no no
3193 mapcheck("b") no no no
3194
3195 The difference with maparg() is that mapcheck() finds a
3196 mapping that matches with {name}, while maparg() only finds a
3197 mapping for {name} exactly.
3198 When there is no mapping that starts with {name}, an empty
3199 String is returned. If there is one, the rhs of that mapping
3200 is returned. If there are several mappings that start with
3201 {name}, the rhs of one of them is returned.
3202 The mappings local to the current buffer are checked first,
3203 then the global mappings.
3204 This function can be used to check if a mapping can be added
3205 without being ambiguous. Example: >
3206 :if mapcheck("_vv") == ""
3207 : map _vv :set guifont=7x13<CR>
3208 :endif
3209< This avoids adding the "_vv" mapping when there already is a
3210 mapping for "_v" or for "_vvv".
3211
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003212match({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *match()*
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003213 When {expr} is a List then this returns the index of the first
3214 item where {pat} matches. Each item is used as a String,
3215 Lists and Dictionaries are used as echoed.
3216 Otherwise, {expr} is used as a String. The result is a
3217 Number, which gives the index (byte offset) in {expr} where
3218 {pat} matches.
3219 A match at the first character or List item returns zero.
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003220 If there is no match -1 is returned.
3221 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003222 :echo match("testing", "ing") " results in 4
3223 :echo match([1, 'x'], '\a') " results in 2
3224< See |string-match| for how {pat} is used.
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00003225 *strpbrk()*
3226 Vim doesn't have a strpbrk() function. But you can do: >
3227 :let sepidx = match(line, '[.,;: \t]')
3228< *strcasestr()*
3229 Vim doesn't have a strcasestr() function. But you can add
3230 "\c" to the pattern to ignore case: >
3231 :let idx = match(haystack, '\cneedle')
3232<
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003233 When {count} is given use the {count}'th match. When a match
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003234 is found in a String the search for the next one starts on
3235 character further. Thus this example results in 1: >
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003236 echo match("testing", "..", 0, 2)
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003237< In a List the search continues in the next item.
3238
3239 If {start} is given, the search starts from byte index
3240 {start} in a String or item {start} in a List.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003241 The result, however, is still the index counted from the
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003242 first character/item. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003243 :echo match("testing", "ing", 2)
3244< result is again "4". >
3245 :echo match("testing", "ing", 4)
3246< result is again "4". >
3247 :echo match("testing", "t", 2)
3248< result is "3".
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003249 For a String, if {start} < 0, it will be set to 0. For a list
3250 the index is counted from the end.
3251 If {start} is out of range (> strlen({expr} for a String or
3252 > len({expr} for a List) -1 is returned.
3253
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003254 See |pattern| for the patterns that are accepted.
3255 The 'ignorecase' option is used to set the ignore-caseness of
3256 the pattern. 'smartcase' is NOT used. The matching is always
3257 done like 'magic' is set and 'cpoptions' is empty.
3258
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003259matchend({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *matchend()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003260 Same as match(), but return the index of first character after
3261 the match. Example: >
3262 :echo matchend("testing", "ing")
3263< results in "7".
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00003264 *strspn()* *strcspn()*
3265 Vim doesn't have a strspn() or strcspn() function, but you can
3266 do it with matchend(): >
3267 :let span = matchend(line, '[a-zA-Z]')
3268 :let span = matchend(line, '[^a-zA-Z]')
3269< Except that -1 is returned when there are no matches.
3270
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003271 The {start}, if given, has the same meaning as for match(). >
3272 :echo matchend("testing", "ing", 2)
3273< results in "7". >
3274 :echo matchend("testing", "ing", 5)
3275< result is "-1".
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003276 When {expr} is a List the result is equal to match().
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003277
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00003278matchlist({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *matchlist()*
3279 Same as match(), but return a List. The first item in the
3280 list is the matched string, same as what matchstr() would
3281 return. Following items are submatches, like "\1", "\2", etc.
3282 in |:substitute|.
3283 When there is no match an empty list is returned.
3284
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003285matchstr({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *matchstr()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003286 Same as match(), but return the matched string. Example: >
3287 :echo matchstr("testing", "ing")
3288< results in "ing".
3289 When there is no match "" is returned.
3290 The {start}, if given, has the same meaning as for match(). >
3291 :echo matchstr("testing", "ing", 2)
3292< results in "ing". >
3293 :echo matchstr("testing", "ing", 5)
3294< result is "".
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003295 When {expr} is a List then the matching item is returned.
3296 The type isn't changed, it's not necessarily a String.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003297
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00003298 *max()*
3299max({list}) Return the maximum value of all items in {list}.
3300 If {list} is not a list or one of the items in {list} cannot
3301 be used as a Number this results in an error.
3302 An empty List results in zero.
3303
3304 *min()*
3305min({list}) Return the minumum value of all items in {list}.
3306 If {list} is not a list or one of the items in {list} cannot
3307 be used as a Number this results in an error.
3308 An empty List results in zero.
3309
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00003310 *mkdir()* *E749*
3311mkdir({name} [, {path} [, {prot}]])
3312 Create directory {name}.
3313 If {path} is "p" then intermediate directories are created as
3314 necessary. Otherwise it must be "".
3315 If {prot} is given it is used to set the protection bits of
3316 the new directory. The default is 0755 (rwxr-xr-x: r/w for
3317 the user readable for others). Use 0700 to make it unreadable
3318 for others.
3319 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3320 Not available on all systems. To check use: >
3321 :if exists("*mkdir")
3322<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003323 *mode()*
3324mode() Return a string that indicates the current mode:
3325 n Normal
3326 v Visual by character
3327 V Visual by line
3328 CTRL-V Visual blockwise
3329 s Select by character
3330 S Select by line
3331 CTRL-S Select blockwise
3332 i Insert
3333 R Replace
3334 c Command-line
3335 r Hit-enter prompt
3336 This is useful in the 'statusline' option. In most other
3337 places it always returns "c" or "n".
3338
3339nextnonblank({lnum}) *nextnonblank()*
3340 Return the line number of the first line at or below {lnum}
3341 that is not blank. Example: >
3342 if getline(nextnonblank(1)) =~ "Java"
3343< When {lnum} is invalid or there is no non-blank line at or
3344 below it, zero is returned.
3345 See also |prevnonblank()|.
3346
3347nr2char({expr}) *nr2char()*
3348 Return a string with a single character, which has the number
3349 value {expr}. Examples: >
3350 nr2char(64) returns "@"
3351 nr2char(32) returns " "
3352< The current 'encoding' is used. Example for "utf-8": >
3353 nr2char(300) returns I with bow character
3354< Note that a NUL character in the file is specified with
3355 nr2char(10), because NULs are represented with newline
3356 characters. nr2char(0) is a real NUL and terminates the
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +00003357 string, thus results in an empty string.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003358
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003359printf({fmt}, {expr1} ...) *printf()*
3360 Return a String with {fmt}, where "%" items are replaced by
3361 the formatted form of their respective arguments. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003362 printf("%4d: E%d %.30s", lnum, errno, msg)
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003363< May result in:
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003364 " 99: E42 asdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfas" ~
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003365
3366 Often used items are:
3367 %s string
3368 %6s string right-aligned in 6 characters
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003369 %c single byte
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003370 %d decimal number
3371 %5d decimal number padded with spaces to 5 characters
3372 %x hex number
3373 %04x hex number padded with zeros to at least 4 characters
3374 %X hex number using upper case letters
3375 %o octal number
3376 %% the % character
3377
3378 Conversion specifications start with '%' and end with the
3379 conversion type. All other characters are copied unchanged to
3380 the result.
3381
3382 The "%" starts a conversion specification. The following
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003383 arguments appear in sequence:
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003384
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003385 % [flags] [field-width] [.precision] type
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003386
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003387 flags
3388 Zero or more of the following flags:
3389
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003390 # The value should be converted to an "alternate
3391 form". For c, d, and s conversions, this option
3392 has no effect. For o conversions, the precision
3393 of the number is increased to force the first
3394 character of the output string to a zero (except
3395 if a zero value is printed with an explicit
3396 precision of zero).
3397 For x and X conversions, a non-zero result has
3398 the string "0x" (or "0X" for X conversions)
3399 prepended to it.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003400
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003401 0 (zero) Zero padding. For all conversions the converted
3402 value is padded on the left with zeros rather
3403 than blanks. If a precision is given with a
3404 numeric conversion (d, o, x, and X), the 0 flag
3405 is ignored.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003406
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003407 - A negative field width flag; the converted value
3408 is to be left adjusted on the field boundary.
3409 The converted value is padded on the right with
3410 blanks, rather than on the left with blanks or
3411 zeros. A - overrides a 0 if both are given.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003412
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003413 ' ' (space) A blank should be left before a positive
3414 number produced by a signed conversion (d).
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003415
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003416 + A sign must always be placed before a number
3417 produced by a signed conversion. A + overrides
3418 a space if both are used.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003419
3420 field-width
3421 An optional decimal digit string specifying a minimum
3422 field width. If the converted value has fewer
3423 characters than the field width, it will be padded
3424 with spaces on the left (or right, if the
3425 left-adjustment flag has been given) to fill out the
3426 field width.
3427
3428 .precision
3429 An optional precision, in the form of a period '.'
3430 followed by an optional digit string. If the digit
3431 string is omitted, the precision is taken as zero.
3432 This gives the minimum number of digits to appear for
3433 d, o, x, and X conversions, or the maximum number of
3434 characters to be printed from a string for s
3435 conversions.
3436
3437 type
3438 A character that specifies the type of conversion to
3439 be applied, see below.
3440
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003441 A field width or precision, or both, may be indicated by an
3442 asterisk '*' instead of a digit string. In this case, a
3443 Number argument supplies the field width or precision. A
3444 negative field width is treated as a left adjustment flag
3445 followed by a positive field width; a negative precision is
3446 treated as though it were missing. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003447 :echo printf("%d: %.*s", nr, width, line)
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003448< This limits the length of the text used from "line" to
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003449 "width" bytes.
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003450
3451 The conversion specifiers and their meanings are:
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003452
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003453 doxX The Number argument is converted to signed decimal
3454 (d), unsigned octal (o), or unsigned hexadecimal (x
3455 and X) notation. The letters "abcdef" are used for
3456 x conversions; the letters "ABCDEF" are used for X
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003457 conversions.
3458 The precision, if any, gives the minimum number of
3459 digits that must appear; if the converted value
3460 requires fewer digits, it is padded on the left with
3461 zeros.
3462 In no case does a non-existent or small field width
3463 cause truncation of a numeric field; if the result of
3464 a conversion is wider than the field width, the field
3465 is expanded to contain the conversion result.
3466
3467 c The Number argument is converted to a byte, and the
3468 resulting character is written.
3469
3470 s The text of the String argument is used. If a
3471 precision is specified, no more bytes than the number
3472 specified are used.
3473
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003474 % A '%' is written. No argument is converted. The
3475 complete conversion specification is "%%".
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003476
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003477 Each argument can be Number or String and is converted
3478 automatically to fit the conversion specifier. Any other
3479 argument type results in an error message.
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003480
Bram Moolenaar83bab712005-08-01 21:58:57 +00003481 *E766* *E767*
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003482 The number of {exprN} arguments must exactly match the number
3483 of "%" items. If there are not sufficient or too many
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00003484 arguments an error is given. Up to 18 arguments can be used.
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00003485
3486
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003487prevnonblank({lnum}) *prevnonblank()*
3488 Return the line number of the first line at or above {lnum}
3489 that is not blank. Example: >
3490 let ind = indent(prevnonblank(v:lnum - 1))
3491< When {lnum} is invalid or there is no non-blank line at or
3492 above it, zero is returned.
3493 Also see |nextnonblank()|.
3494
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00003495 *E726* *E727*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003496range({expr} [, {max} [, {stride}]]) *range()*
3497 Returns a List with Numbers:
3498 - If only {expr} is specified: [0, 1, ..., {expr} - 1]
3499 - If {max} is specified: [{expr}, {expr} + 1, ..., {max}]
3500 - If {stride} is specified: [{expr}, {expr} + {stride}, ...,
3501 {max}] (increasing {expr} with {stride} each time, not
3502 producing a value past {max}).
Bram Moolenaare7566042005-06-17 22:00:15 +00003503 When the maximum is one before the start the result is an
3504 empty list. When the maximum is more than one before the
3505 start this is an error.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003506 Examples: >
3507 range(4) " [0, 1, 2, 3]
3508 range(2, 4) " [2, 3, 4]
3509 range(2, 9, 3) " [2, 5, 8]
3510 range(2, -2, -1) " [2, 1, 0, -1, -2]
Bram Moolenaare7566042005-06-17 22:00:15 +00003511 range(0) " []
3512 range(2, 0) " error!
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003513<
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00003514 *readfile()*
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00003515readfile({fname} [, {binary} [, {max}]])
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00003516 Read file {fname} and return a List, each line of the file as
3517 an item. Lines broken at NL characters. Macintosh files
3518 separated with CR will result in a single long line (unless a
3519 NL appears somewhere).
3520 When {binary} is equal to "b" binary mode is used:
3521 - When the last line ends in a NL an extra empty list item is
3522 added.
3523 - No CR characters are removed.
3524 Otherwise:
3525 - CR characters that appear before a NL are removed.
3526 - Whether the last line ends in a NL or not does not matter.
3527 All NUL characters are replaced with a NL character.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00003528 When {max} is given this specifies the maximum number of lines
3529 to be read. Useful if you only want to check the first ten
3530 lines of a file: >
3531 :for line in readfile(fname, '', 10)
3532 : if line =~ 'Date' | echo line | endif
3533 :endfor
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00003534< When {max} is negative -{max} lines from the end of the file
3535 are returned, or as many as there are.
3536 When {max} is zero the result is an empty list.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00003537 Note that without {max} the whole file is read into memory.
3538 Also note that there is no recognition of encoding. Read a
3539 file into a buffer if you need to.
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00003540 When the file can't be opened an error message is given and
3541 the result is an empty list.
3542 Also see |writefile()|.
3543
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003544 *remote_expr()* *E449*
3545remote_expr({server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
3546 Send the {string} to {server}. The string is sent as an
3547 expression and the result is returned after evaluation.
3548 If {idvar} is present, it is taken as the name of a
3549 variable and a {serverid} for later use with
3550 remote_read() is stored there.
3551 See also |clientserver| |RemoteReply|.
3552 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3553 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
3554 Note: Any errors will cause a local error message to be issued
3555 and the result will be the empty string.
3556 Examples: >
3557 :echo remote_expr("gvim", "2+2")
3558 :echo remote_expr("gvim1", "b:current_syntax")
3559<
3560
3561remote_foreground({server}) *remote_foreground()*
3562 Move the Vim server with the name {server} to the foreground.
3563 This works like: >
3564 remote_expr({server}, "foreground()")
3565< Except that on Win32 systems the client does the work, to work
3566 around the problem that the OS doesn't always allow the server
3567 to bring itself to the foreground.
3568 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3569 {only in the Win32, Athena, Motif and GTK GUI versions and the
3570 Win32 console version}
3571
3572
3573remote_peek({serverid} [, {retvar}]) *remote_peek()*
3574 Returns a positive number if there are available strings
3575 from {serverid}. Copies any reply string into the variable
3576 {retvar} if specified. {retvar} must be a string with the
3577 name of a variable.
3578 Returns zero if none are available.
3579 Returns -1 if something is wrong.
3580 See also |clientserver|.
3581 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3582 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
3583 Examples: >
3584 :let repl = ""
3585 :echo "PEEK: ".remote_peek(id, "repl").": ".repl
3586
3587remote_read({serverid}) *remote_read()*
3588 Return the oldest available reply from {serverid} and consume
3589 it. It blocks until a reply is available.
3590 See also |clientserver|.
3591 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3592 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
3593 Example: >
3594 :echo remote_read(id)
3595<
3596 *remote_send()* *E241*
3597remote_send({server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
Bram Moolenaard4755bb2004-09-02 19:12:26 +00003598 Send the {string} to {server}. The string is sent as input
3599 keys and the function returns immediately. At the Vim server
3600 the keys are not mapped |:map|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003601 If {idvar} is present, it is taken as the name of a
3602 variable and a {serverid} for later use with
3603 remote_read() is stored there.
3604 See also |clientserver| |RemoteReply|.
3605 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3606 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
3607 Note: Any errors will be reported in the server and may mess
3608 up the display.
3609 Examples: >
3610 :echo remote_send("gvim", ":DropAndReply ".file, "serverid").
3611 \ remote_read(serverid)
3612
3613 :autocmd NONE RemoteReply *
3614 \ echo remote_read(expand("<amatch>"))
3615 :echo remote_send("gvim", ":sleep 10 | echo ".
3616 \ 'server2client(expand("<client>"), "HELLO")<CR>')
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003617<
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00003618remove({list}, {idx} [, {end}]) *remove()*
3619 Without {end}: Remove the item at {idx} from List {list} and
3620 return it.
3621 With {end}: Remove items from {idx} to {end} (inclusive) and
3622 return a list with these items. When {idx} points to the same
3623 item as {end} a list with one item is returned. When {end}
3624 points to an item before {idx} this is an error.
3625 See |list-index| for possible values of {idx} and {end}.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00003626 Example: >
3627 :echo "last item: " . remove(mylist, -1)
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00003628 :call remove(mylist, 0, 9)
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003629remove({dict}, {key})
3630 Remove the entry from {dict} with key {key}. Example: >
3631 :echo "removed " . remove(dict, "one")
3632< If there is no {key} in {dict} this is an error.
3633
3634 Use |delete()| to remove a file.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00003635
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003636rename({from}, {to}) *rename()*
3637 Rename the file by the name {from} to the name {to}. This
3638 should also work to move files across file systems. The
3639 result is a Number, which is 0 if the file was renamed
3640 successfully, and non-zero when the renaming failed.
3641 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3642
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00003643repeat({expr}, {count}) *repeat()*
3644 Repeat {expr} {count} times and return the concatenated
3645 result. Example: >
3646 :let seperator = repeat('-', 80)
3647< When {count} is zero or negative the result is empty.
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00003648 When {expr} is a List the result is {expr} concatenated
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003649 {count} times. Example: >
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00003650 :let longlist = repeat(['a', 'b'], 3)
3651< Results in ['a', 'b', 'a', 'b', 'a', 'b'].
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00003652
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003653
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003654resolve({filename}) *resolve()* *E655*
3655 On MS-Windows, when {filename} is a shortcut (a .lnk file),
3656 returns the path the shortcut points to in a simplified form.
3657 On Unix, repeat resolving symbolic links in all path
3658 components of {filename} and return the simplified result.
3659 To cope with link cycles, resolving of symbolic links is
3660 stopped after 100 iterations.
3661 On other systems, return the simplified {filename}.
3662 The simplification step is done as by |simplify()|.
3663 resolve() keeps a leading path component specifying the
3664 current directory (provided the result is still a relative
3665 path name) and also keeps a trailing path separator.
3666
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003667 *reverse()*
3668reverse({list}) Reverse the order of items in {list} in-place. Returns
3669 {list}.
3670 If you want a list to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
3671 :let revlist = reverse(copy(mylist))
3672
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003673search({pattern} [, {flags}]) *search()*
3674 Search for regexp pattern {pattern}. The search starts at the
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +00003675 cursor position (you can use |cursor()| to set it).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003676 {flags} is a String, which can contain these character flags:
3677 'b' search backward instead of forward
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003678 'n' do Not move the cursor
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003679 'w' wrap around the end of the file
3680 'W' don't wrap around the end of the file
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00003681 's' set the ' mark at the previous location of the
3682 cursor.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003683 If neither 'w' or 'W' is given, the 'wrapscan' option applies.
3684
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00003685 If the 's' flag is supplied, the ' mark is set, only if the
3686 cursor is moved. The 's' flag cannot be combined with the 'n'
3687 flag.
3688
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003689 When a match has been found its line number is returned.
3690 The cursor will be positioned at the match, unless the 'n'
3691 flag is used).
3692 If there is no match a 0 is returned and the cursor doesn't
3693 move. No error message is given.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003694
3695 Example (goes over all files in the argument list): >
3696 :let n = 1
3697 :while n <= argc() " loop over all files in arglist
3698 : exe "argument " . n
3699 : " start at the last char in the file and wrap for the
3700 : " first search to find match at start of file
3701 : normal G$
3702 : let flags = "w"
3703 : while search("foo", flags) > 0
3704 : s/foo/bar/g
3705 : let flags = "W"
3706 : endwhile
3707 : update " write the file if modified
3708 : let n = n + 1
3709 :endwhile
3710<
3711 *searchpair()*
3712searchpair({start}, {middle}, {end} [, {flags} [, {skip}]])
3713 Search for the match of a nested start-end pair. This can be
3714 used to find the "endif" that matches an "if", while other
3715 if/endif pairs in between are ignored.
3716 The search starts at the cursor. If a match is found, the
3717 cursor is positioned at it and the line number is returned.
3718 If no match is found 0 or -1 is returned and the cursor
3719 doesn't move. No error message is given.
3720
3721 {start}, {middle} and {end} are patterns, see |pattern|. They
3722 must not contain \( \) pairs. Use of \%( \) is allowed. When
3723 {middle} is not empty, it is found when searching from either
3724 direction, but only when not in a nested start-end pair. A
3725 typical use is: >
3726 searchpair('\<if\>', '\<else\>', '\<endif\>')
3727< By leaving {middle} empty the "else" is skipped.
3728
3729 {flags} are used like with |search()|. Additionally:
3730 'n' do Not move the cursor
3731 'r' Repeat until no more matches found; will find the
3732 outer pair
3733 'm' return number of Matches instead of line number with
3734 the match; will only be > 1 when 'r' is used.
3735
3736 When a match for {start}, {middle} or {end} is found, the
3737 {skip} expression is evaluated with the cursor positioned on
3738 the start of the match. It should return non-zero if this
3739 match is to be skipped. E.g., because it is inside a comment
3740 or a string.
3741 When {skip} is omitted or empty, every match is accepted.
3742 When evaluating {skip} causes an error the search is aborted
3743 and -1 returned.
3744
3745 The value of 'ignorecase' is used. 'magic' is ignored, the
3746 patterns are used like it's on.
3747
3748 The search starts exactly at the cursor. A match with
3749 {start}, {middle} or {end} at the next character, in the
3750 direction of searching, is the first one found. Example: >
3751 if 1
3752 if 2
3753 endif 2
3754 endif 1
3755< When starting at the "if 2", with the cursor on the "i", and
3756 searching forwards, the "endif 2" is found. When starting on
3757 the character just before the "if 2", the "endif 1" will be
3758 found. That's because the "if 2" will be found first, and
3759 then this is considered to be a nested if/endif from "if 2" to
3760 "endif 2".
3761 When searching backwards and {end} is more than one character,
3762 it may be useful to put "\zs" at the end of the pattern, so
3763 that when the cursor is inside a match with the end it finds
3764 the matching start.
3765
3766 Example, to find the "endif" command in a Vim script: >
3767
3768 :echo searchpair('\<if\>', '\<el\%[seif]\>', '\<en\%[dif]\>', 'W',
3769 \ 'getline(".") =~ "^\\s*\""')
3770
3771< The cursor must be at or after the "if" for which a match is
3772 to be found. Note that single-quote strings are used to avoid
3773 having to double the backslashes. The skip expression only
3774 catches comments at the start of a line, not after a command.
3775 Also, a word "en" or "if" halfway a line is considered a
3776 match.
3777 Another example, to search for the matching "{" of a "}": >
3778
3779 :echo searchpair('{', '', '}', 'bW')
3780
3781< This works when the cursor is at or before the "}" for which a
3782 match is to be found. To reject matches that syntax
3783 highlighting recognized as strings: >
3784
3785 :echo searchpair('{', '', '}', 'bW',
3786 \ 'synIDattr(synID(line("."), col("."), 0), "name") =~? "string"')
3787<
3788server2client( {clientid}, {string}) *server2client()*
3789 Send a reply string to {clientid}. The most recent {clientid}
3790 that sent a string can be retrieved with expand("<client>").
3791 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
3792 Note:
3793 This id has to be stored before the next command can be
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003794 received. I.e. before returning from the received command and
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003795 before calling any commands that waits for input.
3796 See also |clientserver|.
3797 Example: >
3798 :echo server2client(expand("<client>"), "HELLO")
3799<
3800serverlist() *serverlist()*
3801 Return a list of available server names, one per line.
3802 When there are no servers or the information is not available
3803 an empty string is returned. See also |clientserver|.
3804 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
3805 Example: >
3806 :echo serverlist()
3807<
3808setbufvar({expr}, {varname}, {val}) *setbufvar()*
3809 Set option or local variable {varname} in buffer {expr} to
3810 {val}.
3811 This also works for a global or local window option, but it
3812 doesn't work for a global or local window variable.
3813 For a local window option the global value is unchanged.
3814 For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()| above.
3815 Note that the variable name without "b:" must be used.
3816 Examples: >
3817 :call setbufvar(1, "&mod", 1)
3818 :call setbufvar("todo", "myvar", "foobar")
3819< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3820
3821setcmdpos({pos}) *setcmdpos()*
3822 Set the cursor position in the command line to byte position
3823 {pos}. The first position is 1.
3824 Use |getcmdpos()| to obtain the current position.
3825 Only works while editing the command line, thus you must use
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003826 |c_CTRL-\_e|, |c_CTRL-R_=| or |c_CTRL-R_CTRL-R| with '='. For
3827 |c_CTRL-\_e| and |c_CTRL-R_CTRL-R| with '=' the position is
3828 set after the command line is set to the expression. For
3829 |c_CTRL-R_=| it is set after evaluating the expression but
3830 before inserting the resulting text.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003831 When the number is too big the cursor is put at the end of the
3832 line. A number smaller than one has undefined results.
3833 Returns 0 when successful, 1 when not editing the command
3834 line.
3835
3836setline({lnum}, {line}) *setline()*
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003837 Set line {lnum} of the current buffer to {line}.
3838 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|.
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00003839 When {lnum} is just below the last line the {line} will be
3840 added as a new line.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003841 If this succeeds, 0 is returned. If this fails (most likely
3842 because {lnum} is invalid) 1 is returned. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003843 :call setline(5, strftime("%c"))
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00003844< When {line} is a List then line {lnum} and following lines
3845 will be set to the items in the list. Example: >
3846 :call setline(5, ['aaa', 'bbb', 'ccc'])
3847< This is equivalent to: >
3848 :for [n, l] in [[5, 6, 7], ['aaa', 'bbb', 'ccc']]
3849 : call setline(n, l)
3850 :endfor
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003851< Note: The '[ and '] marks are not set.
3852
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003853
Bram Moolenaar35c54e52005-05-20 21:25:31 +00003854setqflist({list} [, {action}]) *setqflist()*
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003855 Creates a quickfix list using the items in {list}. Each item
3856 in {list} is a dictionary. Non-dictionary items in {list} are
3857 ignored. Each dictionary item can contain the following
3858 entries:
3859
3860 filename name of a file
3861 lnum line number in the file
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003862 pattern search pattern used to locate the error
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00003863 col column number
3864 vcol when non-zero: "col" is visual column
3865 when zero: "col" is byte index
3866 nr error number
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003867 text description of the error
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00003868 type single-character error type, 'E', 'W', etc.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003869
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00003870 The "col", "vcol", "nr", "type" and "text" entries are
3871 optional. Either "lnum" or "pattern" entry can be used to
3872 locate a matching error line.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003873 If the "filename" entry is not present or neither the "lnum"
3874 or "pattern" entries are present, then the item will not be
3875 handled as an error line.
3876 If both "pattern" and "lnum" are present then "pattern" will
3877 be used.
3878
Bram Moolenaar35c54e52005-05-20 21:25:31 +00003879 If {action} is set to 'a', then the items from {list} are
3880 added to the existing quickfix list. If there is no existing
3881 list, then a new list is created. If {action} is set to 'r',
3882 then the items from the current quickfix list are replaced
3883 with the items from {list}. If {action} is not present or is
3884 set to ' ', then a new list is created.
3885
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003886 Returns zero for success, -1 for failure.
3887
3888 This function can be used to create a quickfix list
3889 independent of the 'errorformat' setting. Use a command like
3890 ":cc 1" to jump to the first position.
3891
3892
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003893 *setreg()*
3894setreg({regname}, {value} [,{options}])
3895 Set the register {regname} to {value}.
3896 If {options} contains "a" or {regname} is upper case,
3897 then the value is appended.
3898 {options} can also contains a register type specification:
3899 "c" or "v" |characterwise| mode
3900 "l" or "V" |linewise| mode
3901 "b" or "<CTRL-V>" |blockwise-visual| mode
3902 If a number immediately follows "b" or "<CTRL-V>" then this is
3903 used as the width of the selection - if it is not specified
3904 then the width of the block is set to the number of characters
3905 in the longest line (counting a <TAB> as 1 character).
3906
3907 If {options} contains no register settings, then the default
3908 is to use character mode unless {value} ends in a <NL>.
3909 Setting the '=' register is not possible.
3910 Returns zero for success, non-zero for failure.
3911
3912 Examples: >
3913 :call setreg(v:register, @*)
3914 :call setreg('*', @%, 'ac')
3915 :call setreg('a', "1\n2\n3", 'b5')
3916
3917< This example shows using the functions to save and restore a
3918 register. >
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00003919 :let var_a = getreg('a', 1)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003920 :let var_amode = getregtype('a')
3921 ....
3922 :call setreg('a', var_a, var_amode)
3923
3924< You can also change the type of a register by appending
3925 nothing: >
3926 :call setreg('a', '', 'al')
3927
3928setwinvar({nr}, {varname}, {val}) *setwinvar()*
3929 Set option or local variable {varname} in window {nr} to
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +00003930 {val}. When {nr} is zero the current window is used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003931 This also works for a global or local buffer option, but it
3932 doesn't work for a global or local buffer variable.
3933 For a local buffer option the global value is unchanged.
3934 Note that the variable name without "w:" must be used.
3935 Examples: >
3936 :call setwinvar(1, "&list", 0)
3937 :call setwinvar(2, "myvar", "foobar")
3938< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
3939
3940simplify({filename}) *simplify()*
3941 Simplify the file name as much as possible without changing
3942 the meaning. Shortcuts (on MS-Windows) or symbolic links (on
3943 Unix) are not resolved. If the first path component in
3944 {filename} designates the current directory, this will be
3945 valid for the result as well. A trailing path separator is
3946 not removed either.
3947 Example: >
3948 simplify("./dir/.././/file/") == "./file/"
3949< Note: The combination "dir/.." is only removed if "dir" is
3950 a searchable directory or does not exist. On Unix, it is also
3951 removed when "dir" is a symbolic link within the same
3952 directory. In order to resolve all the involved symbolic
3953 links before simplifying the path name, use |resolve()|.
3954
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003955
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00003956sort({list} [, {func}]) *sort()* *E702*
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003957 Sort the items in {list} in-place. Returns {list}. If you
3958 want a list to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
3959 :let sortedlist = sort(copy(mylist))
3960< Uses the string representation of each item to sort on.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003961 Numbers sort after Strings, Lists after Numbers.
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00003962 For sorting text in the current buffer use |:sort|.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003963 When {func} is given and it is one then case is ignored.
3964 When {func} is a Funcref or a function name, this function is
3965 called to compare items. The function is invoked with two
3966 items as argument and must return zero if they are equal, 1 if
3967 the first one sorts after the second one, -1 if the first one
3968 sorts before the second one. Example: >
3969 func MyCompare(i1, i2)
3970 return a:i1 == a:i2 ? 0 : a:i1 > a:i2 ? 1 : -1
3971 endfunc
3972 let sortedlist = sort(mylist, "MyCompare")
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00003973<
3974
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00003975 *soundfold()*
3976soundfold({word})
3977 Return the sound-folded equivalent of {word}. Uses the first
3978 language in 'spellang' for the current window that supports
Bram Moolenaar42eeac32005-06-29 22:40:58 +00003979 soundfolding. 'spell' must be set. When no sound folding is
3980 possible the {word} is returned unmodified.
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00003981 This can be used for making spelling suggestions. Note that
3982 the method can be quite slow.
3983
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00003984 *spellbadword()*
3985spellbadword() Return the badly spelled word under or after the cursor.
Bram Moolenaar488c6512005-08-11 20:09:58 +00003986 The cursor is moved to the start of the bad word.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00003987 When no bad word is found in the cursor line an empty String
3988 is returned and the cursor doesn't move.
3989
3990 *spellsuggest()*
3991spellsuggest({word} [, {max}])
3992 Return a List with spelling suggestions to replace {word}.
3993 When {max} is given up to this number of suggestions are
3994 returned. Otherwise up to 25 suggestions are returned.
3995
3996 {word} can be a badly spelled word followed by other text.
3997 This allows for joining two words that were split. The
Bram Moolenaarf461c8e2005-06-25 23:04:51 +00003998 suggestions also include the following text, thus you can
3999 replace a line.
4000
4001 {word} may also be a good word. Similar words will then be
4002 returned. {word} itself is also included, most likely as the
4003 first entry, thus this can be used to check spelling.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00004004
4005 The spelling information for the current window is used. The
Bram Moolenaar42eeac32005-06-29 22:40:58 +00004006 'spell' option must be set and the values of 'spelllang' and
4007 'spellsuggest' are used.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00004008
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00004009
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00004010split({expr} [, {pattern} [, {keepempty}]]) *split()*
4011 Make a List out of {expr}. When {pattern} is omitted or empty
4012 each white-separated sequence of characters becomes an item.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00004013 Otherwise the string is split where {pattern} matches,
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00004014 removing the matched characters.
4015 When the first or last item is empty it is omitted, unless the
4016 {keepempty} argument is given and it's non-zero.
Bram Moolenaar5c06f8b2005-05-31 22:14:58 +00004017 Other empty items are kept when {pattern} matches at least one
4018 character or when {keepempty} is non-zero.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00004019 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004020 :let words = split(getline('.'), '\W\+')
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00004021< To split a string in individual characters: >
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004022 :for c in split(mystring, '\zs')
Bram Moolenaar0cb032e2005-04-23 20:52:00 +00004023< If you want to keep the separator you can also use '\zs': >
4024 :echo split('abc:def:ghi', ':\zs')
4025< ['abc:', 'def:', 'ghi'] ~
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00004026 Splitting a table where the first element can be empty: >
4027 :let items = split(line, ':', 1)
4028< The opposite function is |join()|.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00004029
4030
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004031strftime({format} [, {time}]) *strftime()*
4032 The result is a String, which is a formatted date and time, as
4033 specified by the {format} string. The given {time} is used,
4034 or the current time if no time is given. The accepted
4035 {format} depends on your system, thus this is not portable!
4036 See the manual page of the C function strftime() for the
4037 format. The maximum length of the result is 80 characters.
4038 See also |localtime()| and |getftime()|.
4039 The language can be changed with the |:language| command.
4040 Examples: >
4041 :echo strftime("%c") Sun Apr 27 11:49:23 1997
4042 :echo strftime("%Y %b %d %X") 1997 Apr 27 11:53:25
4043 :echo strftime("%y%m%d %T") 970427 11:53:55
4044 :echo strftime("%H:%M") 11:55
4045 :echo strftime("%c", getftime("file.c"))
4046 Show mod time of file.c.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00004047< Not available on all systems. To check use: >
4048 :if exists("*strftime")
4049
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00004050stridx({haystack}, {needle} [, {start}]) *stridx()*
4051 The result is a Number, which gives the byte index in
4052 {haystack} of the first occurrence of the String {needle}.
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004053 If {start} is specified, the search starts at index {start}.
4054 This can be used to find a second match: >
4055 :let comma1 = stridx(line, ",")
4056 :let comma2 = stridx(line, ",", comma1 + 1)
4057< The search is done case-sensitive.
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00004058 For pattern searches use |match()|.
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00004059 -1 is returned if the {needle} does not occur in {haystack}.
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004060 See also |strridx()|.
4061 Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004062 :echo stridx("An Example", "Example") 3
4063 :echo stridx("Starting point", "Start") 0
4064 :echo stridx("Starting point", "start") -1
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004065< *strstr()* *strchr()*
4066 stridx() works similar to the C function strstr(). When used
4067 with a single character it works similar to strchr().
4068
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004069 *string()*
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004070string({expr}) Return {expr} converted to a String. If {expr} is a Number,
4071 String or a composition of them, then the result can be parsed
4072 back with |eval()|.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004073 {expr} type result ~
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00004074 String 'string'
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004075 Number 123
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00004076 Funcref function('name')
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004077 List [item, item]
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +00004078 Dictionary {key: value, key: value}
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00004079 Note that in String values the ' character is doubled.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004080
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004081 *strlen()*
4082strlen({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the length of the String
4083 {expr} in bytes. If you want to count the number of
4084 multi-byte characters use something like this: >
4085
4086 :let len = strlen(substitute(str, ".", "x", "g"))
4087
4088< Composing characters are not counted.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004089 If the argument is a Number it is first converted to a String.
4090 For other types an error is given.
4091 Also see |len()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004092
4093strpart({src}, {start}[, {len}]) *strpart()*
4094 The result is a String, which is part of {src}, starting from
4095 byte {start}, with the length {len}.
4096 When non-existing bytes are included, this doesn't result in
4097 an error, the bytes are simply omitted.
4098 If {len} is missing, the copy continues from {start} till the
4099 end of the {src}. >
4100 strpart("abcdefg", 3, 2) == "de"
4101 strpart("abcdefg", -2, 4) == "ab"
4102 strpart("abcdefg", 5, 4) == "fg"
4103 strpart("abcdefg", 3) == "defg"
4104< Note: To get the first character, {start} must be 0. For
4105 example, to get three bytes under and after the cursor: >
4106 strpart(getline(line(".")), col(".") - 1, 3)
4107<
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004108strridx({haystack}, {needle} [, {start}]) *strridx()*
4109 The result is a Number, which gives the byte index in
4110 {haystack} of the last occurrence of the String {needle}.
4111 When {start} is specified, matches beyond this index are
4112 ignored. This can be used to find a match before a previous
4113 match: >
4114 :let lastcomma = strridx(line, ",")
4115 :let comma2 = strridx(line, ",", lastcomma - 1)
4116< The search is done case-sensitive.
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00004117 For pattern searches use |match()|.
4118 -1 is returned if the {needle} does not occur in {haystack}.
Bram Moolenaard4755bb2004-09-02 19:12:26 +00004119 If the {needle} is empty the length of {haystack} is returned.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004120 See also |stridx()|. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004121 :echo strridx("an angry armadillo", "an") 3
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004122< *strrchr()*
4123 When used with a single character it works similar to the C
4124 function strrchr().
4125
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004126strtrans({expr}) *strtrans()*
4127 The result is a String, which is {expr} with all unprintable
4128 characters translated into printable characters |'isprint'|.
4129 Like they are shown in a window. Example: >
4130 echo strtrans(@a)
4131< This displays a newline in register a as "^@" instead of
4132 starting a new line.
4133
4134submatch({nr}) *submatch()*
4135 Only for an expression in a |:substitute| command. Returns
4136 the {nr}'th submatch of the matched text. When {nr} is 0
4137 the whole matched text is returned.
4138 Example: >
4139 :s/\d\+/\=submatch(0) + 1/
4140< This finds the first number in the line and adds one to it.
4141 A line break is included as a newline character.
4142
4143substitute({expr}, {pat}, {sub}, {flags}) *substitute()*
4144 The result is a String, which is a copy of {expr}, in which
4145 the first match of {pat} is replaced with {sub}. This works
4146 like the ":substitute" command (without any flags). But the
4147 matching with {pat} is always done like the 'magic' option is
4148 set and 'cpoptions' is empty (to make scripts portable).
4149 See |string-match| for how {pat} is used.
4150 And a "~" in {sub} is not replaced with the previous {sub}.
4151 Note that some codes in {sub} have a special meaning
4152 |sub-replace-special|. For example, to replace something with
4153 "\n" (two characters), use "\\\\n" or '\\n'.
4154 When {pat} does not match in {expr}, {expr} is returned
4155 unmodified.
4156 When {flags} is "g", all matches of {pat} in {expr} are
4157 replaced. Otherwise {flags} should be "".
4158 Example: >
4159 :let &path = substitute(&path, ",\\=[^,]*$", "", "")
4160< This removes the last component of the 'path' option. >
4161 :echo substitute("testing", ".*", "\\U\\0", "")
4162< results in "TESTING".
4163
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00004164synID({lnum}, {col}, {trans}) *synID()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004165 The result is a Number, which is the syntax ID at the position
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00004166 {lnum} and {col} in the current window.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004167 The syntax ID can be used with |synIDattr()| and
4168 |synIDtrans()| to obtain syntax information about text.
Bram Moolenaarce0842a2005-07-18 21:58:11 +00004169
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00004170 {col} is 1 for the leftmost column, {lnum} is 1 for the first
Bram Moolenaarce0842a2005-07-18 21:58:11 +00004171 line. 'synmaxcol' applies, in a longer line zero is returned.
4172
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004173 When {trans} is non-zero, transparent items are reduced to the
4174 item that they reveal. This is useful when wanting to know
4175 the effective color. When {trans} is zero, the transparent
4176 item is returned. This is useful when wanting to know which
4177 syntax item is effective (e.g. inside parens).
4178 Warning: This function can be very slow. Best speed is
4179 obtained by going through the file in forward direction.
4180
4181 Example (echoes the name of the syntax item under the cursor): >
4182 :echo synIDattr(synID(line("."), col("."), 1), "name")
4183<
4184synIDattr({synID}, {what} [, {mode}]) *synIDattr()*
4185 The result is a String, which is the {what} attribute of
4186 syntax ID {synID}. This can be used to obtain information
4187 about a syntax item.
4188 {mode} can be "gui", "cterm" or "term", to get the attributes
4189 for that mode. When {mode} is omitted, or an invalid value is
4190 used, the attributes for the currently active highlighting are
4191 used (GUI, cterm or term).
4192 Use synIDtrans() to follow linked highlight groups.
4193 {what} result
4194 "name" the name of the syntax item
4195 "fg" foreground color (GUI: color name used to set
4196 the color, cterm: color number as a string,
4197 term: empty string)
4198 "bg" background color (like "fg")
4199 "fg#" like "fg", but for the GUI and the GUI is
4200 running the name in "#RRGGBB" form
4201 "bg#" like "fg#" for "bg"
4202 "bold" "1" if bold
4203 "italic" "1" if italic
4204 "reverse" "1" if reverse
4205 "inverse" "1" if inverse (= reverse)
4206 "underline" "1" if underlined
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00004207 "undercurl" "1" if undercurled
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004208
4209 Example (echoes the color of the syntax item under the
4210 cursor): >
4211 :echo synIDattr(synIDtrans(synID(line("."), col("."), 1)), "fg")
4212<
4213synIDtrans({synID}) *synIDtrans()*
4214 The result is a Number, which is the translated syntax ID of
4215 {synID}. This is the syntax group ID of what is being used to
4216 highlight the character. Highlight links given with
4217 ":highlight link" are followed.
4218
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00004219system({expr} [, {input}]) *system()* *E677*
4220 Get the output of the shell command {expr}.
4221 When {input} is given, this string is written to a file and
4222 passed as stdin to the command. The string is written as-is,
4223 you need to take care of using the correct line separators
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004224 yourself. Pipes are not used.
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00004225 Note: newlines in {expr} may cause the command to fail. The
4226 characters in 'shellquote' and 'shellxquote' may also cause
4227 trouble.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004228 This is not to be used for interactive commands.
4229 The result is a String. Example: >
4230
4231 :let files = system("ls")
4232
4233< To make the result more system-independent, the shell output
4234 is filtered to replace <CR> with <NL> for Macintosh, and
4235 <CR><NL> with <NL> for DOS-like systems.
4236 The command executed is constructed using several options:
4237 'shell' 'shellcmdflag' 'shellxquote' {expr} 'shellredir' {tmp} 'shellxquote'
4238 ({tmp} is an automatically generated file name).
4239 For Unix and OS/2 braces are put around {expr} to allow for
4240 concatenated commands.
4241
4242 The resulting error code can be found in |v:shell_error|.
4243 This function will fail in |restricted-mode|.
4244 Unlike ":!cmd" there is no automatic check for changed files.
4245 Use |:checktime| to force a check.
4246
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00004247
4248taglist({expr}) *taglist()*
4249 Returns a list of tags matching the regular expression {expr}.
Bram Moolenaard8c00872005-07-22 21:52:15 +00004250 Each list item is a dictionary with at least the following
4251 entries:
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00004252 name name of the tag.
4253 filename name of the file where the tag is
4254 defined.
4255 cmd Ex command used to locate the tag in
4256 the file.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004257 kind type of the tag. The value for this
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00004258 entry depends on the language specific
4259 kind values generated by the ctags
4260 tool.
4261 static a file specific tag. Refer to
4262 |static-tag| for more information.
Bram Moolenaar4317d9b2005-03-18 20:25:31 +00004263 The "kind" entry is only available when using Exuberant ctags
4264 generated tags file. More entries may be present, depending
4265 on the content of the tags file: access, implementation,
4266 inherits and signature. Refer to the ctags documentation for
4267 information about these fields. For C code the fields
4268 "struct", "class" and "enum" may appear, they give the name of
4269 the entity the tag is contained in.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00004270
Bram Moolenaar4317d9b2005-03-18 20:25:31 +00004271 The ex-command 'cmd' can be either an ex search pattern, a
4272 line number or a line number followed by a byte number.
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00004273
4274 If there are no matching tags, then an empty list is returned.
4275
4276 To get an exact tag match, the anchors '^' and '$' should be
4277 used in {expr}. Refer to |tag-regexp| for more information
4278 about the tag search regular expression pattern.
4279
4280 Refer to |'tags'| for information about how the tags file is
4281 located by Vim. Refer to |tags-file-format| for the format of
4282 the tags file generated by the different ctags tools.
4283
4284
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004285tempname() *tempname()* *temp-file-name*
4286 The result is a String, which is the name of a file that
4287 doesn't exist. It can be used for a temporary file. The name
4288 is different for at least 26 consecutive calls. Example: >
4289 :let tmpfile = tempname()
4290 :exe "redir > " . tmpfile
4291< For Unix, the file will be in a private directory (only
4292 accessible by the current user) to avoid security problems
4293 (e.g., a symlink attack or other people reading your file).
4294 When Vim exits the directory and all files in it are deleted.
4295 For MS-Windows forward slashes are used when the 'shellslash'
4296 option is set or when 'shellcmdflag' starts with '-'.
4297
4298tolower({expr}) *tolower()*
4299 The result is a copy of the String given, with all uppercase
4300 characters turned into lowercase (just like applying |gu| to
4301 the string).
4302
4303toupper({expr}) *toupper()*
4304 The result is a copy of the String given, with all lowercase
4305 characters turned into uppercase (just like applying |gU| to
4306 the string).
4307
Bram Moolenaar8299df92004-07-10 09:47:34 +00004308tr({src}, {fromstr}, {tostr}) *tr()*
4309 The result is a copy of the {src} string with all characters
4310 which appear in {fromstr} replaced by the character in that
4311 position in the {tostr} string. Thus the first character in
4312 {fromstr} is translated into the first character in {tostr}
4313 and so on. Exactly like the unix "tr" command.
4314 This code also deals with multibyte characters properly.
4315
4316 Examples: >
4317 echo tr("hello there", "ht", "HT")
4318< returns "Hello THere" >
4319 echo tr("<blob>", "<>", "{}")
4320< returns "{blob}"
4321
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004322 *type()*
4323type({expr}) The result is a Number, depending on the type of {expr}:
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00004324 Number: 0
4325 String: 1
4326 Funcref: 2
4327 List: 3
4328 Dictionary: 4
4329 To avoid the magic numbers it should be used this way: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004330 :if type(myvar) == type(0)
4331 :if type(myvar) == type("")
4332 :if type(myvar) == type(function("tr"))
4333 :if type(myvar) == type([])
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00004334 :if type(myvar) == type({})
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004335
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004336values({dict}) *values()*
4337 Return a List with all the values of {dict}. The List is in
4338 arbitrary order.
4339
4340
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004341virtcol({expr}) *virtcol()*
4342 The result is a Number, which is the screen column of the file
4343 position given with {expr}. That is, the last screen position
4344 occupied by the character at that position, when the screen
4345 would be of unlimited width. When there is a <Tab> at the
4346 position, the returned Number will be the column at the end of
4347 the <Tab>. For example, for a <Tab> in column 1, with 'ts'
4348 set to 8, it returns 8.
4349 For the byte position use |col()|.
4350 When Virtual editing is active in the current mode, a position
4351 beyond the end of the line can be returned. |'virtualedit'|
4352 The accepted positions are:
4353 . the cursor position
4354 $ the end of the cursor line (the result is the
4355 number of displayed characters in the cursor line
4356 plus one)
4357 'x position of mark x (if the mark is not set, 0 is
4358 returned)
4359 Note that only marks in the current file can be used.
4360 Examples: >
4361 virtcol(".") with text "foo^Lbar", with cursor on the "^L", returns 5
4362 virtcol("$") with text "foo^Lbar", returns 9
4363 virtcol("'t") with text " there", with 't at 'h', returns 6
4364< The first column is 1. 0 is returned for an error.
4365
4366visualmode([expr]) *visualmode()*
4367 The result is a String, which describes the last Visual mode
4368 used. Initially it returns an empty string, but once Visual
4369 mode has been used, it returns "v", "V", or "<CTRL-V>" (a
4370 single CTRL-V character) for character-wise, line-wise, or
4371 block-wise Visual mode respectively.
4372 Example: >
4373 :exe "normal " . visualmode()
4374< This enters the same Visual mode as before. It is also useful
4375 in scripts if you wish to act differently depending on the
4376 Visual mode that was used.
4377
4378 If an expression is supplied that results in a non-zero number
4379 or a non-empty string, then the Visual mode will be cleared
4380 and the old value is returned. Note that " " and "0" are also
4381 non-empty strings, thus cause the mode to be cleared.
4382
4383 *winbufnr()*
4384winbufnr({nr}) The result is a Number, which is the number of the buffer
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004385 associated with window {nr}. When {nr} is zero, the number of
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004386 the buffer in the current window is returned. When window
4387 {nr} doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
4388 Example: >
4389 :echo "The file in the current window is " . bufname(winbufnr(0))
4390<
4391 *wincol()*
4392wincol() The result is a Number, which is the virtual column of the
4393 cursor in the window. This is counting screen cells from the
4394 left side of the window. The leftmost column is one.
4395
4396winheight({nr}) *winheight()*
4397 The result is a Number, which is the height of window {nr}.
4398 When {nr} is zero, the height of the current window is
4399 returned. When window {nr} doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
4400 An existing window always has a height of zero or more.
4401 Examples: >
4402 :echo "The current window has " . winheight(0) . " lines."
4403<
4404 *winline()*
4405winline() The result is a Number, which is the screen line of the cursor
4406 in the window. This is counting screen lines from the top of
4407 the window. The first line is one.
4408
4409 *winnr()*
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00004410winnr([{arg}]) The result is a Number, which is the number of the current
4411 window. The top window has number 1.
4412 When the optional argument is "$", the number of the
4413 last window is returnd (the window count).
4414 When the optional argument is "#", the number of the last
4415 accessed window is returned (where |CTRL-W_p| goes to).
4416 If there is no previous window 0 is returned.
4417 The number can be used with |CTRL-W_w| and ":wincmd w"
4418 |:wincmd|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004419
4420 *winrestcmd()*
4421winrestcmd() Returns a sequence of |:resize| commands that should restore
4422 the current window sizes. Only works properly when no windows
4423 are opened or closed and the current window is unchanged.
4424 Example: >
4425 :let cmd = winrestcmd()
4426 :call MessWithWindowSizes()
4427 :exe cmd
4428
4429winwidth({nr}) *winwidth()*
4430 The result is a Number, which is the width of window {nr}.
4431 When {nr} is zero, the width of the current window is
4432 returned. When window {nr} doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
4433 An existing window always has a width of zero or more.
4434 Examples: >
4435 :echo "The current window has " . winwidth(0) . " columns."
4436 :if winwidth(0) <= 50
4437 : exe "normal 50\<C-W>|"
4438 :endif
4439<
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00004440 *writefile()*
4441writefile({list}, {fname} [, {binary}])
4442 Write List {list} to file {fname}. Each list item is
4443 separated with a NL. Each list item must be a String or
4444 Number.
4445 When {binary} is equal to "b" binary mode is used: There will
4446 not be a NL after the last list item. An empty item at the
4447 end does cause the last line in the file to end in a NL.
4448 All NL characters are replaced with a NUL character.
4449 Inserting CR characters needs to be done before passing {list}
4450 to writefile().
4451 An existing file is overwritten, if possible.
4452 When the write fails -1 is returned, otherwise 0. There is an
4453 error message if the file can't be created or when writing
4454 fails.
4455 Also see |readfile()|.
4456 To copy a file byte for byte: >
4457 :let fl = readfile("foo", "b")
4458 :call writefile(fl, "foocopy", "b")
4459<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004460
4461 *feature-list*
4462There are three types of features:
44631. Features that are only supported when they have been enabled when Vim
4464 was compiled |+feature-list|. Example: >
4465 :if has("cindent")
44662. Features that are only supported when certain conditions have been met.
4467 Example: >
4468 :if has("gui_running")
4469< *has-patch*
44703. Included patches. First check |v:version| for the version of Vim.
4471 Then the "patch123" feature means that patch 123 has been included for
4472 this version. Example (checking version 6.2.148 or later): >
4473 :if v:version > 602 || v:version == 602 && has("patch148")
4474
4475all_builtin_terms Compiled with all builtin terminals enabled.
4476amiga Amiga version of Vim.
4477arabic Compiled with Arabic support |Arabic|.
4478arp Compiled with ARP support (Amiga).
4479autocmd Compiled with autocommands support.
4480balloon_eval Compiled with |balloon-eval| support.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00004481balloon_multiline GUI supports multiline balloons.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004482beos BeOS version of Vim.
4483browse Compiled with |:browse| support, and browse() will
4484 work.
4485builtin_terms Compiled with some builtin terminals.
4486byte_offset Compiled with support for 'o' in 'statusline'
4487cindent Compiled with 'cindent' support.
4488clientserver Compiled with remote invocation support |clientserver|.
4489clipboard Compiled with 'clipboard' support.
4490cmdline_compl Compiled with |cmdline-completion| support.
4491cmdline_hist Compiled with |cmdline-history| support.
4492cmdline_info Compiled with 'showcmd' and 'ruler' support.
4493comments Compiled with |'comments'| support.
4494cryptv Compiled with encryption support |encryption|.
4495cscope Compiled with |cscope| support.
4496compatible Compiled to be very Vi compatible.
4497debug Compiled with "DEBUG" defined.
4498dialog_con Compiled with console dialog support.
4499dialog_gui Compiled with GUI dialog support.
4500diff Compiled with |vimdiff| and 'diff' support.
4501digraphs Compiled with support for digraphs.
4502dnd Compiled with support for the "~ register |quote_~|.
4503dos32 32 bits DOS (DJGPP) version of Vim.
4504dos16 16 bits DOS version of Vim.
4505ebcdic Compiled on a machine with ebcdic character set.
4506emacs_tags Compiled with support for Emacs tags.
4507eval Compiled with expression evaluation support. Always
4508 true, of course!
4509ex_extra Compiled with extra Ex commands |+ex_extra|.
4510extra_search Compiled with support for |'incsearch'| and
4511 |'hlsearch'|
4512farsi Compiled with Farsi support |farsi|.
4513file_in_path Compiled with support for |gf| and |<cfile>|
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004514filterpipe When 'shelltemp' is off pipes are used for shell
4515 read/write/filter commands
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004516find_in_path Compiled with support for include file searches
4517 |+find_in_path|.
4518fname_case Case in file names matters (for Amiga, MS-DOS, and
4519 Windows this is not present).
4520folding Compiled with |folding| support.
4521footer Compiled with GUI footer support. |gui-footer|
4522fork Compiled to use fork()/exec() instead of system().
4523gettext Compiled with message translation |multi-lang|
4524gui Compiled with GUI enabled.
4525gui_athena Compiled with Athena GUI.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004526gui_gtk Compiled with GTK+ GUI (any version).
4527gui_gtk2 Compiled with GTK+ 2 GUI (gui_gtk is also defined).
Bram Moolenaar843ee412004-06-30 16:16:41 +00004528gui_kde Compiled with KDE GUI |KVim|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004529gui_mac Compiled with Macintosh GUI.
4530gui_motif Compiled with Motif GUI.
4531gui_photon Compiled with Photon GUI.
4532gui_win32 Compiled with MS Windows Win32 GUI.
4533gui_win32s idem, and Win32s system being used (Windows 3.1)
4534gui_running Vim is running in the GUI, or it will start soon.
4535hangul_input Compiled with Hangul input support. |hangul|
4536iconv Can use iconv() for conversion.
4537insert_expand Compiled with support for CTRL-X expansion commands in
4538 Insert mode.
4539jumplist Compiled with |jumplist| support.
4540keymap Compiled with 'keymap' support.
4541langmap Compiled with 'langmap' support.
4542libcall Compiled with |libcall()| support.
4543linebreak Compiled with 'linebreak', 'breakat' and 'showbreak'
4544 support.
4545lispindent Compiled with support for lisp indenting.
4546listcmds Compiled with commands for the buffer list |:files|
4547 and the argument list |arglist|.
4548localmap Compiled with local mappings and abbr. |:map-local|
4549mac Macintosh version of Vim.
4550macunix Macintosh version of Vim, using Unix files (OS-X).
4551menu Compiled with support for |:menu|.
4552mksession Compiled with support for |:mksession|.
4553modify_fname Compiled with file name modifiers. |filename-modifiers|
4554mouse Compiled with support mouse.
4555mouseshape Compiled with support for 'mouseshape'.
4556mouse_dec Compiled with support for Dec terminal mouse.
4557mouse_gpm Compiled with support for gpm (Linux console mouse)
4558mouse_netterm Compiled with support for netterm mouse.
4559mouse_pterm Compiled with support for qnx pterm mouse.
4560mouse_xterm Compiled with support for xterm mouse.
4561multi_byte Compiled with support for editing Korean et al.
4562multi_byte_ime Compiled with support for IME input method.
4563multi_lang Compiled with support for multiple languages.
Bram Moolenaar325b7a22004-07-05 15:58:32 +00004564mzscheme Compiled with MzScheme interface |mzscheme|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004565netbeans_intg Compiled with support for |netbeans|.
Bram Moolenaar009b2592004-10-24 19:18:58 +00004566netbeans_enabled Compiled with support for |netbeans| and it's used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004567ole Compiled with OLE automation support for Win32.
4568os2 OS/2 version of Vim.
4569osfiletype Compiled with support for osfiletypes |+osfiletype|
4570path_extra Compiled with up/downwards search in 'path' and 'tags'
4571perl Compiled with Perl interface.
4572postscript Compiled with PostScript file printing.
4573printer Compiled with |:hardcopy| support.
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004574profile Compiled with |:profile| support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004575python Compiled with Python interface.
4576qnx QNX version of Vim.
4577quickfix Compiled with |quickfix| support.
4578rightleft Compiled with 'rightleft' support.
4579ruby Compiled with Ruby interface |ruby|.
4580scrollbind Compiled with 'scrollbind' support.
4581showcmd Compiled with 'showcmd' support.
4582signs Compiled with |:sign| support.
4583smartindent Compiled with 'smartindent' support.
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00004584sniff Compiled with SNiFF interface support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004585statusline Compiled with support for 'statusline', 'rulerformat'
4586 and special formats of 'titlestring' and 'iconstring'.
4587sun_workshop Compiled with support for Sun |workshop|.
Bram Moolenaar82cf9b62005-06-07 21:09:25 +00004588spell Compiled with spell checking support |spell|.
4589syntax Compiled with syntax highlighting support |syntax|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004590syntax_items There are active syntax highlighting items for the
4591 current buffer.
4592system Compiled to use system() instead of fork()/exec().
4593tag_binary Compiled with binary searching in tags files
4594 |tag-binary-search|.
4595tag_old_static Compiled with support for old static tags
4596 |tag-old-static|.
4597tag_any_white Compiled with support for any white characters in tags
4598 files |tag-any-white|.
4599tcl Compiled with Tcl interface.
4600terminfo Compiled with terminfo instead of termcap.
4601termresponse Compiled with support for |t_RV| and |v:termresponse|.
4602textobjects Compiled with support for |text-objects|.
4603tgetent Compiled with tgetent support, able to use a termcap
4604 or terminfo file.
4605title Compiled with window title support |'title'|.
4606toolbar Compiled with support for |gui-toolbar|.
4607unix Unix version of Vim.
4608user_commands User-defined commands.
4609viminfo Compiled with viminfo support.
4610vim_starting True while initial source'ing takes place.
4611vertsplit Compiled with vertically split windows |:vsplit|.
4612virtualedit Compiled with 'virtualedit' option.
4613visual Compiled with Visual mode.
4614visualextra Compiled with extra Visual mode commands.
4615 |blockwise-operators|.
4616vms VMS version of Vim.
4617vreplace Compiled with |gR| and |gr| commands.
4618wildignore Compiled with 'wildignore' option.
4619wildmenu Compiled with 'wildmenu' option.
4620windows Compiled with support for more than one window.
4621winaltkeys Compiled with 'winaltkeys' option.
4622win16 Win16 version of Vim (MS-Windows 3.1).
4623win32 Win32 version of Vim (MS-Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP).
4624win64 Win64 version of Vim (MS-Windows 64 bit).
4625win32unix Win32 version of Vim, using Unix files (Cygwin)
4626win95 Win32 version for MS-Windows 95/98/ME.
4627writebackup Compiled with 'writebackup' default on.
4628xfontset Compiled with X fontset support |xfontset|.
4629xim Compiled with X input method support |xim|.
4630xsmp Compiled with X session management support.
4631xsmp_interact Compiled with interactive X session management support.
4632xterm_clipboard Compiled with support for xterm clipboard.
4633xterm_save Compiled with support for saving and restoring the
4634 xterm screen.
4635x11 Compiled with X11 support.
4636
4637 *string-match*
4638Matching a pattern in a String
4639
4640A regexp pattern as explained at |pattern| is normally used to find a match in
4641the buffer lines. When a pattern is used to find a match in a String, almost
4642everything works in the same way. The difference is that a String is handled
4643like it is one line. When it contains a "\n" character, this is not seen as a
4644line break for the pattern. It can be matched with a "\n" in the pattern, or
4645with ".". Example: >
4646 :let a = "aaaa\nxxxx"
4647 :echo matchstr(a, "..\n..")
4648 aa
4649 xx
4650 :echo matchstr(a, "a.x")
4651 a
4652 x
4653
4654Don't forget that "^" will only match at the first character of the String and
4655"$" at the last character of the string. They don't match after or before a
4656"\n".
4657
4658==============================================================================
46595. Defining functions *user-functions*
4660
4661New functions can be defined. These can be called just like builtin
4662functions. The function executes a sequence of Ex commands. Normal mode
4663commands can be executed with the |:normal| command.
4664
4665The function name must start with an uppercase letter, to avoid confusion with
4666builtin functions. To prevent from using the same name in different scripts
4667avoid obvious, short names. A good habit is to start the function name with
4668the name of the script, e.g., "HTMLcolor()".
4669
4670It's also possible to use curly braces, see |curly-braces-names|.
4671
4672 *local-function*
4673A function local to a script must start with "s:". A local script function
4674can only be called from within the script and from functions, user commands
4675and autocommands defined in the script. It is also possible to call the
4676function from a mappings defined in the script, but then |<SID>| must be used
4677instead of "s:" when the mapping is expanded outside of the script.
4678
4679 *:fu* *:function* *E128* *E129* *E123*
4680:fu[nction] List all functions and their arguments.
4681
4682:fu[nction] {name} List function {name}.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00004683 {name} can also be a Dictionary entry that is a
4684 Funcref: >
4685 :function dict.init
4686< *E124* *E125*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004687:fu[nction][!] {name}([arguments]) [range] [abort] [dict]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004688 Define a new function by the name {name}. The name
4689 must be made of alphanumeric characters and '_', and
4690 must start with a capital or "s:" (see above).
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00004691
4692 {name} can also be a Dictionary entry that is a
4693 Funcref: >
4694 :function dict.init(arg)
4695< "dict" must be an existing dictionary. The entry
4696 "init" is added if it didn't exist yet. Otherwise [!]
4697 is required to overwrite an existing function. The
4698 result is a |Funcref| to a numbered function. The
4699 function can only be used with a |Funcref| and will be
4700 deleted if there are no more references to it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004701 *E127* *E122*
4702 When a function by this name already exists and [!] is
4703 not used an error message is given. When [!] is used,
4704 an existing function is silently replaced. Unless it
4705 is currently being executed, that is an error.
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00004706
4707 For the {arguments} see |function-argument|.
4708
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004709 *a:firstline* *a:lastline*
4710 When the [range] argument is added, the function is
4711 expected to take care of a range itself. The range is
4712 passed as "a:firstline" and "a:lastline". If [range]
4713 is excluded, ":{range}call" will call the function for
4714 each line in the range, with the cursor on the start
4715 of each line. See |function-range-example|.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00004716
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004717 When the [abort] argument is added, the function will
4718 abort as soon as an error is detected.
4719 The last used search pattern and the redo command "."
4720 will not be changed by the function.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00004721
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004722 When the [dict] argument is added, the function must
4723 be invoked through an entry in a Dictionary. The
4724 local variable "self" will then be set to the
4725 dictionary. See |Dictionary-function|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004726
4727 *:endf* *:endfunction* *E126* *E193*
4728:endf[unction] The end of a function definition. Must be on a line
4729 by its own, without other commands.
4730
4731 *:delf* *:delfunction* *E130* *E131*
4732:delf[unction] {name} Delete function {name}.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00004733 {name} can also be a Dictionary entry that is a
4734 Funcref: >
4735 :delfunc dict.init
4736< This will remove the "init" entry from "dict". The
4737 function is deleted if there are no more references to
4738 it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004739 *:retu* *:return* *E133*
4740:retu[rn] [expr] Return from a function. When "[expr]" is given, it is
4741 evaluated and returned as the result of the function.
4742 If "[expr]" is not given, the number 0 is returned.
4743 When a function ends without an explicit ":return",
4744 the number 0 is returned.
4745 Note that there is no check for unreachable lines,
4746 thus there is no warning if commands follow ":return".
4747
4748 If the ":return" is used after a |:try| but before the
4749 matching |:finally| (if present), the commands
4750 following the ":finally" up to the matching |:endtry|
4751 are executed first. This process applies to all
4752 nested ":try"s inside the function. The function
4753 returns at the outermost ":endtry".
4754
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00004755 *function-argument* *a:var*
4756An argument can be defined by giving its name. In the function this can then
4757be used as "a:name" ("a:" for argument).
4758 *a:0* *a:1* *a:000* *E740*
4759Up to 20 arguments can be given, separated by commas. After the named
4760arguments an argument "..." can be specified, which means that more arguments
4761may optionally be following. In the function the extra arguments can be used
4762as "a:1", "a:2", etc. "a:0" is set to the number of extra arguments (which
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00004763can be 0). "a:000" is set to a List that contains these arguments. Note that
4764"a:1" is the same as "a:000[0]".
4765 *E742*
4766The a: scope and the variables in it cannot be changed, they are fixed.
4767However, if a List or Dictionary is used, you can changes their contents.
4768Thus you can pass a List to a function and have the function add an item to
4769it. If you want to make sure the function cannot change a List or Dictionary
4770use |:lockvar|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004771
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00004772When not using "...", the number of arguments in a function call must be equal
4773to the number of named arguments. When using "...", the number of arguments
4774may be larger.
4775
4776It is also possible to define a function without any arguments. You must
4777still supply the () then. The body of the function follows in the next lines,
4778until the matching |:endfunction|. It is allowed to define another function
4779inside a function body.
4780
4781 *local-variables*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004782Inside a function variables can be used. These are local variables, which
4783will disappear when the function returns. Global variables need to be
4784accessed with "g:".
4785
4786Example: >
4787 :function Table(title, ...)
4788 : echohl Title
4789 : echo a:title
4790 : echohl None
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004791 : echo a:0 . " items:"
4792 : for s in a:000
4793 : echon ' ' . s
4794 : endfor
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004795 :endfunction
4796
4797This function can then be called with: >
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004798 call Table("Table", "line1", "line2")
4799 call Table("Empty Table")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004800
4801To return more than one value, pass the name of a global variable: >
4802 :function Compute(n1, n2, divname)
4803 : if a:n2 == 0
4804 : return "fail"
4805 : endif
4806 : let g:{a:divname} = a:n1 / a:n2
4807 : return "ok"
4808 :endfunction
4809
4810This function can then be called with: >
4811 :let success = Compute(13, 1324, "div")
4812 :if success == "ok"
4813 : echo div
4814 :endif
4815
4816An alternative is to return a command that can be executed. This also works
4817with local variables in a calling function. Example: >
4818 :function Foo()
4819 : execute Bar()
4820 : echo "line " . lnum . " column " . col
4821 :endfunction
4822
4823 :function Bar()
4824 : return "let lnum = " . line(".") . " | let col = " . col(".")
4825 :endfunction
4826
4827The names "lnum" and "col" could also be passed as argument to Bar(), to allow
4828the caller to set the names.
4829
4830 *:cal* *:call* *E107*
4831:[range]cal[l] {name}([arguments])
4832 Call a function. The name of the function and its arguments
4833 are as specified with |:function|. Up to 20 arguments can be
4834 used.
4835 Without a range and for functions that accept a range, the
4836 function is called once. When a range is given the cursor is
4837 positioned at the start of the first line before executing the
4838 function.
4839 When a range is given and the function doesn't handle it
4840 itself, the function is executed for each line in the range,
4841 with the cursor in the first column of that line. The cursor
4842 is left at the last line (possibly moved by the last function
4843 call). The arguments are re-evaluated for each line. Thus
4844 this works:
4845 *function-range-example* >
4846 :function Mynumber(arg)
4847 : echo line(".") . " " . a:arg
4848 :endfunction
4849 :1,5call Mynumber(getline("."))
4850<
4851 The "a:firstline" and "a:lastline" are defined anyway, they
4852 can be used to do something different at the start or end of
4853 the range.
4854
4855 Example of a function that handles the range itself: >
4856
4857 :function Cont() range
4858 : execute (a:firstline + 1) . "," . a:lastline . 's/^/\t\\ '
4859 :endfunction
4860 :4,8call Cont()
4861<
4862 This function inserts the continuation character "\" in front
4863 of all the lines in the range, except the first one.
4864
4865 *E132*
4866The recursiveness of user functions is restricted with the |'maxfuncdepth'|
4867option.
4868
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004869
4870AUTOMATICALLY LOADING FUNCTIONS ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004871 *autoload-functions*
4872When using many or large functions, it's possible to automatically define them
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004873only when they are used. There are two methods: with an autocommand and with
4874the "autoload" directory in 'runtimepath'.
4875
4876
4877Using an autocommand ~
4878
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004879This is introduced in the user manual, section |41.14|.
4880
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004881The autocommand is useful if you have a plugin that is a long Vim script file.
4882You can define the autocommand and quickly quit the script with |:finish|.
4883That makes Vim startup faster. The autocommand should then load the same file
4884again, setting a variable to skip the |:finish| command.
4885
4886Use the FuncUndefined autocommand event with a pattern that matches the
4887function(s) to be defined. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004888
4889 :au FuncUndefined BufNet* source ~/vim/bufnetfuncs.vim
4890
4891The file "~/vim/bufnetfuncs.vim" should then define functions that start with
4892"BufNet". Also see |FuncUndefined|.
4893
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004894
4895Using an autoload script ~
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004896 *autoload* *E746*
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004897This is introduced in the user manual, section |41.15|.
4898
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004899Using a script in the "autoload" directory is simpler, but requires using
4900exactly the right file name. A function that can be autoloaded has a name
4901like this: >
4902
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00004903 :call filename#funcname()
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004904
4905When such a function is called, and it is not defined yet, Vim will search the
4906"autoload" directories in 'runtimepath' for a script file called
4907"filename.vim". For example "~/.vim/autoload/filename.vim". That file should
4908then define the function like this: >
4909
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00004910 function filename#funcname()
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004911 echo "Done!"
4912 endfunction
4913
4914The file name and the name used before the colon in the function must match
4915exactly, and the defined function must have the name exactly as it will be
4916called.
4917
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00004918It is possible to use subdirectories. Every # in the function name works like
4919a path separator. Thus when calling a function: >
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004920
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00004921 :call foo#bar#func()
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004922
4923Vim will look for the file "autoload/foo/bar.vim" in 'runtimepath'.
4924
4925The name before the first colon must be at least two characters long,
4926otherwise it looks like a scope, such as "s:".
4927
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004928This also works when reading a variable that has not been set yet: >
4929
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00004930 :let l = foo#bar#lvar
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004931
4932When assigning a value to such a variable nothing special happens. This can
4933be used to pass settings to the autoload script before it's loaded: >
4934
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00004935 :let foo#bar#toggle = 1
4936 :call foo#bar#func()
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004937
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00004938Note that when you make a mistake and call a function that is supposed to be
4939defined in an autoload script, but the script doesn't actually define the
4940function, the script will be sourced every time you try to call the function.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004941And you will get an error message every time.
4942
4943Also note that if you have two script files, and one calls a function in the
4944other and vise versa, before the used function is defined, it won't work.
4945Avoid using the autoload functionality at the toplevel.
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00004946
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004947==============================================================================
49486. Curly braces names *curly-braces-names*
4949
4950Wherever you can use a variable, you can use a "curly braces name" variable.
4951This is a regular variable name with one or more expressions wrapped in braces
4952{} like this: >
4953 my_{adjective}_variable
4954
4955When Vim encounters this, it evaluates the expression inside the braces, puts
4956that in place of the expression, and re-interprets the whole as a variable
4957name. So in the above example, if the variable "adjective" was set to
4958"noisy", then the reference would be to "my_noisy_variable", whereas if
4959"adjective" was set to "quiet", then it would be to "my_quiet_variable".
4960
4961One application for this is to create a set of variables governed by an option
4962value. For example, the statement >
4963 echo my_{&background}_message
4964
4965would output the contents of "my_dark_message" or "my_light_message" depending
4966on the current value of 'background'.
4967
4968You can use multiple brace pairs: >
4969 echo my_{adverb}_{adjective}_message
4970..or even nest them: >
4971 echo my_{ad{end_of_word}}_message
4972where "end_of_word" is either "verb" or "jective".
4973
4974However, the expression inside the braces must evaluate to a valid single
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004975variable name, e.g. this is invalid: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004976 :let foo='a + b'
4977 :echo c{foo}d
4978.. since the result of expansion is "ca + bd", which is not a variable name.
4979
4980 *curly-braces-function-names*
4981You can call and define functions by an evaluated name in a similar way.
4982Example: >
4983 :let func_end='whizz'
4984 :call my_func_{func_end}(parameter)
4985
4986This would call the function "my_func_whizz(parameter)".
4987
4988==============================================================================
49897. Commands *expression-commands*
4990
4991:let {var-name} = {expr1} *:let* *E18*
4992 Set internal variable {var-name} to the result of the
4993 expression {expr1}. The variable will get the type
4994 from the {expr}. If {var-name} didn't exist yet, it
4995 is created.
4996
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00004997:let {var-name}[{idx}] = {expr1} *E689*
4998 Set a list item to the result of the expression
4999 {expr1}. {var-name} must refer to a list and {idx}
5000 must be a valid index in that list. For nested list
5001 the index can be repeated.
5002 This cannot be used to add an item to a list.
5003
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005004 *E711* *E719*
5005:let {var-name}[{idx1}:{idx2}] = {expr1} *E708* *E709* *E710*
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00005006 Set a sequence of items in a List to the result of the
5007 expression {expr1}, which must be a list with the
5008 correct number of items.
5009 {idx1} can be omitted, zero is used instead.
5010 {idx2} can be omitted, meaning the end of the list.
5011 When the selected range of items is partly past the
5012 end of the list, items will be added.
5013
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00005014 *:let+=* *:let-=* *:let.=* *E734*
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005015:let {var} += {expr1} Like ":let {var} = {var} + {expr1}".
5016:let {var} -= {expr1} Like ":let {var} = {var} - {expr1}".
5017:let {var} .= {expr1} Like ":let {var} = {var} . {expr1}".
5018 These fail if {var} was not set yet and when the type
5019 of {var} and {expr1} don't fit the operator.
5020
5021
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005022:let ${env-name} = {expr1} *:let-environment* *:let-$*
5023 Set environment variable {env-name} to the result of
5024 the expression {expr1}. The type is always String.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005025:let ${env-name} .= {expr1}
5026 Append {expr1} to the environment variable {env-name}.
5027 If the environment variable didn't exist yet this
5028 works like "=".
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005029
5030:let @{reg-name} = {expr1} *:let-register* *:let-@*
5031 Write the result of the expression {expr1} in register
5032 {reg-name}. {reg-name} must be a single letter, and
5033 must be the name of a writable register (see
5034 |registers|). "@@" can be used for the unnamed
5035 register, "@/" for the search pattern.
5036 If the result of {expr1} ends in a <CR> or <NL>, the
5037 register will be linewise, otherwise it will be set to
5038 characterwise.
5039 This can be used to clear the last search pattern: >
5040 :let @/ = ""
5041< This is different from searching for an empty string,
5042 that would match everywhere.
5043
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005044:let @{reg-name} .= {expr1}
5045 Append {expr1} to register {reg-name}. If the
5046 register was empty it's like setting it to {expr1}.
5047
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005048:let &{option-name} = {expr1} *:let-option* *:let-star*
5049 Set option {option-name} to the result of the
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00005050 expression {expr1}. A String or Number value is
5051 always converted to the type of the option.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005052 For an option local to a window or buffer the effect
5053 is just like using the |:set| command: both the local
5054 value and the global value is changed.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00005055 Example: >
5056 :let &path = &path . ',/usr/local/include'
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005057
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005058:let &{option-name} .= {expr1}
5059 For a string option: Append {expr1} to the value.
5060 Does not insert a comma like |:set+=|.
5061
5062:let &{option-name} += {expr1}
5063:let &{option-name} -= {expr1}
5064 For a number or boolean option: Add or subtract
5065 {expr1}.
5066
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005067:let &l:{option-name} = {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005068:let &l:{option-name} .= {expr1}
5069:let &l:{option-name} += {expr1}
5070:let &l:{option-name} -= {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005071 Like above, but only set the local value of an option
5072 (if there is one). Works like |:setlocal|.
5073
5074:let &g:{option-name} = {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005075:let &g:{option-name} .= {expr1}
5076:let &g:{option-name} += {expr1}
5077:let &g:{option-name} -= {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005078 Like above, but only set the global value of an option
5079 (if there is one). Works like |:setglobal|.
5080
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00005081:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] = {expr1} *:let-unpack* *E687* *E688*
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00005082 {expr1} must evaluate to a List. The first item in
5083 the list is assigned to {name1}, the second item to
5084 {name2}, etc.
5085 The number of names must match the number of items in
5086 the List.
5087 Each name can be one of the items of the ":let"
5088 command as mentioned above.
5089 Example: >
5090 :let [s, item] = GetItem(s)
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005091< Detail: {expr1} is evaluated first, then the
5092 assignments are done in sequence. This matters if
5093 {name2} depends on {name1}. Example: >
5094 :let x = [0, 1]
5095 :let i = 0
5096 :let [i, x[i]] = [1, 2]
5097 :echo x
5098< The result is [0, 2].
5099
5100:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] .= {expr1}
5101:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] += {expr1}
5102:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] -= {expr1}
5103 Like above, but append/add/subtract the value for each
5104 List item.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00005105
5106:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] = {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00005107 Like |:let-unpack| above, but the List may have more
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005108 items than there are names. A list of the remaining
5109 items is assigned to {lastname}. If there are no
5110 remaining items {lastname} is set to an empty list.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00005111 Example: >
5112 :let [a, b; rest] = ["aval", "bval", 3, 4]
5113<
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005114:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] .= {expr1}
5115:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] += {expr1}
5116:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] -= {expr1}
5117 Like above, but append/add/subtract the value for each
5118 List item.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005119 *E106*
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005120:let {var-name} .. List the value of variable {var-name}. Multiple
Bram Moolenaardcaf10e2005-01-21 11:55:25 +00005121 variable names may be given. Special names recognized
5122 here: *E738*
5123 g: global variables.
5124 b: local buffer variables.
5125 w: local window variables.
5126 v: Vim variables.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005127
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00005128:let List the values of all variables. The type of the
5129 variable is indicated before the value:
5130 <nothing> String
5131 # Number
5132 * Funcref
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005133
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00005134
5135:unl[et][!] {name} ... *:unlet* *:unl* *E108*
5136 Remove the internal variable {name}. Several variable
5137 names can be given, they are all removed. The name
5138 may also be a List or Dictionary item.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005139 With [!] no error message is given for non-existing
5140 variables.
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +00005141 One or more items from a List can be removed: >
5142 :unlet list[3] " remove fourth item
5143 :unlet list[3:] " remove fourth item to last
5144< One item from a Dictionary can be removed at a time: >
5145 :unlet dict['two']
5146 :unlet dict.two
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005147
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00005148:lockv[ar][!] [depth] {name} ... *:lockvar* *:lockv*
5149 Lock the internal variable {name}. Locking means that
5150 it can no longer be changed (until it is unlocked).
5151 A locked variable can be deleted: >
5152 :lockvar v
5153 :let v = 'asdf' " fails!
5154 :unlet v
5155< *E741*
5156 If you try to change a locked variable you get an
5157 error message: "E741: Value of {name} is locked"
5158
5159 [depth] is relevant when locking a List or Dictionary.
5160 It specifies how deep the locking goes:
5161 1 Lock the List or Dictionary itself,
5162 cannot add or remove items, but can
5163 still change their values.
5164 2 Also lock the values, cannot change
5165 the items. If an item is a List or
5166 Dictionary, cannot add or remove
5167 items, but can still change the
5168 values.
5169 3 Like 2 but for the List/Dictionary in
5170 the List/Dictionary, one level deeper.
5171 The default [depth] is 2, thus when {name} is a List
5172 or Dictionary the values cannot be changed.
5173 *E743*
5174 For unlimited depth use [!] and omit [depth].
5175 However, there is a maximum depth of 100 to catch
5176 loops.
5177
5178 Note that when two variables refer to the same List
5179 and you lock one of them, the List will also be locked
5180 when used through the other variable. Example: >
5181 :let l = [0, 1, 2, 3]
5182 :let cl = l
5183 :lockvar l
5184 :let cl[1] = 99 " won't work!
5185< You may want to make a copy of a list to avoid this.
5186 See |deepcopy()|.
5187
5188
5189:unlo[ckvar][!] [depth] {name} ... *:unlockvar* *:unlo*
5190 Unlock the internal variable {name}. Does the
5191 opposite of |:lockvar|.
5192
5193
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005194:if {expr1} *:if* *:endif* *:en* *E171* *E579* *E580*
5195:en[dif] Execute the commands until the next matching ":else"
5196 or ":endif" if {expr1} evaluates to non-zero.
5197
5198 From Vim version 4.5 until 5.0, every Ex command in
5199 between the ":if" and ":endif" is ignored. These two
5200 commands were just to allow for future expansions in a
5201 backwards compatible way. Nesting was allowed. Note
5202 that any ":else" or ":elseif" was ignored, the "else"
5203 part was not executed either.
5204
5205 You can use this to remain compatible with older
5206 versions: >
5207 :if version >= 500
5208 : version-5-specific-commands
5209 :endif
5210< The commands still need to be parsed to find the
5211 "endif". Sometimes an older Vim has a problem with a
5212 new command. For example, ":silent" is recognized as
5213 a ":substitute" command. In that case ":execute" can
5214 avoid problems: >
5215 :if version >= 600
5216 : execute "silent 1,$delete"
5217 :endif
5218<
5219 NOTE: The ":append" and ":insert" commands don't work
5220 properly in between ":if" and ":endif".
5221
5222 *:else* *:el* *E581* *E583*
5223:el[se] Execute the commands until the next matching ":else"
5224 or ":endif" if they previously were not being
5225 executed.
5226
5227 *:elseif* *:elsei* *E582* *E584*
5228:elsei[f] {expr1} Short for ":else" ":if", with the addition that there
5229 is no extra ":endif".
5230
5231:wh[ile] {expr1} *:while* *:endwhile* *:wh* *:endw*
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005232 *E170* *E585* *E588* *E733*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005233:endw[hile] Repeat the commands between ":while" and ":endwhile",
5234 as long as {expr1} evaluates to non-zero.
5235 When an error is detected from a command inside the
5236 loop, execution continues after the "endwhile".
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005237 Example: >
5238 :let lnum = 1
5239 :while lnum <= line("$")
5240 :call FixLine(lnum)
5241 :let lnum = lnum + 1
5242 :endwhile
5243<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005244 NOTE: The ":append" and ":insert" commands don't work
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005245 properly inside a ":while" and ":for" loop.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005246
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005247:for {var} in {list} *:for* *E690* *E732*
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005248:endfo[r] *:endfo* *:endfor*
5249 Repeat the commands between ":for" and ":endfor" for
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00005250 each item in {list}. Variable {var} is set to the
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005251 value of each item.
5252 When an error is detected for a command inside the
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005253 loop, execution continues after the "endfor".
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00005254 Changing {list} inside the loop affects what items are
5255 used. Make a copy if this is unwanted: >
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005256 :for item in copy(mylist)
5257< When not making a copy, Vim stores a reference to the
5258 next item in the list, before executing the commands
5259 with the current item. Thus the current item can be
5260 removed without effect. Removing any later item means
5261 it will not be found. Thus the following example
5262 works (an inefficient way to make a list empty): >
5263 :for item in mylist
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005264 :call remove(mylist, 0)
5265 :endfor
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00005266< Note that reordering the list (e.g., with sort() or
5267 reverse()) may have unexpected effects.
5268 Note that the type of each list item should be
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005269 identical to avoid errors for the type of {var}
5270 changing. Unlet the variable at the end of the loop
5271 to allow multiple item types.
5272
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005273:for [{var1}, {var2}, ...] in {listlist}
5274:endfo[r]
5275 Like ":for" above, but each item in {listlist} must be
5276 a list, of which each item is assigned to {var1},
5277 {var2}, etc. Example: >
5278 :for [lnum, col] in [[1, 3], [2, 5], [3, 8]]
5279 :echo getline(lnum)[col]
5280 :endfor
5281<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005282 *:continue* *:con* *E586*
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005283:con[tinue] When used inside a ":while" or ":for" loop, jumps back
5284 to the start of the loop.
5285 If it is used after a |:try| inside the loop but
5286 before the matching |:finally| (if present), the
5287 commands following the ":finally" up to the matching
5288 |:endtry| are executed first. This process applies to
5289 all nested ":try"s inside the loop. The outermost
5290 ":endtry" then jumps back to the start of the loop.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005291
5292 *:break* *:brea* *E587*
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00005293:brea[k] When used inside a ":while" or ":for" loop, skips to
5294 the command after the matching ":endwhile" or
5295 ":endfor".
5296 If it is used after a |:try| inside the loop but
5297 before the matching |:finally| (if present), the
5298 commands following the ":finally" up to the matching
5299 |:endtry| are executed first. This process applies to
5300 all nested ":try"s inside the loop. The outermost
5301 ":endtry" then jumps to the command after the loop.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005302
5303:try *:try* *:endt* *:endtry* *E600* *E601* *E602*
5304:endt[ry] Change the error handling for the commands between
5305 ":try" and ":endtry" including everything being
5306 executed across ":source" commands, function calls,
5307 or autocommand invocations.
5308
5309 When an error or interrupt is detected and there is
5310 a |:finally| command following, execution continues
5311 after the ":finally". Otherwise, or when the
5312 ":endtry" is reached thereafter, the next
5313 (dynamically) surrounding ":try" is checked for
5314 a corresponding ":finally" etc. Then the script
5315 processing is terminated. (Whether a function
5316 definition has an "abort" argument does not matter.)
5317 Example: >
5318 :try | edit too much | finally | echo "cleanup" | endtry
5319 :echo "impossible" " not reached, script terminated above
5320<
5321 Moreover, an error or interrupt (dynamically) inside
5322 ":try" and ":endtry" is converted to an exception. It
5323 can be caught as if it were thrown by a |:throw|
5324 command (see |:catch|). In this case, the script
5325 processing is not terminated.
5326
5327 The value "Vim:Interrupt" is used for an interrupt
5328 exception. An error in a Vim command is converted
5329 to a value of the form "Vim({command}):{errmsg}",
5330 other errors are converted to a value of the form
5331 "Vim:{errmsg}". {command} is the full command name,
5332 and {errmsg} is the message that is displayed if the
5333 error exception is not caught, always beginning with
5334 the error number.
5335 Examples: >
5336 :try | sleep 100 | catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/ | endtry
5337 :try | edit | catch /^Vim(edit):E\d\+/ | echo "error" | endtry
5338<
5339 *:cat* *:catch* *E603* *E604* *E605*
5340:cat[ch] /{pattern}/ The following commands until the next ":catch",
5341 |:finally|, or |:endtry| that belongs to the same
5342 |:try| as the ":catch" are executed when an exception
5343 matching {pattern} is being thrown and has not yet
5344 been caught by a previous ":catch". Otherwise, these
5345 commands are skipped.
5346 When {pattern} is omitted all errors are caught.
5347 Examples: >
5348 :catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/ " catch interrupts (CTRL-C)
5349 :catch /^Vim\%((\a\+)\)\=:E/ " catch all Vim errors
5350 :catch /^Vim\%((\a\+)\)\=:/ " catch errors and interrupts
5351 :catch /^Vim(write):/ " catch all errors in :write
5352 :catch /^Vim\%((\a\+)\)\=:E123/ " catch error E123
5353 :catch /my-exception/ " catch user exception
5354 :catch /.*/ " catch everything
5355 :catch " same as /.*/
5356<
5357 Another character can be used instead of / around the
5358 {pattern}, so long as it does not have a special
5359 meaning (e.g., '|' or '"') and doesn't occur inside
5360 {pattern}.
5361 NOTE: It is not reliable to ":catch" the TEXT of
5362 an error message because it may vary in different
5363 locales.
5364
5365 *:fina* *:finally* *E606* *E607*
5366:fina[lly] The following commands until the matching |:endtry|
5367 are executed whenever the part between the matching
5368 |:try| and the ":finally" is left: either by falling
5369 through to the ":finally" or by a |:continue|,
5370 |:break|, |:finish|, or |:return|, or by an error or
5371 interrupt or exception (see |:throw|).
5372
5373 *:th* *:throw* *E608*
5374:th[row] {expr1} The {expr1} is evaluated and thrown as an exception.
5375 If the ":throw" is used after a |:try| but before the
5376 first corresponding |:catch|, commands are skipped
5377 until the first ":catch" matching {expr1} is reached.
5378 If there is no such ":catch" or if the ":throw" is
5379 used after a ":catch" but before the |:finally|, the
5380 commands following the ":finally" (if present) up to
5381 the matching |:endtry| are executed. If the ":throw"
5382 is after the ":finally", commands up to the ":endtry"
5383 are skipped. At the ":endtry", this process applies
5384 again for the next dynamically surrounding ":try"
5385 (which may be found in a calling function or sourcing
5386 script), until a matching ":catch" has been found.
5387 If the exception is not caught, the command processing
5388 is terminated.
5389 Example: >
5390 :try | throw "oops" | catch /^oo/ | echo "caught" | endtry
5391<
5392
5393 *:ec* *:echo*
5394:ec[ho] {expr1} .. Echoes each {expr1}, with a space in between. The
5395 first {expr1} starts on a new line.
5396 Also see |:comment|.
5397 Use "\n" to start a new line. Use "\r" to move the
5398 cursor to the first column.
5399 Uses the highlighting set by the |:echohl| command.
5400 Cannot be followed by a comment.
5401 Example: >
5402 :echo "the value of 'shell' is" &shell
5403< A later redraw may make the message disappear again.
5404 To avoid that a command from before the ":echo" causes
5405 a redraw afterwards (redraws are often postponed until
5406 you type something), force a redraw with the |:redraw|
5407 command. Example: >
5408 :new | redraw | echo "there is a new window"
5409<
5410 *:echon*
5411:echon {expr1} .. Echoes each {expr1}, without anything added. Also see
5412 |:comment|.
5413 Uses the highlighting set by the |:echohl| command.
5414 Cannot be followed by a comment.
5415 Example: >
5416 :echon "the value of 'shell' is " &shell
5417<
5418 Note the difference between using ":echo", which is a
5419 Vim command, and ":!echo", which is an external shell
5420 command: >
5421 :!echo % --> filename
5422< The arguments of ":!" are expanded, see |:_%|. >
5423 :!echo "%" --> filename or "filename"
5424< Like the previous example. Whether you see the double
5425 quotes or not depends on your 'shell'. >
5426 :echo % --> nothing
5427< The '%' is an illegal character in an expression. >
5428 :echo "%" --> %
5429< This just echoes the '%' character. >
5430 :echo expand("%") --> filename
5431< This calls the expand() function to expand the '%'.
5432
5433 *:echoh* *:echohl*
5434:echoh[l] {name} Use the highlight group {name} for the following
5435 |:echo|, |:echon| and |:echomsg| commands. Also used
5436 for the |input()| prompt. Example: >
5437 :echohl WarningMsg | echo "Don't panic!" | echohl None
5438< Don't forget to set the group back to "None",
5439 otherwise all following echo's will be highlighted.
5440
5441 *:echom* *:echomsg*
5442:echom[sg] {expr1} .. Echo the expression(s) as a true message, saving the
5443 message in the |message-history|.
5444 Spaces are placed between the arguments as with the
5445 |:echo| command. But unprintable characters are
5446 displayed, not interpreted.
5447 Uses the highlighting set by the |:echohl| command.
5448 Example: >
5449 :echomsg "It's a Zizzer Zazzer Zuzz, as you can plainly see."
5450<
5451 *:echoe* *:echoerr*
5452:echoe[rr] {expr1} .. Echo the expression(s) as an error message, saving the
5453 message in the |message-history|. When used in a
5454 script or function the line number will be added.
5455 Spaces are placed between the arguments as with the
5456 :echo command. When used inside a try conditional,
5457 the message is raised as an error exception instead
5458 (see |try-echoerr|).
5459 Example: >
5460 :echoerr "This script just failed!"
5461< If you just want a highlighted message use |:echohl|.
5462 And to get a beep: >
5463 :exe "normal \<Esc>"
5464<
5465 *:exe* *:execute*
5466:exe[cute] {expr1} .. Executes the string that results from the evaluation
5467 of {expr1} as an Ex command. Multiple arguments are
5468 concatenated, with a space in between. {expr1} is
5469 used as the processed command, command line editing
5470 keys are not recognized.
5471 Cannot be followed by a comment.
5472 Examples: >
5473 :execute "buffer " nextbuf
5474 :execute "normal " count . "w"
5475<
5476 ":execute" can be used to append a command to commands
5477 that don't accept a '|'. Example: >
5478 :execute '!ls' | echo "theend"
5479
5480< ":execute" is also a nice way to avoid having to type
5481 control characters in a Vim script for a ":normal"
5482 command: >
5483 :execute "normal ixxx\<Esc>"
5484< This has an <Esc> character, see |expr-string|.
5485
5486 Note: The executed string may be any command-line, but
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005487 you cannot start or end a "while", "for" or "if"
5488 command. Thus this is illegal: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005489 :execute 'while i > 5'
5490 :execute 'echo "test" | break'
5491<
5492 It is allowed to have a "while" or "if" command
5493 completely in the executed string: >
5494 :execute 'while i < 5 | echo i | let i = i + 1 | endwhile'
5495<
5496
5497 *:comment*
5498 ":execute", ":echo" and ":echon" cannot be followed by
5499 a comment directly, because they see the '"' as the
5500 start of a string. But, you can use '|' followed by a
5501 comment. Example: >
5502 :echo "foo" | "this is a comment
5503
5504==============================================================================
55058. Exception handling *exception-handling*
5506
5507The Vim script language comprises an exception handling feature. This section
5508explains how it can be used in a Vim script.
5509
5510Exceptions may be raised by Vim on an error or on interrupt, see
5511|catch-errors| and |catch-interrupt|. You can also explicitly throw an
5512exception by using the ":throw" command, see |throw-catch|.
5513
5514
5515TRY CONDITIONALS *try-conditionals*
5516
5517Exceptions can be caught or can cause cleanup code to be executed. You can
5518use a try conditional to specify catch clauses (that catch exceptions) and/or
5519a finally clause (to be executed for cleanup).
5520 A try conditional begins with a |:try| command and ends at the matching
5521|:endtry| command. In between, you can use a |:catch| command to start
5522a catch clause, or a |:finally| command to start a finally clause. There may
5523be none or multiple catch clauses, but there is at most one finally clause,
5524which must not be followed by any catch clauses. The lines before the catch
5525clauses and the finally clause is called a try block. >
5526
5527 :try
5528 : ...
5529 : ... TRY BLOCK
5530 : ...
5531 :catch /{pattern}/
5532 : ...
5533 : ... CATCH CLAUSE
5534 : ...
5535 :catch /{pattern}/
5536 : ...
5537 : ... CATCH CLAUSE
5538 : ...
5539 :finally
5540 : ...
5541 : ... FINALLY CLAUSE
5542 : ...
5543 :endtry
5544
5545The try conditional allows to watch code for exceptions and to take the
5546appropriate actions. Exceptions from the try block may be caught. Exceptions
5547from the try block and also the catch clauses may cause cleanup actions.
5548 When no exception is thrown during execution of the try block, the control
5549is transferred to the finally clause, if present. After its execution, the
5550script continues with the line following the ":endtry".
5551 When an exception occurs during execution of the try block, the remaining
5552lines in the try block are skipped. The exception is matched against the
5553patterns specified as arguments to the ":catch" commands. The catch clause
5554after the first matching ":catch" is taken, other catch clauses are not
5555executed. The catch clause ends when the next ":catch", ":finally", or
5556":endtry" command is reached - whatever is first. Then, the finally clause
5557(if present) is executed. When the ":endtry" is reached, the script execution
5558continues in the following line as usual.
5559 When an exception that does not match any of the patterns specified by the
5560":catch" commands is thrown in the try block, the exception is not caught by
5561that try conditional and none of the catch clauses is executed. Only the
5562finally clause, if present, is taken. The exception pends during execution of
5563the finally clause. It is resumed at the ":endtry", so that commands after
5564the ":endtry" are not executed and the exception might be caught elsewhere,
5565see |try-nesting|.
5566 When during execution of a catch clause another exception is thrown, the
5567remaining lines in that catch clause are not executed. The new exception is
5568not matched against the patterns in any of the ":catch" commands of the same
5569try conditional and none of its catch clauses is taken. If there is, however,
5570a finally clause, it is executed, and the exception pends during its
5571execution. The commands following the ":endtry" are not executed. The new
5572exception might, however, be caught elsewhere, see |try-nesting|.
5573 When during execution of the finally clause (if present) an exception is
5574thrown, the remaining lines in the finally clause are skipped. If the finally
5575clause has been taken because of an exception from the try block or one of the
5576catch clauses, the original (pending) exception is discarded. The commands
5577following the ":endtry" are not executed, and the exception from the finally
5578clause is propagated and can be caught elsewhere, see |try-nesting|.
5579
5580The finally clause is also executed, when a ":break" or ":continue" for
5581a ":while" loop enclosing the complete try conditional is executed from the
5582try block or a catch clause. Or when a ":return" or ":finish" is executed
5583from the try block or a catch clause of a try conditional in a function or
5584sourced script, respectively. The ":break", ":continue", ":return", or
5585":finish" pends during execution of the finally clause and is resumed when the
5586":endtry" is reached. It is, however, discarded when an exception is thrown
5587from the finally clause.
5588 When a ":break" or ":continue" for a ":while" loop enclosing the complete
5589try conditional or when a ":return" or ":finish" is encountered in the finally
5590clause, the rest of the finally clause is skipped, and the ":break",
5591":continue", ":return" or ":finish" is executed as usual. If the finally
5592clause has been taken because of an exception or an earlier ":break",
5593":continue", ":return", or ":finish" from the try block or a catch clause,
5594this pending exception or command is discarded.
5595
5596For examples see |throw-catch| and |try-finally|.
5597
5598
5599NESTING OF TRY CONDITIONALS *try-nesting*
5600
5601Try conditionals can be nested arbitrarily. That is, a complete try
5602conditional can be put into the try block, a catch clause, or the finally
5603clause of another try conditional. If the inner try conditional does not
5604catch an exception thrown in its try block or throws a new exception from one
5605of its catch clauses or its finally clause, the outer try conditional is
5606checked according to the rules above. If the inner try conditional is in the
5607try block of the outer try conditional, its catch clauses are checked, but
5608otherwise only the finally clause is executed. It does not matter for
5609nesting, whether the inner try conditional is directly contained in the outer
5610one, or whether the outer one sources a script or calls a function containing
5611the inner try conditional.
5612
5613When none of the active try conditionals catches an exception, just their
5614finally clauses are executed. Thereafter, the script processing terminates.
5615An error message is displayed in case of an uncaught exception explicitly
5616thrown by a ":throw" command. For uncaught error and interrupt exceptions
5617implicitly raised by Vim, the error message(s) or interrupt message are shown
5618as usual.
5619
5620For examples see |throw-catch|.
5621
5622
5623EXAMINING EXCEPTION HANDLING CODE *except-examine*
5624
5625Exception handling code can get tricky. If you are in doubt what happens, set
5626'verbose' to 13 or use the ":13verbose" command modifier when sourcing your
5627script file. Then you see when an exception is thrown, discarded, caught, or
5628finished. When using a verbosity level of at least 14, things pending in
5629a finally clause are also shown. This information is also given in debug mode
5630(see |debug-scripts|).
5631
5632
5633THROWING AND CATCHING EXCEPTIONS *throw-catch*
5634
5635You can throw any number or string as an exception. Use the |:throw| command
5636and pass the value to be thrown as argument: >
5637 :throw 4711
5638 :throw "string"
5639< *throw-expression*
5640You can also specify an expression argument. The expression is then evaluated
5641first, and the result is thrown: >
5642 :throw 4705 + strlen("string")
5643 :throw strpart("strings", 0, 6)
5644
5645An exception might be thrown during evaluation of the argument of the ":throw"
5646command. Unless it is caught there, the expression evaluation is abandoned.
5647The ":throw" command then does not throw a new exception.
5648 Example: >
5649
5650 :function! Foo(arg)
5651 : try
5652 : throw a:arg
5653 : catch /foo/
5654 : endtry
5655 : return 1
5656 :endfunction
5657 :
5658 :function! Bar()
5659 : echo "in Bar"
5660 : return 4710
5661 :endfunction
5662 :
5663 :throw Foo("arrgh") + Bar()
5664
5665This throws "arrgh", and "in Bar" is not displayed since Bar() is not
5666executed. >
5667 :throw Foo("foo") + Bar()
5668however displays "in Bar" and throws 4711.
5669
5670Any other command that takes an expression as argument might also be
5671abandoned by an (uncaught) exception during the expression evaluation. The
5672exception is then propagated to the caller of the command.
5673 Example: >
5674
5675 :if Foo("arrgh")
5676 : echo "then"
5677 :else
5678 : echo "else"
5679 :endif
5680
5681Here neither of "then" or "else" is displayed.
5682
5683 *catch-order*
5684Exceptions can be caught by a try conditional with one or more |:catch|
5685commands, see |try-conditionals|. The values to be caught by each ":catch"
5686command can be specified as a pattern argument. The subsequent catch clause
5687gets executed when a matching exception is caught.
5688 Example: >
5689
5690 :function! Foo(value)
5691 : try
5692 : throw a:value
5693 : catch /^\d\+$/
5694 : echo "Number thrown"
5695 : catch /.*/
5696 : echo "String thrown"
5697 : endtry
5698 :endfunction
5699 :
5700 :call Foo(0x1267)
5701 :call Foo('string')
5702
5703The first call to Foo() displays "Number thrown", the second "String thrown".
5704An exception is matched against the ":catch" commands in the order they are
5705specified. Only the first match counts. So you should place the more
5706specific ":catch" first. The following order does not make sense: >
5707
5708 : catch /.*/
5709 : echo "String thrown"
5710 : catch /^\d\+$/
5711 : echo "Number thrown"
5712
5713The first ":catch" here matches always, so that the second catch clause is
5714never taken.
5715
5716 *throw-variables*
5717If you catch an exception by a general pattern, you may access the exact value
5718in the variable |v:exception|: >
5719
5720 : catch /^\d\+$/
5721 : echo "Number thrown. Value is" v:exception
5722
5723You may also be interested where an exception was thrown. This is stored in
5724|v:throwpoint|. Note that "v:exception" and "v:throwpoint" are valid for the
5725exception most recently caught as long it is not finished.
5726 Example: >
5727
5728 :function! Caught()
5729 : if v:exception != ""
5730 : echo 'Caught "' . v:exception . '" in ' . v:throwpoint
5731 : else
5732 : echo 'Nothing caught'
5733 : endif
5734 :endfunction
5735 :
5736 :function! Foo()
5737 : try
5738 : try
5739 : try
5740 : throw 4711
5741 : finally
5742 : call Caught()
5743 : endtry
5744 : catch /.*/
5745 : call Caught()
5746 : throw "oops"
5747 : endtry
5748 : catch /.*/
5749 : call Caught()
5750 : finally
5751 : call Caught()
5752 : endtry
5753 :endfunction
5754 :
5755 :call Foo()
5756
5757This displays >
5758
5759 Nothing caught
5760 Caught "4711" in function Foo, line 4
5761 Caught "oops" in function Foo, line 10
5762 Nothing caught
5763
5764A practical example: The following command ":LineNumber" displays the line
5765number in the script or function where it has been used: >
5766
5767 :function! LineNumber()
5768 : return substitute(v:throwpoint, '.*\D\(\d\+\).*', '\1', "")
5769 :endfunction
5770 :command! LineNumber try | throw "" | catch | echo LineNumber() | endtry
5771<
5772 *try-nested*
5773An exception that is not caught by a try conditional can be caught by
5774a surrounding try conditional: >
5775
5776 :try
5777 : try
5778 : throw "foo"
5779 : catch /foobar/
5780 : echo "foobar"
5781 : finally
5782 : echo "inner finally"
5783 : endtry
5784 :catch /foo/
5785 : echo "foo"
5786 :endtry
5787
5788The inner try conditional does not catch the exception, just its finally
5789clause is executed. The exception is then caught by the outer try
5790conditional. The example displays "inner finally" and then "foo".
5791
5792 *throw-from-catch*
5793You can catch an exception and throw a new one to be caught elsewhere from the
5794catch clause: >
5795
5796 :function! Foo()
5797 : throw "foo"
5798 :endfunction
5799 :
5800 :function! Bar()
5801 : try
5802 : call Foo()
5803 : catch /foo/
5804 : echo "Caught foo, throw bar"
5805 : throw "bar"
5806 : endtry
5807 :endfunction
5808 :
5809 :try
5810 : call Bar()
5811 :catch /.*/
5812 : echo "Caught" v:exception
5813 :endtry
5814
5815This displays "Caught foo, throw bar" and then "Caught bar".
5816
5817 *rethrow*
5818There is no real rethrow in the Vim script language, but you may throw
5819"v:exception" instead: >
5820
5821 :function! Bar()
5822 : try
5823 : call Foo()
5824 : catch /.*/
5825 : echo "Rethrow" v:exception
5826 : throw v:exception
5827 : endtry
5828 :endfunction
5829< *try-echoerr*
5830Note that this method cannot be used to "rethrow" Vim error or interrupt
5831exceptions, because it is not possible to fake Vim internal exceptions.
5832Trying so causes an error exception. You should throw your own exception
5833denoting the situation. If you want to cause a Vim error exception containing
5834the original error exception value, you can use the |:echoerr| command: >
5835
5836 :try
5837 : try
5838 : asdf
5839 : catch /.*/
5840 : echoerr v:exception
5841 : endtry
5842 :catch /.*/
5843 : echo v:exception
5844 :endtry
5845
5846This code displays
5847
5848 Vim(echoerr):Vim:E492: Not an editor command: asdf ~
5849
5850
5851CLEANUP CODE *try-finally*
5852
5853Scripts often change global settings and restore them at their end. If the
5854user however interrupts the script by pressing CTRL-C, the settings remain in
5855an inconsistent state. The same may happen to you in the development phase of
5856a script when an error occurs or you explicitly throw an exception without
5857catching it. You can solve these problems by using a try conditional with
5858a finally clause for restoring the settings. Its execution is guaranteed on
5859normal control flow, on error, on an explicit ":throw", and on interrupt.
5860(Note that errors and interrupts from inside the try conditional are converted
5861to exceptions. When not caught, they terminate the script after the finally
5862clause has been executed.)
5863Example: >
5864
5865 :try
5866 : let s:saved_ts = &ts
5867 : set ts=17
5868 :
5869 : " Do the hard work here.
5870 :
5871 :finally
5872 : let &ts = s:saved_ts
5873 : unlet s:saved_ts
5874 :endtry
5875
5876This method should be used locally whenever a function or part of a script
5877changes global settings which need to be restored on failure or normal exit of
5878that function or script part.
5879
5880 *break-finally*
5881Cleanup code works also when the try block or a catch clause is left by
5882a ":continue", ":break", ":return", or ":finish".
5883 Example: >
5884
5885 :let first = 1
5886 :while 1
5887 : try
5888 : if first
5889 : echo "first"
5890 : let first = 0
5891 : continue
5892 : else
5893 : throw "second"
5894 : endif
5895 : catch /.*/
5896 : echo v:exception
5897 : break
5898 : finally
5899 : echo "cleanup"
5900 : endtry
5901 : echo "still in while"
5902 :endwhile
5903 :echo "end"
5904
5905This displays "first", "cleanup", "second", "cleanup", and "end". >
5906
5907 :function! Foo()
5908 : try
5909 : return 4711
5910 : finally
5911 : echo "cleanup\n"
5912 : endtry
5913 : echo "Foo still active"
5914 :endfunction
5915 :
5916 :echo Foo() "returned by Foo"
5917
5918This displays "cleanup" and "4711 returned by Foo". You don't need to add an
5919extra ":return" in the finally clause. (Above all, this would override the
5920return value.)
5921
5922 *except-from-finally*
5923Using either of ":continue", ":break", ":return", ":finish", or ":throw" in
5924a finally clause is possible, but not recommended since it abandons the
5925cleanup actions for the try conditional. But, of course, interrupt and error
5926exceptions might get raised from a finally clause.
5927 Example where an error in the finally clause stops an interrupt from
5928working correctly: >
5929
5930 :try
5931 : try
5932 : echo "Press CTRL-C for interrupt"
5933 : while 1
5934 : endwhile
5935 : finally
5936 : unlet novar
5937 : endtry
5938 :catch /novar/
5939 :endtry
5940 :echo "Script still running"
5941 :sleep 1
5942
5943If you need to put commands that could fail into a finally clause, you should
5944think about catching or ignoring the errors in these commands, see
5945|catch-errors| and |ignore-errors|.
5946
5947
5948CATCHING ERRORS *catch-errors*
5949
5950If you want to catch specific errors, you just have to put the code to be
5951watched in a try block and add a catch clause for the error message. The
5952presence of the try conditional causes all errors to be converted to an
5953exception. No message is displayed and |v:errmsg| is not set then. To find
5954the right pattern for the ":catch" command, you have to know how the format of
5955the error exception is.
5956 Error exceptions have the following format: >
5957
5958 Vim({cmdname}):{errmsg}
5959or >
5960 Vim:{errmsg}
5961
5962{cmdname} is the name of the command that failed; the second form is used when
5963the command name is not known. {errmsg} is the error message usually produced
5964when the error occurs outside try conditionals. It always begins with
5965a capital "E", followed by a two or three-digit error number, a colon, and
5966a space.
5967
5968Examples:
5969
5970The command >
5971 :unlet novar
5972normally produces the error message >
5973 E108: No such variable: "novar"
5974which is converted inside try conditionals to an exception >
5975 Vim(unlet):E108: No such variable: "novar"
5976
5977The command >
5978 :dwim
5979normally produces the error message >
5980 E492: Not an editor command: dwim
5981which is converted inside try conditionals to an exception >
5982 Vim:E492: Not an editor command: dwim
5983
5984You can catch all ":unlet" errors by a >
5985 :catch /^Vim(unlet):/
5986or all errors for misspelled command names by a >
5987 :catch /^Vim:E492:/
5988
5989Some error messages may be produced by different commands: >
5990 :function nofunc
5991and >
5992 :delfunction nofunc
5993both produce the error message >
5994 E128: Function name must start with a capital: nofunc
5995which is converted inside try conditionals to an exception >
5996 Vim(function):E128: Function name must start with a capital: nofunc
5997or >
5998 Vim(delfunction):E128: Function name must start with a capital: nofunc
5999respectively. You can catch the error by its number independently on the
6000command that caused it if you use the following pattern: >
6001 :catch /^Vim(\a\+):E128:/
6002
6003Some commands like >
6004 :let x = novar
6005produce multiple error messages, here: >
6006 E121: Undefined variable: novar
6007 E15: Invalid expression: novar
6008Only the first is used for the exception value, since it is the most specific
6009one (see |except-several-errors|). So you can catch it by >
6010 :catch /^Vim(\a\+):E121:/
6011
6012You can catch all errors related to the name "nofunc" by >
6013 :catch /\<nofunc\>/
6014
6015You can catch all Vim errors in the ":write" and ":read" commands by >
6016 :catch /^Vim(\(write\|read\)):E\d\+:/
6017
6018You can catch all Vim errors by the pattern >
6019 :catch /^Vim\((\a\+)\)\=:E\d\+:/
6020<
6021 *catch-text*
6022NOTE: You should never catch the error message text itself: >
6023 :catch /No such variable/
6024only works in the english locale, but not when the user has selected
6025a different language by the |:language| command. It is however helpful to
6026cite the message text in a comment: >
6027 :catch /^Vim(\a\+):E108:/ " No such variable
6028
6029
6030IGNORING ERRORS *ignore-errors*
6031
6032You can ignore errors in a specific Vim command by catching them locally: >
6033
6034 :try
6035 : write
6036 :catch
6037 :endtry
6038
6039But you are strongly recommended NOT to use this simple form, since it could
6040catch more than you want. With the ":write" command, some autocommands could
6041be executed and cause errors not related to writing, for instance: >
6042
6043 :au BufWritePre * unlet novar
6044
6045There could even be such errors you are not responsible for as a script
6046writer: a user of your script might have defined such autocommands. You would
6047then hide the error from the user.
6048 It is much better to use >
6049
6050 :try
6051 : write
6052 :catch /^Vim(write):/
6053 :endtry
6054
6055which only catches real write errors. So catch only what you'd like to ignore
6056intentionally.
6057
6058For a single command that does not cause execution of autocommands, you could
6059even suppress the conversion of errors to exceptions by the ":silent!"
6060command: >
6061 :silent! nunmap k
6062This works also when a try conditional is active.
6063
6064
6065CATCHING INTERRUPTS *catch-interrupt*
6066
6067When there are active try conditionals, an interrupt (CTRL-C) is converted to
6068the exception "Vim:Interrupt". You can catch it like every exception. The
6069script is not terminated, then.
6070 Example: >
6071
6072 :function! TASK1()
6073 : sleep 10
6074 :endfunction
6075
6076 :function! TASK2()
6077 : sleep 20
6078 :endfunction
6079
6080 :while 1
6081 : let command = input("Type a command: ")
6082 : try
6083 : if command == ""
6084 : continue
6085 : elseif command == "END"
6086 : break
6087 : elseif command == "TASK1"
6088 : call TASK1()
6089 : elseif command == "TASK2"
6090 : call TASK2()
6091 : else
6092 : echo "\nIllegal command:" command
6093 : continue
6094 : endif
6095 : catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/
6096 : echo "\nCommand interrupted"
6097 : " Caught the interrupt. Continue with next prompt.
6098 : endtry
6099 :endwhile
6100
6101You can interrupt a task here by pressing CTRL-C; the script then asks for
6102a new command. If you press CTRL-C at the prompt, the script is terminated.
6103
6104For testing what happens when CTRL-C would be pressed on a specific line in
6105your script, use the debug mode and execute the |>quit| or |>interrupt|
6106command on that line. See |debug-scripts|.
6107
6108
6109CATCHING ALL *catch-all*
6110
6111The commands >
6112
6113 :catch /.*/
6114 :catch //
6115 :catch
6116
6117catch everything, error exceptions, interrupt exceptions and exceptions
6118explicitly thrown by the |:throw| command. This is useful at the top level of
6119a script in order to catch unexpected things.
6120 Example: >
6121
6122 :try
6123 :
6124 : " do the hard work here
6125 :
6126 :catch /MyException/
6127 :
6128 : " handle known problem
6129 :
6130 :catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/
6131 : echo "Script interrupted"
6132 :catch /.*/
6133 : echo "Internal error (" . v:exception . ")"
6134 : echo " - occurred at " . v:throwpoint
6135 :endtry
6136 :" end of script
6137
6138Note: Catching all might catch more things than you want. Thus, you are
6139strongly encouraged to catch only for problems that you can really handle by
6140specifying a pattern argument to the ":catch".
6141 Example: Catching all could make it nearly impossible to interrupt a script
6142by pressing CTRL-C: >
6143
6144 :while 1
6145 : try
6146 : sleep 1
6147 : catch
6148 : endtry
6149 :endwhile
6150
6151
6152EXCEPTIONS AND AUTOCOMMANDS *except-autocmd*
6153
6154Exceptions may be used during execution of autocommands. Example: >
6155
6156 :autocmd User x try
6157 :autocmd User x throw "Oops!"
6158 :autocmd User x catch
6159 :autocmd User x echo v:exception
6160 :autocmd User x endtry
6161 :autocmd User x throw "Arrgh!"
6162 :autocmd User x echo "Should not be displayed"
6163 :
6164 :try
6165 : doautocmd User x
6166 :catch
6167 : echo v:exception
6168 :endtry
6169
6170This displays "Oops!" and "Arrgh!".
6171
6172 *except-autocmd-Pre*
6173For some commands, autocommands get executed before the main action of the
6174command takes place. If an exception is thrown and not caught in the sequence
6175of autocommands, the sequence and the command that caused its execution are
6176abandoned and the exception is propagated to the caller of the command.
6177 Example: >
6178
6179 :autocmd BufWritePre * throw "FAIL"
6180 :autocmd BufWritePre * echo "Should not be displayed"
6181 :
6182 :try
6183 : write
6184 :catch
6185 : echo "Caught:" v:exception "from" v:throwpoint
6186 :endtry
6187
6188Here, the ":write" command does not write the file currently being edited (as
6189you can see by checking 'modified'), since the exception from the BufWritePre
6190autocommand abandons the ":write". The exception is then caught and the
6191script displays: >
6192
6193 Caught: FAIL from BufWrite Auto commands for "*"
6194<
6195 *except-autocmd-Post*
6196For some commands, autocommands get executed after the main action of the
6197command has taken place. If this main action fails and the command is inside
6198an active try conditional, the autocommands are skipped and an error exception
6199is thrown that can be caught by the caller of the command.
6200 Example: >
6201
6202 :autocmd BufWritePost * echo "File successfully written!"
6203 :
6204 :try
6205 : write /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
6206 :catch
6207 : echo v:exception
6208 :endtry
6209
6210This just displays: >
6211
6212 Vim(write):E212: Can't open file for writing (/i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e)
6213
6214If you really need to execute the autocommands even when the main action
6215fails, trigger the event from the catch clause.
6216 Example: >
6217
6218 :autocmd BufWritePre * set noreadonly
6219 :autocmd BufWritePost * set readonly
6220 :
6221 :try
6222 : write /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
6223 :catch
6224 : doautocmd BufWritePost /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
6225 :endtry
6226<
6227You can also use ":silent!": >
6228
6229 :let x = "ok"
6230 :let v:errmsg = ""
6231 :autocmd BufWritePost * if v:errmsg != ""
6232 :autocmd BufWritePost * let x = "after fail"
6233 :autocmd BufWritePost * endif
6234 :try
6235 : silent! write /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
6236 :catch
6237 :endtry
6238 :echo x
6239
6240This displays "after fail".
6241
6242If the main action of the command does not fail, exceptions from the
6243autocommands will be catchable by the caller of the command: >
6244
6245 :autocmd BufWritePost * throw ":-("
6246 :autocmd BufWritePost * echo "Should not be displayed"
6247 :
6248 :try
6249 : write
6250 :catch
6251 : echo v:exception
6252 :endtry
6253<
6254 *except-autocmd-Cmd*
6255For some commands, the normal action can be replaced by a sequence of
6256autocommands. Exceptions from that sequence will be catchable by the caller
6257of the command.
6258 Example: For the ":write" command, the caller cannot know whether the file
6259had actually been written when the exception occurred. You need to tell it in
6260some way. >
6261
6262 :if !exists("cnt")
6263 : let cnt = 0
6264 :
6265 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * if &modified
6266 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * let cnt = cnt + 1
6267 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * if cnt % 3 == 2
6268 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * throw "BufWriteCmdError"
6269 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * endif
6270 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * write | set nomodified
6271 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * if cnt % 3 == 0
6272 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * throw "BufWriteCmdError"
6273 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * endif
6274 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * echo "File successfully written!"
6275 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * endif
6276 :endif
6277 :
6278 :try
6279 : write
6280 :catch /^BufWriteCmdError$/
6281 : if &modified
6282 : echo "Error on writing (file contents not changed)"
6283 : else
6284 : echo "Error after writing"
6285 : endif
6286 :catch /^Vim(write):/
6287 : echo "Error on writing"
6288 :endtry
6289
6290When this script is sourced several times after making changes, it displays
6291first >
6292 File successfully written!
6293then >
6294 Error on writing (file contents not changed)
6295then >
6296 Error after writing
6297etc.
6298
6299 *except-autocmd-ill*
6300You cannot spread a try conditional over autocommands for different events.
6301The following code is ill-formed: >
6302
6303 :autocmd BufWritePre * try
6304 :
6305 :autocmd BufWritePost * catch
6306 :autocmd BufWritePost * echo v:exception
6307 :autocmd BufWritePost * endtry
6308 :
6309 :write
6310
6311
6312EXCEPTION HIERARCHIES AND PARAMETERIZED EXCEPTIONS *except-hier-param*
6313
6314Some programming languages allow to use hierarchies of exception classes or to
6315pass additional information with the object of an exception class. You can do
6316similar things in Vim.
6317 In order to throw an exception from a hierarchy, just throw the complete
6318class name with the components separated by a colon, for instance throw the
6319string "EXCEPT:MATHERR:OVERFLOW" for an overflow in a mathematical library.
6320 When you want to pass additional information with your exception class, add
6321it in parentheses, for instance throw the string "EXCEPT:IO:WRITEERR(myfile)"
6322for an error when writing "myfile".
6323 With the appropriate patterns in the ":catch" command, you can catch for
6324base classes or derived classes of your hierarchy. Additional information in
6325parentheses can be cut out from |v:exception| with the ":substitute" command.
6326 Example: >
6327
6328 :function! CheckRange(a, func)
6329 : if a:a < 0
6330 : throw "EXCEPT:MATHERR:RANGE(" . a:func . ")"
6331 : endif
6332 :endfunction
6333 :
6334 :function! Add(a, b)
6335 : call CheckRange(a:a, "Add")
6336 : call CheckRange(a:b, "Add")
6337 : let c = a:a + a:b
6338 : if c < 0
6339 : throw "EXCEPT:MATHERR:OVERFLOW"
6340 : endif
6341 : return c
6342 :endfunction
6343 :
6344 :function! Div(a, b)
6345 : call CheckRange(a:a, "Div")
6346 : call CheckRange(a:b, "Div")
6347 : if (a:b == 0)
6348 : throw "EXCEPT:MATHERR:ZERODIV"
6349 : endif
6350 : return a:a / a:b
6351 :endfunction
6352 :
6353 :function! Write(file)
6354 : try
6355 : execute "write" a:file
6356 : catch /^Vim(write):/
6357 : throw "EXCEPT:IO(" . getcwd() . ", " . a:file . "):WRITEERR"
6358 : endtry
6359 :endfunction
6360 :
6361 :try
6362 :
6363 : " something with arithmetics and I/O
6364 :
6365 :catch /^EXCEPT:MATHERR:RANGE/
6366 : let function = substitute(v:exception, '.*(\(\a\+\)).*', '\1', "")
6367 : echo "Range error in" function
6368 :
6369 :catch /^EXCEPT:MATHERR/ " catches OVERFLOW and ZERODIV
6370 : echo "Math error"
6371 :
6372 :catch /^EXCEPT:IO/
6373 : let dir = substitute(v:exception, '.*(\(.\+\),\s*.\+).*', '\1', "")
6374 : let file = substitute(v:exception, '.*(.\+,\s*\(.\+\)).*', '\1', "")
6375 : if file !~ '^/'
6376 : let file = dir . "/" . file
6377 : endif
6378 : echo 'I/O error for "' . file . '"'
6379 :
6380 :catch /^EXCEPT/
6381 : echo "Unspecified error"
6382 :
6383 :endtry
6384
6385The exceptions raised by Vim itself (on error or when pressing CTRL-C) use
6386a flat hierarchy: they are all in the "Vim" class. You cannot throw yourself
6387exceptions with the "Vim" prefix; they are reserved for Vim.
6388 Vim error exceptions are parameterized with the name of the command that
6389failed, if known. See |catch-errors|.
6390
6391
6392PECULIARITIES
6393 *except-compat*
6394The exception handling concept requires that the command sequence causing the
6395exception is aborted immediately and control is transferred to finally clauses
6396and/or a catch clause.
6397
6398In the Vim script language there are cases where scripts and functions
6399continue after an error: in functions without the "abort" flag or in a command
6400after ":silent!", control flow goes to the following line, and outside
6401functions, control flow goes to the line following the outermost ":endwhile"
6402or ":endif". On the other hand, errors should be catchable as exceptions
6403(thus, requiring the immediate abortion).
6404
6405This problem has been solved by converting errors to exceptions and using
6406immediate abortion (if not suppressed by ":silent!") only when a try
6407conditional is active. This is no restriction since an (error) exception can
6408be caught only from an active try conditional. If you want an immediate
6409termination without catching the error, just use a try conditional without
6410catch clause. (You can cause cleanup code being executed before termination
6411by specifying a finally clause.)
6412
6413When no try conditional is active, the usual abortion and continuation
6414behavior is used instead of immediate abortion. This ensures compatibility of
6415scripts written for Vim 6.1 and earlier.
6416
6417However, when sourcing an existing script that does not use exception handling
6418commands (or when calling one of its functions) from inside an active try
6419conditional of a new script, you might change the control flow of the existing
6420script on error. You get the immediate abortion on error and can catch the
6421error in the new script. If however the sourced script suppresses error
6422messages by using the ":silent!" command (checking for errors by testing
6423|v:errmsg| if appropriate), its execution path is not changed. The error is
6424not converted to an exception. (See |:silent|.) So the only remaining cause
6425where this happens is for scripts that don't care about errors and produce
6426error messages. You probably won't want to use such code from your new
6427scripts.
6428
6429 *except-syntax-err*
6430Syntax errors in the exception handling commands are never caught by any of
6431the ":catch" commands of the try conditional they belong to. Its finally
6432clauses, however, is executed.
6433 Example: >
6434
6435 :try
6436 : try
6437 : throw 4711
6438 : catch /\(/
6439 : echo "in catch with syntax error"
6440 : catch
6441 : echo "inner catch-all"
6442 : finally
6443 : echo "inner finally"
6444 : endtry
6445 :catch
6446 : echo 'outer catch-all caught "' . v:exception . '"'
6447 : finally
6448 : echo "outer finally"
6449 :endtry
6450
6451This displays: >
6452 inner finally
6453 outer catch-all caught "Vim(catch):E54: Unmatched \("
6454 outer finally
6455The original exception is discarded and an error exception is raised, instead.
6456
6457 *except-single-line*
6458The ":try", ":catch", ":finally", and ":endtry" commands can be put on
6459a single line, but then syntax errors may make it difficult to recognize the
6460"catch" line, thus you better avoid this.
6461 Example: >
6462 :try | unlet! foo # | catch | endtry
6463raises an error exception for the trailing characters after the ":unlet!"
6464argument, but does not see the ":catch" and ":endtry" commands, so that the
6465error exception is discarded and the "E488: Trailing characters" message gets
6466displayed.
6467
6468 *except-several-errors*
6469When several errors appear in a single command, the first error message is
6470usually the most specific one and therefor converted to the error exception.
6471 Example: >
6472 echo novar
6473causes >
6474 E121: Undefined variable: novar
6475 E15: Invalid expression: novar
6476The value of the error exception inside try conditionals is: >
6477 Vim(echo):E121: Undefined variable: novar
6478< *except-syntax-error*
6479But when a syntax error is detected after a normal error in the same command,
6480the syntax error is used for the exception being thrown.
6481 Example: >
6482 unlet novar #
6483causes >
6484 E108: No such variable: "novar"
6485 E488: Trailing characters
6486The value of the error exception inside try conditionals is: >
6487 Vim(unlet):E488: Trailing characters
6488This is done because the syntax error might change the execution path in a way
6489not intended by the user. Example: >
6490 try
6491 try | unlet novar # | catch | echo v:exception | endtry
6492 catch /.*/
6493 echo "outer catch:" v:exception
6494 endtry
6495This displays "outer catch: Vim(unlet):E488: Trailing characters", and then
6496a "E600: Missing :endtry" error message is given, see |except-single-line|.
6497
6498==============================================================================
64999. Examples *eval-examples*
6500
6501Printing in Hex ~
6502>
6503 :" The function Nr2Hex() returns the Hex string of a number.
6504 :func Nr2Hex(nr)
6505 : let n = a:nr
6506 : let r = ""
6507 : while n
6508 : let r = '0123456789ABCDEF'[n % 16] . r
6509 : let n = n / 16
6510 : endwhile
6511 : return r
6512 :endfunc
6513
6514 :" The function String2Hex() converts each character in a string to a two
6515 :" character Hex string.
6516 :func String2Hex(str)
6517 : let out = ''
6518 : let ix = 0
6519 : while ix < strlen(a:str)
6520 : let out = out . Nr2Hex(char2nr(a:str[ix]))
6521 : let ix = ix + 1
6522 : endwhile
6523 : return out
6524 :endfunc
6525
6526Example of its use: >
6527 :echo Nr2Hex(32)
6528result: "20" >
6529 :echo String2Hex("32")
6530result: "3332"
6531
6532
6533Sorting lines (by Robert Webb) ~
6534
6535Here is a Vim script to sort lines. Highlight the lines in Vim and type
6536":Sort". This doesn't call any external programs so it'll work on any
6537platform. The function Sort() actually takes the name of a comparison
6538function as its argument, like qsort() does in C. So you could supply it
6539with different comparison functions in order to sort according to date etc.
6540>
6541 :" Function for use with Sort(), to compare two strings.
6542 :func! Strcmp(str1, str2)
6543 : if (a:str1 < a:str2)
6544 : return -1
6545 : elseif (a:str1 > a:str2)
6546 : return 1
6547 : else
6548 : return 0
6549 : endif
6550 :endfunction
6551
6552 :" Sort lines. SortR() is called recursively.
6553 :func! SortR(start, end, cmp)
6554 : if (a:start >= a:end)
6555 : return
6556 : endif
6557 : let partition = a:start - 1
6558 : let middle = partition
6559 : let partStr = getline((a:start + a:end) / 2)
6560 : let i = a:start
6561 : while (i <= a:end)
6562 : let str = getline(i)
6563 : exec "let result = " . a:cmp . "(str, partStr)"
6564 : if (result <= 0)
6565 : " Need to put it before the partition. Swap lines i and partition.
6566 : let partition = partition + 1
6567 : if (result == 0)
6568 : let middle = partition
6569 : endif
6570 : if (i != partition)
6571 : let str2 = getline(partition)
6572 : call setline(i, str2)
6573 : call setline(partition, str)
6574 : endif
6575 : endif
6576 : let i = i + 1
6577 : endwhile
6578
6579 : " Now we have a pointer to the "middle" element, as far as partitioning
6580 : " goes, which could be anywhere before the partition. Make sure it is at
6581 : " the end of the partition.
6582 : if (middle != partition)
6583 : let str = getline(middle)
6584 : let str2 = getline(partition)
6585 : call setline(middle, str2)
6586 : call setline(partition, str)
6587 : endif
6588 : call SortR(a:start, partition - 1, a:cmp)
6589 : call SortR(partition + 1, a:end, a:cmp)
6590 :endfunc
6591
6592 :" To Sort a range of lines, pass the range to Sort() along with the name of a
6593 :" function that will compare two lines.
6594 :func! Sort(cmp) range
6595 : call SortR(a:firstline, a:lastline, a:cmp)
6596 :endfunc
6597
6598 :" :Sort takes a range of lines and sorts them.
6599 :command! -nargs=0 -range Sort <line1>,<line2>call Sort("Strcmp")
6600<
6601 *sscanf*
6602There is no sscanf() function in Vim. If you need to extract parts from a
6603line, you can use matchstr() and substitute() to do it. This example shows
6604how to get the file name, line number and column number out of a line like
6605"foobar.txt, 123, 45". >
6606 :" Set up the match bit
6607 :let mx='\(\f\+\),\s*\(\d\+\),\s*\(\d\+\)'
6608 :"get the part matching the whole expression
6609 :let l = matchstr(line, mx)
6610 :"get each item out of the match
6611 :let file = substitute(l, mx, '\1', '')
6612 :let lnum = substitute(l, mx, '\2', '')
6613 :let col = substitute(l, mx, '\3', '')
6614
6615The input is in the variable "line", the results in the variables "file",
6616"lnum" and "col". (idea from Michael Geddes)
6617
6618==============================================================================
661910. No +eval feature *no-eval-feature*
6620
6621When the |+eval| feature was disabled at compile time, none of the expression
6622evaluation commands are available. To prevent this from causing Vim scripts
6623to generate all kinds of errors, the ":if" and ":endif" commands are still
6624recognized, though the argument of the ":if" and everything between the ":if"
6625and the matching ":endif" is ignored. Nesting of ":if" blocks is allowed, but
6626only if the commands are at the start of the line. The ":else" command is not
6627recognized.
6628
6629Example of how to avoid executing commands when the |+eval| feature is
6630missing: >
6631
6632 :if 1
6633 : echo "Expression evaluation is compiled in"
6634 :else
6635 : echo "You will _never_ see this message"
6636 :endif
6637
6638==============================================================================
663911. The sandbox *eval-sandbox* *sandbox* *E48*
6640
6641The 'foldexpr', 'includeexpr', 'indentexpr', 'statusline' and 'foldtext'
6642options are evaluated in a sandbox. This means that you are protected from
6643these expressions having nasty side effects. This gives some safety for when
6644these options are set from a modeline. It is also used when the command from
6645a tags file is executed.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00006646The sandbox is also used for the |:sandbox| command.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006647
6648These items are not allowed in the sandbox:
6649 - changing the buffer text
6650 - defining or changing mapping, autocommands, functions, user commands
6651 - setting certain options (see |option-summary|)
6652 - executing a shell command
6653 - reading or writing a file
6654 - jumping to another buffer or editing a file
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00006655This is not guaranteed 100% secure, but it should block most attacks.
6656
6657 *:san* *:sandbox*
Bram Moolenaar045e82d2005-07-08 22:25:33 +00006658:san[dbox] {cmd} Execute {cmd} in the sandbox. Useful to evaluate an
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00006659 option that may have been set from a modeline, e.g.
6660 'foldexpr'.
6661
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006662
6663 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: