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Bram Moolenaar4d919d72016-02-05 22:36:41 +01001*eval.txt* For Vim version 7.4. Last change: 2016 Feb 05
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002
3
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005
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 Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +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 Moolenaarb71eaae2006-01-20 23:10:18 +00003112. Textlock |textlock|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000032
33{Vi does not have any of these commands}
34
35==============================================================================
361. Variables *variables*
37
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000381.1 Variable types ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +000039 *E712*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +000040There are six types of variables:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000041
Bram Moolenaar5302d9e2011-09-14 17:55:08 +020042Number A 32 or 64 bit signed number. |expr-number| *Number*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000043 Examples: -123 0x10 0177
44
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +000045Float A floating point number. |floating-point-format| *Float*
46 {only when compiled with the |+float| feature}
47 Examples: 123.456 1.15e-6 -1.1e3
48
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000049String A NUL terminated string of 8-bit unsigned characters (bytes).
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +000050 |expr-string| Examples: "ab\txx\"--" 'x-z''a,c'
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +000051
52Funcref A reference to a function |Funcref|.
53 Example: function("strlen")
54
55List An ordered sequence of items |List|.
56 Example: [1, 2, ['a', 'b']]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000057
Bram Moolenaar39a58ca2005-06-27 22:42:44 +000058Dictionary An associative, unordered array: Each entry has a key and a
59 value. |Dictionary|
60 Example: {'blue': "#0000ff", 'red': "#ff0000"}
61
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +000062The Number and String types are converted automatically, depending on how they
63are used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000064
65Conversion from a Number to a String is by making the ASCII representation of
Bram Moolenaar24ea3ba2010-09-19 19:01:21 +020066the Number. Examples:
67 Number 123 --> String "123" ~
68 Number 0 --> String "0" ~
69 Number -1 --> String "-1" ~
Bram Moolenaar00a927d2010-05-14 23:24:24 +020070 *octal*
Bram Moolenaarfa735342016-01-03 22:14:44 +010071Conversion from a String to a Number is done by converting the first digits to
72a number. Hexadecimal "0xf9", Octal "017", and Binary "0b10" numbers are
73recognized. If the String doesn't start with digits, the result is zero.
74Examples:
Bram Moolenaar24ea3ba2010-09-19 19:01:21 +020075 String "456" --> Number 456 ~
76 String "6bar" --> Number 6 ~
77 String "foo" --> Number 0 ~
78 String "0xf1" --> Number 241 ~
79 String "0100" --> Number 64 ~
Bram Moolenaarfa735342016-01-03 22:14:44 +010080 String "0b101" --> Number 5 ~
Bram Moolenaar24ea3ba2010-09-19 19:01:21 +020081 String "-8" --> Number -8 ~
82 String "+8" --> Number 0 ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000083
84To force conversion from String to Number, add zero to it: >
85 :echo "0100" + 0
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +000086< 64 ~
87
88To avoid a leading zero to cause octal conversion, or for using a different
89base, use |str2nr()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000090
91For boolean operators Numbers are used. Zero is FALSE, non-zero is TRUE.
92
93Note that in the command >
94 :if "foo"
95"foo" is converted to 0, which means FALSE. To test for a non-empty string,
Bram Moolenaar3a0d8092012-10-21 03:02:54 +020096use empty(): >
97 :if !empty("foo")
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +000098< *E745* *E728* *E703* *E729* *E730* *E731*
99List, Dictionary and Funcref types are not automatically converted.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000100
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000101 *E805* *E806* *E808*
102When mixing Number and Float the Number is converted to Float. Otherwise
103there is no automatic conversion of Float. You can use str2float() for String
104to Float, printf() for Float to String and float2nr() for Float to Number.
105
Bram Moolenaar13d5aee2016-01-21 23:36:05 +0100106 *E891* *E892* *E893* *E894*
107When expecting a Float a Number can also be used, but nothing else.
108
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000109 *E706* *sticky-type-checking*
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000110You will get an error if you try to change the type of a variable. You need
111to |:unlet| it first to avoid this error. String and Number are considered
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000112equivalent though, as well are Float and Number. Consider this sequence of
113commands: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000114 :let l = "string"
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000115 :let l = 44 " changes type from String to Number
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000116 :let l = [1, 2, 3] " error! l is still a Number
117 :let l = 4.4 " changes type from Number to Float
118 :let l = "string" " error!
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000119
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000120
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00001211.2 Function references ~
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +0000122 *Funcref* *E695* *E718*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000123A Funcref variable is obtained with the |function()| function. It can be used
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000124in an expression in the place of a function name, before the parenthesis
125around the arguments, to invoke the function it refers to. Example: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000126
127 :let Fn = function("MyFunc")
128 :echo Fn()
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000129< *E704* *E705* *E707*
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +0000130A Funcref variable must start with a capital, "s:", "w:", "t:" or "b:". You
Bram Moolenaar7cba6c02013-09-05 22:13:31 +0200131can use "g:" but the following name must still start with a capital. You
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +0000132cannot have both a Funcref variable and a function with the same name.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000133
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000134A special case is defining a function and directly assigning its Funcref to a
135Dictionary entry. Example: >
136 :function dict.init() dict
137 : let self.val = 0
138 :endfunction
139
140The key of the Dictionary can start with a lower case letter. The actual
141function name is not used here. Also see |numbered-function|.
142
143A Funcref can also be used with the |:call| command: >
144 :call Fn()
145 :call dict.init()
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000146
147The name of the referenced function can be obtained with |string()|. >
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000148 :let func = string(Fn)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000149
150You can use |call()| to invoke a Funcref and use a list variable for the
151arguments: >
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000152 :let r = call(Fn, mylist)
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000153
154
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00001551.3 Lists ~
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +0200156 *list* *List* *Lists* *E686*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000157A List is an ordered sequence of items. An item can be of any type. Items
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000158can be accessed by their index number. Items can be added and removed at any
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000159position in the sequence.
160
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000161
162List creation ~
163 *E696* *E697*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000164A List is created with a comma separated list of items in square brackets.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000165Examples: >
166 :let mylist = [1, two, 3, "four"]
167 :let emptylist = []
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000168
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000169An item can be any expression. Using a List for an item creates a
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +0000170List of Lists: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000171 :let nestlist = [[11, 12], [21, 22], [31, 32]]
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000172
173An extra comma after the last item is ignored.
174
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000175
176List index ~
177 *list-index* *E684*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000178An item in the List can be accessed by putting the index in square brackets
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000179after the List. Indexes are zero-based, thus the first item has index zero. >
180 :let item = mylist[0] " get the first item: 1
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000181 :let item = mylist[2] " get the third item: 3
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000182
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000183When the resulting item is a list this can be repeated: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000184 :let item = nestlist[0][1] " get the first list, second item: 12
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000185<
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000186A negative index is counted from the end. Index -1 refers to the last item in
187the List, -2 to the last but one item, etc. >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000188 :let last = mylist[-1] " get the last item: "four"
189
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000190To avoid an error for an invalid index use the |get()| function. When an item
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000191is not available it returns zero or the default value you specify: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000192 :echo get(mylist, idx)
193 :echo get(mylist, idx, "NONE")
194
195
196List concatenation ~
197
198Two lists can be concatenated with the "+" operator: >
199 :let longlist = mylist + [5, 6]
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000200 :let mylist += [7, 8]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000201
202To prepend or append an item turn the item into a list by putting [] around
203it. To change a list in-place see |list-modification| below.
204
205
206Sublist ~
207
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000208A part of the List can be obtained by specifying the first and last index,
209separated by a colon in square brackets: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000210 :let shortlist = mylist[2:-1] " get List [3, "four"]
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000211
212Omitting the first index is similar to zero. Omitting the last index is
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +0000213similar to -1. >
Bram Moolenaar540d6e32005-01-09 21:20:18 +0000214 :let endlist = mylist[2:] " from item 2 to the end: [3, "four"]
215 :let shortlist = mylist[2:2] " List with one item: [3]
216 :let otherlist = mylist[:] " make a copy of the List
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000217
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +0000218If the first index is beyond the last item of the List or the second item is
219before the first item, the result is an empty list. There is no error
220message.
221
222If the second index is equal to or greater than the length of the list the
223length minus one is used: >
Bram Moolenaar9e54a0e2006-04-14 20:42:25 +0000224 :let mylist = [0, 1, 2, 3]
225 :echo mylist[2:8] " result: [2, 3]
226
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +0000227NOTE: mylist[s:e] means using the variable "s:e" as index. Watch out for
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000228using a single letter variable before the ":". Insert a space when needed:
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +0000229mylist[s : e].
230
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000231
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000232List identity ~
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000233 *list-identity*
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000234When variable "aa" is a list and you assign it to another variable "bb", both
235variables refer to the same list. Thus changing the list "aa" will also
236change "bb": >
237 :let aa = [1, 2, 3]
238 :let bb = aa
239 :call add(aa, 4)
240 :echo bb
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000241< [1, 2, 3, 4]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000242
243Making a copy of a list is done with the |copy()| function. Using [:] also
244works, as explained above. This creates a shallow copy of the list: Changing
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000245a list item in the list will also change the item in the copied list: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000246 :let aa = [[1, 'a'], 2, 3]
247 :let bb = copy(aa)
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000248 :call add(aa, 4)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000249 :let aa[0][1] = 'aaa'
250 :echo aa
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000251< [[1, aaa], 2, 3, 4] >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000252 :echo bb
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000253< [[1, aaa], 2, 3]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000254
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000255To make a completely independent list use |deepcopy()|. This also makes a
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000256copy of the values in the list, recursively. Up to a hundred levels deep.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000257
258The operator "is" can be used to check if two variables refer to the same
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000259List. "isnot" does the opposite. In contrast "==" compares if two lists have
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000260the same value. >
261 :let alist = [1, 2, 3]
262 :let blist = [1, 2, 3]
263 :echo alist is blist
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000264< 0 >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000265 :echo alist == blist
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000266< 1
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000267
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000268Note about comparing lists: Two lists are considered equal if they have the
269same length and all items compare equal, as with using "==". There is one
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000270exception: When comparing a number with a string they are considered
271different. There is no automatic type conversion, as with using "==" on
272variables. Example: >
273 echo 4 == "4"
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000274< 1 >
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000275 echo [4] == ["4"]
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000276< 0
277
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000278Thus comparing Lists is more strict than comparing numbers and strings. You
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000279can compare simple values this way too by putting them in a list: >
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000280
281 :let a = 5
282 :let b = "5"
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000283 :echo a == b
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000284< 1 >
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000285 :echo [a] == [b]
Bram Moolenaar7d1f5db2005-07-03 21:39:27 +0000286< 0
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +0000287
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000288
289List unpack ~
290
291To unpack the items in a list to individual variables, put the variables in
292square brackets, like list items: >
293 :let [var1, var2] = mylist
294
295When the number of variables does not match the number of items in the list
296this produces an error. To handle any extra items from the list append ";"
297and a variable name: >
298 :let [var1, var2; rest] = mylist
299
300This works like: >
301 :let var1 = mylist[0]
302 :let var2 = mylist[1]
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000303 :let rest = mylist[2:]
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000304
305Except that there is no error if there are only two items. "rest" will be an
306empty list then.
307
308
309List modification ~
310 *list-modification*
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000311To change a specific item of a list use |:let| this way: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000312 :let list[4] = "four"
313 :let listlist[0][3] = item
314
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000315To change part of a list you can specify the first and last item to be
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000316modified. The value must at least have the number of items in the range: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000317 :let list[3:5] = [3, 4, 5]
318
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000319Adding and removing items from a list is done with functions. Here are a few
320examples: >
321 :call insert(list, 'a') " prepend item 'a'
322 :call insert(list, 'a', 3) " insert item 'a' before list[3]
323 :call add(list, "new") " append String item
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000324 :call add(list, [1, 2]) " append a List as one new item
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000325 :call extend(list, [1, 2]) " extend the list with two more items
326 :let i = remove(list, 3) " remove item 3
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +0000327 :unlet list[3] " idem
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000328 :let l = remove(list, 3, -1) " remove items 3 to last item
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +0000329 :unlet list[3 : ] " idem
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000330 :call filter(list, 'v:val !~ "x"') " remove items with an 'x'
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000331
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000332Changing the order of items in a list: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000333 :call sort(list) " sort a list alphabetically
334 :call reverse(list) " reverse the order of items
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +0100335 :call uniq(sort(list)) " sort and remove duplicates
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000336
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000337
338For loop ~
339
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000340The |:for| loop executes commands for each item in a list. A variable is set
341to each item in the list in sequence. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000342 :for item in mylist
343 : call Doit(item)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000344 :endfor
345
346This works like: >
347 :let index = 0
348 :while index < len(mylist)
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000349 : let item = mylist[index]
350 : :call Doit(item)
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000351 : let index = index + 1
352 :endwhile
353
354Note that all items in the list should be of the same type, otherwise this
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000355results in error |E706|. To avoid this |:unlet| the variable at the end of
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000356the loop.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000357
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000358If all you want to do is modify each item in the list then the |map()|
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000359function will be a simpler method than a for loop.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000360
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000361Just like the |:let| command, |:for| also accepts a list of variables. This
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000362requires the argument to be a list of lists. >
363 :for [lnum, col] in [[1, 3], [2, 8], [3, 0]]
364 : call Doit(lnum, col)
365 :endfor
366
367This works like a |:let| command is done for each list item. Again, the types
368must remain the same to avoid an error.
369
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000370It is also possible to put remaining items in a List variable: >
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000371 :for [i, j; rest] in listlist
372 : call Doit(i, j)
373 : if !empty(rest)
374 : echo "remainder: " . string(rest)
375 : endif
376 :endfor
377
378
379List functions ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000380 *E714*
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000381Functions that are useful with a List: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000382 :let r = call(funcname, list) " call a function with an argument list
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000383 :if empty(list) " check if list is empty
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000384 :let l = len(list) " number of items in list
385 :let big = max(list) " maximum value in list
386 :let small = min(list) " minimum value in list
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +0000387 :let xs = count(list, 'x') " count nr of times 'x' appears in list
388 :let i = index(list, 'x') " index of first 'x' in list
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000389 :let lines = getline(1, 10) " get ten text lines from buffer
390 :call append('$', lines) " append text lines in buffer
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +0000391 :let list = split("a b c") " create list from items in a string
392 :let string = join(list, ', ') " create string from list items
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000393 :let s = string(list) " String representation of list
394 :call map(list, '">> " . v:val') " prepend ">> " to each item
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000395
Bram Moolenaar0cb032e2005-04-23 20:52:00 +0000396Don't forget that a combination of features can make things simple. For
397example, to add up all the numbers in a list: >
398 :exe 'let sum = ' . join(nrlist, '+')
399
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000400
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00004011.4 Dictionaries ~
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +0200402 *dict* *Dictionaries* *Dictionary*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000403A Dictionary is an associative array: Each entry has a key and a value. The
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000404entry can be located with the key. The entries are stored without a specific
405ordering.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000406
407
408Dictionary creation ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000409 *E720* *E721* *E722* *E723*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000410A Dictionary is created with a comma separated list of entries in curly
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000411braces. Each entry has a key and a value, separated by a colon. Each key can
412only appear once. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000413 :let mydict = {1: 'one', 2: 'two', 3: 'three'}
414 :let emptydict = {}
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000415< *E713* *E716* *E717*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000416A key is always a String. You can use a Number, it will be converted to a
417String automatically. Thus the String '4' and the number 4 will find the same
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000418entry. Note that the String '04' and the Number 04 are different, since the
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000419Number will be converted to the String '4'.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000420
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000421A value can be any expression. Using a Dictionary for a value creates a
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000422nested Dictionary: >
423 :let nestdict = {1: {11: 'a', 12: 'b'}, 2: {21: 'c'}}
424
425An extra comma after the last entry is ignored.
426
427
428Accessing entries ~
429
430The normal way to access an entry is by putting the key in square brackets: >
431 :let val = mydict["one"]
432 :let mydict["four"] = 4
433
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000434You can add new entries to an existing Dictionary this way, unlike Lists.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000435
436For keys that consist entirely of letters, digits and underscore the following
437form can be used |expr-entry|: >
438 :let val = mydict.one
439 :let mydict.four = 4
440
441Since an entry can be any type, also a List and a Dictionary, the indexing and
442key lookup can be repeated: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000443 :echo dict.key[idx].key
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000444
445
446Dictionary to List conversion ~
447
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000448You may want to loop over the entries in a dictionary. For this you need to
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000449turn the Dictionary into a List and pass it to |:for|.
450
451Most often you want to loop over the keys, using the |keys()| function: >
452 :for key in keys(mydict)
453 : echo key . ': ' . mydict[key]
454 :endfor
455
456The List of keys is unsorted. You may want to sort them first: >
457 :for key in sort(keys(mydict))
458
459To loop over the values use the |values()| function: >
460 :for v in values(mydict)
461 : echo "value: " . v
462 :endfor
463
464If you want both the key and the value use the |items()| function. It returns
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000465a List in which each item is a List with two items, the key and the value: >
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +0000466 :for [key, value] in items(mydict)
467 : echo key . ': ' . value
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000468 :endfor
469
470
471Dictionary identity ~
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +0000472 *dict-identity*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000473Just like Lists you need to use |copy()| and |deepcopy()| to make a copy of a
474Dictionary. Otherwise, assignment results in referring to the same
475Dictionary: >
476 :let onedict = {'a': 1, 'b': 2}
477 :let adict = onedict
478 :let adict['a'] = 11
479 :echo onedict['a']
480 11
481
Bram Moolenaarf3bd51a2005-06-14 22:11:18 +0000482Two Dictionaries compare equal if all the key-value pairs compare equal. For
483more info see |list-identity|.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000484
485
486Dictionary modification ~
487 *dict-modification*
488To change an already existing entry of a Dictionary, or to add a new entry,
489use |:let| this way: >
490 :let dict[4] = "four"
491 :let dict['one'] = item
492
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +0000493Removing an entry from a Dictionary is done with |remove()| or |:unlet|.
494Three ways to remove the entry with key "aaa" from dict: >
495 :let i = remove(dict, 'aaa')
496 :unlet dict.aaa
497 :unlet dict['aaa']
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000498
499Merging a Dictionary with another is done with |extend()|: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000500 :call extend(adict, bdict)
501This extends adict with all entries from bdict. Duplicate keys cause entries
502in adict to be overwritten. An optional third argument can change this.
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +0000503Note that the order of entries in a Dictionary is irrelevant, thus don't
504expect ":echo adict" to show the items from bdict after the older entries in
505adict.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000506
507Weeding out entries from a Dictionary can be done with |filter()|: >
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +0000508 :call filter(dict, 'v:val =~ "x"')
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000509This removes all entries from "dict" with a value not matching 'x'.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000510
511
512Dictionary function ~
Bram Moolenaar26402cb2013-02-20 21:26:00 +0100513 *Dictionary-function* *self* *E725* *E862*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000514When a function is defined with the "dict" attribute it can be used in a
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000515special way with a dictionary. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000516 :function Mylen() dict
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000517 : return len(self.data)
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000518 :endfunction
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000519 :let mydict = {'data': [0, 1, 2, 3], 'len': function("Mylen")}
520 :echo mydict.len()
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000521
522This is like a method in object oriented programming. The entry in the
523Dictionary is a |Funcref|. The local variable "self" refers to the dictionary
524the function was invoked from.
525
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000526It is also possible to add a function without the "dict" attribute as a
527Funcref to a Dictionary, but the "self" variable is not available then.
528
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +0000529 *numbered-function* *anonymous-function*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000530To avoid the extra name for the function it can be defined and directly
531assigned to a Dictionary in this way: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000532 :let mydict = {'data': [0, 1, 2, 3]}
Bram Moolenaar5a5f4592015-04-13 12:43:06 +0200533 :function mydict.len()
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000534 : return len(self.data)
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000535 :endfunction
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000536 :echo mydict.len()
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000537
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000538The function will then get a number and the value of dict.len is a |Funcref|
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000539that references this function. The function can only be used through a
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000540|Funcref|. It will automatically be deleted when there is no |Funcref|
541remaining that refers to it.
542
543It is not necessary to use the "dict" attribute for a numbered function.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000544
Bram Moolenaar1affd722010-08-04 17:49:30 +0200545If you get an error for a numbered function, you can find out what it is with
546a trick. Assuming the function is 42, the command is: >
547 :function {42}
548
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000549
550Functions for Dictionaries ~
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000551 *E715*
552Functions that can be used with a Dictionary: >
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000553 :if has_key(dict, 'foo') " TRUE if dict has entry with key "foo"
554 :if empty(dict) " TRUE if dict is empty
555 :let l = len(dict) " number of items in dict
556 :let big = max(dict) " maximum value in dict
557 :let small = min(dict) " minimum value in dict
558 :let xs = count(dict, 'x') " count nr of times 'x' appears in dict
559 :let s = string(dict) " String representation of dict
560 :call map(dict, '">> " . v:val') " prepend ">> " to each item
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000561
562
5631.5 More about variables ~
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000564 *more-variables*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000565If you need to know the type of a variable or expression, use the |type()|
566function.
567
568When the '!' flag is included in the 'viminfo' option, global variables that
569start with an uppercase letter, and don't contain a lowercase letter, are
570stored in the viminfo file |viminfo-file|.
571
572When the 'sessionoptions' option contains "global", global variables that
573start with an uppercase letter and contain at least one lowercase letter are
574stored in the session file |session-file|.
575
576variable name can be stored where ~
577my_var_6 not
578My_Var_6 session file
579MY_VAR_6 viminfo file
580
581
582It's possible to form a variable name with curly braces, see
583|curly-braces-names|.
584
585==============================================================================
5862. Expression syntax *expression-syntax*
587
588Expression syntax summary, from least to most significant:
589
590|expr1| expr2 ? expr1 : expr1 if-then-else
591
592|expr2| expr3 || expr3 .. logical OR
593
594|expr3| expr4 && expr4 .. logical AND
595
596|expr4| expr5 == expr5 equal
597 expr5 != expr5 not equal
598 expr5 > expr5 greater than
599 expr5 >= expr5 greater than or equal
600 expr5 < expr5 smaller than
601 expr5 <= expr5 smaller than or equal
602 expr5 =~ expr5 regexp matches
603 expr5 !~ expr5 regexp doesn't match
604
605 expr5 ==? expr5 equal, ignoring case
606 expr5 ==# expr5 equal, match case
607 etc. As above, append ? for ignoring case, # for
608 matching case
609
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000610 expr5 is expr5 same |List| instance
611 expr5 isnot expr5 different |List| instance
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000612
613|expr5| expr6 + expr6 .. number addition or list concatenation
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000614 expr6 - expr6 .. number subtraction
615 expr6 . expr6 .. string concatenation
616
617|expr6| expr7 * expr7 .. number multiplication
618 expr7 / expr7 .. number division
619 expr7 % expr7 .. number modulo
620
621|expr7| ! expr7 logical NOT
622 - expr7 unary minus
623 + expr7 unary plus
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000624
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000625|expr8| expr8[expr1] byte of a String or item of a |List|
626 expr8[expr1 : expr1] substring of a String or sublist of a |List|
627 expr8.name entry in a |Dictionary|
628 expr8(expr1, ...) function call with |Funcref| variable
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000629
630|expr9| number number constant
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +0000631 "string" string constant, backslash is special
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000632 'string' string constant, ' is doubled
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000633 [expr1, ...] |List|
634 {expr1: expr1, ...} |Dictionary|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000635 &option option value
636 (expr1) nested expression
637 variable internal variable
638 va{ria}ble internal variable with curly braces
639 $VAR environment variable
640 @r contents of register 'r'
641 function(expr1, ...) function call
642 func{ti}on(expr1, ...) function call with curly braces
643
644
645".." indicates that the operations in this level can be concatenated.
646Example: >
647 &nu || &list && &shell == "csh"
648
649All expressions within one level are parsed from left to right.
650
651
652expr1 *expr1* *E109*
653-----
654
655expr2 ? expr1 : expr1
656
657The expression before the '?' is evaluated to a number. If it evaluates to
658non-zero, the result is the value of the expression between the '?' and ':',
659otherwise the result is the value of the expression after the ':'.
660Example: >
661 :echo lnum == 1 ? "top" : lnum
662
663Since the first expression is an "expr2", it cannot contain another ?:. The
664other two expressions can, thus allow for recursive use of ?:.
665Example: >
666 :echo lnum == 1 ? "top" : lnum == 1000 ? "last" : lnum
667
668To keep this readable, using |line-continuation| is suggested: >
669 :echo lnum == 1
670 :\ ? "top"
671 :\ : lnum == 1000
672 :\ ? "last"
673 :\ : lnum
674
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +0000675You should always put a space before the ':', otherwise it can be mistaken for
676use in a variable such as "a:1".
677
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000678
679expr2 and expr3 *expr2* *expr3*
680---------------
681
682 *expr-barbar* *expr-&&*
683The "||" and "&&" operators take one argument on each side. The arguments
684are (converted to) Numbers. The result is:
685
686 input output ~
687n1 n2 n1 || n2 n1 && n2 ~
688zero zero zero zero
689zero non-zero non-zero zero
690non-zero zero non-zero zero
691non-zero non-zero non-zero non-zero
692
693The operators can be concatenated, for example: >
694
695 &nu || &list && &shell == "csh"
696
697Note that "&&" takes precedence over "||", so this has the meaning of: >
698
699 &nu || (&list && &shell == "csh")
700
701Once the result is known, the expression "short-circuits", that is, further
702arguments are not evaluated. This is like what happens in C. For example: >
703
704 let a = 1
705 echo a || b
706
707This is valid even if there is no variable called "b" because "a" is non-zero,
708so the result must be non-zero. Similarly below: >
709
710 echo exists("b") && b == "yes"
711
712This is valid whether "b" has been defined or not. The second clause will
713only be evaluated if "b" has been defined.
714
715
716expr4 *expr4*
717-----
718
719expr5 {cmp} expr5
720
721Compare two expr5 expressions, resulting in a 0 if it evaluates to false, or 1
722if it evaluates to true.
723
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000724 *expr-==* *expr-!=* *expr->* *expr->=*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000725 *expr-<* *expr-<=* *expr-=~* *expr-!~*
726 *expr-==#* *expr-!=#* *expr->#* *expr->=#*
727 *expr-<#* *expr-<=#* *expr-=~#* *expr-!~#*
728 *expr-==?* *expr-!=?* *expr->?* *expr->=?*
729 *expr-<?* *expr-<=?* *expr-=~?* *expr-!~?*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +0200730 *expr-is* *expr-isnot* *expr-is#* *expr-isnot#*
731 *expr-is?* *expr-isnot?*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000732 use 'ignorecase' match case ignore case ~
733equal == ==# ==?
734not equal != !=# !=?
735greater than > ># >?
736greater than or equal >= >=# >=?
737smaller than < <# <?
738smaller than or equal <= <=# <=?
739regexp matches =~ =~# =~?
740regexp doesn't match !~ !~# !~?
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +0200741same instance is is# is?
742different instance isnot isnot# isnot?
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000743
744Examples:
745"abc" ==# "Abc" evaluates to 0
746"abc" ==? "Abc" evaluates to 1
747"abc" == "Abc" evaluates to 1 if 'ignorecase' is set, 0 otherwise
748
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000749 *E691* *E692*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000750A |List| can only be compared with a |List| and only "equal", "not equal" and
751"is" can be used. This compares the values of the list, recursively.
752Ignoring case means case is ignored when comparing item values.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000753
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000754 *E735* *E736*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000755A |Dictionary| can only be compared with a |Dictionary| and only "equal", "not
756equal" and "is" can be used. This compares the key/values of the |Dictionary|
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +0000757recursively. Ignoring case means case is ignored when comparing item values.
758
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +0000759 *E693* *E694*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000760A |Funcref| can only be compared with a |Funcref| and only "equal" and "not
761equal" can be used. Case is never ignored.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000762
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +0200763When using "is" or "isnot" with a |List| or a |Dictionary| this checks if the
764expressions are referring to the same |List| or |Dictionary| instance. A copy
765of a |List| is different from the original |List|. When using "is" without
766a |List| or a |Dictionary| it is equivalent to using "equal", using "isnot"
767equivalent to using "not equal". Except that a different type means the
768values are different: "4 == '4'" is true, "4 is '4'" is false and "0 is []" is
Bram Moolenaard09acef2012-09-21 14:54:30 +0200769false and not an error. "is#"/"isnot#" and "is?"/"isnot?" can be used to match
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +0200770and ignore case.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000771
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000772When comparing a String with a Number, the String is converted to a Number,
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000773and the comparison is done on Numbers. This means that "0 == 'x'" is TRUE,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000774because 'x' converted to a Number is zero.
775
776When comparing two Strings, this is done with strcmp() or stricmp(). This
777results in the mathematical difference (comparing byte values), not
778necessarily the alphabetical difference in the local language.
779
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000780When using the operators with a trailing '#', or the short version and
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +0000781'ignorecase' is off, the comparing is done with strcmp(): case matters.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000782
783When using the operators with a trailing '?', or the short version and
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +0000784'ignorecase' is set, the comparing is done with stricmp(): case is ignored.
785
786'smartcase' is not used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000787
788The "=~" and "!~" operators match the lefthand argument with the righthand
789argument, which is used as a pattern. See |pattern| for what a pattern is.
790This matching is always done like 'magic' was set and 'cpoptions' is empty, no
791matter what the actual value of 'magic' or 'cpoptions' is. This makes scripts
792portable. To avoid backslashes in the regexp pattern to be doubled, use a
793single-quote string, see |literal-string|.
794Since a string is considered to be a single line, a multi-line pattern
795(containing \n, backslash-n) will not match. However, a literal NL character
796can be matched like an ordinary character. Examples:
797 "foo\nbar" =~ "\n" evaluates to 1
798 "foo\nbar" =~ "\\n" evaluates to 0
799
800
801expr5 and expr6 *expr5* *expr6*
802---------------
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000803expr6 + expr6 .. Number addition or |List| concatenation *expr-+*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000804expr6 - expr6 .. Number subtraction *expr--*
805expr6 . expr6 .. String concatenation *expr-.*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000806
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +0000807For |Lists| only "+" is possible and then both expr6 must be a list. The
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000808result is a new list with the two lists Concatenated.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000809
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +0100810expr7 * expr7 .. Number multiplication *expr-star*
811expr7 / expr7 .. Number division *expr-/*
812expr7 % expr7 .. Number modulo *expr-%*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000813
814For all, except ".", Strings are converted to Numbers.
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +0100815For bitwise operators see |and()|, |or()| and |xor()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000816
817Note the difference between "+" and ".":
818 "123" + "456" = 579
819 "123" . "456" = "123456"
820
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000821Since '.' has the same precedence as '+' and '-', you need to read: >
822 1 . 90 + 90.0
823As: >
824 (1 . 90) + 90.0
825That works, since the String "190" is automatically converted to the Number
826190, which can be added to the Float 90.0. However: >
827 1 . 90 * 90.0
828Should be read as: >
829 1 . (90 * 90.0)
830Since '.' has lower precedence than '*'. This does NOT work, since this
831attempts to concatenate a Float and a String.
832
833When dividing a Number by zero the result depends on the value:
834 0 / 0 = -0x80000000 (like NaN for Float)
835 >0 / 0 = 0x7fffffff (like positive infinity)
836 <0 / 0 = -0x7fffffff (like negative infinity)
837 (before Vim 7.2 it was always 0x7fffffff)
838
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000839When the righthand side of '%' is zero, the result is 0.
840
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000841None of these work for |Funcref|s.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +0000842
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000843. and % do not work for Float. *E804*
844
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000845
846expr7 *expr7*
847-----
848! expr7 logical NOT *expr-!*
849- expr7 unary minus *expr-unary--*
850+ expr7 unary plus *expr-unary-+*
851
852For '!' non-zero becomes zero, zero becomes one.
853For '-' the sign of the number is changed.
854For '+' the number is unchanged.
855
856A String will be converted to a Number first.
857
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000858These three can be repeated and mixed. Examples:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000859 !-1 == 0
860 !!8 == 1
861 --9 == 9
862
863
864expr8 *expr8*
865-----
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000866expr8[expr1] item of String or |List| *expr-[]* *E111*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000867
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000868If expr8 is a Number or String this results in a String that contains the
869expr1'th single byte from expr8. expr8 is used as a String, expr1 as a
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100870Number. This doesn't recognize multi-byte encodings, see |byteidx()| for
871an alternative.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000872
Bram Moolenaar256972a2015-12-29 19:10:25 +0100873Index zero gives the first byte. This is like it works in C. Careful:
874text column numbers start with one! Example, to get the byte under the
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000875cursor: >
Bram Moolenaar61660ea2006-04-07 21:40:07 +0000876 :let c = getline(".")[col(".") - 1]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000877
878If the length of the String is less than the index, the result is an empty
Bram Moolenaar85084ef2016-01-17 22:26:33 +0100879String. A negative index always results in an empty string (reason: backward
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000880compatibility). Use [-1:] to get the last byte.
881
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000882If expr8 is a |List| then it results the item at index expr1. See |list-index|
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000883for possible index values. If the index is out of range this results in an
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000884error. Example: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000885 :let item = mylist[-1] " get last item
886
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000887Generally, if a |List| index is equal to or higher than the length of the
888|List|, or more negative than the length of the |List|, this results in an
889error.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000890
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000891
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000892expr8[expr1a : expr1b] substring or sublist *expr-[:]*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000893
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000894If expr8 is a Number or String this results in the substring with the bytes
895from expr1a to and including expr1b. expr8 is used as a String, expr1a and
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100896expr1b are used as a Number. This doesn't recognize multi-byte encodings, see
897|byteidx()| for computing the indexes.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000898
899If expr1a is omitted zero is used. If expr1b is omitted the length of the
900string minus one is used.
901
902A negative number can be used to measure from the end of the string. -1 is
903the last character, -2 the last but one, etc.
904
905If an index goes out of range for the string characters are omitted. If
906expr1b is smaller than expr1a the result is an empty string.
907
908Examples: >
909 :let c = name[-1:] " last byte of a string
910 :let c = name[-2:-2] " last but one byte of a string
911 :let s = line(".")[4:] " from the fifth byte to the end
912 :let s = s[:-3] " remove last two bytes
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100913<
914 *sublist* *slice*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000915If expr8 is a |List| this results in a new |List| with the items indicated by
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000916the indexes expr1a and expr1b. This works like with a String, as explained
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000917just above, except that indexes out of range cause an error. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +0000918 :let l = mylist[:3] " first four items
919 :let l = mylist[4:4] " List with one item
920 :let l = mylist[:] " shallow copy of a List
921
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000922Using expr8[expr1] or expr8[expr1a : expr1b] on a |Funcref| results in an
923error.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000924
Bram Moolenaarda440d22016-01-16 21:27:23 +0100925Watch out for confusion between a namespace and a variable followed by a colon
926for a sublist: >
927 mylist[n:] " uses variable n
928 mylist[s:] " uses namespace s:, error!
929
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000930
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000931expr8.name entry in a |Dictionary| *expr-entry*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000932
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000933If expr8 is a |Dictionary| and it is followed by a dot, then the following
934name will be used as a key in the |Dictionary|. This is just like:
935expr8[name].
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +0000936
937The name must consist of alphanumeric characters, just like a variable name,
938but it may start with a number. Curly braces cannot be used.
939
940There must not be white space before or after the dot.
941
942Examples: >
943 :let dict = {"one": 1, 2: "two"}
944 :echo dict.one
945 :echo dict .2
946
947Note that the dot is also used for String concatenation. To avoid confusion
948always put spaces around the dot for String concatenation.
949
950
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +0000951expr8(expr1, ...) |Funcref| function call
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +0000952
953When expr8 is a |Funcref| type variable, invoke the function it refers to.
954
955
956
957 *expr9*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000958number
959------
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +0100960number number constant *expr-number*
961 *hex-number* *octal-number*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000962
963Decimal, Hexadecimal (starting with 0x or 0X), or Octal (starting with 0).
964
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000965 *floating-point-format*
966Floating point numbers can be written in two forms:
967
968 [-+]{N}.{M}
Bram Moolenaar8a94d872015-01-25 13:02:57 +0100969 [-+]{N}.{M}[eE][-+]{exp}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000970
971{N} and {M} are numbers. Both {N} and {M} must be present and can only
972contain digits.
973[-+] means there is an optional plus or minus sign.
974{exp} is the exponent, power of 10.
975Only a decimal point is accepted, not a comma. No matter what the current
976locale is.
977{only when compiled with the |+float| feature}
978
979Examples:
980 123.456
981 +0.0001
982 55.0
983 -0.123
984 1.234e03
985 1.0E-6
986 -3.1416e+88
987
988These are INVALID:
989 3. empty {M}
990 1e40 missing .{M}
991
Bram Moolenaare37d50a2008-08-06 17:06:04 +0000992 *float-pi* *float-e*
993A few useful values to copy&paste: >
994 :let pi = 3.14159265359
995 :let e = 2.71828182846
996
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +0000997Rationale:
998Before floating point was introduced, the text "123.456" was interpreted as
999the two numbers "123" and "456", both converted to a string and concatenated,
1000resulting in the string "123456". Since this was considered pointless, and we
Bram Moolenaare37d50a2008-08-06 17:06:04 +00001001could not find it intentionally being used in Vim scripts, this backwards
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001002incompatibility was accepted in favor of being able to use the normal notation
1003for floating point numbers.
1004
1005 *floating-point-precision*
1006The precision and range of floating points numbers depends on what "double"
1007means in the library Vim was compiled with. There is no way to change this at
1008runtime.
1009
1010The default for displaying a |Float| is to use 6 decimal places, like using
1011printf("%g", f). You can select something else when using the |printf()|
1012function. Example: >
1013 :echo printf('%.15e', atan(1))
1014< 7.853981633974483e-01
1015
1016
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001017
Bram Moolenaar979243b2015-06-26 19:35:49 +02001018string *string* *String* *expr-string* *E114*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001019------
1020"string" string constant *expr-quote*
1021
1022Note that double quotes are used.
1023
1024A string constant accepts these special characters:
1025\... three-digit octal number (e.g., "\316")
1026\.. two-digit octal number (must be followed by non-digit)
1027\. one-digit octal number (must be followed by non-digit)
1028\x.. byte specified with two hex numbers (e.g., "\x1f")
1029\x. byte specified with one hex number (must be followed by non-hex char)
1030\X.. same as \x..
1031\X. same as \x.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001032\u.... character specified with up to 4 hex numbers, stored according to the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001033 current value of 'encoding' (e.g., "\u02a4")
Bram Moolenaar541f92d2015-06-19 13:27:23 +02001034\U.... same as \u but allows up to 8 hex numbers.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001035\b backspace <BS>
1036\e escape <Esc>
1037\f formfeed <FF>
1038\n newline <NL>
1039\r return <CR>
1040\t tab <Tab>
1041\\ backslash
1042\" double quote
Bram Moolenaar00a927d2010-05-14 23:24:24 +02001043\<xxx> Special key named "xxx". e.g. "\<C-W>" for CTRL-W. This is for use
1044 in mappings, the 0x80 byte is escaped. Don't use <Char-xxxx> to get a
1045 utf-8 character, use \uxxxx as mentioned above.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001046
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00001047Note that "\xff" is stored as the byte 255, which may be invalid in some
1048encodings. Use "\u00ff" to store character 255 according to the current value
1049of 'encoding'.
1050
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001051Note that "\000" and "\x00" force the end of the string.
1052
1053
1054literal-string *literal-string* *E115*
1055---------------
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +00001056'string' string constant *expr-'*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001057
1058Note that single quotes are used.
1059
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001060This string is taken as it is. No backslashes are removed or have a special
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00001061meaning. The only exception is that two quotes stand for one quote.
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +00001062
1063Single quoted strings are useful for patterns, so that backslashes do not need
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001064to be doubled. These two commands are equivalent: >
Bram Moolenaar3fdfa4a2004-10-07 21:02:47 +00001065 if a =~ "\\s*"
1066 if a =~ '\s*'
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001067
1068
1069option *expr-option* *E112* *E113*
1070------
1071&option option value, local value if possible
1072&g:option global option value
1073&l:option local option value
1074
1075Examples: >
1076 echo "tabstop is " . &tabstop
1077 if &insertmode
1078
1079Any option name can be used here. See |options|. When using the local value
1080and there is no buffer-local or window-local value, the global value is used
1081anyway.
1082
1083
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00001084register *expr-register* *@r*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001085--------
1086@r contents of register 'r'
1087
1088The result is the contents of the named register, as a single string.
1089Newlines are inserted where required. To get the contents of the unnamed
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001090register use @" or @@. See |registers| for an explanation of the available
Bram Moolenaare7566042005-06-17 22:00:15 +00001091registers.
1092
1093When using the '=' register you get the expression itself, not what it
1094evaluates to. Use |eval()| to evaluate it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001095
1096
1097nesting *expr-nesting* *E110*
1098-------
1099(expr1) nested expression
1100
1101
1102environment variable *expr-env*
1103--------------------
1104$VAR environment variable
1105
1106The String value of any environment variable. When it is not defined, the
1107result is an empty string.
1108 *expr-env-expand*
1109Note that there is a difference between using $VAR directly and using
1110expand("$VAR"). Using it directly will only expand environment variables that
1111are known inside the current Vim session. Using expand() will first try using
1112the environment variables known inside the current Vim session. If that
1113fails, a shell will be used to expand the variable. This can be slow, but it
1114does expand all variables that the shell knows about. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar34401cc2014-08-29 15:12:19 +02001115 :echo $shell
1116 :echo expand("$shell")
1117The first one probably doesn't echo anything, the second echoes the $shell
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001118variable (if your shell supports it).
1119
1120
1121internal variable *expr-variable*
1122-----------------
1123variable internal variable
1124See below |internal-variables|.
1125
1126
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00001127function call *expr-function* *E116* *E118* *E119* *E120*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001128-------------
1129function(expr1, ...) function call
1130See below |functions|.
1131
1132
1133==============================================================================
Bram Moolenaar4a748032010-09-30 21:47:56 +020011343. Internal variable *internal-variables* *E461*
1135
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001136An internal variable name can be made up of letters, digits and '_'. But it
1137cannot start with a digit. It's also possible to use curly braces, see
1138|curly-braces-names|.
1139
1140An internal variable is created with the ":let" command |:let|.
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00001141An internal variable is explicitly destroyed with the ":unlet" command
1142|:unlet|.
1143Using a name that is not an internal variable or refers to a variable that has
1144been destroyed results in an error.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001145
1146There are several name spaces for variables. Which one is to be used is
1147specified by what is prepended:
1148
1149 (nothing) In a function: local to a function; otherwise: global
1150|buffer-variable| b: Local to the current buffer.
1151|window-variable| w: Local to the current window.
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00001152|tabpage-variable| t: Local to the current tab page.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001153|global-variable| g: Global.
1154|local-variable| l: Local to a function.
1155|script-variable| s: Local to a |:source|'ed Vim script.
1156|function-argument| a: Function argument (only inside a function).
Bram Moolenaar75b81562014-04-06 14:09:13 +02001157|vim-variable| v: Global, predefined by Vim.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001158
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001159The scope name by itself can be used as a |Dictionary|. For example, to
1160delete all script-local variables: >
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00001161 :for k in keys(s:)
1162 : unlet s:[k]
1163 :endfor
1164<
Bram Moolenaar531da592013-05-06 05:58:55 +02001165 *buffer-variable* *b:var* *b:*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001166A variable name that is preceded with "b:" is local to the current buffer.
1167Thus you can have several "b:foo" variables, one for each buffer.
1168This kind of variable is deleted when the buffer is wiped out or deleted with
1169|:bdelete|.
1170
1171One local buffer variable is predefined:
Bram Moolenaarbf884932013-04-05 22:26:15 +02001172 *b:changedtick* *changetick*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001173b:changedtick The total number of changes to the current buffer. It is
1174 incremented for each change. An undo command is also a change
1175 in this case. This can be used to perform an action only when
1176 the buffer has changed. Example: >
1177 :if my_changedtick != b:changedtick
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001178 : let my_changedtick = b:changedtick
1179 : call My_Update()
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001180 :endif
1181<
Bram Moolenaar531da592013-05-06 05:58:55 +02001182 *window-variable* *w:var* *w:*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001183A variable name that is preceded with "w:" is local to the current window. It
1184is deleted when the window is closed.
1185
Bram Moolenaarad3b3662013-05-17 18:14:19 +02001186 *tabpage-variable* *t:var* *t:*
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00001187A variable name that is preceded with "t:" is local to the current tab page,
1188It is deleted when the tab page is closed. {not available when compiled
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02001189without the |+windows| feature}
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00001190
Bram Moolenaar531da592013-05-06 05:58:55 +02001191 *global-variable* *g:var* *g:*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001192Inside functions global variables are accessed with "g:". Omitting this will
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001193access a variable local to a function. But "g:" can also be used in any other
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001194place if you like.
1195
Bram Moolenaar531da592013-05-06 05:58:55 +02001196 *local-variable* *l:var* *l:*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001197Inside functions local variables are accessed without prepending anything.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00001198But you can also prepend "l:" if you like. However, without prepending "l:"
1199you may run into reserved variable names. For example "count". By itself it
1200refers to "v:count". Using "l:count" you can have a local variable with the
1201same name.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001202
1203 *script-variable* *s:var*
1204In a Vim script variables starting with "s:" can be used. They cannot be
1205accessed from outside of the scripts, thus are local to the script.
1206
1207They can be used in:
1208- commands executed while the script is sourced
1209- functions defined in the script
1210- autocommands defined in the script
1211- functions and autocommands defined in functions and autocommands which were
1212 defined in the script (recursively)
1213- user defined commands defined in the script
1214Thus not in:
1215- other scripts sourced from this one
1216- mappings
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001217- menus
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001218- etc.
1219
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00001220Script variables can be used to avoid conflicts with global variable names.
1221Take this example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001222
1223 let s:counter = 0
1224 function MyCounter()
1225 let s:counter = s:counter + 1
1226 echo s:counter
1227 endfunction
1228 command Tick call MyCounter()
1229
1230You can now invoke "Tick" from any script, and the "s:counter" variable in
1231that script will not be changed, only the "s:counter" in the script where
1232"Tick" was defined is used.
1233
1234Another example that does the same: >
1235
1236 let s:counter = 0
1237 command Tick let s:counter = s:counter + 1 | echo s:counter
1238
1239When calling a function and invoking a user-defined command, the context for
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00001240script variables is set to the script where the function or command was
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001241defined.
1242
1243The script variables are also available when a function is defined inside a
1244function that is defined in a script. Example: >
1245
1246 let s:counter = 0
1247 function StartCounting(incr)
1248 if a:incr
1249 function MyCounter()
1250 let s:counter = s:counter + 1
1251 endfunction
1252 else
1253 function MyCounter()
1254 let s:counter = s:counter - 1
1255 endfunction
1256 endif
1257 endfunction
1258
1259This defines the MyCounter() function either for counting up or counting down
1260when calling StartCounting(). It doesn't matter from where StartCounting() is
1261called, the s:counter variable will be accessible in MyCounter().
1262
1263When the same script is sourced again it will use the same script variables.
1264They will remain valid as long as Vim is running. This can be used to
1265maintain a counter: >
1266
1267 if !exists("s:counter")
1268 let s:counter = 1
1269 echo "script executed for the first time"
1270 else
1271 let s:counter = s:counter + 1
1272 echo "script executed " . s:counter . " times now"
1273 endif
1274
1275Note that this means that filetype plugins don't get a different set of script
1276variables for each buffer. Use local buffer variables instead |b:var|.
1277
1278
Bram Moolenaar531da592013-05-06 05:58:55 +02001279Predefined Vim variables: *vim-variable* *v:var* *v:*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001280
Bram Moolenaare4efc3b2005-03-07 23:16:51 +00001281 *v:beval_col* *beval_col-variable*
1282v:beval_col The number of the column, over which the mouse pointer is.
1283 This is the byte index in the |v:beval_lnum| line.
1284 Only valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1285
1286 *v:beval_bufnr* *beval_bufnr-variable*
1287v:beval_bufnr The number of the buffer, over which the mouse pointer is. Only
1288 valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1289
1290 *v:beval_lnum* *beval_lnum-variable*
1291v:beval_lnum The number of the line, over which the mouse pointer is. Only
1292 valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1293
1294 *v:beval_text* *beval_text-variable*
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00001295v:beval_text The text under or after the mouse pointer. Usually a word as
1296 it is useful for debugging a C program. 'iskeyword' applies,
1297 but a dot and "->" before the position is included. When on a
1298 ']' the text before it is used, including the matching '[' and
Bram Moolenaare4efc3b2005-03-07 23:16:51 +00001299 word before it. When on a Visual area within one line the
1300 highlighted text is used.
1301 Only valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option.
1302
1303 *v:beval_winnr* *beval_winnr-variable*
1304v:beval_winnr The number of the window, over which the mouse pointer is. Only
Bram Moolenaar00654022011-02-25 14:42:19 +01001305 valid while evaluating the 'balloonexpr' option. The first
1306 window has number zero (unlike most other places where a
1307 window gets a number).
Bram Moolenaare4efc3b2005-03-07 23:16:51 +00001308
Bram Moolenaarf193fff2006-04-27 00:02:13 +00001309 *v:char* *char-variable*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001310v:char Argument for evaluating 'formatexpr' and used for the typed
Bram Moolenaar945e2db2010-06-05 17:43:32 +02001311 character when using <expr> in an abbreviation |:map-<expr>|.
Bram Moolenaare6ae6222013-05-21 21:01:10 +02001312 It is also used by the |InsertCharPre| and |InsertEnter| events.
Bram Moolenaarf193fff2006-04-27 00:02:13 +00001313
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001314 *v:charconvert_from* *charconvert_from-variable*
1315v:charconvert_from
1316 The name of the character encoding of a file to be converted.
1317 Only valid while evaluating the 'charconvert' option.
1318
1319 *v:charconvert_to* *charconvert_to-variable*
1320v:charconvert_to
1321 The name of the character encoding of a file after conversion.
1322 Only valid while evaluating the 'charconvert' option.
1323
1324 *v:cmdarg* *cmdarg-variable*
1325v:cmdarg This variable is used for two purposes:
1326 1. The extra arguments given to a file read/write command.
1327 Currently these are "++enc=" and "++ff=". This variable is
1328 set before an autocommand event for a file read/write
1329 command is triggered. There is a leading space to make it
1330 possible to append this variable directly after the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001331 read/write command. Note: The "+cmd" argument isn't
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001332 included here, because it will be executed anyway.
1333 2. When printing a PostScript file with ":hardcopy" this is
1334 the argument for the ":hardcopy" command. This can be used
1335 in 'printexpr'.
1336
1337 *v:cmdbang* *cmdbang-variable*
1338v:cmdbang Set like v:cmdarg for a file read/write command. When a "!"
1339 was used the value is 1, otherwise it is 0. Note that this
1340 can only be used in autocommands. For user commands |<bang>|
1341 can be used.
1342
Bram Moolenaar42a45122015-07-10 17:56:23 +02001343 *v:completed_item* *completed_item-variable*
1344v:completed_item
1345 |Dictionary| containing the |complete-items| for the most
1346 recently completed word after |CompleteDone|. The
1347 |Dictionary| is empty if the completion failed.
1348
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001349 *v:count* *count-variable*
1350v:count The count given for the last Normal mode command. Can be used
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001351 to get the count before a mapping. Read-only. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001352 :map _x :<C-U>echo "the count is " . v:count<CR>
1353< Note: The <C-U> is required to remove the line range that you
1354 get when typing ':' after a count.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001355 When there are two counts, as in "3d2w", they are multiplied,
1356 just like what happens in the command, "d6w" for the example.
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00001357 Also used for evaluating the 'formatexpr' option.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001358 "count" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1359
1360 *v:count1* *count1-variable*
1361v:count1 Just like "v:count", but defaults to one when no count is
1362 used.
1363
1364 *v:ctype* *ctype-variable*
1365v:ctype The current locale setting for characters of the runtime
1366 environment. This allows Vim scripts to be aware of the
1367 current locale encoding. Technical: it's the value of
1368 LC_CTYPE. When not using a locale the value is "C".
1369 This variable can not be set directly, use the |:language|
1370 command.
1371 See |multi-lang|.
1372
1373 *v:dying* *dying-variable*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001374v:dying Normally zero. When a deadly signal is caught it's set to
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001375 one. When multiple signals are caught the number increases.
1376 Can be used in an autocommand to check if Vim didn't
1377 terminate normally. {only works on Unix}
1378 Example: >
1379 :au VimLeave * if v:dying | echo "\nAAAAaaaarrrggghhhh!!!\n" | endif
Bram Moolenaar0e1e25f2010-05-28 21:07:08 +02001380< Note: if another deadly signal is caught when v:dying is one,
1381 VimLeave autocommands will not be executed.
1382
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001383 *v:errmsg* *errmsg-variable*
1384v:errmsg Last given error message. It's allowed to set this variable.
1385 Example: >
1386 :let v:errmsg = ""
1387 :silent! next
1388 :if v:errmsg != ""
1389 : ... handle error
1390< "errmsg" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1391
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01001392 *v:errors* *errors-variable*
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01001393v:errors Errors found by assert functions, such as |assert_true()|.
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01001394 This is a list of strings.
1395 The assert functions append an item when an assert fails.
1396 To remove old results make it empty: >
1397 :let v:errors = []
1398< If v:errors is set to anything but a list it is made an empty
1399 list by the assert function.
1400
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001401 *v:exception* *exception-variable*
1402v:exception The value of the exception most recently caught and not
1403 finished. See also |v:throwpoint| and |throw-variables|.
1404 Example: >
1405 :try
1406 : throw "oops"
1407 :catch /.*/
1408 : echo "caught" v:exception
1409 :endtry
1410< Output: "caught oops".
1411
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001412 *v:false* *false-variable*
1413v:false A Number with value zero. Used to put "false" in JSON. See
1414 |jsonencode()|.
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01001415 When used as a string this evaluates to "false". >
1416 echo v:false
1417< false ~
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001418
Bram Moolenaar19a09a12005-03-04 23:39:37 +00001419 *v:fcs_reason* *fcs_reason-variable*
1420v:fcs_reason The reason why the |FileChangedShell| event was triggered.
1421 Can be used in an autocommand to decide what to do and/or what
1422 to set v:fcs_choice to. Possible values:
1423 deleted file no longer exists
1424 conflict file contents, mode or timestamp was
1425 changed and buffer is modified
1426 changed file contents has changed
1427 mode mode of file changed
1428 time only file timestamp changed
1429
1430 *v:fcs_choice* *fcs_choice-variable*
1431v:fcs_choice What should happen after a |FileChangedShell| event was
1432 triggered. Can be used in an autocommand to tell Vim what to
1433 do with the affected buffer:
1434 reload Reload the buffer (does not work if
1435 the file was deleted).
1436 ask Ask the user what to do, as if there
1437 was no autocommand. Except that when
1438 only the timestamp changed nothing
1439 will happen.
1440 <empty> Nothing, the autocommand should do
1441 everything that needs to be done.
1442 The default is empty. If another (invalid) value is used then
1443 Vim behaves like it is empty, there is no warning message.
1444
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001445 *v:fname_in* *fname_in-variable*
Bram Moolenaar4e330bb2005-12-07 21:04:31 +00001446v:fname_in The name of the input file. Valid while evaluating:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001447 option used for ~
1448 'charconvert' file to be converted
1449 'diffexpr' original file
1450 'patchexpr' original file
1451 'printexpr' file to be printed
Bram Moolenaar2c7a29c2005-12-12 22:02:31 +00001452 And set to the swap file name for |SwapExists|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001453
1454 *v:fname_out* *fname_out-variable*
1455v:fname_out The name of the output file. Only valid while
1456 evaluating:
1457 option used for ~
1458 'charconvert' resulting converted file (*)
1459 'diffexpr' output of diff
1460 'patchexpr' resulting patched file
1461 (*) When doing conversion for a write command (e.g., ":w
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001462 file") it will be equal to v:fname_in. When doing conversion
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001463 for a read command (e.g., ":e file") it will be a temporary
1464 file and different from v:fname_in.
1465
1466 *v:fname_new* *fname_new-variable*
1467v:fname_new The name of the new version of the file. Only valid while
1468 evaluating 'diffexpr'.
1469
1470 *v:fname_diff* *fname_diff-variable*
1471v:fname_diff The name of the diff (patch) file. Only valid while
1472 evaluating 'patchexpr'.
1473
1474 *v:folddashes* *folddashes-variable*
1475v:folddashes Used for 'foldtext': dashes representing foldlevel of a closed
1476 fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001477 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001478
1479 *v:foldlevel* *foldlevel-variable*
1480v:foldlevel Used for 'foldtext': foldlevel of closed fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001481 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001482
1483 *v:foldend* *foldend-variable*
1484v:foldend Used for 'foldtext': last line of closed fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001485 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001486
1487 *v:foldstart* *foldstart-variable*
1488v:foldstart Used for 'foldtext': first line of closed fold.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00001489 Read-only in the |sandbox|. |fold-foldtext|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001490
Bram Moolenaar817a8802013-11-09 01:44:43 +01001491 *v:hlsearch* *hlsearch-variable*
Bram Moolenaar76440e22014-11-27 19:14:49 +01001492v:hlsearch Variable that indicates whether search highlighting is on.
1493 Setting it makes sense only if 'hlsearch' is enabled which
1494 requires |+extra_search|. Setting this variable to zero acts
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01001495 like the |:nohlsearch| command, setting it to one acts like >
Bram Moolenaar817a8802013-11-09 01:44:43 +01001496 let &hlsearch = &hlsearch
Bram Moolenaar86ae7202015-07-10 19:31:35 +02001497< Note that the value is restored when returning from a
1498 function. |function-search-undo|.
1499
Bram Moolenaar843ee412004-06-30 16:16:41 +00001500 *v:insertmode* *insertmode-variable*
1501v:insertmode Used for the |InsertEnter| and |InsertChange| autocommand
1502 events. Values:
1503 i Insert mode
1504 r Replace mode
1505 v Virtual Replace mode
1506
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001507 *v:key* *key-variable*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001508v:key Key of the current item of a |Dictionary|. Only valid while
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001509 evaluating the expression used with |map()| and |filter()|.
1510 Read-only.
1511
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001512 *v:lang* *lang-variable*
1513v:lang The current locale setting for messages of the runtime
1514 environment. This allows Vim scripts to be aware of the
1515 current language. Technical: it's the value of LC_MESSAGES.
1516 The value is system dependent.
1517 This variable can not be set directly, use the |:language|
1518 command.
1519 It can be different from |v:ctype| when messages are desired
1520 in a different language than what is used for character
1521 encoding. See |multi-lang|.
1522
1523 *v:lc_time* *lc_time-variable*
1524v:lc_time The current locale setting for time messages of the runtime
1525 environment. This allows Vim scripts to be aware of the
1526 current language. Technical: it's the value of LC_TIME.
1527 This variable can not be set directly, use the |:language|
1528 command. See |multi-lang|.
1529
1530 *v:lnum* *lnum-variable*
Bram Moolenaar368373e2010-07-19 20:46:22 +02001531v:lnum Line number for the 'foldexpr' |fold-expr|, 'formatexpr' and
1532 'indentexpr' expressions, tab page number for 'guitablabel'
1533 and 'guitabtooltip'. Only valid while one of these
1534 expressions is being evaluated. Read-only when in the
1535 |sandbox|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001536
Bram Moolenaar219b8702006-11-01 14:32:36 +00001537 *v:mouse_win* *mouse_win-variable*
1538v:mouse_win Window number for a mouse click obtained with |getchar()|.
1539 First window has number 1, like with |winnr()|. The value is
1540 zero when there was no mouse button click.
1541
1542 *v:mouse_lnum* *mouse_lnum-variable*
1543v:mouse_lnum Line number for a mouse click obtained with |getchar()|.
1544 This is the text line number, not the screen line number. The
1545 value is zero when there was no mouse button click.
1546
1547 *v:mouse_col* *mouse_col-variable*
1548v:mouse_col Column number for a mouse click obtained with |getchar()|.
1549 This is the screen column number, like with |virtcol()|. The
1550 value is zero when there was no mouse button click.
1551
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001552 *v:none* *none-variable*
1553v:none An empty String. Used to put an empty item in JSON. See
1554 |jsonencode()|.
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01001555 When used as a number this evaluates to zero.
1556 When used as a string this evaluates to "none". >
1557 echo v:none
1558< none ~
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001559
1560 *v:null* *null-variable*
1561v:null An empty String. Used to put "null" in JSON. See
1562 |jsonencode()|.
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01001563 When used as a number this evaluates to zero.
1564 When used as a string this evaluates to "null". >
1565 echo v:null
1566< null ~
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001567
Bram Moolenaard812df62008-11-09 12:46:09 +00001568 *v:oldfiles* *oldfiles-variable*
1569v:oldfiles List of file names that is loaded from the |viminfo| file on
1570 startup. These are the files that Vim remembers marks for.
1571 The length of the List is limited by the ' argument of the
1572 'viminfo' option (default is 100).
Bram Moolenaar8d043172014-01-23 14:24:41 +01001573 When the |viminfo| file is not used the List is empty.
Bram Moolenaard812df62008-11-09 12:46:09 +00001574 Also see |:oldfiles| and |c_#<|.
1575 The List can be modified, but this has no effect on what is
1576 stored in the |viminfo| file later. If you use values other
1577 than String this will cause trouble.
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02001578 {only when compiled with the |+viminfo| feature}
Bram Moolenaard812df62008-11-09 12:46:09 +00001579
Bram Moolenaar53744302015-07-17 17:38:22 +02001580 *v:option_new*
1581v:option_new New value of the option. Valid while executing an |OptionSet|
1582 autocommand.
1583 *v:option_old*
1584v:option_old Old value of the option. Valid while executing an |OptionSet|
1585 autocommand.
1586 *v:option_type*
1587v:option_type Scope of the set command. Valid while executing an
1588 |OptionSet| autocommand. Can be either "global" or "local"
Bram Moolenaar8af1fbf2008-01-05 12:35:21 +00001589 *v:operator* *operator-variable*
1590v:operator The last operator given in Normal mode. This is a single
1591 character except for commands starting with <g> or <z>,
1592 in which case it is two characters. Best used alongside
1593 |v:prevcount| and |v:register|. Useful if you want to cancel
1594 Operator-pending mode and then use the operator, e.g.: >
1595 :omap O <Esc>:call MyMotion(v:operator)<CR>
1596< The value remains set until another operator is entered, thus
1597 don't expect it to be empty.
1598 v:operator is not set for |:delete|, |:yank| or other Ex
1599 commands.
1600 Read-only.
1601
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001602 *v:prevcount* *prevcount-variable*
1603v:prevcount The count given for the last but one Normal mode command.
1604 This is the v:count value of the previous command. Useful if
Bram Moolenaar8af1fbf2008-01-05 12:35:21 +00001605 you want to cancel Visual or Operator-pending mode and then
1606 use the count, e.g.: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001607 :vmap % <Esc>:call MyFilter(v:prevcount)<CR>
1608< Read-only.
1609
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00001610 *v:profiling* *profiling-variable*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001611v:profiling Normally zero. Set to one after using ":profile start".
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00001612 See |profiling|.
1613
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001614 *v:progname* *progname-variable*
1615v:progname Contains the name (with path removed) with which Vim was
Bram Moolenaard38b0552012-04-25 19:07:41 +02001616 invoked. Allows you to do special initialisations for |view|,
1617 |evim| etc., or any other name you might symlink to Vim.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001618 Read-only.
1619
Bram Moolenaara1706c92014-04-01 19:55:49 +02001620 *v:progpath* *progpath-variable*
1621v:progpath Contains the command with which Vim was invoked, including the
1622 path. Useful if you want to message a Vim server using a
1623 |--remote-expr|.
Bram Moolenaarc7f02552014-04-01 21:00:59 +02001624 To get the full path use: >
1625 echo exepath(v:progpath)
1626< NOTE: This does not work when the command is a relative path
1627 and the current directory has changed.
Bram Moolenaara1706c92014-04-01 19:55:49 +02001628 Read-only.
1629
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001630 *v:register* *register-variable*
Bram Moolenaard58e9292011-02-09 17:07:58 +01001631v:register The name of the register in effect for the current normal mode
Bram Moolenaard38b0552012-04-25 19:07:41 +02001632 command (regardless of whether that command actually used a
1633 register). Or for the currently executing normal mode mapping
1634 (use this in custom commands that take a register).
1635 If none is supplied it is the default register '"', unless
1636 'clipboard' contains "unnamed" or "unnamedplus", then it is
1637 '*' or '+'.
Bram Moolenaard58e9292011-02-09 17:07:58 +01001638 Also see |getreg()| and |setreg()|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001639
Bram Moolenaar1c7715d2005-10-03 22:02:18 +00001640 *v:scrollstart* *scrollstart-variable*
1641v:scrollstart String describing the script or function that caused the
1642 screen to scroll up. It's only set when it is empty, thus the
1643 first reason is remembered. It is set to "Unknown" for a
1644 typed command.
1645 This can be used to find out why your script causes the
1646 hit-enter prompt.
1647
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001648 *v:servername* *servername-variable*
1649v:servername The resulting registered |x11-clientserver| name if any.
1650 Read-only.
1651
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001652
1653v:searchforward *v:searchforward* *searchforward-variable*
1654 Search direction: 1 after a forward search, 0 after a
1655 backward search. It is reset to forward when directly setting
1656 the last search pattern, see |quote/|.
1657 Note that the value is restored when returning from a
1658 function. |function-search-undo|.
1659 Read-write.
1660
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001661 *v:shell_error* *shell_error-variable*
1662v:shell_error Result of the last shell command. When non-zero, the last
1663 shell command had an error. When zero, there was no problem.
1664 This only works when the shell returns the error code to Vim.
1665 The value -1 is often used when the command could not be
1666 executed. Read-only.
1667 Example: >
1668 :!mv foo bar
1669 :if v:shell_error
1670 : echo 'could not rename "foo" to "bar"!'
1671 :endif
1672< "shell_error" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1673
1674 *v:statusmsg* *statusmsg-variable*
1675v:statusmsg Last given status message. It's allowed to set this variable.
1676
Bram Moolenaar4e330bb2005-12-07 21:04:31 +00001677 *v:swapname* *swapname-variable*
1678v:swapname Only valid when executing |SwapExists| autocommands: Name of
1679 the swap file found. Read-only.
1680
1681 *v:swapchoice* *swapchoice-variable*
1682v:swapchoice |SwapExists| autocommands can set this to the selected choice
1683 for handling an existing swap file:
1684 'o' Open read-only
1685 'e' Edit anyway
1686 'r' Recover
1687 'd' Delete swapfile
1688 'q' Quit
1689 'a' Abort
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001690 The value should be a single-character string. An empty value
Bram Moolenaar4e330bb2005-12-07 21:04:31 +00001691 results in the user being asked, as would happen when there is
1692 no SwapExists autocommand. The default is empty.
1693
Bram Moolenaarb3480382005-12-11 21:33:32 +00001694 *v:swapcommand* *swapcommand-variable*
Bram Moolenaar4770d092006-01-12 23:22:24 +00001695v:swapcommand Normal mode command to be executed after a file has been
Bram Moolenaarb3480382005-12-11 21:33:32 +00001696 opened. Can be used for a |SwapExists| autocommand to have
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001697 another Vim open the file and jump to the right place. For
Bram Moolenaarb3480382005-12-11 21:33:32 +00001698 example, when jumping to a tag the value is ":tag tagname\r".
Bram Moolenaar1f35bf92006-03-07 22:38:47 +00001699 For ":edit +cmd file" the value is ":cmd\r".
Bram Moolenaarb3480382005-12-11 21:33:32 +00001700
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001701 *v:termresponse* *termresponse-variable*
1702v:termresponse The escape sequence returned by the terminal for the |t_RV|
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001703 termcap entry. It is set when Vim receives an escape sequence
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001704 that starts with ESC [ or CSI and ends in a 'c', with only
1705 digits, ';' and '.' in between.
1706 When this option is set, the TermResponse autocommand event is
1707 fired, so that you can react to the response from the
1708 terminal.
1709 The response from a new xterm is: "<Esc>[ Pp ; Pv ; Pc c". Pp
1710 is the terminal type: 0 for vt100 and 1 for vt220. Pv is the
1711 patch level (since this was introduced in patch 95, it's
1712 always 95 or bigger). Pc is always zero.
1713 {only when compiled with |+termresponse| feature}
1714
1715 *v:this_session* *this_session-variable*
1716v:this_session Full filename of the last loaded or saved session file. See
1717 |:mksession|. It is allowed to set this variable. When no
1718 session file has been saved, this variable is empty.
1719 "this_session" also works, for backwards compatibility.
1720
1721 *v:throwpoint* *throwpoint-variable*
1722v:throwpoint The point where the exception most recently caught and not
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001723 finished was thrown. Not set when commands are typed. See
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001724 also |v:exception| and |throw-variables|.
1725 Example: >
1726 :try
1727 : throw "oops"
1728 :catch /.*/
1729 : echo "Exception from" v:throwpoint
1730 :endtry
1731< Output: "Exception from test.vim, line 2"
1732
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001733 *v:true* *true-variable*
1734v:true A Number with value one. Used to put "true" in JSON. See
1735 |jsonencode()|.
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01001736 When used as a string this evaluates to "true". >
1737 echo v:true
1738< true ~
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001739 *v:val* *val-variable*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001740v:val Value of the current item of a |List| or |Dictionary|. Only
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001741 valid while evaluating the expression used with |map()| and
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001742 |filter()|. Read-only.
1743
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001744 *v:version* *version-variable*
1745v:version Version number of Vim: Major version number times 100 plus
1746 minor version number. Version 5.0 is 500. Version 5.1 (5.01)
1747 is 501. Read-only. "version" also works, for backwards
1748 compatibility.
1749 Use |has()| to check if a certain patch was included, e.g.: >
Bram Moolenaar6716d9a2014-04-02 12:12:08 +02001750 if has("patch-7.4.123")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001751< Note that patch numbers are specific to the version, thus both
1752 version 5.0 and 5.1 may have a patch 123, but these are
1753 completely different.
1754
1755 *v:warningmsg* *warningmsg-variable*
1756v:warningmsg Last given warning message. It's allowed to set this variable.
1757
Bram Moolenaar727c8762010-10-20 19:17:48 +02001758 *v:windowid* *windowid-variable*
1759v:windowid When any X11 based GUI is running or when running in a
1760 terminal and Vim connects to the X server (|-X|) this will be
Bram Moolenaar264e9fd2010-10-27 12:33:17 +02001761 set to the window ID.
1762 When an MS-Windows GUI is running this will be set to the
1763 window handle.
1764 Otherwise the value is zero.
1765 Note: for windows inside Vim use |winnr()|.
Bram Moolenaar727c8762010-10-20 19:17:48 +02001766
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001767==============================================================================
17684. Builtin Functions *functions*
1769
1770See |function-list| for a list grouped by what the function is used for.
1771
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001772(Use CTRL-] on the function name to jump to the full explanation.)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001773
1774USAGE RESULT DESCRIPTION ~
1775
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001776abs( {expr}) Float or Number absolute value of {expr}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001777acos( {expr}) Float arc cosine of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001778add( {list}, {item}) List append {item} to |List| {list}
Bram Moolenaaracb4f222016-01-10 15:59:26 +01001779alloc_fail( {id}, {countdown}, {repeat})
1780 none make memory allocation fail
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01001781and( {expr}, {expr}) Number bitwise AND
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001782append( {lnum}, {string}) Number append {string} below line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00001783append( {lnum}, {list}) Number append lines {list} below line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001784argc() Number number of files in the argument list
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001785argidx() Number current index in the argument list
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01001786arglistid( [{winnr} [, {tabnr}]])
Bram Moolenaar2d1fe052014-05-28 18:22:57 +02001787 Number argument list id
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001788argv( {nr}) String {nr} entry of the argument list
Bram Moolenaare2f98b92006-03-29 21:18:24 +00001789argv( ) List the argument list
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01001790assert_equal( {exp}, {act} [, {msg}]) none assert {exp} equals {act}
1791assert_exception({error} [, {msg}]) none assert {error} is in v:exception
Bram Moolenaara260b872016-01-15 20:48:22 +01001792assert_fails( {cmd} [, {error}]) none assert {cmd} fails
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01001793assert_false( {actual} [, {msg}]) none assert {actual} is false
1794assert_true( {actual} [, {msg}]) none assert {actual} is true
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001795asin( {expr}) Float arc sine of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001796atan( {expr}) Float arc tangent of {expr}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001797atan2( {expr}, {expr}) Float arc tangent of {expr1} / {expr2}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001798browse( {save}, {title}, {initdir}, {default})
1799 String put up a file requester
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001800browsedir( {title}, {initdir}) String put up a directory requester
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001801bufexists( {expr}) Number TRUE if buffer {expr} exists
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001802buflisted( {expr}) Number TRUE if buffer {expr} is listed
1803bufloaded( {expr}) Number TRUE if buffer {expr} is loaded
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001804bufname( {expr}) String Name of the buffer {expr}
Bram Moolenaar12969c02015-09-08 23:36:10 +02001805bufnr( {expr} [, {create}]) Number Number of the buffer {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001806bufwinnr( {expr}) Number window number of buffer {expr}
1807byte2line( {byte}) Number line number at byte count {byte}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001808byteidx( {expr}, {nr}) Number byte index of {nr}'th char in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar0ffbbf92013-11-02 23:29:26 +01001809byteidxcomp( {expr}, {nr}) Number byte index of {nr}'th char in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001810call( {func}, {arglist} [, {dict}])
1811 any call {func} with arguments {arglist}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001812ceil( {expr}) Float round {expr} up
Bram Moolenaarf57969a2016-02-02 20:47:49 +01001813ch_close( {handle}) none close a channel
Bram Moolenaar4d919d72016-02-05 22:36:41 +01001814ch_open( {address} [, {argdict})] Number open a channel to {address}
Bram Moolenaarf57969a2016-02-02 20:47:49 +01001815ch_sendexpr( {handle}, {expr} [, {callback}])
1816 any send {expr} over JSON channel {handle}
1817ch_sendraw( {handle}, {string} [, {callback}])
1818 any send {string} over raw channel {handle}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001819changenr() Number current change number
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01001820char2nr( {expr}[, {utf8}]) Number ASCII/UTF8 value of first char in {expr}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001821cindent( {lnum}) Number C indent for line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001822clearmatches() none clear all matches
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001823col( {expr}) Number column nr of cursor or mark
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001824complete( {startcol}, {matches}) none set Insert mode completion
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00001825complete_add( {expr}) Number add completion match
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001826complete_check() Number check for key typed during completion
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001827confirm( {msg} [, {choices} [, {default} [, {type}]]])
1828 Number number of choice picked by user
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001829copy( {expr}) any make a shallow copy of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001830cos( {expr}) Float cosine of {expr}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001831cosh( {expr}) Float hyperbolic cosine of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar3a991dd2014-10-02 01:41:41 +02001832count( {list}, {expr} [, {ic} [, {start}]])
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001833 Number count how many {expr} are in {list}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001834cscope_connection( [{num} , {dbpath} [, {prepend}]])
1835 Number checks existence of cscope connection
Bram Moolenaar2f3b5102014-11-19 18:54:17 +01001836cursor( {lnum}, {col} [, {off}])
1837 Number move cursor to {lnum}, {col}, {off}
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00001838cursor( {list}) Number move cursor to position in {list}
Bram Moolenaar92dff182014-02-11 19:15:50 +01001839deepcopy( {expr} [, {noref}]) any make a full copy of {expr}
Bram Moolenaarda440d22016-01-16 21:27:23 +01001840delete( {fname} [, {flags}]) Number delete the file or directory {fname}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001841did_filetype() Number TRUE if FileType autocommand event used
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001842diff_filler( {lnum}) Number diff filler lines about {lnum}
1843diff_hlID( {lnum}, {col}) Number diff highlighting at {lnum}/{col}
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00001844empty( {expr}) Number TRUE if {expr} is empty
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001845escape( {string}, {chars}) String escape {chars} in {string} with '\'
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00001846eval( {string}) any evaluate {string} into its value
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001847eventhandler( ) Number TRUE if inside an event handler
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001848executable( {expr}) Number 1 if executable {expr} exists
Bram Moolenaarc7f02552014-04-01 21:00:59 +02001849exepath( {expr}) String full path of the command {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001850exists( {expr}) Number TRUE if {expr} exists
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001851extend( {expr1}, {expr2} [, {expr3}])
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00001852 List/Dict insert items of {expr2} into {expr1}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001853exp( {expr}) Float exponential of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar146e9c32012-03-07 19:18:23 +01001854expand( {expr} [, {nosuf} [, {list}]])
1855 any expand special keywords in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001856feedkeys( {string} [, {mode}]) Number add key sequence to typeahead buffer
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001857filereadable( {file}) Number TRUE if {file} is a readable file
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00001858filewritable( {file}) Number TRUE if {file} is a writable file
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001859filter( {expr}, {string}) List/Dict remove items from {expr} where
1860 {string} is 0
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001861finddir( {name}[, {path}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00001862 String find directory {name} in {path}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001863findfile( {name}[, {path}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00001864 String find file {name} in {path}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001865float2nr( {expr}) Number convert Float {expr} to a Number
1866floor( {expr}) Float round {expr} down
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001867fmod( {expr1}, {expr2}) Float remainder of {expr1} / {expr2}
Bram Moolenaaraebaf892008-05-28 14:49:58 +00001868fnameescape( {fname}) String escape special characters in {fname}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001869fnamemodify( {fname}, {mods}) String modify file name
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001870foldclosed( {lnum}) Number first line of fold at {lnum} if closed
1871foldclosedend( {lnum}) Number last line of fold at {lnum} if closed
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001872foldlevel( {lnum}) Number fold level at {lnum}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001873foldtext( ) String line displayed for closed fold
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00001874foldtextresult( {lnum}) String text for closed fold at {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001875foreground( ) Number bring the Vim window to the foreground
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001876function( {name}) Funcref reference to function {name}
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01001877garbagecollect( [{atexit}]) none free memory, breaking cyclic references
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00001878get( {list}, {idx} [, {def}]) any get item {idx} from {list} or {def}
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001879get( {dict}, {key} [, {def}]) any get item {key} from {dict} or {def}
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00001880getbufline( {expr}, {lnum} [, {end}])
1881 List lines {lnum} to {end} of buffer {expr}
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01001882getbufvar( {expr}, {varname} [, {def}])
1883 any variable {varname} in buffer {expr}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001884getchar( [expr]) Number get one character from the user
1885getcharmod( ) Number modifiers for the last typed character
Bram Moolenaarfc39ecf2015-08-11 20:34:49 +02001886getcharsearch() Dict last character search
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001887getcmdline() String return the current command-line
1888getcmdpos() Number return cursor position in command-line
Bram Moolenaarfb539272014-08-22 19:21:47 +02001889getcmdtype() String return current command-line type
1890getcmdwintype() String return current command-line window type
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02001891getcurpos() List position of the cursor
Bram Moolenaarc9703302016-01-17 21:49:33 +01001892getcwd( [{winnr} [, {tabnr}]]) String get the current working directory
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02001893getfontname( [{name}]) String name of font being used
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00001894getfperm( {fname}) String file permissions of file {fname}
1895getfsize( {fname}) Number size in bytes of file {fname}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001896getftime( {fname}) Number last modification time of file
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00001897getftype( {fname}) String description of type of file {fname}
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00001898getline( {lnum}) String line {lnum} of current buffer
1899getline( {lnum}, {end}) List lines {lnum} to {end} of current buffer
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001900getloclist( {nr}) List list of location list items
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00001901getmatches() List list of current matches
Bram Moolenaar18081e32008-02-20 19:11:07 +00001902getpid() Number process ID of Vim
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00001903getpos( {expr}) List position of cursor, mark, etc.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00001904getqflist() List list of quickfix items
Bram Moolenaarb7cb42b2014-04-02 19:55:10 +02001905getreg( [{regname} [, 1 [, {list}]]])
1906 String or List contents of register
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001907getregtype( [{regname}]) String type of register
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01001908gettabvar( {nr}, {varname} [, {def}])
1909 any variable {varname} in tab {nr} or {def}
1910gettabwinvar( {tabnr}, {winnr}, {name} [, {def}])
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00001911 any {name} in {winnr} in tab page {tabnr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001912getwinposx() Number X coord in pixels of GUI Vim window
1913getwinposy() Number Y coord in pixels of GUI Vim window
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01001914getwinvar( {nr}, {varname} [, {def}])
1915 any variable {varname} in window {nr}
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01001916glob( {expr} [, {nosuf} [, {list} [, {alllinks}]]])
Bram Moolenaar146e9c32012-03-07 19:18:23 +01001917 any expand file wildcards in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar5837f1f2015-03-21 18:06:14 +01001918glob2regpat( {expr}) String convert a glob pat into a search pat
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01001919globpath( {path}, {expr} [, {nosuf} [, {list} [, {alllinks}]]])
Bram Moolenaarbb5ddda2008-11-28 10:01:10 +00001920 String do glob({expr}) for all dirs in {path}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001921has( {feature}) Number TRUE if feature {feature} supported
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001922has_key( {dict}, {key}) Number TRUE if {dict} has entry {key}
Bram Moolenaarc9703302016-01-17 21:49:33 +01001923haslocaldir( [{winnr} [, {tabnr}]])
1924 Number TRUE if the window executed |:lcd|
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00001925hasmapto( {what} [, {mode} [, {abbr}]])
1926 Number TRUE if mapping to {what} exists
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001927histadd( {history},{item}) String add an item to a history
1928histdel( {history} [, {item}]) String remove an item from a history
1929histget( {history} [, {index}]) String get the item {index} from a history
1930histnr( {history}) Number highest index of a history
1931hlexists( {name}) Number TRUE if highlight group {name} exists
1932hlID( {name}) Number syntax ID of highlight group {name}
1933hostname() String name of the machine Vim is running on
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001934iconv( {expr}, {from}, {to}) String convert encoding of {expr}
1935indent( {lnum}) Number indent of line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001936index( {list}, {expr} [, {start} [, {ic}]])
1937 Number index in {list} where {expr} appears
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00001938input( {prompt} [, {text} [, {completion}]])
1939 String get input from the user
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001940inputdialog( {p} [, {t} [, {c}]]) String like input() but in a GUI dialog
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00001941inputlist( {textlist}) Number let the user pick from a choice list
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001942inputrestore() Number restore typeahead
1943inputsave() Number save and clear typeahead
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001944inputsecret( {prompt} [, {text}]) String like input() but hiding the text
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001945insert( {list}, {item} [, {idx}]) List insert {item} in {list} [before {idx}]
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01001946invert( {expr}) Number bitwise invert
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001947isdirectory( {directory}) Number TRUE if {directory} is a directory
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00001948islocked( {expr}) Number TRUE if {expr} is locked
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001949items( {dict}) List key-value pairs in {dict}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00001950join( {list} [, {sep}]) String join {list} items into one String
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01001951jsondecode( {string}) any decode JSON
1952jsonencode( {expr}) String encode JSON
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001953keys( {dict}) List keys in {dict}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001954len( {expr}) Number the length of {expr}
1955libcall( {lib}, {func}, {arg}) String call {func} in library {lib} with {arg}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001956libcallnr( {lib}, {func}, {arg}) Number idem, but return a Number
1957line( {expr}) Number line nr of cursor, last line or mark
1958line2byte( {lnum}) Number byte count of line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00001959lispindent( {lnum}) Number Lisp indent for line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001960localtime() Number current time
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02001961log( {expr}) Float natural logarithm (base e) of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001962log10( {expr}) Float logarithm of Float {expr} to base 10
Bram Moolenaard38b0552012-04-25 19:07:41 +02001963luaeval( {expr}[, {expr}]) any evaluate |Lua| expression
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00001964map( {expr}, {string}) List/Dict change each item in {expr} to {expr}
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02001965maparg( {name}[, {mode} [, {abbr} [, {dict}]]])
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01001966 String or Dict
1967 rhs of mapping {name} in mode {mode}
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00001968mapcheck( {name}[, {mode} [, {abbr}]])
1969 String check for mappings matching {name}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001970match( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001971 Number position where {pat} matches in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00001972matchadd( {group}, {pattern}[, {priority}[, {id}]])
1973 Number highlight {pattern} with {group}
Bram Moolenaarb3414592014-06-17 17:48:32 +02001974matchaddpos( {group}, {list}[, {priority}[, {id}]])
1975 Number highlight positions with {group}
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00001976matcharg( {nr}) List arguments of |:match|
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00001977matchdelete( {id}) Number delete match identified by {id}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001978matchend( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001979 Number position where {pat} ends in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00001980matchlist( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
1981 List match and submatches of {pat} in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00001982matchstr( {expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]])
1983 String {count}'th match of {pat} in {expr}
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001984max( {list}) Number maximum value of items in {list}
1985min( {list}) Number minimum value of items in {list}
1986mkdir( {name} [, {path} [, {prot}]])
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00001987 Number create directory {name}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001988mode( [expr]) String current editing mode
Bram Moolenaar7e506b62010-01-19 15:55:06 +01001989mzeval( {expr}) any evaluate |MzScheme| expression
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001990nextnonblank( {lnum}) Number line nr of non-blank line >= {lnum}
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01001991nr2char( {expr}[, {utf8}]) String single char with ASCII/UTF8 value {expr}
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01001992or( {expr}, {expr}) Number bitwise OR
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00001993pathshorten( {expr}) String shorten directory names in a path
Bram Moolenaare9b892e2016-01-17 21:15:58 +01001994perleval( {expr}) any evaluate |Perl| expression
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001995pow( {x}, {y}) Float {x} to the power of {y}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001996prevnonblank( {lnum}) Number line nr of non-blank line <= {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00001997printf( {fmt}, {expr1}...) String format text
1998pumvisible() Number whether popup menu is visible
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02001999pyeval( {expr}) any evaluate |Python| expression
2000py3eval( {expr}) any evaluate |python3| expression
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00002001range( {expr} [, {max} [, {stride}]])
2002 List items from {expr} to {max}
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002003readfile( {fname} [, {binary} [, {max}]])
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00002004 List get list of lines from file {fname}
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00002005reltime( [{start} [, {end}]]) List get time value
2006reltimestr( {time}) String turn time value into a String
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002007remote_expr( {server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
2008 String send expression
2009remote_foreground( {server}) Number bring Vim server to the foreground
2010remote_peek( {serverid} [, {retvar}])
2011 Number check for reply string
2012remote_read( {serverid}) String read reply string
2013remote_send( {server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
2014 String send key sequence
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002015remove( {list}, {idx} [, {end}]) any remove items {idx}-{end} from {list}
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00002016remove( {dict}, {key}) any remove entry {key} from {dict}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002017rename( {from}, {to}) Number rename (move) file from {from} to {to}
2018repeat( {expr}, {count}) String repeat {expr} {count} times
2019resolve( {filename}) String get filename a shortcut points to
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002020reverse( {list}) List reverse {list} in-place
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002021round( {expr}) Float round off {expr}
Bram Moolenaar9a773482013-06-11 18:40:13 +02002022screenattr( {row}, {col}) Number attribute at screen position
2023screenchar( {row}, {col}) Number character at screen position
Bram Moolenaar9750bb12012-12-05 16:10:42 +01002024screencol() Number current cursor column
2025screenrow() Number current cursor row
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00002026search( {pattern} [, {flags} [, {stopline} [, {timeout}]]])
2027 Number search for {pattern}
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002028searchdecl( {name} [, {global} [, {thisblock}]])
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002029 Number search for variable declaration
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00002030searchpair( {start}, {middle}, {end} [, {flags} [, {skip} [...]]])
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002031 Number search for other end of start/end pair
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00002032searchpairpos( {start}, {middle}, {end} [, {flags} [, {skip} [...]]])
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00002033 List search for other end of start/end pair
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00002034searchpos( {pattern} [, {flags} [, {stopline} [, {timeout}]]])
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00002035 List search for {pattern}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002036server2client( {clientid}, {string})
2037 Number send reply string
2038serverlist() String get a list of available servers
2039setbufvar( {expr}, {varname}, {val}) set {varname} in buffer {expr} to {val}
Bram Moolenaardbd24b52015-08-11 14:26:19 +02002040setcharsearch( {dict}) Dict set character search from {dict}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002041setcmdpos( {pos}) Number set cursor position in command-line
2042setline( {lnum}, {line}) Number set line {lnum} to {line}
Bram Moolenaar17c7c012006-01-26 22:25:15 +00002043setloclist( {nr}, {list}[, {action}])
2044 Number modify location list using {list}
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00002045setmatches( {list}) Number restore a list of matches
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002046setpos( {expr}, {list}) Number set the {expr} position to {list}
Bram Moolenaar17c7c012006-01-26 22:25:15 +00002047setqflist( {list}[, {action}]) Number modify quickfix list using {list}
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002048setreg( {n}, {v}[, {opt}]) Number set register to value and type
Bram Moolenaar06b5d512010-05-22 15:37:44 +02002049settabvar( {nr}, {varname}, {val}) set {varname} in tab page {nr} to {val}
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00002050settabwinvar( {tabnr}, {winnr}, {varname}, {val}) set {varname} in window
2051 {winnr} in tab page {tabnr} to {val}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002052setwinvar( {nr}, {varname}, {val}) set {varname} in window {nr} to {val}
Bram Moolenaaraf9aeb92013-02-13 17:35:04 +01002053sha256( {string}) String SHA256 checksum of {string}
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00002054shellescape( {string} [, {special}])
2055 String escape {string} for use as shell
Bram Moolenaar60a495f2006-10-03 12:44:42 +00002056 command argument
Bram Moolenaar2d17fa32012-10-21 00:45:18 +02002057shiftwidth() Number effective value of 'shiftwidth'
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002058simplify( {filename}) String simplify filename as much as possible
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002059sin( {expr}) Float sine of {expr}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002060sinh( {expr}) Float hyperbolic sine of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar5f894962011-06-19 02:55:37 +02002061sort( {list} [, {func} [, {dict}]])
2062 List sort {list}, using {func} to compare
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00002063soundfold( {word}) String sound-fold {word}
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00002064spellbadword() String badly spelled word at cursor
Bram Moolenaarc54b8a72005-09-30 21:20:29 +00002065spellsuggest( {word} [, {max} [, {capital}]])
2066 List spelling suggestions
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00002067split( {expr} [, {pat} [, {keepempty}]])
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002068 List make |List| from {pat} separated {expr}
Bram Moolenaard58e9292011-02-09 17:07:58 +01002069sqrt( {expr}) Float square root of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002070str2float( {expr}) Float convert String to Float
2071str2nr( {expr} [, {base}]) Number convert String to Number
Bram Moolenaar641e48c2015-06-25 16:09:26 +02002072strchars( {expr} [, {skipcc}]) Number character length of the String {expr}
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02002073strdisplaywidth( {expr} [, {col}]) Number display length of the String {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002074strftime( {format}[, {time}]) String time in specified format
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00002075stridx( {haystack}, {needle}[, {start}])
2076 Number index of {needle} in {haystack}
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002077string( {expr}) String String representation of {expr} value
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002078strlen( {expr}) Number length of the String {expr}
2079strpart( {src}, {start}[, {len}])
2080 String {len} characters of {src} at {start}
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00002081strridx( {haystack}, {needle} [, {start}])
2082 Number last index of {needle} in {haystack}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002083strtrans( {expr}) String translate string to make it printable
Bram Moolenaar72597a52010-07-18 15:31:08 +02002084strwidth( {expr}) Number display cell length of the String {expr}
Bram Moolenaar41571762014-04-02 19:00:58 +02002085submatch( {nr}[, {list}]) String or List
2086 specific match in ":s" or substitute()
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002087substitute( {expr}, {pat}, {sub}, {flags})
2088 String all {pat} in {expr} replaced with {sub}
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00002089synID( {lnum}, {col}, {trans}) Number syntax ID at {lnum} and {col}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002090synIDattr( {synID}, {what} [, {mode}])
2091 String attribute {what} of syntax ID {synID}
2092synIDtrans( {synID}) Number translated syntax ID of {synID}
Bram Moolenaar483c5d82010-10-20 18:45:33 +02002093synconcealed( {lnum}, {col}) List info about concealing
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002094synstack( {lnum}, {col}) List stack of syntax IDs at {lnum} and {col}
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00002095system( {expr} [, {input}]) String output of shell command/filter {expr}
Bram Moolenaar39c29ed2014-04-05 19:44:40 +02002096systemlist( {expr} [, {input}]) List output of shell command/filter {expr}
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00002097tabpagebuflist( [{arg}]) List list of buffer numbers in tab page
2098tabpagenr( [{arg}]) Number number of current or last tab page
2099tabpagewinnr( {tabarg}[, {arg}])
2100 Number number of current window in tab page
2101taglist( {expr}) List list of tags matching {expr}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002102tagfiles() List tags files used
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002103tempname() String name for a temporary file
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002104tan( {expr}) Float tangent of {expr}
2105tanh( {expr}) Float hyperbolic tangent of {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002106tolower( {expr}) String the String {expr} switched to lowercase
2107toupper( {expr}) String the String {expr} switched to uppercase
Bram Moolenaar8299df92004-07-10 09:47:34 +00002108tr( {src}, {fromstr}, {tostr}) String translate chars of {src} in {fromstr}
2109 to chars in {tostr}
Bram Moolenaard58e9292011-02-09 17:07:58 +01002110trunc( {expr}) Float truncate Float {expr}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002111type( {name}) Number type of variable {name}
Bram Moolenaara17d4c12010-05-30 18:30:36 +02002112undofile( {name}) String undo file name for {name}
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02002113undotree() List undo file tree
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +01002114uniq( {list} [, {func} [, {dict}]])
2115 List remove adjacent duplicates from a list
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002116values( {dict}) List values in {dict}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002117virtcol( {expr}) Number screen column of cursor or mark
2118visualmode( [expr]) String last visual mode used
Bram Moolenaar8738fc12013-02-20 17:59:11 +01002119wildmenumode() Number whether 'wildmenu' mode is active
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002120winbufnr( {nr}) Number buffer number of window {nr}
2121wincol() Number window column of the cursor
2122winheight( {nr}) Number height of window {nr}
2123winline() Number window line of the cursor
Bram Moolenaar7e8fd632006-02-18 22:14:51 +00002124winnr( [{expr}]) Number number of current window
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002125winrestcmd() String returns command to restore window sizes
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002126winrestview( {dict}) none restore view of current window
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00002127winsaveview() Dict save view of current window
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002128winwidth( {nr}) Number width of window {nr}
Bram Moolenaared767a22016-01-03 22:49:16 +01002129wordcount() Dict get byte/char/word statistics
Bram Moolenaar6b2e9382014-11-05 18:06:01 +01002130writefile( {list}, {fname} [, {flags}])
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00002131 Number write list of lines to file {fname}
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01002132xor( {expr}, {expr}) Number bitwise XOR
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002133
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002134abs({expr}) *abs()*
2135 Return the absolute value of {expr}. When {expr} evaluates to
2136 a |Float| abs() returns a |Float|. When {expr} can be
2137 converted to a |Number| abs() returns a |Number|. Otherwise
2138 abs() gives an error message and returns -1.
2139 Examples: >
2140 echo abs(1.456)
2141< 1.456 >
2142 echo abs(-5.456)
2143< 5.456 >
2144 echo abs(-4)
2145< 4
2146 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
2147
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002148
2149acos({expr}) *acos()*
2150 Return the arc cosine of {expr} measured in radians, as a
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02002151 |Float| in the range of [0, pi].
2152 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number| in the range
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002153 [-1, 1].
2154 Examples: >
2155 :echo acos(0)
2156< 1.570796 >
2157 :echo acos(-0.5)
2158< 2.094395
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02002159 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002160
2161
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002162add({list}, {expr}) *add()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002163 Append the item {expr} to |List| {list}. Returns the
2164 resulting |List|. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002165 :let alist = add([1, 2, 3], item)
2166 :call add(mylist, "woodstock")
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002167< Note that when {expr} is a |List| it is appended as a single
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00002168 item. Use |extend()| to concatenate |Lists|.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00002169 Use |insert()| to add an item at another position.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002170
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002171
Bram Moolenaar75bdf6a2016-01-07 21:25:08 +01002172alloc_fail({id}, {countdown}, {repeat}) *alloc_fail()*
2173 This is for testing: If the memory allocation with {id} is
2174 called, then decrement {countdown}, and when it reaches zero
2175 let memory allocation fail {repeat} times. When {repeat} is
2176 smaller than one it fails one time.
2177
2178
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01002179and({expr}, {expr}) *and()*
2180 Bitwise AND on the two arguments. The arguments are converted
2181 to a number. A List, Dict or Float argument causes an error.
2182 Example: >
2183 :let flag = and(bits, 0x80)
2184
2185
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002186append({lnum}, {expr}) *append()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002187 When {expr} is a |List|: Append each item of the |List| as a
2188 text line below line {lnum} in the current buffer.
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00002189 Otherwise append {expr} as one text line below line {lnum} in
2190 the current buffer.
2191 {lnum} can be zero to insert a line before the first one.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002192 Returns 1 for failure ({lnum} out of range or out of memory),
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002193 0 for success. Example: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002194 :let failed = append(line('$'), "# THE END")
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00002195 :let failed = append(0, ["Chapter 1", "the beginning"])
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002196<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002197 *argc()*
2198argc() The result is the number of files in the argument list of the
2199 current window. See |arglist|.
2200
2201 *argidx()*
2202argidx() The result is the current index in the argument list. 0 is
2203 the first file. argc() - 1 is the last one. See |arglist|.
2204
Bram Moolenaar2d1fe052014-05-28 18:22:57 +02002205 *arglistid()*
2206arglistid([{winnr}, [ {tabnr} ]])
2207 Return the argument list ID. This is a number which
2208 identifies the argument list being used. Zero is used for the
Bram Moolenaarfb539272014-08-22 19:21:47 +02002209 global argument list. See |arglist|.
2210 Return -1 if the arguments are invalid.
Bram Moolenaar2d1fe052014-05-28 18:22:57 +02002211
2212 Without arguments use the current window.
2213 With {winnr} only use this window in the current tab page.
2214 With {winnr} and {tabnr} use the window in the specified tab
2215 page.
2216
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002217 *argv()*
Bram Moolenaare2f98b92006-03-29 21:18:24 +00002218argv([{nr}]) The result is the {nr}th file in the argument list of the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002219 current window. See |arglist|. "argv(0)" is the first one.
2220 Example: >
2221 :let i = 0
2222 :while i < argc()
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002223 : let f = escape(fnameescape(argv(i)), '.')
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002224 : exe 'amenu Arg.' . f . ' :e ' . f . '<CR>'
2225 : let i = i + 1
2226 :endwhile
Bram Moolenaare2f98b92006-03-29 21:18:24 +00002227< Without the {nr} argument a |List| with the whole |arglist| is
2228 returned.
2229
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01002230 *assert_equal()*
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01002231assert_equal({expected}, {actual} [, {msg}])
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002232 When {expected} and {actual} are not equal an error message is
2233 added to |v:errors|.
2234 There is no automatic conversion, the String "4" is different
2235 from the Number 4. And the number 4 is different from the
2236 Float 4.0. The value of 'ignorecase' is not used here, case
2237 always matters.
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01002238 When {msg} is omitted an error in the form "Expected
2239 {expected} but got {actual}" is produced.
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002240 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01002241 assert_equal('foo', 'bar')
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002242< Will result in a string to be added to |v:errors|:
2243 test.vim line 12: Expected 'foo' but got 'bar' ~
2244
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01002245assert_exception({error} [, {msg}]) *assert_exception()*
2246 When v:exception does not contain the string {error} an error
2247 message is added to |v:errors|.
2248 This can be used to assert that a command throws an exception.
2249 Using the error number, followed by a colon, avoids problems
2250 with translations: >
2251 try
2252 commandthatfails
2253 call assert_false(1, 'command should have failed')
2254 catch
2255 call assert_exception('E492:')
2256 endtry
2257
Bram Moolenaara260b872016-01-15 20:48:22 +01002258assert_fails({cmd} [, {error}]) *assert_fails()*
2259 Run {cmd} and add an error message to |v:errors| if it does
2260 NOT produce an error.
2261 When {error} is given it must match |v:errmsg|.
2262
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01002263assert_false({actual} [, {msg}]) *assert_false()*
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002264 When {actual} is not false an error message is added to
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01002265 |v:errors|, like with |assert_equal()|.
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002266 A value is false when it is zero. When "{actual}" is not a
2267 number the assert fails.
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01002268 When {msg} is omitted an error in the form "Expected False but
2269 got {actual}" is produced.
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002270
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01002271assert_true({actual} [, {msg}]) *assert_true()*
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002272 When {actual} is not true an error message is added to
Bram Moolenaara803c7f2016-01-15 15:31:39 +01002273 |v:errors|, like with |assert_equal()|.
2274 A value is true when it is a non-zero number. When {actual}
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002275 is not a number the assert fails.
Bram Moolenaar683fa182015-11-30 21:38:24 +01002276 When {msg} is omitted an error in the form "Expected True but
2277 got {actual}" is produced.
Bram Moolenaar43345542015-11-29 17:35:35 +01002278
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002279asin({expr}) *asin()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02002280 Return the arc sine of {expr} measured in radians, as a |Float|
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002281 in the range of [-pi/2, pi/2].
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02002282 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number| in the range
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002283 [-1, 1].
2284 Examples: >
2285 :echo asin(0.8)
2286< 0.927295 >
2287 :echo asin(-0.5)
2288< -0.523599
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02002289 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002290
2291
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002292atan({expr}) *atan()*
2293 Return the principal value of the arc tangent of {expr}, in
2294 the range [-pi/2, +pi/2] radians, as a |Float|.
2295 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
2296 Examples: >
2297 :echo atan(100)
2298< 1.560797 >
2299 :echo atan(-4.01)
2300< -1.326405
2301 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
2302
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002303
2304atan2({expr1}, {expr2}) *atan2()*
2305 Return the arc tangent of {expr1} / {expr2}, measured in
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02002306 radians, as a |Float| in the range [-pi, pi].
2307 {expr1} and {expr2} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002308 Examples: >
2309 :echo atan2(-1, 1)
2310< -0.785398 >
2311 :echo atan2(1, -1)
2312< 2.356194
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02002313 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002314
2315
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002316 *browse()*
2317browse({save}, {title}, {initdir}, {default})
2318 Put up a file requester. This only works when "has("browse")"
2319 returns non-zero (only in some GUI versions).
2320 The input fields are:
2321 {save} when non-zero, select file to write
2322 {title} title for the requester
2323 {initdir} directory to start browsing in
2324 {default} default file name
2325 When the "Cancel" button is hit, something went wrong, or
2326 browsing is not possible, an empty string is returned.
2327
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00002328 *browsedir()*
2329browsedir({title}, {initdir})
2330 Put up a directory requester. This only works when
2331 "has("browse")" returns non-zero (only in some GUI versions).
2332 On systems where a directory browser is not supported a file
2333 browser is used. In that case: select a file in the directory
2334 to be used.
2335 The input fields are:
2336 {title} title for the requester
2337 {initdir} directory to start browsing in
2338 When the "Cancel" button is hit, something went wrong, or
2339 browsing is not possible, an empty string is returned.
2340
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002341bufexists({expr}) *bufexists()*
2342 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a buffer called
2343 {expr} exists.
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00002344 If the {expr} argument is a number, buffer numbers are used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002345 If the {expr} argument is a string it must match a buffer name
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00002346 exactly. The name can be:
2347 - Relative to the current directory.
2348 - A full path.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002349 - The name of a buffer with 'buftype' set to "nofile".
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00002350 - A URL name.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002351 Unlisted buffers will be found.
2352 Note that help files are listed by their short name in the
2353 output of |:buffers|, but bufexists() requires using their
2354 long name to be able to find them.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002355 bufexists() may report a buffer exists, but to use the name
2356 with a |:buffer| command you may need to use |expand()|. Esp
2357 for MS-Windows 8.3 names in the form "c:\DOCUME~1"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002358 Use "bufexists(0)" to test for the existence of an alternate
2359 file name.
2360 *buffer_exists()*
2361 Obsolete name: buffer_exists().
2362
2363buflisted({expr}) *buflisted()*
2364 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a buffer called
2365 {expr} exists and is listed (has the 'buflisted' option set).
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00002366 The {expr} argument is used like with |bufexists()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002367
2368bufloaded({expr}) *bufloaded()*
2369 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a buffer called
2370 {expr} exists and is loaded (shown in a window or hidden).
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00002371 The {expr} argument is used like with |bufexists()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002372
2373bufname({expr}) *bufname()*
2374 The result is the name of a buffer, as it is displayed by the
2375 ":ls" command.
2376 If {expr} is a Number, that buffer number's name is given.
2377 Number zero is the alternate buffer for the current window.
2378 If {expr} is a String, it is used as a |file-pattern| to match
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002379 with the buffer names. This is always done like 'magic' is
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002380 set and 'cpoptions' is empty. When there is more than one
2381 match an empty string is returned.
2382 "" or "%" can be used for the current buffer, "#" for the
2383 alternate buffer.
2384 A full match is preferred, otherwise a match at the start, end
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002385 or middle of the buffer name is accepted. If you only want a
2386 full match then put "^" at the start and "$" at the end of the
2387 pattern.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002388 Listed buffers are found first. If there is a single match
2389 with a listed buffer, that one is returned. Next unlisted
2390 buffers are searched for.
2391 If the {expr} is a String, but you want to use it as a buffer
2392 number, force it to be a Number by adding zero to it: >
2393 :echo bufname("3" + 0)
2394< If the buffer doesn't exist, or doesn't have a name, an empty
2395 string is returned. >
2396 bufname("#") alternate buffer name
2397 bufname(3) name of buffer 3
2398 bufname("%") name of current buffer
2399 bufname("file2") name of buffer where "file2" matches.
2400< *buffer_name()*
2401 Obsolete name: buffer_name().
2402
2403 *bufnr()*
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00002404bufnr({expr} [, {create}])
2405 The result is the number of a buffer, as it is displayed by
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002406 the ":ls" command. For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()|
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00002407 above.
2408 If the buffer doesn't exist, -1 is returned. Or, if the
2409 {create} argument is present and not zero, a new, unlisted,
2410 buffer is created and its number is returned.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002411 bufnr("$") is the last buffer: >
2412 :let last_buffer = bufnr("$")
2413< The result is a Number, which is the highest buffer number
2414 of existing buffers. Note that not all buffers with a smaller
2415 number necessarily exist, because ":bwipeout" may have removed
2416 them. Use bufexists() to test for the existence of a buffer.
2417 *buffer_number()*
2418 Obsolete name: buffer_number().
2419 *last_buffer_nr()*
2420 Obsolete name for bufnr("$"): last_buffer_nr().
2421
2422bufwinnr({expr}) *bufwinnr()*
2423 The result is a Number, which is the number of the first
2424 window associated with buffer {expr}. For the use of {expr},
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002425 see |bufname()| above. If buffer {expr} doesn't exist or
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002426 there is no such window, -1 is returned. Example: >
2427
2428 echo "A window containing buffer 1 is " . (bufwinnr(1))
2429
2430< The number can be used with |CTRL-W_w| and ":wincmd w"
2431 |:wincmd|.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002432 Only deals with the current tab page.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002433
2434
2435byte2line({byte}) *byte2line()*
2436 Return the line number that contains the character at byte
2437 count {byte} in the current buffer. This includes the
2438 end-of-line character, depending on the 'fileformat' option
2439 for the current buffer. The first character has byte count
2440 one.
2441 Also see |line2byte()|, |go| and |:goto|.
2442 {not available when compiled without the |+byte_offset|
2443 feature}
2444
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00002445byteidx({expr}, {nr}) *byteidx()*
2446 Return byte index of the {nr}'th character in the string
2447 {expr}. Use zero for the first character, it returns zero.
2448 This function is only useful when there are multibyte
2449 characters, otherwise the returned value is equal to {nr}.
Bram Moolenaar0ffbbf92013-11-02 23:29:26 +01002450 Composing characters are not counted separately, their byte
2451 length is added to the preceding base character. See
2452 |byteidxcomp()| below for counting composing characters
2453 separately.
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00002454 Example : >
2455 echo matchstr(str, ".", byteidx(str, 3))
2456< will display the fourth character. Another way to do the
2457 same: >
2458 let s = strpart(str, byteidx(str, 3))
2459 echo strpart(s, 0, byteidx(s, 1))
2460< If there are less than {nr} characters -1 is returned.
2461 If there are exactly {nr} characters the length of the string
Bram Moolenaar0ffbbf92013-11-02 23:29:26 +01002462 in bytes is returned.
2463
2464byteidxcomp({expr}, {nr}) *byteidxcomp()*
2465 Like byteidx(), except that a composing character is counted
2466 as a separate character. Example: >
2467 let s = 'e' . nr2char(0x301)
2468 echo byteidx(s, 1)
2469 echo byteidxcomp(s, 1)
2470 echo byteidxcomp(s, 2)
2471< The first and third echo result in 3 ('e' plus composing
2472 character is 3 bytes), the second echo results in 1 ('e' is
2473 one byte).
2474 Only works different from byteidx() when 'encoding' is set to
2475 a Unicode encoding.
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00002476
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002477call({func}, {arglist} [, {dict}]) *call()* *E699*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002478 Call function {func} with the items in |List| {arglist} as
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002479 arguments.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002480 {func} can either be a |Funcref| or the name of a function.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002481 a:firstline and a:lastline are set to the cursor line.
2482 Returns the return value of the called function.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002483 {dict} is for functions with the "dict" attribute. It will be
2484 used to set the local variable "self". |Dictionary-function|
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002485
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002486ceil({expr}) *ceil()*
2487 Return the smallest integral value greater than or equal to
2488 {expr} as a |Float| (round up).
2489 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
2490 Examples: >
2491 echo ceil(1.456)
2492< 2.0 >
2493 echo ceil(-5.456)
2494< -5.0 >
2495 echo ceil(4.0)
2496< 4.0
2497 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
2498
Bram Moolenaarca003e12006-03-17 23:19:38 +00002499changenr() *changenr()*
2500 Return the number of the most recent change. This is the same
2501 number as what is displayed with |:undolist| and can be used
2502 with the |:undo| command.
2503 When a change was made it is the number of that change. After
2504 redo it is the number of the redone change. After undo it is
2505 one less than the number of the undone change.
2506
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01002507char2nr({expr}[, {utf8}]) *char2nr()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002508 Return number value of the first char in {expr}. Examples: >
2509 char2nr(" ") returns 32
2510 char2nr("ABC") returns 65
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01002511< When {utf8} is omitted or zero, the current 'encoding' is used.
2512 Example for "utf-8": >
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002513 char2nr("á") returns 225
2514 char2nr("á"[0]) returns 195
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01002515< With {utf8} set to 1, always treat as utf-8 characters.
2516 A combining character is a separate character.
Bram Moolenaar97293012011-07-18 19:40:27 +02002517 |nr2char()| does the opposite.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002518
2519cindent({lnum}) *cindent()*
2520 Get the amount of indent for line {lnum} according the C
2521 indenting rules, as with 'cindent'.
2522 The indent is counted in spaces, the value of 'tabstop' is
2523 relevant. {lnum} is used just like in |getline()|.
2524 When {lnum} is invalid or Vim was not compiled the |+cindent|
2525 feature, -1 is returned.
Bram Moolenaard5cdbeb2005-10-10 20:59:28 +00002526 See |C-indenting|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002527
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00002528clearmatches() *clearmatches()*
2529 Clears all matches previously defined by |matchadd()| and the
2530 |:match| commands.
2531
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002532 *col()*
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00002533col({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the byte index of the column
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002534 position given with {expr}. The accepted positions are:
2535 . the cursor position
2536 $ the end of the cursor line (the result is the
Bram Moolenaar1aeaf8c2012-05-18 13:46:39 +02002537 number of bytes in the cursor line plus one)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002538 'x position of mark x (if the mark is not set, 0 is
2539 returned)
Bram Moolenaare3faf442014-12-14 01:27:49 +01002540 v In Visual mode: the start of the Visual area (the
2541 cursor is the end). When not in Visual mode
2542 returns the cursor position. Differs from |'<| in
2543 that it's updated right away.
Bram Moolenaar477933c2007-07-17 14:32:23 +00002544 Additionally {expr} can be [lnum, col]: a |List| with the line
2545 and column number. Most useful when the column is "$", to get
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002546 the last column of a specific line. When "lnum" or "col" is
Bram Moolenaar477933c2007-07-17 14:32:23 +00002547 out of range then col() returns zero.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002548 To get the line number use |line()|. To get both use
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00002549 |getpos()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002550 For the screen column position use |virtcol()|.
2551 Note that only marks in the current file can be used.
2552 Examples: >
2553 col(".") column of cursor
2554 col("$") length of cursor line plus one
2555 col("'t") column of mark t
2556 col("'" . markname) column of mark markname
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002557< The first column is 1. 0 is returned for an error.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002558 For an uppercase mark the column may actually be in another
2559 buffer.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002560 For the cursor position, when 'virtualedit' is active, the
2561 column is one higher if the cursor is after the end of the
2562 line. This can be used to obtain the column in Insert mode: >
2563 :imap <F2> <C-O>:let save_ve = &ve<CR>
2564 \<C-O>:set ve=all<CR>
2565 \<C-O>:echo col(".") . "\n" <Bar>
2566 \let &ve = save_ve<CR>
2567<
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00002568
Bram Moolenaara94bc432006-03-10 21:42:59 +00002569complete({startcol}, {matches}) *complete()* *E785*
2570 Set the matches for Insert mode completion.
2571 Can only be used in Insert mode. You need to use a mapping
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002572 with CTRL-R = |i_CTRL-R|. It does not work after CTRL-O or
2573 with an expression mapping.
Bram Moolenaara94bc432006-03-10 21:42:59 +00002574 {startcol} is the byte offset in the line where the completed
2575 text start. The text up to the cursor is the original text
2576 that will be replaced by the matches. Use col('.') for an
2577 empty string. "col('.') - 1" will replace one character by a
2578 match.
2579 {matches} must be a |List|. Each |List| item is one match.
2580 See |complete-items| for the kind of items that are possible.
2581 Note that the after calling this function you need to avoid
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002582 inserting anything that would cause completion to stop.
Bram Moolenaara94bc432006-03-10 21:42:59 +00002583 The match can be selected with CTRL-N and CTRL-P as usual with
2584 Insert mode completion. The popup menu will appear if
2585 specified, see |ins-completion-menu|.
2586 Example: >
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002587 inoremap <F5> <C-R>=ListMonths()<CR>
Bram Moolenaara94bc432006-03-10 21:42:59 +00002588
2589 func! ListMonths()
2590 call complete(col('.'), ['January', 'February', 'March',
2591 \ 'April', 'May', 'June', 'July', 'August', 'September',
2592 \ 'October', 'November', 'December'])
2593 return ''
2594 endfunc
2595< This isn't very useful, but it shows how it works. Note that
2596 an empty string is returned to avoid a zero being inserted.
2597
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00002598complete_add({expr}) *complete_add()*
2599 Add {expr} to the list of matches. Only to be used by the
2600 function specified with the 'completefunc' option.
2601 Returns 0 for failure (empty string or out of memory),
2602 1 when the match was added, 2 when the match was already in
2603 the list.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002604 See |complete-functions| for an explanation of {expr}. It is
Bram Moolenaar39f05632006-03-19 22:15:26 +00002605 the same as one item in the list that 'omnifunc' would return.
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00002606
2607complete_check() *complete_check()*
2608 Check for a key typed while looking for completion matches.
2609 This is to be used when looking for matches takes some time.
2610 Returns non-zero when searching for matches is to be aborted,
2611 zero otherwise.
2612 Only to be used by the function specified with the
2613 'completefunc' option.
2614
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002615 *confirm()*
2616confirm({msg} [, {choices} [, {default} [, {type}]]])
2617 Confirm() offers the user a dialog, from which a choice can be
2618 made. It returns the number of the choice. For the first
2619 choice this is 1.
2620 Note: confirm() is only supported when compiled with dialog
2621 support, see |+dialog_con| and |+dialog_gui|.
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02002622
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002623 {msg} is displayed in a |dialog| with {choices} as the
2624 alternatives. When {choices} is missing or empty, "&OK" is
2625 used (and translated).
2626 {msg} is a String, use '\n' to include a newline. Only on
2627 some systems the string is wrapped when it doesn't fit.
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02002628
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002629 {choices} is a String, with the individual choices separated
2630 by '\n', e.g. >
2631 confirm("Save changes?", "&Yes\n&No\n&Cancel")
2632< The letter after the '&' is the shortcut key for that choice.
2633 Thus you can type 'c' to select "Cancel". The shortcut does
2634 not need to be the first letter: >
2635 confirm("file has been modified", "&Save\nSave &All")
2636< For the console, the first letter of each choice is used as
2637 the default shortcut key.
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02002638
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002639 The optional {default} argument is the number of the choice
2640 that is made if the user hits <CR>. Use 1 to make the first
2641 choice the default one. Use 0 to not set a default. If
2642 {default} is omitted, 1 is used.
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02002643
2644 The optional {type} argument gives the type of dialog. This
2645 is only used for the icon of the GTK, Mac, Motif and Win32
2646 GUI. It can be one of these values: "Error", "Question",
2647 "Info", "Warning" or "Generic". Only the first character is
2648 relevant. When {type} is omitted, "Generic" is used.
2649
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002650 If the user aborts the dialog by pressing <Esc>, CTRL-C,
2651 or another valid interrupt key, confirm() returns 0.
2652
2653 An example: >
2654 :let choice = confirm("What do you want?", "&Apples\n&Oranges\n&Bananas", 2)
2655 :if choice == 0
2656 : echo "make up your mind!"
2657 :elseif choice == 3
2658 : echo "tasteful"
2659 :else
2660 : echo "I prefer bananas myself."
2661 :endif
2662< In a GUI dialog, buttons are used. The layout of the buttons
2663 depends on the 'v' flag in 'guioptions'. If it is included,
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002664 the buttons are always put vertically. Otherwise, confirm()
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002665 tries to put the buttons in one horizontal line. If they
2666 don't fit, a vertical layout is used anyway. For some systems
2667 the horizontal layout is always used.
2668
Bram Moolenaarf57969a2016-02-02 20:47:49 +01002669ch_close({handle}) *ch_close()*
2670 Close channel {handle}. See |channel|.
2671
Bram Moolenaar4d919d72016-02-05 22:36:41 +01002672ch_open({address} [, {argdict}]) *ch_open()*
Bram Moolenaar3b5f9292016-01-28 22:37:01 +01002673 Open a channel to {address}. See |channel|.
Bram Moolenaar5e9b2fa2016-02-01 22:37:05 +01002674 Returns the channel handle on success. Returns a negative
2675 number for failure.
Bram Moolenaar3b5f9292016-01-28 22:37:01 +01002676
2677 {address} has the form "hostname:port", e.g.,
2678 "localhost:8765".
2679
Bram Moolenaar4d919d72016-02-05 22:36:41 +01002680 If {argdict} is given it must be a |Directory|. The optional
2681 items are:
2682 mode "raw" or "json".
2683 Default "json".
2684 callback function to call for requests with a zero
2685 sequence number. See |channel-callback|.
2686 Default: none.
2687 waittime Specify connect timeout as milliseconds.
2688 Negative means forever.
2689 Default: 0.
2690 timeout Specify response read timeout value as
2691 milliseconds.
2692 Default: 2000.
Bram Moolenaar3b5f9292016-01-28 22:37:01 +01002693
Bram Moolenaar681baaf2016-02-04 20:57:07 +01002694ch_sendexpr({handle}, {expr} [, {callback}]) *ch_sendexpr()*
Bram Moolenaarf57969a2016-02-02 20:47:49 +01002695 Send {expr} over JSON channel {handle}. See |channel-use|.
2696
2697 When {callback} is given returns immediately. Without
2698 {callback} waits for a JSON response and returns the decoded
2699 expression. When there is an error or timeout returns an
2700 empty string.
2701
2702 When {callback} is zero no response is expected.
2703 Otherwise {callback} must be a Funcref or the name of a
2704 function. It is called when the response is received. See
2705 |channel-callback|.
2706
2707ch_sendraw({handle}, {string} [, {callback}]) *ch_sendraw()*
2708 Send {string} over raw channel {handle}. See |channel-raw|.
2709 Works like |ch_sendexpr()|, but does not decode the response.
2710
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002711 *copy()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002712copy({expr}) Make a copy of {expr}. For Numbers and Strings this isn't
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002713 different from using {expr} directly.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002714 When {expr} is a |List| a shallow copy is created. This means
2715 that the original |List| can be changed without changing the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002716 copy, and vice versa. But the items are identical, thus
2717 changing an item changes the contents of both |Lists|. Also
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002718 see |deepcopy()|.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002719
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002720cos({expr}) *cos()*
2721 Return the cosine of {expr}, measured in radians, as a |Float|.
2722 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
2723 Examples: >
2724 :echo cos(100)
2725< 0.862319 >
2726 :echo cos(-4.01)
2727< -0.646043
2728 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
2729
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002730
2731cosh({expr}) *cosh()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02002732 Return the hyperbolic cosine of {expr} as a |Float| in the range
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002733 [1, inf].
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02002734 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002735 Examples: >
2736 :echo cosh(0.5)
2737< 1.127626 >
2738 :echo cosh(-0.5)
2739< -1.127626
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02002740 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02002741
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002742
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002743count({comp}, {expr} [, {ic} [, {start}]]) *count()*
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002744 Return the number of times an item with value {expr} appears
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002745 in |List| or |Dictionary| {comp}.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00002746 If {start} is given then start with the item with this index.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002747 {start} can only be used with a |List|.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00002748 When {ic} is given and it's non-zero then case is ignored.
2749
2750
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002751 *cscope_connection()*
2752cscope_connection([{num} , {dbpath} [, {prepend}]])
2753 Checks for the existence of a |cscope| connection. If no
2754 parameters are specified, then the function returns:
2755 0, if cscope was not available (not compiled in), or
2756 if there are no cscope connections;
2757 1, if there is at least one cscope connection.
2758
2759 If parameters are specified, then the value of {num}
2760 determines how existence of a cscope connection is checked:
2761
2762 {num} Description of existence check
2763 ----- ------------------------------
2764 0 Same as no parameters (e.g., "cscope_connection()").
2765 1 Ignore {prepend}, and use partial string matches for
2766 {dbpath}.
2767 2 Ignore {prepend}, and use exact string matches for
2768 {dbpath}.
2769 3 Use {prepend}, use partial string matches for both
2770 {dbpath} and {prepend}.
2771 4 Use {prepend}, use exact string matches for both
2772 {dbpath} and {prepend}.
2773
2774 Note: All string comparisons are case sensitive!
2775
2776 Examples. Suppose we had the following (from ":cs show"): >
2777
2778 # pid database name prepend path
2779 0 27664 cscope.out /usr/local
2780<
2781 Invocation Return Val ~
2782 ---------- ---------- >
2783 cscope_connection() 1
2784 cscope_connection(1, "out") 1
2785 cscope_connection(2, "out") 0
2786 cscope_connection(3, "out") 0
2787 cscope_connection(3, "out", "local") 1
2788 cscope_connection(4, "out") 0
2789 cscope_connection(4, "out", "local") 0
2790 cscope_connection(4, "cscope.out", "/usr/local") 1
2791<
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00002792cursor({lnum}, {col} [, {off}]) *cursor()*
2793cursor({list})
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00002794 Positions the cursor at the column (byte count) {col} in the
2795 line {lnum}. The first column is one.
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02002796
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00002797 When there is one argument {list} this is used as a |List|
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02002798 with two, three or four item:
2799 [{lnum}, {col}, {off}]
2800 [{lnum}, {col}, {off}, {curswant}]
Bram Moolenaar946e27a2014-06-25 18:50:27 +02002801 This is like the return value of |getpos()| or |getcurpos()|,
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02002802 but without the first item.
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02002803
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002804 Does not change the jumplist.
2805 If {lnum} is greater than the number of lines in the buffer,
2806 the cursor will be positioned at the last line in the buffer.
2807 If {lnum} is zero, the cursor will stay in the current line.
Bram Moolenaar6f16eb82005-08-23 21:02:42 +00002808 If {col} is greater than the number of bytes in the line,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002809 the cursor will be positioned at the last character in the
2810 line.
2811 If {col} is zero, the cursor will stay in the current column.
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02002812 If {curswant} is given it is used to set the preferred column
Bram Moolenaar34401cc2014-08-29 15:12:19 +02002813 for vertical movement. Otherwise {col} is used.
Bram Moolenaar2f3b5102014-11-19 18:54:17 +01002814
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00002815 When 'virtualedit' is used {off} specifies the offset in
2816 screen columns from the start of the character. E.g., a
Bram Moolenaard46bbc72007-05-12 14:38:41 +00002817 position within a <Tab> or after the last character.
Bram Moolenaar798b30b2009-04-22 10:56:16 +00002818 Returns 0 when the position could be set, -1 otherwise.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002819
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002820
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00002821deepcopy({expr}[, {noref}]) *deepcopy()* *E698*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002822 Make a copy of {expr}. For Numbers and Strings this isn't
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002823 different from using {expr} directly.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002824 When {expr} is a |List| a full copy is created. This means
2825 that the original |List| can be changed without changing the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002826 copy, and vice versa. When an item is a |List|, a copy for it
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002827 is made, recursively. Thus changing an item in the copy does
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002828 not change the contents of the original |List|.
2829 When {noref} is omitted or zero a contained |List| or
2830 |Dictionary| is only copied once. All references point to
2831 this single copy. With {noref} set to 1 every occurrence of a
2832 |List| or |Dictionary| results in a new copy. This also means
2833 that a cyclic reference causes deepcopy() to fail.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00002834 *E724*
2835 Nesting is possible up to 100 levels. When there is an item
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00002836 that refers back to a higher level making a deep copy with
2837 {noref} set to 1 will fail.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00002838 Also see |copy()|.
2839
Bram Moolenaarda440d22016-01-16 21:27:23 +01002840delete({fname} [, {flags}]) *delete()*
2841 Without {flags} or with {flags} empty: Deletes the file by the
Bram Moolenaar43a34f92016-01-17 15:56:34 +01002842 name {fname}. This also works when {fname} is a symbolic link.
Bram Moolenaarda440d22016-01-16 21:27:23 +01002843
2844 When {flags} is "d": Deletes the directory by the name
Bram Moolenaar43a34f92016-01-17 15:56:34 +01002845 {fname}. This fails when directory {fname} is not empty.
Bram Moolenaarda440d22016-01-16 21:27:23 +01002846
2847 When {flags} is "rf": Deletes the directory by the name
Bram Moolenaar43a34f92016-01-17 15:56:34 +01002848 {fname} and everything in it, recursively. BE CAREFUL!
2849 A symbolic link itself is deleted, not what it points to.
Bram Moolenaarda440d22016-01-16 21:27:23 +01002850
2851 The result is a Number, which is 0 if the delete operation was
2852 successful and -1 when the deletion failed or partly failed.
2853
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002854 Use |remove()| to delete an item from a |List|.
Bram Moolenaarac7bd632013-03-19 11:35:58 +01002855 To delete a line from the buffer use |:delete|. Use |:exe|
2856 when the line number is in a variable.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002857
2858 *did_filetype()*
2859did_filetype() Returns non-zero when autocommands are being executed and the
2860 FileType event has been triggered at least once. Can be used
2861 to avoid triggering the FileType event again in the scripts
2862 that detect the file type. |FileType|
2863 When editing another file, the counter is reset, thus this
2864 really checks if the FileType event has been triggered for the
2865 current buffer. This allows an autocommand that starts
2866 editing another buffer to set 'filetype' and load a syntax
2867 file.
2868
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00002869diff_filler({lnum}) *diff_filler()*
2870 Returns the number of filler lines above line {lnum}.
2871 These are the lines that were inserted at this point in
2872 another diff'ed window. These filler lines are shown in the
2873 display but don't exist in the buffer.
2874 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|. Thus "." is the current
2875 line, "'m" mark m, etc.
2876 Returns 0 if the current window is not in diff mode.
2877
2878diff_hlID({lnum}, {col}) *diff_hlID()*
2879 Returns the highlight ID for diff mode at line {lnum} column
2880 {col} (byte index). When the current line does not have a
2881 diff change zero is returned.
2882 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|. Thus "." is the current
2883 line, "'m" mark m, etc.
2884 {col} is 1 for the leftmost column, {lnum} is 1 for the first
2885 line.
2886 The highlight ID can be used with |synIDattr()| to obtain
2887 syntax information about the highlighting.
2888
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00002889empty({expr}) *empty()*
2890 Return the Number 1 if {expr} is empty, zero otherwise.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002891 A |List| or |Dictionary| is empty when it does not have any
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002892 items. A Number is empty when its value is zero.
Bram Moolenaar009d84a2016-01-28 14:12:00 +01002893 |v:false|, |v:none| and |v:null| are empty, |v:true| is not.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01002894 For a long |List| this is much faster than comparing the
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002895 length with zero.
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00002896
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002897escape({string}, {chars}) *escape()*
2898 Escape the characters in {chars} that occur in {string} with a
2899 backslash. Example: >
2900 :echo escape('c:\program files\vim', ' \')
2901< results in: >
2902 c:\\program\ files\\vim
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002903< Also see |shellescape()|.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002904
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002905 *eval()*
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002906eval({string}) Evaluate {string} and return the result. Especially useful to
2907 turn the result of |string()| back into the original value.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002908 This works for Numbers, Floats, Strings and composites of
2909 them. Also works for |Funcref|s that refer to existing
2910 functions.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00002911
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002912eventhandler() *eventhandler()*
2913 Returns 1 when inside an event handler. That is that Vim got
2914 interrupted while waiting for the user to type a character,
2915 e.g., when dropping a file on Vim. This means interactive
2916 commands cannot be used. Otherwise zero is returned.
2917
2918executable({expr}) *executable()*
2919 This function checks if an executable with the name {expr}
2920 exists. {expr} must be the name of the program without any
Bram Moolenaarf4b8e572004-06-24 15:53:16 +00002921 arguments.
2922 executable() uses the value of $PATH and/or the normal
2923 searchpath for programs. *PATHEXT*
2924 On MS-DOS and MS-Windows the ".exe", ".bat", etc. can
2925 optionally be included. Then the extensions in $PATHEXT are
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002926 tried. Thus if "foo.exe" does not exist, "foo.exe.bat" can be
2927 found. If $PATHEXT is not set then ".exe;.com;.bat;.cmd" is
Bram Moolenaarf4b8e572004-06-24 15:53:16 +00002928 used. A dot by itself can be used in $PATHEXT to try using
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002929 the name without an extension. When 'shell' looks like a
Bram Moolenaarf4b8e572004-06-24 15:53:16 +00002930 Unix shell, then the name is also tried without adding an
2931 extension.
2932 On MS-DOS and MS-Windows it only checks if the file exists and
2933 is not a directory, not if it's really executable.
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00002934 On MS-Windows an executable in the same directory as Vim is
2935 always found. Since this directory is added to $PATH it
2936 should also work to execute it |win32-PATH|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002937 The result is a Number:
2938 1 exists
2939 0 does not exist
2940 -1 not implemented on this system
2941
Bram Moolenaarc7f02552014-04-01 21:00:59 +02002942exepath({expr}) *exepath()*
2943 If {expr} is an executable and is either an absolute path, a
2944 relative path or found in $PATH, return the full path.
2945 Note that the current directory is used when {expr} starts
2946 with "./", which may be a problem for Vim: >
2947 echo exepath(v:progpath)
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +02002948< If {expr} cannot be found in $PATH or is not executable then
Bram Moolenaarc7f02552014-04-01 21:00:59 +02002949 an empty string is returned.
2950
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002951 *exists()*
2952exists({expr}) The result is a Number, which is non-zero if {expr} is
2953 defined, zero otherwise. The {expr} argument is a string,
2954 which contains one of these:
2955 &option-name Vim option (only checks if it exists,
2956 not if it really works)
2957 +option-name Vim option that works.
2958 $ENVNAME environment variable (could also be
2959 done by comparing with an empty
2960 string)
2961 *funcname built-in function (see |functions|)
2962 or user defined function (see
Bram Moolenaarbcb98982014-05-01 14:08:19 +02002963 |user-functions|). Also works for a
2964 variable that is a Funcref.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002965 varname internal variable (see
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00002966 |internal-variables|). Also works
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00002967 for |curly-braces-names|, |Dictionary|
2968 entries, |List| items, etc. Beware
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00002969 that evaluating an index may cause an
2970 error message for an invalid
2971 expression. E.g.: >
2972 :let l = [1, 2, 3]
2973 :echo exists("l[5]")
2974< 0 >
2975 :echo exists("l[xx]")
2976< E121: Undefined variable: xx
2977 0
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002978 :cmdname Ex command: built-in command, user
2979 command or command modifier |:command|.
2980 Returns:
2981 1 for match with start of a command
2982 2 full match with a command
2983 3 matches several user commands
2984 To check for a supported command
2985 always check the return value to be 2.
Bram Moolenaar14716812006-05-04 21:54:08 +00002986 :2match The |:2match| command.
2987 :3match The |:3match| command.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002988 #event autocommand defined for this event
2989 #event#pattern autocommand defined for this event and
2990 pattern (the pattern is taken
2991 literally and compared to the
2992 autocommand patterns character by
2993 character)
Bram Moolenaara9b1e742005-12-19 22:14:58 +00002994 #group autocommand group exists
2995 #group#event autocommand defined for this group and
2996 event.
2997 #group#event#pattern
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00002998 autocommand defined for this group,
Bram Moolenaara9b1e742005-12-19 22:14:58 +00002999 event and pattern.
Bram Moolenaarf4cd3e82005-12-22 22:47:02 +00003000 ##event autocommand for this event is
3001 supported.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003002 For checking for a supported feature use |has()|.
3003
3004 Examples: >
3005 exists("&shortname")
3006 exists("$HOSTNAME")
3007 exists("*strftime")
3008 exists("*s:MyFunc")
3009 exists("bufcount")
3010 exists(":Make")
Bram Moolenaara9b1e742005-12-19 22:14:58 +00003011 exists("#CursorHold")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003012 exists("#BufReadPre#*.gz")
Bram Moolenaara9b1e742005-12-19 22:14:58 +00003013 exists("#filetypeindent")
3014 exists("#filetypeindent#FileType")
3015 exists("#filetypeindent#FileType#*")
Bram Moolenaarf4cd3e82005-12-22 22:47:02 +00003016 exists("##ColorScheme")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003017< There must be no space between the symbol (&/$/*/#) and the
3018 name.
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003019 There must be no extra characters after the name, although in
3020 a few cases this is ignored. That may become more strict in
3021 the future, thus don't count on it!
3022 Working example: >
3023 exists(":make")
3024< NOT working example: >
3025 exists(":make install")
Bram Moolenaar9c102382006-05-03 21:26:49 +00003026
3027< Note that the argument must be a string, not the name of the
3028 variable itself. For example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003029 exists(bufcount)
3030< This doesn't check for existence of the "bufcount" variable,
Bram Moolenaar06a89a52006-04-29 22:01:03 +00003031 but gets the value of "bufcount", and checks if that exists.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003032
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003033exp({expr}) *exp()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02003034 Return the exponential of {expr} as a |Float| in the range
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003035 [0, inf].
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02003036 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003037 Examples: >
3038 :echo exp(2)
3039< 7.389056 >
3040 :echo exp(-1)
3041< 0.367879
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02003042 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003043
3044
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01003045expand({expr} [, {nosuf} [, {list}]]) *expand()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003046 Expand wildcards and the following special keywords in {expr}.
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01003047 'wildignorecase' applies.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003048
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01003049 If {list} is given and it is non-zero, a List will be returned.
3050 Otherwise the result is a String and when there are several
3051 matches, they are separated by <NL> characters. [Note: in
3052 version 5.0 a space was used, which caused problems when a
3053 file name contains a space]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003054
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003055 If the expansion fails, the result is an empty string. A name
Bram Moolenaarec7944a2013-06-12 21:29:15 +02003056 for a non-existing file is not included, unless {expr} does
3057 not start with '%', '#' or '<', see below.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003058
3059 When {expr} starts with '%', '#' or '<', the expansion is done
3060 like for the |cmdline-special| variables with their associated
3061 modifiers. Here is a short overview:
3062
3063 % current file name
3064 # alternate file name
3065 #n alternate file name n
3066 <cfile> file name under the cursor
3067 <afile> autocmd file name
3068 <abuf> autocmd buffer number (as a String!)
3069 <amatch> autocmd matched name
Bram Moolenaara6878372014-03-22 21:02:50 +01003070 <sfile> sourced script file or function name
Bram Moolenaar81af9252010-12-10 20:35:50 +01003071 <slnum> sourced script file line number
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003072 <cword> word under the cursor
3073 <cWORD> WORD under the cursor
3074 <client> the {clientid} of the last received
3075 message |server2client()|
3076 Modifiers:
3077 :p expand to full path
3078 :h head (last path component removed)
3079 :t tail (last path component only)
3080 :r root (one extension removed)
3081 :e extension only
3082
3083 Example: >
3084 :let &tags = expand("%:p:h") . "/tags"
3085< Note that when expanding a string that starts with '%', '#' or
3086 '<', any following text is ignored. This does NOT work: >
3087 :let doesntwork = expand("%:h.bak")
3088< Use this: >
3089 :let doeswork = expand("%:h") . ".bak"
3090< Also note that expanding "<cfile>" and others only returns the
3091 referenced file name without further expansion. If "<cfile>"
3092 is "~/.cshrc", you need to do another expand() to have the
3093 "~/" expanded into the path of the home directory: >
3094 :echo expand(expand("<cfile>"))
3095<
3096 There cannot be white space between the variables and the
3097 following modifier. The |fnamemodify()| function can be used
3098 to modify normal file names.
3099
3100 When using '%' or '#', and the current or alternate file name
3101 is not defined, an empty string is used. Using "%:p" in a
3102 buffer with no name, results in the current directory, with a
3103 '/' added.
3104
3105 When {expr} does not start with '%', '#' or '<', it is
3106 expanded like a file name is expanded on the command line.
3107 'suffixes' and 'wildignore' are used, unless the optional
Bram Moolenaar146e9c32012-03-07 19:18:23 +01003108 {nosuf} argument is given and it is non-zero.
3109 Names for non-existing files are included. The "**" item can
3110 be used to search in a directory tree. For example, to find
3111 all "README" files in the current directory and below: >
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00003112 :echo expand("**/README")
3113<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003114 Expand() can also be used to expand variables and environment
3115 variables that are only known in a shell. But this can be
Bram Moolenaar34401cc2014-08-29 15:12:19 +02003116 slow, because a shell may be used to do the expansion. See
3117 |expr-env-expand|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003118 The expanded variable is still handled like a list of file
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003119 names. When an environment variable cannot be expanded, it is
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003120 left unchanged. Thus ":echo expand('$FOOBAR')" results in
3121 "$FOOBAR".
3122
3123 See |glob()| for finding existing files. See |system()| for
3124 getting the raw output of an external command.
3125
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003126extend({expr1}, {expr2} [, {expr3}]) *extend()*
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00003127 {expr1} and {expr2} must be both |Lists| or both
3128 |Dictionaries|.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003129
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00003130 If they are |Lists|: Append {expr2} to {expr1}.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003131 If {expr3} is given insert the items of {expr2} before item
3132 {expr3} in {expr1}. When {expr3} is zero insert before the
3133 first item. When {expr3} is equal to len({expr1}) then
3134 {expr2} is appended.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00003135 Examples: >
3136 :echo sort(extend(mylist, [7, 5]))
3137 :call extend(mylist, [2, 3], 1)
Bram Moolenaardc9cf9c2008-08-08 10:36:31 +00003138< When {expr1} is the same List as {expr2} then the number of
3139 items copied is equal to the original length of the List.
3140 E.g., when {expr3} is 1 you get N new copies of the first item
3141 (where N is the original length of the List).
3142 Use |add()| to concatenate one item to a list. To concatenate
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003143 two lists into a new list use the + operator: >
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00003144 :let newlist = [1, 2, 3] + [4, 5]
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003145<
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00003146 If they are |Dictionaries|:
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003147 Add all entries from {expr2} to {expr1}.
3148 If a key exists in both {expr1} and {expr2} then {expr3} is
3149 used to decide what to do:
3150 {expr3} = "keep": keep the value of {expr1}
3151 {expr3} = "force": use the value of {expr2}
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00003152 {expr3} = "error": give an error message *E737*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003153 When {expr3} is omitted then "force" is assumed.
3154
3155 {expr1} is changed when {expr2} is not empty. If necessary
3156 make a copy of {expr1} first.
3157 {expr2} remains unchanged.
Bram Moolenaarf2571c62015-06-09 19:44:55 +02003158 When {expr1} is locked and {expr2} is not empty the operation
3159 fails.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003160 Returns {expr1}.
3161
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00003162
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +00003163feedkeys({string} [, {mode}]) *feedkeys()*
3164 Characters in {string} are queued for processing as if they
Bram Moolenaar0a988df2015-01-27 15:19:24 +01003165 come from a mapping or were typed by the user.
3166 By default the string is added to the end of the typeahead
3167 buffer, thus if a mapping is still being executed the
3168 characters come after them. Use the 'i' flag to insert before
3169 other characters, they will be executed next, before any
3170 characters from a mapping.
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +00003171 The function does not wait for processing of keys contained in
3172 {string}.
3173 To include special keys into {string}, use double-quotes
3174 and "\..." notation |expr-quote|. For example,
Bram Moolenaar79166c42007-05-10 18:29:51 +00003175 feedkeys("\<CR>") simulates pressing of the <Enter> key. But
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +00003176 feedkeys('\<CR>') pushes 5 characters.
3177 If {mode} is absent, keys are remapped.
3178 {mode} is a String, which can contain these character flags:
Bram Moolenaar551dbcc2006-04-25 22:13:59 +00003179 'm' Remap keys. This is default.
3180 'n' Do not remap keys.
3181 't' Handle keys as if typed; otherwise they are handled as
3182 if coming from a mapping. This matters for undo,
3183 opening folds, etc.
Bram Moolenaar0a988df2015-01-27 15:19:24 +01003184 'i' Insert the string instead of appending (see above).
Bram Moolenaar25281632016-01-21 23:32:32 +01003185 'x' Execute commands until typeahead is empty. This is
3186 similar to using ":normal!". You can call feedkeys()
3187 several times without 'x' and then one time with 'x'
3188 (possibly with an empty {string}) to execute all the
3189 typeahead.
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +00003190 Return value is always 0.
3191
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003192filereadable({file}) *filereadable()*
3193 The result is a Number, which is TRUE when a file with the
3194 name {file} exists, and can be read. If {file} doesn't exist,
3195 or is a directory, the result is FALSE. {file} is any
3196 expression, which is used as a String.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003197 If you don't care about the file being readable you can use
3198 |glob()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003199 *file_readable()*
3200 Obsolete name: file_readable().
3201
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003202
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003203filewritable({file}) *filewritable()*
3204 The result is a Number, which is 1 when a file with the
3205 name {file} exists, and can be written. If {file} doesn't
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003206 exist, or is not writable, the result is 0. If {file} is a
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003207 directory, and we can write to it, the result is 2.
3208
3209
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003210filter({expr}, {string}) *filter()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003211 {expr} must be a |List| or a |Dictionary|.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003212 For each item in {expr} evaluate {string} and when the result
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003213 is zero remove the item from the |List| or |Dictionary|.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003214 Inside {string} |v:val| has the value of the current item.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003215 For a |Dictionary| |v:key| has the key of the current item.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003216 Examples: >
3217 :call filter(mylist, 'v:val !~ "OLD"')
3218< Removes the items where "OLD" appears. >
3219 :call filter(mydict, 'v:key >= 8')
3220< Removes the items with a key below 8. >
3221 :call filter(var, 0)
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003222< Removes all the items, thus clears the |List| or |Dictionary|.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00003223
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003224 Note that {string} is the result of expression and is then
3225 used as an expression again. Often it is good to use a
3226 |literal-string| to avoid having to double backslashes.
3227
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003228 The operation is done in-place. If you want a |List| or
3229 |Dictionary| to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
Bram Moolenaarafeb4fa2006-02-01 21:51:12 +00003230 :let l = filter(copy(mylist), 'v:val =~ "KEEP"')
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003231
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003232< Returns {expr}, the |List| or |Dictionary| that was filtered.
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00003233 When an error is encountered while evaluating {string} no
3234 further items in {expr} are processed.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003235
3236
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003237finddir({name}[, {path}[, {count}]]) *finddir()*
Bram Moolenaar5b6b1ca2007-03-27 08:19:43 +00003238 Find directory {name} in {path}. Supports both downwards and
3239 upwards recursive directory searches. See |file-searching|
3240 for the syntax of {path}.
3241 Returns the path of the first found match. When the found
3242 directory is below the current directory a relative path is
3243 returned. Otherwise a full path is returned.
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003244 If {path} is omitted or empty then 'path' is used.
3245 If the optional {count} is given, find {count}'s occurrence of
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00003246 {name} in {path} instead of the first one.
Bram Moolenaar899dddf2006-03-26 21:06:50 +00003247 When {count} is negative return all the matches in a |List|.
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003248 This is quite similar to the ex-command |:find|.
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02003249 {only available when compiled with the |+file_in_path|
3250 feature}
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00003251
3252findfile({name}[, {path}[, {count}]]) *findfile()*
3253 Just like |finddir()|, but find a file instead of a directory.
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00003254 Uses 'suffixesadd'.
3255 Example: >
3256 :echo findfile("tags.vim", ".;")
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003257< Searches from the directory of the current file upwards until
3258 it finds the file "tags.vim".
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003259
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003260float2nr({expr}) *float2nr()*
3261 Convert {expr} to a Number by omitting the part after the
3262 decimal point.
3263 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a Number.
3264 When the value of {expr} is out of range for a |Number| the
3265 result is truncated to 0x7fffffff or -0x7fffffff. NaN results
3266 in -0x80000000.
3267 Examples: >
3268 echo float2nr(3.95)
3269< 3 >
3270 echo float2nr(-23.45)
3271< -23 >
3272 echo float2nr(1.0e100)
3273< 2147483647 >
3274 echo float2nr(-1.0e150)
3275< -2147483647 >
3276 echo float2nr(1.0e-100)
3277< 0
3278 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
3279
3280
3281floor({expr}) *floor()*
3282 Return the largest integral value less than or equal to
3283 {expr} as a |Float| (round down).
3284 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
3285 Examples: >
3286 echo floor(1.856)
3287< 1.0 >
3288 echo floor(-5.456)
3289< -6.0 >
3290 echo floor(4.0)
3291< 4.0
3292 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
3293
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003294
3295fmod({expr1}, {expr2}) *fmod()*
3296 Return the remainder of {expr1} / {expr2}, even if the
3297 division is not representable. Returns {expr1} - i * {expr2}
3298 for some integer i such that if {expr2} is non-zero, the
3299 result has the same sign as {expr1} and magnitude less than
3300 the magnitude of {expr2}. If {expr2} is zero, the value
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02003301 returned is zero. The value returned is a |Float|.
3302 {expr1} and {expr2} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003303 Examples: >
3304 :echo fmod(12.33, 1.22)
3305< 0.13 >
3306 :echo fmod(-12.33, 1.22)
3307< -0.13
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02003308 {only available when compiled with |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02003309
3310
Bram Moolenaaraebaf892008-05-28 14:49:58 +00003311fnameescape({string}) *fnameescape()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003312 Escape {string} for use as file name command argument. All
Bram Moolenaaraebaf892008-05-28 14:49:58 +00003313 characters that have a special meaning, such as '%' and '|'
3314 are escaped with a backslash.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003315 For most systems the characters escaped are
3316 " \t\n*?[{`$\\%#'\"|!<". For systems where a backslash
3317 appears in a filename, it depends on the value of 'isfname'.
Bram Moolenaar1b24e4b2008-08-08 10:59:17 +00003318 A leading '+' and '>' is also escaped (special after |:edit|
3319 and |:write|). And a "-" by itself (special after |:cd|).
Bram Moolenaaraebaf892008-05-28 14:49:58 +00003320 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar1b24e4b2008-08-08 10:59:17 +00003321 :let fname = '+some str%nge|name'
Bram Moolenaaraebaf892008-05-28 14:49:58 +00003322 :exe "edit " . fnameescape(fname)
3323< results in executing: >
Bram Moolenaar1b24e4b2008-08-08 10:59:17 +00003324 edit \+some\ str\%nge\|name
Bram Moolenaaraebaf892008-05-28 14:49:58 +00003325
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003326fnamemodify({fname}, {mods}) *fnamemodify()*
3327 Modify file name {fname} according to {mods}. {mods} is a
3328 string of characters like it is used for file names on the
3329 command line. See |filename-modifiers|.
3330 Example: >
3331 :echo fnamemodify("main.c", ":p:h")
3332< results in: >
3333 /home/mool/vim/vim/src
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003334< Note: Environment variables don't work in {fname}, use
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003335 |expand()| first then.
3336
3337foldclosed({lnum}) *foldclosed()*
3338 The result is a Number. If the line {lnum} is in a closed
3339 fold, the result is the number of the first line in that fold.
3340 If the line {lnum} is not in a closed fold, -1 is returned.
3341
3342foldclosedend({lnum}) *foldclosedend()*
3343 The result is a Number. If the line {lnum} is in a closed
3344 fold, the result is the number of the last line in that fold.
3345 If the line {lnum} is not in a closed fold, -1 is returned.
3346
3347foldlevel({lnum}) *foldlevel()*
3348 The result is a Number, which is the foldlevel of line {lnum}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003349 in the current buffer. For nested folds the deepest level is
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003350 returned. If there is no fold at line {lnum}, zero is
3351 returned. It doesn't matter if the folds are open or closed.
3352 When used while updating folds (from 'foldexpr') -1 is
3353 returned for lines where folds are still to be updated and the
3354 foldlevel is unknown. As a special case the level of the
3355 previous line is usually available.
3356
3357 *foldtext()*
3358foldtext() Returns a String, to be displayed for a closed fold. This is
3359 the default function used for the 'foldtext' option and should
3360 only be called from evaluating 'foldtext'. It uses the
3361 |v:foldstart|, |v:foldend| and |v:folddashes| variables.
3362 The returned string looks like this: >
3363 +-- 45 lines: abcdef
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003364< The number of dashes depends on the foldlevel. The "45" is
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003365 the number of lines in the fold. "abcdef" is the text in the
3366 first non-blank line of the fold. Leading white space, "//"
3367 or "/*" and the text from the 'foldmarker' and 'commentstring'
3368 options is removed.
3369 {not available when compiled without the |+folding| feature}
3370
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00003371foldtextresult({lnum}) *foldtextresult()*
3372 Returns the text that is displayed for the closed fold at line
3373 {lnum}. Evaluates 'foldtext' in the appropriate context.
3374 When there is no closed fold at {lnum} an empty string is
3375 returned.
3376 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|. Thus "." is the current
3377 line, "'m" mark m, etc.
3378 Useful when exporting folded text, e.g., to HTML.
3379 {not available when compiled without the |+folding| feature}
3380
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003381 *foreground()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003382foreground() Move the Vim window to the foreground. Useful when sent from
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003383 a client to a Vim server. |remote_send()|
3384 On Win32 systems this might not work, the OS does not always
3385 allow a window to bring itself to the foreground. Use
3386 |remote_foreground()| instead.
3387 {only in the Win32, Athena, Motif and GTK GUI versions and the
3388 Win32 console version}
3389
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003390
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00003391function({name}) *function()* *E700*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003392 Return a |Funcref| variable that refers to function {name}.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00003393 {name} can be a user defined function or an internal function.
3394
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003395
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01003396garbagecollect([{atexit}]) *garbagecollect()*
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00003397 Cleanup unused |Lists| and |Dictionaries| that have circular
Bram Moolenaar39a58ca2005-06-27 22:42:44 +00003398 references. There is hardly ever a need to invoke this
3399 function, as it is automatically done when Vim runs out of
3400 memory or is waiting for the user to press a key after
3401 'updatetime'. Items without circular references are always
3402 freed when they become unused.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003403 This is useful if you have deleted a very big |List| and/or
3404 |Dictionary| with circular references in a script that runs
3405 for a long time.
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01003406 When the optional {atexit} argument is one, garbage
Bram Moolenaar9d2c8c12007-09-25 16:00:00 +00003407 collection will also be done when exiting Vim, if it wasn't
3408 done before. This is useful when checking for memory leaks.
Bram Moolenaar39a58ca2005-06-27 22:42:44 +00003409
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00003410get({list}, {idx} [, {default}]) *get()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003411 Get item {idx} from |List| {list}. When this item is not
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003412 available return {default}. Return zero when {default} is
3413 omitted.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003414get({dict}, {key} [, {default}])
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003415 Get item with key {key} from |Dictionary| {dict}. When this
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003416 item is not available return {default}. Return zero when
3417 {default} is omitted.
3418
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00003419 *getbufline()*
3420getbufline({expr}, {lnum} [, {end}])
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003421 Return a |List| with the lines starting from {lnum} to {end}
3422 (inclusive) in the buffer {expr}. If {end} is omitted, a
3423 |List| with only the line {lnum} is returned.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00003424
3425 For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()| above.
3426
Bram Moolenaar661b1822005-07-28 22:36:45 +00003427 For {lnum} and {end} "$" can be used for the last line of the
3428 buffer. Otherwise a number must be used.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00003429
3430 When {lnum} is smaller than 1 or bigger than the number of
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003431 lines in the buffer, an empty |List| is returned.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00003432
3433 When {end} is greater than the number of lines in the buffer,
3434 it is treated as {end} is set to the number of lines in the
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003435 buffer. When {end} is before {lnum} an empty |List| is
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00003436 returned.
3437
Bram Moolenaar661b1822005-07-28 22:36:45 +00003438 This function works only for loaded buffers. For unloaded and
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003439 non-existing buffers, an empty |List| is returned.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00003440
3441 Example: >
3442 :let lines = getbufline(bufnr("myfile"), 1, "$")
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003443
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003444getbufvar({expr}, {varname} [, {def}]) *getbufvar()*
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003445 The result is the value of option or local buffer variable
3446 {varname} in buffer {expr}. Note that the name without "b:"
3447 must be used.
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00003448 When {varname} is empty returns a dictionary with all the
3449 buffer-local variables.
Bram Moolenaar4317d9b2005-03-18 20:25:31 +00003450 This also works for a global or buffer-local option, but it
3451 doesn't work for a global variable, window-local variable or
3452 window-local option.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003453 For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()| above.
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003454 When the buffer or variable doesn't exist {def} or an empty
3455 string is returned, there is no error message.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003456 Examples: >
3457 :let bufmodified = getbufvar(1, "&mod")
3458 :echo "todo myvar = " . getbufvar("todo", "myvar")
3459<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003460getchar([expr]) *getchar()*
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003461 Get a single character from the user or input stream.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003462 If [expr] is omitted, wait until a character is available.
3463 If [expr] is 0, only get a character when one is available.
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003464 Return zero otherwise.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003465 If [expr] is 1, only check if a character is available, it is
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003466 not consumed. Return zero if no character available.
3467
Bram Moolenaardfb18412013-12-11 18:53:29 +01003468 Without [expr] and when [expr] is 0 a whole character or
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003469 special key is returned. If it is an 8-bit character, the
3470 result is a number. Use nr2char() to convert it to a String.
3471 Otherwise a String is returned with the encoded character.
3472 For a special key it's a sequence of bytes starting with 0x80
Bram Moolenaar56a907a2006-05-06 21:44:30 +00003473 (decimal: 128). This is the same value as the string
3474 "\<Key>", e.g., "\<Left>". The returned value is also a
3475 String when a modifier (shift, control, alt) was used that is
3476 not included in the character.
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003477
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +02003478 When [expr] is 0 and Esc is typed, there will be a short delay
3479 while Vim waits to see if this is the start of an escape
3480 sequence.
3481
Bram Moolenaardfb18412013-12-11 18:53:29 +01003482 When [expr] is 1 only the first byte is returned. For a
Bram Moolenaar56a907a2006-05-06 21:44:30 +00003483 one-byte character it is the character itself as a number.
3484 Use nr2char() to convert it to a String.
Bram Moolenaar91170f82006-05-05 21:15:17 +00003485
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01003486 Use getcharmod() to obtain any additional modifiers.
3487
Bram Moolenaar219b8702006-11-01 14:32:36 +00003488 When the user clicks a mouse button, the mouse event will be
3489 returned. The position can then be found in |v:mouse_col|,
3490 |v:mouse_lnum| and |v:mouse_win|. This example positions the
3491 mouse as it would normally happen: >
3492 let c = getchar()
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003493 if c == "\<LeftMouse>" && v:mouse_win > 0
Bram Moolenaar219b8702006-11-01 14:32:36 +00003494 exe v:mouse_win . "wincmd w"
3495 exe v:mouse_lnum
3496 exe "normal " . v:mouse_col . "|"
3497 endif
3498<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003499 There is no prompt, you will somehow have to make clear to the
3500 user that a character has to be typed.
3501 There is no mapping for the character.
3502 Key codes are replaced, thus when the user presses the <Del>
3503 key you get the code for the <Del> key, not the raw character
3504 sequence. Examples: >
3505 getchar() == "\<Del>"
3506 getchar() == "\<S-Left>"
3507< This example redefines "f" to ignore case: >
3508 :nmap f :call FindChar()<CR>
3509 :function FindChar()
3510 : let c = nr2char(getchar())
3511 : while col('.') < col('$') - 1
3512 : normal l
3513 : if getline('.')[col('.') - 1] ==? c
3514 : break
3515 : endif
3516 : endwhile
3517 :endfunction
Bram Moolenaared32d942014-12-06 23:33:00 +01003518<
Bram Moolenaar2b8388b2015-02-28 13:11:45 +01003519 You may also receive synthetic characters, such as
Bram Moolenaared32d942014-12-06 23:33:00 +01003520 |<CursorHold>|. Often you will want to ignore this and get
3521 another character: >
3522 :function GetKey()
3523 : let c = getchar()
3524 : while c == "\<CursorHold>"
3525 : let c = getchar()
3526 : endwhile
3527 : return c
3528 :endfunction
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003529
3530getcharmod() *getcharmod()*
3531 The result is a Number which is the state of the modifiers for
3532 the last obtained character with getchar() or in another way.
3533 These values are added together:
3534 2 shift
3535 4 control
3536 8 alt (meta)
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01003537 16 meta (when it's different from ALT)
3538 32 mouse double click
3539 64 mouse triple click
3540 96 mouse quadruple click (== 32 + 64)
3541 128 command (Macintosh only)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003542 Only the modifiers that have not been included in the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003543 character itself are obtained. Thus Shift-a results in "A"
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01003544 without a modifier.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003545
Bram Moolenaardbd24b52015-08-11 14:26:19 +02003546getcharsearch() *getcharsearch()*
3547 Return the current character search information as a {dict}
3548 with the following entries:
3549
3550 char character previously used for a character
3551 search (|t|, |f|, |T|, or |F|); empty string
3552 if no character search has been performed
3553 forward direction of character search; 1 for forward,
3554 0 for backward
3555 until type of character search; 1 for a |t| or |T|
3556 character search, 0 for an |f| or |F|
3557 character search
3558
3559 This can be useful to always have |;| and |,| search
3560 forward/backward regardless of the direction of the previous
3561 character search: >
3562 :nnoremap <expr> ; getcharsearch().forward ? ';' : ','
3563 :nnoremap <expr> , getcharsearch().forward ? ',' : ';'
3564< Also see |setcharsearch()|.
3565
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003566getcmdline() *getcmdline()*
3567 Return the current command-line. Only works when the command
3568 line is being edited, thus requires use of |c_CTRL-\_e| or
3569 |c_CTRL-R_=|.
3570 Example: >
3571 :cmap <F7> <C-\>eescape(getcmdline(), ' \')<CR>
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00003572< Also see |getcmdtype()|, |getcmdpos()| and |setcmdpos()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003573
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00003574getcmdpos() *getcmdpos()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003575 Return the position of the cursor in the command line as a
3576 byte count. The first column is 1.
3577 Only works when editing the command line, thus requires use of
Bram Moolenaar5b435d62012-04-05 17:33:26 +02003578 |c_CTRL-\_e| or |c_CTRL-R_=| or an expression mapping.
3579 Returns 0 otherwise.
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00003580 Also see |getcmdtype()|, |setcmdpos()| and |getcmdline()|.
3581
3582getcmdtype() *getcmdtype()*
3583 Return the current command-line type. Possible return values
3584 are:
Bram Moolenaar1e015462005-09-25 22:16:38 +00003585 : normal Ex command
3586 > debug mode command |debug-mode|
3587 / forward search command
3588 ? backward search command
3589 @ |input()| command
3590 - |:insert| or |:append| command
Bram Moolenaar6e932462014-09-09 18:48:09 +02003591 = |i_CTRL-R_=|
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00003592 Only works when editing the command line, thus requires use of
Bram Moolenaar5b435d62012-04-05 17:33:26 +02003593 |c_CTRL-\_e| or |c_CTRL-R_=| or an expression mapping.
3594 Returns an empty string otherwise.
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00003595 Also see |getcmdpos()|, |setcmdpos()| and |getcmdline()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003596
Bram Moolenaarfb539272014-08-22 19:21:47 +02003597getcmdwintype() *getcmdwintype()*
3598 Return the current |command-line-window| type. Possible return
3599 values are the same as |getcmdtype()|. Returns an empty string
3600 when not in the command-line window.
3601
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02003602 *getcurpos()*
3603getcurpos() Get the position of the cursor. This is like getpos('.'), but
3604 includes an extra item in the list:
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +01003605 [bufnum, lnum, col, off, curswant] ~
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02003606 The "curswant" number is the preferred column when moving the
3607 cursor vertically.
3608 This can be used to save and restore the cursor position: >
3609 let save_cursor = getcurpos()
3610 MoveTheCursorAround
3611 call setpos('.', save_cursor)
Bram Moolenaarfb539272014-08-22 19:21:47 +02003612<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003613 *getcwd()*
Bram Moolenaarc9703302016-01-17 21:49:33 +01003614getcwd([{winnr} [, {tabnr}]])
3615 The result is a String, which is the name of the current
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003616 working directory.
Bram Moolenaarc9703302016-01-17 21:49:33 +01003617 Without arguments, for the current window.
3618
3619 With {winnr} return the local current directory of this window
3620 in the current tab page.
3621 With {winnr} and {tabnr} return the local current directory of
3622 the window in the specified tab page.
3623 Return an empty string if the arguments are invalid.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003624
3625getfsize({fname}) *getfsize()*
3626 The result is a Number, which is the size in bytes of the
3627 given file {fname}.
3628 If {fname} is a directory, 0 is returned.
3629 If the file {fname} can't be found, -1 is returned.
Bram Moolenaard827ada2007-06-19 15:19:55 +00003630 If the size of {fname} is too big to fit in a Number then -2
3631 is returned.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003632
Bram Moolenaard8b0cf12004-12-12 11:33:30 +00003633getfontname([{name}]) *getfontname()*
3634 Without an argument returns the name of the normal font being
3635 used. Like what is used for the Normal highlight group
3636 |hl-Normal|.
3637 With an argument a check is done whether {name} is a valid
3638 font name. If not then an empty string is returned.
3639 Otherwise the actual font name is returned, or {name} if the
3640 GUI does not support obtaining the real name.
Bram Moolenaarc6fe9192006-04-09 21:54:49 +00003641 Only works when the GUI is running, thus not in your vimrc or
Bram Moolenaard8b0cf12004-12-12 11:33:30 +00003642 gvimrc file. Use the |GUIEnter| autocommand to use this
3643 function just after the GUI has started.
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00003644 Note that the GTK 2 GUI accepts any font name, thus checking
3645 for a valid name does not work.
Bram Moolenaard8b0cf12004-12-12 11:33:30 +00003646
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003647getfperm({fname}) *getfperm()*
3648 The result is a String, which is the read, write, and execute
3649 permissions of the given file {fname}.
3650 If {fname} does not exist or its directory cannot be read, an
3651 empty string is returned.
3652 The result is of the form "rwxrwxrwx", where each group of
3653 "rwx" flags represent, in turn, the permissions of the owner
3654 of the file, the group the file belongs to, and other users.
3655 If a user does not have a given permission the flag for this
Bram Moolenaar9b451252012-08-15 17:43:31 +02003656 is replaced with the string "-". Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003657 :echo getfperm("/etc/passwd")
Bram Moolenaar9b451252012-08-15 17:43:31 +02003658 :echo getfperm(expand("~/.vimrc"))
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003659< This will hopefully (from a security point of view) display
3660 the string "rw-r--r--" or even "rw-------".
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00003661
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003662getftime({fname}) *getftime()*
3663 The result is a Number, which is the last modification time of
3664 the given file {fname}. The value is measured as seconds
3665 since 1st Jan 1970, and may be passed to strftime(). See also
3666 |localtime()| and |strftime()|.
3667 If the file {fname} can't be found -1 is returned.
3668
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003669getftype({fname}) *getftype()*
3670 The result is a String, which is a description of the kind of
3671 file of the given file {fname}.
3672 If {fname} does not exist an empty string is returned.
3673 Here is a table over different kinds of files and their
3674 results:
3675 Normal file "file"
3676 Directory "dir"
3677 Symbolic link "link"
3678 Block device "bdev"
3679 Character device "cdev"
3680 Socket "socket"
3681 FIFO "fifo"
3682 All other "other"
3683 Example: >
3684 getftype("/home")
3685< Note that a type such as "link" will only be returned on
3686 systems that support it. On some systems only "dir" and
Bram Moolenaar13d5aee2016-01-21 23:36:05 +01003687 "file" are returned. On MS-Windows a symbolic link to a
3688 directory returns "dir" instead of "link".
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00003689
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003690 *getline()*
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003691getline({lnum} [, {end}])
3692 Without {end} the result is a String, which is line {lnum}
3693 from the current buffer. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003694 getline(1)
3695< When {lnum} is a String that doesn't start with a
3696 digit, line() is called to translate the String into a Number.
3697 To get the line under the cursor: >
3698 getline(".")
3699< When {lnum} is smaller than 1 or bigger than the number of
3700 lines in the buffer, an empty string is returned.
3701
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003702 When {end} is given the result is a |List| where each item is
3703 a line from the current buffer in the range {lnum} to {end},
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003704 including line {end}.
3705 {end} is used in the same way as {lnum}.
3706 Non-existing lines are silently omitted.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003707 When {end} is before {lnum} an empty |List| is returned.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003708 Example: >
3709 :let start = line('.')
3710 :let end = search("^$") - 1
3711 :let lines = getline(start, end)
3712
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003713< To get lines from another buffer see |getbufline()|
3714
Bram Moolenaar17c7c012006-01-26 22:25:15 +00003715getloclist({nr}) *getloclist()*
3716 Returns a list with all the entries in the location list for
3717 window {nr}. When {nr} is zero the current window is used.
3718 For a location list window, the displayed location list is
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00003719 returned. For an invalid window number {nr}, an empty list is
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01003720 returned. Otherwise, same as |getqflist()|.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003721
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00003722getmatches() *getmatches()*
3723 Returns a |List| with all matches previously defined by
3724 |matchadd()| and the |:match| commands. |getmatches()| is
3725 useful in combination with |setmatches()|, as |setmatches()|
3726 can restore a list of matches saved by |getmatches()|.
3727 Example: >
3728 :echo getmatches()
3729< [{'group': 'MyGroup1', 'pattern': 'TODO',
3730 'priority': 10, 'id': 1}, {'group': 'MyGroup2',
3731 'pattern': 'FIXME', 'priority': 10, 'id': 2}] >
3732 :let m = getmatches()
3733 :call clearmatches()
3734 :echo getmatches()
3735< [] >
3736 :call setmatches(m)
3737 :echo getmatches()
3738< [{'group': 'MyGroup1', 'pattern': 'TODO',
3739 'priority': 10, 'id': 1}, {'group': 'MyGroup2',
3740 'pattern': 'FIXME', 'priority': 10, 'id': 2}] >
3741 :unlet m
3742<
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +02003743 *getpid()*
3744getpid() Return a Number which is the process ID of the Vim process.
3745 On Unix and MS-Windows this is a unique number, until Vim
3746 exits. On MS-DOS it's always zero.
3747
3748 *getpos()*
3749getpos({expr}) Get the position for {expr}. For possible values of {expr}
3750 see |line()|. For getting the cursor position see
3751 |getcurpos()|.
3752 The result is a |List| with four numbers:
3753 [bufnum, lnum, col, off]
3754 "bufnum" is zero, unless a mark like '0 or 'A is used, then it
3755 is the buffer number of the mark.
3756 "lnum" and "col" are the position in the buffer. The first
3757 column is 1.
3758 The "off" number is zero, unless 'virtualedit' is used. Then
3759 it is the offset in screen columns from the start of the
3760 character. E.g., a position within a <Tab> or after the last
3761 character.
3762 Note that for '< and '> Visual mode matters: when it is "V"
3763 (visual line mode) the column of '< is zero and the column of
3764 '> is a large number.
3765 This can be used to save and restore the position of a mark: >
3766 let save_a_mark = getpos("'a")
3767 ...
Bram Moolenaared32d942014-12-06 23:33:00 +01003768 call setpos("'a", save_a_mark)
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +02003769< Also see |getcurpos()| and |setpos()|.
3770
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00003771
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003772getqflist() *getqflist()*
3773 Returns a list with all the current quickfix errors. Each
3774 list item is a dictionary with these entries:
3775 bufnr number of buffer that has the file name, use
3776 bufname() to get the name
3777 lnum line number in the buffer (first line is 1)
3778 col column number (first column is 1)
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00003779 vcol non-zero: "col" is visual column
3780 zero: "col" is byte index
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003781 nr error number
Bram Moolenaar48b66fb2007-02-04 01:58:18 +00003782 pattern search pattern used to locate the error
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003783 text description of the error
3784 type type of the error, 'E', '1', etc.
3785 valid non-zero: recognized error message
3786
Bram Moolenaare7eb9df2005-09-09 19:49:30 +00003787 When there is no error list or it's empty an empty list is
Bram Moolenaar48b66fb2007-02-04 01:58:18 +00003788 returned. Quickfix list entries with non-existing buffer
3789 number are returned with "bufnr" set to zero.
Bram Moolenaare7eb9df2005-09-09 19:49:30 +00003790
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00003791 Useful application: Find pattern matches in multiple files and
3792 do something with them: >
3793 :vimgrep /theword/jg *.c
3794 :for d in getqflist()
3795 : echo bufname(d.bufnr) ':' d.lnum '=' d.text
3796 :endfor
3797
3798
Bram Moolenaarb7cb42b2014-04-02 19:55:10 +02003799getreg([{regname} [, 1 [, {list}]]]) *getreg()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003800 The result is a String, which is the contents of register
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003801 {regname}. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003802 :let cliptext = getreg('*')
3803< getreg('=') returns the last evaluated value of the expression
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00003804 register. (For use in maps.)
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00003805 getreg('=', 1) returns the expression itself, so that it can
3806 be restored with |setreg()|. For other registers the extra
3807 argument is ignored, thus you can always give it.
Bram Moolenaarb7cb42b2014-04-02 19:55:10 +02003808 If {list} is present and non-zero result type is changed to
3809 |List|. Each list item is one text line. Use it if you care
3810 about zero bytes possibly present inside register: without
3811 third argument both NLs and zero bytes are represented as NLs
3812 (see |NL-used-for-Nul|).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003813 If {regname} is not specified, |v:register| is used.
3814
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00003815
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003816getregtype([{regname}]) *getregtype()*
3817 The result is a String, which is type of register {regname}.
3818 The value will be one of:
3819 "v" for |characterwise| text
3820 "V" for |linewise| text
3821 "<CTRL-V>{width}" for |blockwise-visual| text
Bram Moolenaar32b92012014-01-14 12:33:36 +01003822 "" for an empty or unknown register
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003823 <CTRL-V> is one character with value 0x16.
3824 If {regname} is not specified, |v:register| is used.
3825
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003826gettabvar({tabnr}, {varname} [, {def}]) *gettabvar()*
Bram Moolenaar06b5d512010-05-22 15:37:44 +02003827 Get the value of a tab-local variable {varname} in tab page
3828 {tabnr}. |t:var|
3829 Tabs are numbered starting with one.
Bram Moolenaar0e2ea1b2014-09-09 16:13:08 +02003830 When {varname} is empty a dictionary with all tab-local
3831 variables is returned.
Bram Moolenaar06b5d512010-05-22 15:37:44 +02003832 Note that the name without "t:" must be used.
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003833 When the tab or variable doesn't exist {def} or an empty
3834 string is returned, there is no error message.
Bram Moolenaar06b5d512010-05-22 15:37:44 +02003835
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003836gettabwinvar({tabnr}, {winnr}, {varname} [, {def}]) *gettabwinvar()*
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003837 Get the value of window-local variable {varname} in window
3838 {winnr} in tab page {tabnr}.
3839 When {varname} starts with "&" get the value of a window-local
3840 option.
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003841 When {varname} is empty a dictionary with all window-local
3842 variables is returned.
3843 Note that {varname} must be the name without "w:".
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00003844 Tabs are numbered starting with one. For the current tabpage
3845 use |getwinvar()|.
3846 When {winnr} is zero the current window is used.
3847 This also works for a global option, buffer-local option and
3848 window-local option, but it doesn't work for a global variable
3849 or buffer-local variable.
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003850 When the tab, window or variable doesn't exist {def} or an
3851 empty string is returned, there is no error message.
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00003852 Examples: >
3853 :let list_is_on = gettabwinvar(1, 2, '&list')
3854 :echo "myvar = " . gettabwinvar(3, 1, 'myvar')
Bram Moolenaard46bbc72007-05-12 14:38:41 +00003855<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003856 *getwinposx()*
3857getwinposx() The result is a Number, which is the X coordinate in pixels of
3858 the left hand side of the GUI Vim window. The result will be
3859 -1 if the information is not available.
3860
3861 *getwinposy()*
3862getwinposy() The result is a Number, which is the Y coordinate in pixels of
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003863 the top of the GUI Vim window. The result will be -1 if the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003864 information is not available.
3865
Bram Moolenaar63dbda12013-02-20 21:12:10 +01003866getwinvar({winnr}, {varname} [, {def}]) *getwinvar()*
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00003867 Like |gettabwinvar()| for the current tabpage.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003868 Examples: >
3869 :let list_is_on = getwinvar(2, '&list')
3870 :echo "myvar = " . getwinvar(1, 'myvar')
3871<
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01003872glob({expr} [, {nosuf} [, {list} [, {alllinks}]]]) *glob()*
Bram Moolenaarbb5ddda2008-11-28 10:01:10 +00003873 Expand the file wildcards in {expr}. See |wildcards| for the
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00003874 use of special characters.
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01003875
3876 Unless the optional {nosuf} argument is given and is non-zero,
Bram Moolenaarbb5ddda2008-11-28 10:01:10 +00003877 the 'suffixes' and 'wildignore' options apply: Names matching
3878 one of the patterns in 'wildignore' will be skipped and
3879 'suffixes' affect the ordering of matches.
Bram Moolenaar81af9252010-12-10 20:35:50 +01003880 'wildignorecase' always applies.
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01003881
3882 When {list} is present and it is non-zero the result is a List
3883 with all matching files. The advantage of using a List is,
3884 you also get filenames containing newlines correctly.
3885 Otherwise the result is a String and when there are several
3886 matches, they are separated by <NL> characters.
3887
3888 If the expansion fails, the result is an empty String or List.
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01003889
Bram Moolenaar61d35bd2012-03-28 20:51:51 +02003890 A name for a non-existing file is not included. A symbolic
3891 link is only included if it points to an existing file.
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01003892 However, when the {alllinks} argument is present and it is
3893 non-zero then all symbolic links are included.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003894
3895 For most systems backticks can be used to get files names from
3896 any external command. Example: >
3897 :let tagfiles = glob("`find . -name tags -print`")
3898 :let &tags = substitute(tagfiles, "\n", ",", "g")
3899< The result of the program inside the backticks should be one
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003900 item per line. Spaces inside an item are allowed.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003901
3902 See |expand()| for expanding special Vim variables. See
3903 |system()| for getting the raw output of an external command.
3904
Bram Moolenaar5837f1f2015-03-21 18:06:14 +01003905glob2regpat({expr}) *glob2regpat()*
3906 Convert a file pattern, as used by glob(), into a search
3907 pattern. The result can be used to match with a string that
3908 is a file name. E.g. >
3909 if filename =~ glob2regpat('Make*.mak')
3910< This is equivalent to: >
3911 if filename =~ '^Make.*\.mak$'
Bram Moolenaar3b5f9292016-01-28 22:37:01 +01003912< When {expr} is an empty string the result is "^$", match an
3913 empty string.
3914
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01003915 *globpath()*
3916globpath({path}, {expr} [, {nosuf} [, {list} [, {allinks}]]])
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003917 Perform glob() on all directories in {path} and concatenate
3918 the results. Example: >
3919 :echo globpath(&rtp, "syntax/c.vim")
Bram Moolenaar1b1063a2014-05-07 18:35:30 +02003920<
3921 {path} is a comma-separated list of directory names. Each
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003922 directory name is prepended to {expr} and expanded like with
Bram Moolenaarbb5ddda2008-11-28 10:01:10 +00003923 |glob()|. A path separator is inserted when needed.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003924 To add a comma inside a directory name escape it with a
3925 backslash. Note that on MS-Windows a directory may have a
3926 trailing backslash, remove it if you put a comma after it.
3927 If the expansion fails for one of the directories, there is no
3928 error message.
Bram Moolenaar1b1063a2014-05-07 18:35:30 +02003929
3930 Unless the optional {nosuf} argument is given and is non-zero,
Bram Moolenaarbb5ddda2008-11-28 10:01:10 +00003931 the 'suffixes' and 'wildignore' options apply: Names matching
3932 one of the patterns in 'wildignore' will be skipped and
3933 'suffixes' affect the ordering of matches.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003934
Bram Moolenaar1b1063a2014-05-07 18:35:30 +02003935 When {list} is present and it is non-zero the result is a List
3936 with all matching files. The advantage of using a List is, you
3937 also get filenames containing newlines correctly. Otherwise
3938 the result is a String and when there are several matches,
3939 they are separated by <NL> characters. Example: >
3940 :echo globpath(&rtp, "syntax/c.vim", 0, 1)
3941<
Bram Moolenaard8b77f72015-03-05 21:21:19 +01003942 {allinks} is used as with |glob()|.
3943
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00003944 The "**" item can be used to search in a directory tree.
3945 For example, to find all "README.txt" files in the directories
3946 in 'runtimepath' and below: >
3947 :echo globpath(&rtp, "**/README.txt")
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00003948< Upwards search and limiting the depth of "**" is not
3949 supported, thus using 'path' will not always work properly.
3950
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003951 *has()*
3952has({feature}) The result is a Number, which is 1 if the feature {feature} is
3953 supported, zero otherwise. The {feature} argument is a
3954 string. See |feature-list| below.
3955 Also see |exists()|.
3956
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003957
3958has_key({dict}, {key}) *has_key()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00003959 The result is a Number, which is 1 if |Dictionary| {dict} has
3960 an entry with key {key}. Zero otherwise.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003961
Bram Moolenaarc9703302016-01-17 21:49:33 +01003962haslocaldir([{winnr} [, {tabnr}]]) *haslocaldir()*
3963 The result is a Number, which is 1 when the window has set a
3964 local path via |:lcd|, and 0 otherwise.
3965
3966 Without arguments use the current window.
3967 With {winnr} use this window in the current tab page.
3968 With {winnr} and {tabnr} use the window in the specified tab
3969 page.
3970 Return 0 if the arguments are invalid.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00003971
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00003972hasmapto({what} [, {mode} [, {abbr}]]) *hasmapto()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003973 The result is a Number, which is 1 if there is a mapping that
3974 contains {what} in somewhere in the rhs (what it is mapped to)
3975 and this mapping exists in one of the modes indicated by
3976 {mode}.
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00003977 When {abbr} is there and it is non-zero use abbreviations
Bram Moolenaar39f05632006-03-19 22:15:26 +00003978 instead of mappings. Don't forget to specify Insert and/or
3979 Command-line mode.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003980 Both the global mappings and the mappings local to the current
3981 buffer are checked for a match.
3982 If no matching mapping is found 0 is returned.
3983 The following characters are recognized in {mode}:
3984 n Normal mode
3985 v Visual mode
3986 o Operator-pending mode
3987 i Insert mode
3988 l Language-Argument ("r", "f", "t", etc.)
3989 c Command-line mode
3990 When {mode} is omitted, "nvo" is used.
3991
3992 This function is useful to check if a mapping already exists
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00003993 to a function in a Vim script. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00003994 :if !hasmapto('\ABCdoit')
3995 : map <Leader>d \ABCdoit
3996 :endif
3997< This installs the mapping to "\ABCdoit" only if there isn't
3998 already a mapping to "\ABCdoit".
3999
4000histadd({history}, {item}) *histadd()*
4001 Add the String {item} to the history {history} which can be
4002 one of: *hist-names*
4003 "cmd" or ":" command line history
4004 "search" or "/" search pattern history
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004005 "expr" or "=" typed expression history
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004006 "input" or "@" input line history
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02004007 "debug" or ">" debug command history
4008 The {history} string does not need to be the whole name, one
4009 character is sufficient.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004010 If {item} does already exist in the history, it will be
4011 shifted to become the newest entry.
4012 The result is a Number: 1 if the operation was successful,
4013 otherwise 0 is returned.
4014
4015 Example: >
4016 :call histadd("input", strftime("%Y %b %d"))
4017 :let date=input("Enter date: ")
4018< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
4019
4020histdel({history} [, {item}]) *histdel()*
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004021 Clear {history}, i.e. delete all its entries. See |hist-names|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004022 for the possible values of {history}.
4023
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00004024 If the parameter {item} evaluates to a String, it is used as a
4025 regular expression. All entries matching that expression will
4026 be removed from the history (if there are any).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004027 Upper/lowercase must match, unless "\c" is used |/\c|.
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00004028 If {item} evaluates to a Number, it will be interpreted as
4029 an index, see |:history-indexing|. The respective entry will
4030 be removed if it exists.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004031
4032 The result is a Number: 1 for a successful operation,
4033 otherwise 0 is returned.
4034
4035 Examples:
4036 Clear expression register history: >
4037 :call histdel("expr")
4038<
4039 Remove all entries starting with "*" from the search history: >
4040 :call histdel("/", '^\*')
4041<
4042 The following three are equivalent: >
4043 :call histdel("search", histnr("search"))
4044 :call histdel("search", -1)
4045 :call histdel("search", '^'.histget("search", -1).'$')
4046<
4047 To delete the last search pattern and use the last-but-one for
4048 the "n" command and 'hlsearch': >
4049 :call histdel("search", -1)
4050 :let @/ = histget("search", -1)
4051
4052histget({history} [, {index}]) *histget()*
4053 The result is a String, the entry with Number {index} from
4054 {history}. See |hist-names| for the possible values of
4055 {history}, and |:history-indexing| for {index}. If there is
4056 no such entry, an empty String is returned. When {index} is
4057 omitted, the most recent item from the history is used.
4058
4059 Examples:
4060 Redo the second last search from history. >
4061 :execute '/' . histget("search", -2)
4062
4063< Define an Ex command ":H {num}" that supports re-execution of
4064 the {num}th entry from the output of |:history|. >
4065 :command -nargs=1 H execute histget("cmd", 0+<args>)
4066<
4067histnr({history}) *histnr()*
4068 The result is the Number of the current entry in {history}.
4069 See |hist-names| for the possible values of {history}.
4070 If an error occurred, -1 is returned.
4071
4072 Example: >
4073 :let inp_index = histnr("expr")
4074<
4075hlexists({name}) *hlexists()*
4076 The result is a Number, which is non-zero if a highlight group
4077 called {name} exists. This is when the group has been
4078 defined in some way. Not necessarily when highlighting has
4079 been defined for it, it may also have been used for a syntax
4080 item.
4081 *highlight_exists()*
4082 Obsolete name: highlight_exists().
4083
4084 *hlID()*
4085hlID({name}) The result is a Number, which is the ID of the highlight group
4086 with name {name}. When the highlight group doesn't exist,
4087 zero is returned.
4088 This can be used to retrieve information about the highlight
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004089 group. For example, to get the background color of the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004090 "Comment" group: >
4091 :echo synIDattr(synIDtrans(hlID("Comment")), "bg")
4092< *highlightID()*
4093 Obsolete name: highlightID().
4094
4095hostname() *hostname()*
4096 The result is a String, which is the name of the machine on
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004097 which Vim is currently running. Machine names greater than
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004098 256 characters long are truncated.
4099
4100iconv({expr}, {from}, {to}) *iconv()*
4101 The result is a String, which is the text {expr} converted
4102 from encoding {from} to encoding {to}.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004103 When the conversion completely fails an empty string is
4104 returned. When some characters could not be converted they
4105 are replaced with "?".
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004106 The encoding names are whatever the iconv() library function
4107 can accept, see ":!man 3 iconv".
4108 Most conversions require Vim to be compiled with the |+iconv|
4109 feature. Otherwise only UTF-8 to latin1 conversion and back
4110 can be done.
4111 This can be used to display messages with special characters,
4112 no matter what 'encoding' is set to. Write the message in
4113 UTF-8 and use: >
4114 echo iconv(utf8_str, "utf-8", &enc)
4115< Note that Vim uses UTF-8 for all Unicode encodings, conversion
4116 from/to UCS-2 is automatically changed to use UTF-8. You
4117 cannot use UCS-2 in a string anyway, because of the NUL bytes.
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02004118 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte| feature}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004119
4120 *indent()*
4121indent({lnum}) The result is a Number, which is indent of line {lnum} in the
4122 current buffer. The indent is counted in spaces, the value
4123 of 'tabstop' is relevant. {lnum} is used just like in
4124 |getline()|.
4125 When {lnum} is invalid -1 is returned.
4126
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00004127
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004128index({list}, {expr} [, {start} [, {ic}]]) *index()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004129 Return the lowest index in |List| {list} where the item has a
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004130 value equal to {expr}. There is no automatic conversion, so
4131 the String "4" is different from the Number 4. And the number
4132 4 is different from the Float 4.0. The value of 'ignorecase'
4133 is not used here, case always matters.
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00004134 If {start} is given then start looking at the item with index
4135 {start} (may be negative for an item relative to the end).
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00004136 When {ic} is given and it is non-zero, ignore case. Otherwise
4137 case must match.
4138 -1 is returned when {expr} is not found in {list}.
4139 Example: >
4140 :let idx = index(words, "the")
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004141 :if index(numbers, 123) >= 0
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00004142
4143
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004144input({prompt} [, {text} [, {completion}]]) *input()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004145 The result is a String, which is whatever the user typed on
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004146 the command-line. The {prompt} argument is either a prompt
4147 string, or a blank string (for no prompt). A '\n' can be used
4148 in the prompt to start a new line.
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004149 The highlighting set with |:echohl| is used for the prompt.
4150 The input is entered just like a command-line, with the same
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004151 editing commands and mappings. There is a separate history
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004152 for lines typed for input().
4153 Example: >
4154 :if input("Coffee or beer? ") == "beer"
4155 : echo "Cheers!"
4156 :endif
4157<
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004158 If the optional {text} argument is present and not empty, this
4159 is used for the default reply, as if the user typed this.
4160 Example: >
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004161 :let color = input("Color? ", "white")
4162
4163< The optional {completion} argument specifies the type of
4164 completion supported for the input. Without it completion is
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004165 not performed. The supported completion types are the same as
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004166 that can be supplied to a user-defined command using the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004167 "-complete=" argument. Refer to |:command-completion| for
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004168 more information. Example: >
4169 let fname = input("File: ", "", "file")
4170<
4171 NOTE: This function must not be used in a startup file, for
4172 the versions that only run in GUI mode (e.g., the Win32 GUI).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004173 Note: When input() is called from within a mapping it will
4174 consume remaining characters from that mapping, because a
4175 mapping is handled like the characters were typed.
4176 Use |inputsave()| before input() and |inputrestore()|
4177 after input() to avoid that. Another solution is to avoid
4178 that further characters follow in the mapping, e.g., by using
4179 |:execute| or |:normal|.
4180
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004181 Example with a mapping: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004182 :nmap \x :call GetFoo()<CR>:exe "/" . Foo<CR>
4183 :function GetFoo()
4184 : call inputsave()
4185 : let g:Foo = input("enter search pattern: ")
4186 : call inputrestore()
4187 :endfunction
4188
4189inputdialog({prompt} [, {text} [, {cancelreturn}]]) *inputdialog()*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004190 Like |input()|, but when the GUI is running and text dialogs
4191 are supported, a dialog window pops up to input the text.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004192 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar2d17fa32012-10-21 00:45:18 +02004193 :let n = inputdialog("value for shiftwidth", shiftwidth())
4194 :if n != ""
4195 : let &sw = n
4196 :endif
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004197< When the dialog is cancelled {cancelreturn} is returned. When
4198 omitted an empty string is returned.
4199 Hitting <Enter> works like pressing the OK button. Hitting
4200 <Esc> works like pressing the Cancel button.
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004201 NOTE: Command-line completion is not supported.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004202
Bram Moolenaar578b49e2005-09-10 19:22:57 +00004203inputlist({textlist}) *inputlist()*
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004204 {textlist} must be a |List| of strings. This |List| is
4205 displayed, one string per line. The user will be prompted to
4206 enter a number, which is returned.
Bram Moolenaar578b49e2005-09-10 19:22:57 +00004207 The user can also select an item by clicking on it with the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004208 mouse. For the first string 0 is returned. When clicking
Bram Moolenaar578b49e2005-09-10 19:22:57 +00004209 above the first item a negative number is returned. When
4210 clicking on the prompt one more than the length of {textlist}
4211 is returned.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004212 Make sure {textlist} has less than 'lines' entries, otherwise
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004213 it won't work. It's a good idea to put the entry number at
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00004214 the start of the string. And put a prompt in the first item.
4215 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar578b49e2005-09-10 19:22:57 +00004216 let color = inputlist(['Select color:', '1. red',
4217 \ '2. green', '3. blue'])
4218
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004219inputrestore() *inputrestore()*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004220 Restore typeahead that was saved with a previous |inputsave()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004221 Should be called the same number of times inputsave() is
4222 called. Calling it more often is harmless though.
4223 Returns 1 when there is nothing to restore, 0 otherwise.
4224
4225inputsave() *inputsave()*
4226 Preserve typeahead (also from mappings) and clear it, so that
4227 a following prompt gets input from the user. Should be
4228 followed by a matching inputrestore() after the prompt. Can
4229 be used several times, in which case there must be just as
4230 many inputrestore() calls.
4231 Returns 1 when out of memory, 0 otherwise.
4232
4233inputsecret({prompt} [, {text}]) *inputsecret()*
4234 This function acts much like the |input()| function with but
4235 two exceptions:
4236 a) the user's response will be displayed as a sequence of
4237 asterisks ("*") thereby keeping the entry secret, and
4238 b) the user's response will not be recorded on the input
4239 |history| stack.
4240 The result is a String, which is whatever the user actually
4241 typed on the command-line in response to the issued prompt.
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00004242 NOTE: Command-line completion is not supported.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004243
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004244insert({list}, {item} [, {idx}]) *insert()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004245 Insert {item} at the start of |List| {list}.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004246 If {idx} is specified insert {item} before the item with index
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004247 {idx}. If {idx} is zero it goes before the first item, just
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004248 like omitting {idx}. A negative {idx} is also possible, see
4249 |list-index|. -1 inserts just before the last item.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004250 Returns the resulting |List|. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004251 :let mylist = insert([2, 3, 5], 1)
4252 :call insert(mylist, 4, -1)
4253 :call insert(mylist, 6, len(mylist))
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00004254< The last example can be done simpler with |add()|.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004255 Note that when {item} is a |List| it is inserted as a single
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00004256 item. Use |extend()| to concatenate |Lists|.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004257
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01004258invert({expr}) *invert()*
4259 Bitwise invert. The argument is converted to a number. A
4260 List, Dict or Float argument causes an error. Example: >
4261 :let bits = invert(bits)
4262
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004263isdirectory({directory}) *isdirectory()*
4264 The result is a Number, which is non-zero when a directory
4265 with the name {directory} exists. If {directory} doesn't
4266 exist, or isn't a directory, the result is FALSE. {directory}
4267 is any expression, which is used as a String.
4268
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004269islocked({expr}) *islocked()* *E786*
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00004270 The result is a Number, which is non-zero when {expr} is the
4271 name of a locked variable.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004272 {expr} must be the name of a variable, |List| item or
4273 |Dictionary| entry, not the variable itself! Example: >
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00004274 :let alist = [0, ['a', 'b'], 2, 3]
4275 :lockvar 1 alist
4276 :echo islocked('alist') " 1
4277 :echo islocked('alist[1]') " 0
4278
4279< When {expr} is a variable that does not exist you get an error
Bram Moolenaar551dbcc2006-04-25 22:13:59 +00004280 message. Use |exists()| to check for existence.
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00004281
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004282items({dict}) *items()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004283 Return a |List| with all the key-value pairs of {dict}. Each
4284 |List| item is a list with two items: the key of a {dict}
4285 entry and the value of this entry. The |List| is in arbitrary
4286 order.
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00004287
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004288
4289join({list} [, {sep}]) *join()*
4290 Join the items in {list} together into one String.
4291 When {sep} is specified it is put in between the items. If
4292 {sep} is omitted a single space is used.
4293 Note that {sep} is not added at the end. You might want to
4294 add it there too: >
4295 let lines = join(mylist, "\n") . "\n"
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00004296< String items are used as-is. |Lists| and |Dictionaries| are
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004297 converted into a string like with |string()|.
4298 The opposite function is |split()|.
4299
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01004300jsondecode({string}) *jsondecode()*
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01004301 This parses a JSON formatted string and returns the equivalent
4302 in Vim values. See |jsonencode()| for the relation between
4303 JSON and Vim values.
4304 The decoding is permissive:
4305 - A trailing comma in an array and object is ignored.
Bram Moolenaar009d84a2016-01-28 14:12:00 +01004306 - An empty item in an array, two commas with nothing or white
4307 space in between, results in v:none.
4308 - When an object member name is not a string it is converted
4309 to a string. E.g. the number 123 is used as the string
4310 "123".
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01004311 - More floating point numbers are recognized, e.g. "1." for
4312 "1.0".
Bram Moolenaar009d84a2016-01-28 14:12:00 +01004313 The result must be a valid Vim type:
4314 - An empty object member name is not allowed.
4315 - Duplicate object member names are not allowed.
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01004316
4317jsonencode({expr}) *jsonencode()*
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01004318 Encode {expr} as JSON and return this as a string.
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01004319 The encoding is specified in:
Bram Moolenaar009d84a2016-01-28 14:12:00 +01004320 https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7159.html
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01004321 Vim values are converted as follows:
4322 Number decimal number
4323 Float floating point number
4324 String in double quotes (possibly null)
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01004325 Funcref not possible, error
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01004326 List as an array (possibly null); when
4327 used recursively: []
4328 Dict as an object (possibly null); when
4329 used recursively: {}
4330 v:false "false"
4331 v:true "true"
4332 v:none nothing
4333 v:null "null"
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01004334 Note that using v:none is permitted, although the JSON
4335 standard does not allow empty items. This can be useful for
4336 omitting items in an array:
4337 [0,,,,,5] ~
4338 This is much more efficient than:
4339 [0,null,null,null,null,5] ~
4340 But a strict JSON parser will not accept it.
Bram Moolenaar520e1e42016-01-23 19:46:28 +01004341
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00004342keys({dict}) *keys()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004343 Return a |List| with all the keys of {dict}. The |List| is in
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00004344 arbitrary order.
4345
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00004346 *len()* *E701*
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004347len({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the length of the argument.
4348 When {expr} is a String or a Number the length in bytes is
4349 used, as with |strlen()|.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004350 When {expr} is a |List| the number of items in the |List| is
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004351 returned.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004352 When {expr} is a |Dictionary| the number of entries in the
4353 |Dictionary| is returned.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00004354 Otherwise an error is given.
4355
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004356 *libcall()* *E364* *E368*
4357libcall({libname}, {funcname}, {argument})
4358 Call function {funcname} in the run-time library {libname}
4359 with single argument {argument}.
4360 This is useful to call functions in a library that you
4361 especially made to be used with Vim. Since only one argument
4362 is possible, calling standard library functions is rather
4363 limited.
4364 The result is the String returned by the function. If the
4365 function returns NULL, this will appear as an empty string ""
4366 to Vim.
4367 If the function returns a number, use libcallnr()!
4368 If {argument} is a number, it is passed to the function as an
4369 int; if {argument} is a string, it is passed as a
4370 null-terminated string.
4371 This function will fail in |restricted-mode|.
4372
4373 libcall() allows you to write your own 'plug-in' extensions to
4374 Vim without having to recompile the program. It is NOT a
4375 means to call system functions! If you try to do so Vim will
4376 very probably crash.
4377
4378 For Win32, the functions you write must be placed in a DLL
4379 and use the normal C calling convention (NOT Pascal which is
4380 used in Windows System DLLs). The function must take exactly
4381 one parameter, either a character pointer or a long integer,
4382 and must return a character pointer or NULL. The character
4383 pointer returned must point to memory that will remain valid
4384 after the function has returned (e.g. in static data in the
4385 DLL). If it points to allocated memory, that memory will
4386 leak away. Using a static buffer in the function should work,
4387 it's then freed when the DLL is unloaded.
4388
4389 WARNING: If the function returns a non-valid pointer, Vim may
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004390 crash! This also happens if the function returns a number,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004391 because Vim thinks it's a pointer.
4392 For Win32 systems, {libname} should be the filename of the DLL
4393 without the ".DLL" suffix. A full path is only required if
4394 the DLL is not in the usual places.
4395 For Unix: When compiling your own plugins, remember that the
4396 object code must be compiled as position-independent ('PIC').
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004397 {only in Win32 and some Unix versions, when the |+libcall|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004398 feature is present}
4399 Examples: >
4400 :echo libcall("libc.so", "getenv", "HOME")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004401<
4402 *libcallnr()*
4403libcallnr({libname}, {funcname}, {argument})
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004404 Just like |libcall()|, but used for a function that returns an
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004405 int instead of a string.
4406 {only in Win32 on some Unix versions, when the |+libcall|
4407 feature is present}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004408 Examples: >
4409 :echo libcallnr("/usr/lib/libc.so", "getpid", "")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004410 :call libcallnr("libc.so", "printf", "Hello World!\n")
4411 :call libcallnr("libc.so", "sleep", 10)
4412<
4413 *line()*
4414line({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the line number of the file
4415 position given with {expr}. The accepted positions are:
4416 . the cursor position
4417 $ the last line in the current buffer
4418 'x position of mark x (if the mark is not set, 0 is
4419 returned)
Bram Moolenaarc7453f52006-02-10 23:20:28 +00004420 w0 first line visible in current window
4421 w$ last line visible in current window
Bram Moolenaar9ecd0232008-06-20 15:31:51 +00004422 v In Visual mode: the start of the Visual area (the
4423 cursor is the end). When not in Visual mode
4424 returns the cursor position. Differs from |'<| in
4425 that it's updated right away.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00004426 Note that a mark in another file can be used. The line number
4427 then applies to another buffer.
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00004428 To get the column number use |col()|. To get both use
4429 |getpos()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004430 Examples: >
4431 line(".") line number of the cursor
4432 line("'t") line number of mark t
4433 line("'" . marker) line number of mark marker
4434< *last-position-jump*
4435 This autocommand jumps to the last known position in a file
4436 just after opening it, if the '" mark is set: >
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004437 :au BufReadPost * if line("'\"") > 1 && line("'\"") <= line("$") | exe "normal! g`\"" | endif
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00004438
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004439line2byte({lnum}) *line2byte()*
4440 Return the byte count from the start of the buffer for line
4441 {lnum}. This includes the end-of-line character, depending on
4442 the 'fileformat' option for the current buffer. The first
Bram Moolenaarb6b046b2011-12-30 13:11:27 +01004443 line returns 1. 'encoding' matters, 'fileencoding' is ignored.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004444 This can also be used to get the byte count for the line just
4445 below the last line: >
4446 line2byte(line("$") + 1)
Bram Moolenaarb6b046b2011-12-30 13:11:27 +01004447< This is the buffer size plus one. If 'fileencoding' is empty
4448 it is the file size plus one.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004449 When {lnum} is invalid, or the |+byte_offset| feature has been
4450 disabled at compile time, -1 is returned.
4451 Also see |byte2line()|, |go| and |:goto|.
4452
4453lispindent({lnum}) *lispindent()*
4454 Get the amount of indent for line {lnum} according the lisp
4455 indenting rules, as with 'lisp'.
4456 The indent is counted in spaces, the value of 'tabstop' is
4457 relevant. {lnum} is used just like in |getline()|.
4458 When {lnum} is invalid or Vim was not compiled the
4459 |+lispindent| feature, -1 is returned.
4460
4461localtime() *localtime()*
4462 Return the current time, measured as seconds since 1st Jan
4463 1970. See also |strftime()| and |getftime()|.
4464
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004465
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02004466log({expr}) *log()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02004467 Return the natural logarithm (base e) of {expr} as a |Float|.
4468 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number| in the range
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02004469 (0, inf].
4470 Examples: >
4471 :echo log(10)
4472< 2.302585 >
4473 :echo log(exp(5))
4474< 5.0
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02004475 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02004476
4477
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004478log10({expr}) *log10()*
4479 Return the logarithm of Float {expr} to base 10 as a |Float|.
4480 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
4481 Examples: >
4482 :echo log10(1000)
4483< 3.0 >
4484 :echo log10(0.01)
4485< -2.0
4486 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
4487
Bram Moolenaard38b0552012-04-25 19:07:41 +02004488luaeval({expr}[, {expr}]) *luaeval()*
4489 Evaluate Lua expression {expr} and return its result converted
4490 to Vim data structures. Second {expr} may hold additional
4491 argument accessible as _A inside first {expr}.
4492 Strings are returned as they are.
4493 Boolean objects are converted to numbers.
4494 Numbers are converted to |Float| values if vim was compiled
4495 with |+float| and to numbers otherwise.
4496 Dictionaries and lists obtained by vim.eval() are returned
4497 as-is.
4498 Other objects are returned as zero without any errors.
4499 See |lua-luaeval| for more details.
4500 {only available when compiled with the |+lua| feature}
4501
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004502map({expr}, {string}) *map()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004503 {expr} must be a |List| or a |Dictionary|.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004504 Replace each item in {expr} with the result of evaluating
4505 {string}.
4506 Inside {string} |v:val| has the value of the current item.
Bram Moolenaar627b1d32009-11-17 11:20:35 +00004507 For a |Dictionary| |v:key| has the key of the current item
4508 and for a |List| |v:key| has the index of the current item.
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004509 Example: >
4510 :call map(mylist, '"> " . v:val . " <"')
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004511< This puts "> " before and " <" after each item in "mylist".
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004512
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00004513 Note that {string} is the result of an expression and is then
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004514 used as an expression again. Often it is good to use a
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00004515 |literal-string| to avoid having to double backslashes. You
4516 still have to double ' quotes
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004517
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004518 The operation is done in-place. If you want a |List| or
4519 |Dictionary| to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02004520 :let tlist = map(copy(mylist), ' v:val . "\t"')
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00004521
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004522< Returns {expr}, the |List| or |Dictionary| that was filtered.
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00004523 When an error is encountered while evaluating {string} no
4524 further items in {expr} are processed.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004525
4526
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004527maparg({name}[, {mode} [, {abbr} [, {dict}]]]) *maparg()*
4528 When {dict} is omitted or zero: Return the rhs of mapping
4529 {name} in mode {mode}. The returned String has special
4530 characters translated like in the output of the ":map" command
4531 listing.
4532
4533 When there is no mapping for {name}, an empty String is
4534 returned.
4535
4536 The {name} can have special key names, like in the ":map"
4537 command.
4538
Bram Moolenaard12f5c12006-01-25 22:10:52 +00004539 {mode} can be one of these strings:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004540 "n" Normal
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004541 "v" Visual (including Select)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004542 "o" Operator-pending
4543 "i" Insert
4544 "c" Cmd-line
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004545 "s" Select
4546 "x" Visual
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004547 "l" langmap |language-mapping|
4548 "" Normal, Visual and Operator-pending
Bram Moolenaard12f5c12006-01-25 22:10:52 +00004549 When {mode} is omitted, the modes for "" are used.
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004550
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00004551 When {abbr} is there and it is non-zero use abbreviations
4552 instead of mappings.
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004553
4554 When {dict} is there and it is non-zero return a dictionary
4555 containing all the information of the mapping with the
4556 following items:
4557 "lhs" The {lhs} of the mapping.
4558 "rhs" The {rhs} of the mapping as typed.
4559 "silent" 1 for a |:map-silent| mapping, else 0.
Bram Moolenaar05365702010-10-27 18:34:44 +02004560 "noremap" 1 if the {rhs} of the mapping is not remappable.
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004561 "expr" 1 for an expression mapping (|:map-<expr>|).
4562 "buffer" 1 for a buffer local mapping (|:map-local|).
4563 "mode" Modes for which the mapping is defined. In
4564 addition to the modes mentioned above, these
4565 characters will be used:
4566 " " Normal, Visual and Operator-pending
4567 "!" Insert and Commandline mode
Bram Moolenaar166af9b2010-11-16 20:34:40 +01004568 (|mapmode-ic|)
Bram Moolenaar05365702010-10-27 18:34:44 +02004569 "sid" The script local ID, used for <sid> mappings
4570 (|<SID>|).
Bram Moolenaardfb18412013-12-11 18:53:29 +01004571 "nowait" Do not wait for other, longer mappings.
4572 (|:map-<nowait>|).
Bram Moolenaarbd743252010-10-20 21:23:33 +02004573
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004574 The mappings local to the current buffer are checked first,
4575 then the global mappings.
Bram Moolenaara40ceaf2006-01-13 22:35:40 +00004576 This function can be used to map a key even when it's already
4577 mapped, and have it do the original mapping too. Sketch: >
4578 exe 'nnoremap <Tab> ==' . maparg('<Tab>', 'n')
4579
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004580
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00004581mapcheck({name}[, {mode} [, {abbr}]]) *mapcheck()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004582 Check if there is a mapping that matches with {name} in mode
4583 {mode}. See |maparg()| for {mode} and special names in
4584 {name}.
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00004585 When {abbr} is there and it is non-zero use abbreviations
4586 instead of mappings.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004587 A match happens with a mapping that starts with {name} and
4588 with a mapping which is equal to the start of {name}.
4589
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004590 matches mapping "a" "ab" "abc" ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004591 mapcheck("a") yes yes yes
4592 mapcheck("abc") yes yes yes
4593 mapcheck("ax") yes no no
4594 mapcheck("b") no no no
4595
4596 The difference with maparg() is that mapcheck() finds a
4597 mapping that matches with {name}, while maparg() only finds a
4598 mapping for {name} exactly.
4599 When there is no mapping that starts with {name}, an empty
4600 String is returned. If there is one, the rhs of that mapping
4601 is returned. If there are several mappings that start with
4602 {name}, the rhs of one of them is returned.
4603 The mappings local to the current buffer are checked first,
4604 then the global mappings.
4605 This function can be used to check if a mapping can be added
4606 without being ambiguous. Example: >
4607 :if mapcheck("_vv") == ""
4608 : map _vv :set guifont=7x13<CR>
4609 :endif
4610< This avoids adding the "_vv" mapping when there already is a
4611 mapping for "_v" or for "_vvv".
4612
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00004613match({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *match()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004614 When {expr} is a |List| then this returns the index of the
4615 first item where {pat} matches. Each item is used as a
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00004616 String, |Lists| and |Dictionaries| are used as echoed.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004617 Otherwise, {expr} is used as a String. The result is a
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004618 Number, which gives the index (byte offset) in {expr} where
4619 {pat} matches.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004620 A match at the first character or |List| item returns zero.
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00004621 If there is no match -1 is returned.
Bram Moolenaar20f90cf2011-05-19 12:22:51 +02004622 For getting submatches see |matchlist()|.
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00004623 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004624 :echo match("testing", "ing") " results in 4
Bram Moolenaar362e1a32006-03-06 23:29:24 +00004625 :echo match([1, 'x'], '\a') " results in 1
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004626< See |string-match| for how {pat} is used.
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004627 *strpbrk()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004628 Vim doesn't have a strpbrk() function. But you can do: >
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004629 :let sepidx = match(line, '[.,;: \t]')
4630< *strcasestr()*
4631 Vim doesn't have a strcasestr() function. But you can add
4632 "\c" to the pattern to ignore case: >
4633 :let idx = match(haystack, '\cneedle')
4634<
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004635 If {start} is given, the search starts from byte index
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004636 {start} in a String or item {start} in a |List|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004637 The result, however, is still the index counted from the
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00004638 first character/item. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004639 :echo match("testing", "ing", 2)
4640< result is again "4". >
4641 :echo match("testing", "ing", 4)
4642< result is again "4". >
4643 :echo match("testing", "t", 2)
4644< result is "3".
Bram Moolenaar5e3cb7e2006-02-27 23:58:35 +00004645 For a String, if {start} > 0 then it is like the string starts
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00004646 {start} bytes later, thus "^" will match at {start}. Except
4647 when {count} is given, then it's like matches before the
4648 {start} byte are ignored (this is a bit complicated to keep it
4649 backwards compatible).
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004650 For a String, if {start} < 0, it will be set to 0. For a list
4651 the index is counted from the end.
Bram Moolenaare224ffa2006-03-01 00:01:28 +00004652 If {start} is out of range ({start} > strlen({expr}) for a
4653 String or {start} > len({expr}) for a |List|) -1 is returned.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004654
Bram Moolenaar5e3cb7e2006-02-27 23:58:35 +00004655 When {count} is given use the {count}'th match. When a match
Bram Moolenaare224ffa2006-03-01 00:01:28 +00004656 is found in a String the search for the next one starts one
Bram Moolenaar5e3cb7e2006-02-27 23:58:35 +00004657 character further. Thus this example results in 1: >
4658 echo match("testing", "..", 0, 2)
4659< In a |List| the search continues in the next item.
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00004660 Note that when {count} is added the way {start} works changes,
4661 see above.
Bram Moolenaar5e3cb7e2006-02-27 23:58:35 +00004662
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004663 See |pattern| for the patterns that are accepted.
4664 The 'ignorecase' option is used to set the ignore-caseness of
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004665 the pattern. 'smartcase' is NOT used. The matching is always
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004666 done like 'magic' is set and 'cpoptions' is empty.
4667
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004668 *matchadd()* *E798* *E799* *E801*
Bram Moolenaarf9132812015-07-21 19:19:13 +02004669matchadd({group}, {pattern}[, {priority}[, {id} [, {dict}]]])
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004670 Defines a pattern to be highlighted in the current window (a
4671 "match"). It will be highlighted with {group}. Returns an
4672 identification number (ID), which can be used to delete the
4673 match using |matchdelete()|.
Bram Moolenaar8e69b4a2013-11-09 03:41:58 +01004674 Matching is case sensitive and magic, unless case sensitivity
4675 or magicness are explicitly overridden in {pattern}. The
4676 'magic', 'smartcase' and 'ignorecase' options are not used.
Bram Moolenaarf9132812015-07-21 19:19:13 +02004677 The "Conceal" value is special, it causes the match to be
4678 concealed.
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004679
4680 The optional {priority} argument assigns a priority to the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004681 match. A match with a high priority will have its
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004682 highlighting overrule that of a match with a lower priority.
4683 A priority is specified as an integer (negative numbers are no
4684 exception). If the {priority} argument is not specified, the
4685 default priority is 10. The priority of 'hlsearch' is zero,
4686 hence all matches with a priority greater than zero will
4687 overrule it. Syntax highlighting (see 'syntax') is a separate
4688 mechanism, and regardless of the chosen priority a match will
4689 always overrule syntax highlighting.
4690
4691 The optional {id} argument allows the request for a specific
4692 match ID. If a specified ID is already taken, an error
4693 message will appear and the match will not be added. An ID
4694 is specified as a positive integer (zero excluded). IDs 1, 2
4695 and 3 are reserved for |:match|, |:2match| and |:3match|,
Bram Moolenaar6561d522015-07-21 15:48:27 +02004696 respectively. If the {id} argument is not specified or -1,
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004697 |matchadd()| automatically chooses a free ID.
4698
Bram Moolenaar85084ef2016-01-17 22:26:33 +01004699 The optional {dict} argument allows for further custom
4700 values. Currently this is used to specify a match specific
Bram Moolenaar6561d522015-07-21 15:48:27 +02004701 conceal character that will be shown for |hl-Conceal|
4702 highlighted matches. The dict can have the following members:
4703
4704 conceal Special character to show instead of the
4705 match (only for |hl-Conceal| highlighed
4706 matches, see |:syn-cchar|)
4707
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004708 The number of matches is not limited, as it is the case with
4709 the |:match| commands.
4710
4711 Example: >
4712 :highlight MyGroup ctermbg=green guibg=green
4713 :let m = matchadd("MyGroup", "TODO")
4714< Deletion of the pattern: >
4715 :call matchdelete(m)
4716
4717< A list of matches defined by |matchadd()| and |:match| are
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004718 available from |getmatches()|. All matches can be deleted in
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004719 one operation by |clearmatches()|.
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004720
Bram Moolenaar6561d522015-07-21 15:48:27 +02004721matchaddpos({group}, {pos}[, {priority}[, {id}[, {dict}]]]) *matchaddpos()*
Bram Moolenaarb3414592014-06-17 17:48:32 +02004722 Same as |matchadd()|, but requires a list of positions {pos}
4723 instead of a pattern. This command is faster than |matchadd()|
4724 because it does not require to handle regular expressions and
4725 sets buffer line boundaries to redraw screen. It is supposed
4726 to be used when fast match additions and deletions are
4727 required, for example to highlight matching parentheses.
4728
4729 The list {pos} can contain one of these items:
Bram Moolenaarb6da44a2014-06-25 18:15:22 +02004730 - A number. This whole line will be highlighted. The first
Bram Moolenaarb3414592014-06-17 17:48:32 +02004731 line has number 1.
4732 - A list with one number, e.g., [23]. The whole line with this
4733 number will be highlighted.
4734 - A list with two numbers, e.g., [23, 11]. The first number is
Bram Moolenaarb6da44a2014-06-25 18:15:22 +02004735 the line number, the second one is the column number (first
4736 column is 1, the value must correspond to the byte index as
4737 |col()| would return). The character at this position will
4738 be highlighted.
Bram Moolenaarb3414592014-06-17 17:48:32 +02004739 - A list with three numbers, e.g., [23, 11, 3]. As above, but
Bram Moolenaarb6da44a2014-06-25 18:15:22 +02004740 the third number gives the length of the highlight in bytes.
Bram Moolenaarb3414592014-06-17 17:48:32 +02004741
4742 The maximum number of positions is 8.
4743
4744 Example: >
4745 :highlight MyGroup ctermbg=green guibg=green
4746 :let m = matchaddpos("MyGroup", [[23, 24], 34])
4747< Deletion of the pattern: >
4748 :call matchdelete(m)
4749
4750< Matches added by |matchaddpos()| are returned by
4751 |getmatches()| with an entry "pos1", "pos2", etc., with the
4752 value a list like the {pos} item.
4753 These matches cannot be set via |setmatches()|, however they
4754 can still be deleted by |clearmatches()|.
4755
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004756matcharg({nr}) *matcharg()*
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00004757 Selects the {nr} match item, as set with a |:match|,
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004758 |:2match| or |:3match| command.
4759 Return a |List| with two elements:
4760 The name of the highlight group used
4761 The pattern used.
4762 When {nr} is not 1, 2 or 3 returns an empty |List|.
4763 When there is no match item set returns ['', ''].
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004764 This is useful to save and restore a |:match|.
4765 Highlighting matches using the |:match| commands are limited
4766 to three matches. |matchadd()| does not have this limitation.
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004767
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004768matchdelete({id}) *matchdelete()* *E802* *E803*
4769 Deletes a match with ID {id} previously defined by |matchadd()|
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004770 or one of the |:match| commands. Returns 0 if successful,
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00004771 otherwise -1. See example for |matchadd()|. All matches can
4772 be deleted in one operation by |clearmatches()|.
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004773
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00004774matchend({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *matchend()*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004775 Same as |match()|, but return the index of first character
4776 after the match. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004777 :echo matchend("testing", "ing")
4778< results in "7".
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00004779 *strspn()* *strcspn()*
4780 Vim doesn't have a strspn() or strcspn() function, but you can
4781 do it with matchend(): >
4782 :let span = matchend(line, '[a-zA-Z]')
4783 :let span = matchend(line, '[^a-zA-Z]')
4784< Except that -1 is returned when there are no matches.
4785
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004786 The {start}, if given, has the same meaning as for |match()|. >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004787 :echo matchend("testing", "ing", 2)
4788< results in "7". >
4789 :echo matchend("testing", "ing", 5)
4790< result is "-1".
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004791 When {expr} is a |List| the result is equal to |match()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004792
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00004793matchlist({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *matchlist()*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004794 Same as |match()|, but return a |List|. The first item in the
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00004795 list is the matched string, same as what matchstr() would
4796 return. Following items are submatches, like "\1", "\2", etc.
Bram Moolenaarf9393ef2006-04-24 19:47:27 +00004797 in |:substitute|. When an optional submatch didn't match an
4798 empty string is used. Example: >
4799 echo matchlist('acd', '\(a\)\?\(b\)\?\(c\)\?\(.*\)')
4800< Results in: ['acd', 'a', '', 'c', 'd', '', '', '', '', '']
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00004801 When there is no match an empty list is returned.
4802
Bram Moolenaar89cb5e02004-07-19 20:55:54 +00004803matchstr({expr}, {pat}[, {start}[, {count}]]) *matchstr()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004804 Same as |match()|, but return the matched string. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004805 :echo matchstr("testing", "ing")
4806< results in "ing".
4807 When there is no match "" is returned.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01004808 The {start}, if given, has the same meaning as for |match()|. >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004809 :echo matchstr("testing", "ing", 2)
4810< results in "ing". >
4811 :echo matchstr("testing", "ing", 5)
4812< result is "".
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004813 When {expr} is a |List| then the matching item is returned.
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00004814 The type isn't changed, it's not necessarily a String.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004815
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004816 *max()*
4817max({list}) Return the maximum value of all items in {list}.
4818 If {list} is not a list or one of the items in {list} cannot
4819 be used as a Number this results in an error.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004820 An empty |List| results in zero.
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004821
4822 *min()*
Bram Moolenaar79166c42007-05-10 18:29:51 +00004823min({list}) Return the minimum value of all items in {list}.
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004824 If {list} is not a list or one of the items in {list} cannot
4825 be used as a Number this results in an error.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00004826 An empty |List| results in zero.
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00004827
Bram Moolenaar551dbcc2006-04-25 22:13:59 +00004828 *mkdir()* *E739*
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004829mkdir({name} [, {path} [, {prot}]])
4830 Create directory {name}.
4831 If {path} is "p" then intermediate directories are created as
4832 necessary. Otherwise it must be "".
4833 If {prot} is given it is used to set the protection bits of
4834 the new directory. The default is 0755 (rwxr-xr-x: r/w for
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004835 the user readable for others). Use 0700 to make it unreadable
Bram Moolenaared39e1d2008-08-09 17:55:22 +00004836 for others. This is only used for the last part of {name}.
4837 Thus if you create /tmp/foo/bar then /tmp/foo will be created
4838 with 0755.
4839 Example: >
4840 :call mkdir($HOME . "/tmp/foo/bar", "p", 0700)
4841< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00004842 Not available on all systems. To check use: >
4843 :if exists("*mkdir")
4844<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004845 *mode()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004846mode([expr]) Return a string that indicates the current mode.
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00004847 If [expr] is supplied and it evaluates to a non-zero Number or
4848 a non-empty String (|non-zero-arg|), then the full mode is
4849 returned, otherwise only the first letter is returned. Note
4850 that " " and "0" are also non-empty strings.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004851
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004852 n Normal
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004853 no Operator-pending
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004854 v Visual by character
4855 V Visual by line
4856 CTRL-V Visual blockwise
4857 s Select by character
4858 S Select by line
4859 CTRL-S Select blockwise
4860 i Insert
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004861 R Replace |R|
4862 Rv Virtual Replace |gR|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004863 c Command-line
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004864 cv Vim Ex mode |gQ|
4865 ce Normal Ex mode |Q|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004866 r Hit-enter prompt
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004867 rm The -- more -- prompt
4868 r? A |:confirm| query of some sort
4869 ! Shell or external command is executing
4870 This is useful in the 'statusline' option or when used
4871 with |remote_expr()| In most other places it always returns
4872 "c" or "n".
4873 Also see |visualmode()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004874
Bram Moolenaar7e506b62010-01-19 15:55:06 +01004875mzeval({expr}) *mzeval()*
4876 Evaluate MzScheme expression {expr} and return its result
Bram Moolenaard38b0552012-04-25 19:07:41 +02004877 converted to Vim data structures.
Bram Moolenaar7e506b62010-01-19 15:55:06 +01004878 Numbers and strings are returned as they are.
4879 Pairs (including lists and improper lists) and vectors are
4880 returned as Vim |Lists|.
4881 Hash tables are represented as Vim |Dictionary| type with keys
4882 converted to strings.
4883 All other types are converted to string with display function.
4884 Examples: >
4885 :mz (define l (list 1 2 3))
4886 :mz (define h (make-hash)) (hash-set! h "list" l)
4887 :echo mzeval("l")
4888 :echo mzeval("h")
4889<
4890 {only available when compiled with the |+mzscheme| feature}
4891
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004892nextnonblank({lnum}) *nextnonblank()*
4893 Return the line number of the first line at or below {lnum}
4894 that is not blank. Example: >
4895 if getline(nextnonblank(1)) =~ "Java"
4896< When {lnum} is invalid or there is no non-blank line at or
4897 below it, zero is returned.
4898 See also |prevnonblank()|.
4899
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01004900nr2char({expr}[, {utf8}]) *nr2char()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004901 Return a string with a single character, which has the number
4902 value {expr}. Examples: >
4903 nr2char(64) returns "@"
4904 nr2char(32) returns " "
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01004905< When {utf8} is omitted or zero, the current 'encoding' is used.
4906 Example for "utf-8": >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004907 nr2char(300) returns I with bow character
Bram Moolenaard35d7842013-01-23 17:17:10 +01004908< With {utf8} set to 1, always return utf-8 characters.
4909 Note that a NUL character in the file is specified with
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004910 nr2char(10), because NULs are represented with newline
4911 characters. nr2char(0) is a real NUL and terminates the
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +00004912 string, thus results in an empty string.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00004913
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01004914or({expr}, {expr}) *or()*
4915 Bitwise OR on the two arguments. The arguments are converted
4916 to a number. A List, Dict or Float argument causes an error.
4917 Example: >
4918 :let bits = or(bits, 0x80)
4919
4920
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00004921pathshorten({expr}) *pathshorten()*
4922 Shorten directory names in the path {expr} and return the
4923 result. The tail, the file name, is kept as-is. The other
4924 components in the path are reduced to single letters. Leading
4925 '~' and '.' characters are kept. Example: >
4926 :echo pathshorten('~/.vim/autoload/myfile.vim')
4927< ~/.v/a/myfile.vim ~
4928 It doesn't matter if the path exists or not.
4929
Bram Moolenaare9b892e2016-01-17 21:15:58 +01004930perleval({expr}) *perleval()*
4931 Evaluate Perl expression {expr} in scalar context and return
4932 its result converted to Vim data structures. If value can't be
Bram Moolenaar85084ef2016-01-17 22:26:33 +01004933 converted, it is returned as a string Perl representation.
4934 Note: If you want an array or hash, {expr} must return a
4935 reference to it.
Bram Moolenaare9b892e2016-01-17 21:15:58 +01004936 Example: >
4937 :echo perleval('[1 .. 4]')
4938< [1, 2, 3, 4]
4939 {only available when compiled with the |+perl| feature}
4940
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004941pow({x}, {y}) *pow()*
4942 Return the power of {x} to the exponent {y} as a |Float|.
4943 {x} and {y} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
4944 Examples: >
4945 :echo pow(3, 3)
4946< 27.0 >
4947 :echo pow(2, 16)
4948< 65536.0 >
4949 :echo pow(32, 0.20)
4950< 2.0
4951 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
4952
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00004953prevnonblank({lnum}) *prevnonblank()*
4954 Return the line number of the first line at or above {lnum}
4955 that is not blank. Example: >
4956 let ind = indent(prevnonblank(v:lnum - 1))
4957< When {lnum} is invalid or there is no non-blank line at or
4958 above it, zero is returned.
4959 Also see |nextnonblank()|.
4960
4961
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00004962printf({fmt}, {expr1} ...) *printf()*
4963 Return a String with {fmt}, where "%" items are replaced by
4964 the formatted form of their respective arguments. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00004965 printf("%4d: E%d %.30s", lnum, errno, msg)
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00004966< May result in:
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00004967 " 99: E42 asdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfas" ~
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00004968
4969 Often used items are:
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00004970 %s string
Bram Moolenaar3ab72c52012-11-14 18:10:56 +01004971 %6S string right-aligned in 6 display cells
Bram Moolenaar98692072006-02-04 00:57:42 +00004972 %6s string right-aligned in 6 bytes
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00004973 %.9s string truncated to 9 bytes
4974 %c single byte
4975 %d decimal number
4976 %5d decimal number padded with spaces to 5 characters
4977 %x hex number
4978 %04x hex number padded with zeros to at least 4 characters
4979 %X hex number using upper case letters
4980 %o octal number
4981 %f floating point number in the form 123.456
4982 %e floating point number in the form 1.234e3
4983 %E floating point number in the form 1.234E3
4984 %g floating point number, as %f or %e depending on value
4985 %G floating point number, as %f or %E depending on value
4986 %% the % character itself
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00004987
4988 Conversion specifications start with '%' and end with the
4989 conversion type. All other characters are copied unchanged to
4990 the result.
4991
4992 The "%" starts a conversion specification. The following
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00004993 arguments appear in sequence:
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00004994
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00004995 % [flags] [field-width] [.precision] type
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00004996
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00004997 flags
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00004998 Zero or more of the following flags:
4999
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005000 # The value should be converted to an "alternate
5001 form". For c, d, and s conversions, this option
5002 has no effect. For o conversions, the precision
5003 of the number is increased to force the first
5004 character of the output string to a zero (except
5005 if a zero value is printed with an explicit
5006 precision of zero).
5007 For x and X conversions, a non-zero result has
5008 the string "0x" (or "0X" for X conversions)
5009 prepended to it.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005010
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005011 0 (zero) Zero padding. For all conversions the converted
5012 value is padded on the left with zeros rather
5013 than blanks. If a precision is given with a
5014 numeric conversion (d, o, x, and X), the 0 flag
5015 is ignored.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005016
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005017 - A negative field width flag; the converted value
5018 is to be left adjusted on the field boundary.
5019 The converted value is padded on the right with
5020 blanks, rather than on the left with blanks or
5021 zeros. A - overrides a 0 if both are given.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005022
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005023 ' ' (space) A blank should be left before a positive
5024 number produced by a signed conversion (d).
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005025
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005026 + A sign must always be placed before a number
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005027 produced by a signed conversion. A + overrides
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005028 a space if both are used.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005029
5030 field-width
5031 An optional decimal digit string specifying a minimum
Bram Moolenaar98692072006-02-04 00:57:42 +00005032 field width. If the converted value has fewer bytes
5033 than the field width, it will be padded with spaces on
5034 the left (or right, if the left-adjustment flag has
5035 been given) to fill out the field width.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005036
5037 .precision
5038 An optional precision, in the form of a period '.'
5039 followed by an optional digit string. If the digit
5040 string is omitted, the precision is taken as zero.
5041 This gives the minimum number of digits to appear for
5042 d, o, x, and X conversions, or the maximum number of
Bram Moolenaar98692072006-02-04 00:57:42 +00005043 bytes to be printed from a string for s conversions.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005044 For floating point it is the number of digits after
5045 the decimal point.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005046
5047 type
5048 A character that specifies the type of conversion to
5049 be applied, see below.
5050
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005051 A field width or precision, or both, may be indicated by an
5052 asterisk '*' instead of a digit string. In this case, a
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005053 Number argument supplies the field width or precision. A
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005054 negative field width is treated as a left adjustment flag
5055 followed by a positive field width; a negative precision is
5056 treated as though it were missing. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005057 :echo printf("%d: %.*s", nr, width, line)
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005058< This limits the length of the text used from "line" to
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005059 "width" bytes.
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005060
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00005061 The conversion specifiers and their meanings are:
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005062
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005063 *printf-d* *printf-o* *printf-x* *printf-X*
5064 doxX The Number argument is converted to signed decimal
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005065 (d), unsigned octal (o), or unsigned hexadecimal (x
5066 and X) notation. The letters "abcdef" are used for
5067 x conversions; the letters "ABCDEF" are used for X
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005068 conversions.
5069 The precision, if any, gives the minimum number of
5070 digits that must appear; if the converted value
5071 requires fewer digits, it is padded on the left with
5072 zeros.
5073 In no case does a non-existent or small field width
5074 cause truncation of a numeric field; if the result of
5075 a conversion is wider than the field width, the field
5076 is expanded to contain the conversion result.
5077
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005078 *printf-c*
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005079 c The Number argument is converted to a byte, and the
5080 resulting character is written.
5081
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005082 *printf-s*
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005083 s The text of the String argument is used. If a
5084 precision is specified, no more bytes than the number
5085 specified are used.
Bram Moolenaar0122c402015-02-03 19:13:34 +01005086 *printf-S*
Bram Moolenaar3ab72c52012-11-14 18:10:56 +01005087 S The text of the String argument is used. If a
5088 precision is specified, no more display cells than the
5089 number specified are used. Without the |+multi_byte|
5090 feature works just like 's'.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005091
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005092 *printf-f* *E807*
5093 f The Float argument is converted into a string of the
5094 form 123.456. The precision specifies the number of
5095 digits after the decimal point. When the precision is
5096 zero the decimal point is omitted. When the precision
5097 is not specified 6 is used. A really big number
5098 (out of range or dividing by zero) results in "inf".
5099 "0.0 / 0.0" results in "nan".
5100 Example: >
5101 echo printf("%.2f", 12.115)
5102< 12.12
5103 Note that roundoff depends on the system libraries.
5104 Use |round()| when in doubt.
5105
5106 *printf-e* *printf-E*
5107 e E The Float argument is converted into a string of the
5108 form 1.234e+03 or 1.234E+03 when using 'E'. The
5109 precision specifies the number of digits after the
5110 decimal point, like with 'f'.
5111
5112 *printf-g* *printf-G*
5113 g G The Float argument is converted like with 'f' if the
5114 value is between 0.001 (inclusive) and 10000000.0
5115 (exclusive). Otherwise 'e' is used for 'g' and 'E'
5116 for 'G'. When no precision is specified superfluous
5117 zeroes and '+' signs are removed, except for the zero
5118 immediately after the decimal point. Thus 10000000.0
5119 results in 1.0e7.
5120
5121 *printf-%*
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005122 % A '%' is written. No argument is converted. The
5123 complete conversion specification is "%%".
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005124
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00005125 When a Number argument is expected a String argument is also
5126 accepted and automatically converted.
5127 When a Float or String argument is expected a Number argument
5128 is also accepted and automatically converted.
5129 Any other argument type results in an error message.
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005130
Bram Moolenaar83bab712005-08-01 21:58:57 +00005131 *E766* *E767*
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005132 The number of {exprN} arguments must exactly match the number
5133 of "%" items. If there are not sufficient or too many
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00005134 arguments an error is given. Up to 18 arguments can be used.
Bram Moolenaar4be06f92005-07-29 22:36:03 +00005135
5136
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00005137pumvisible() *pumvisible()*
5138 Returns non-zero when the popup menu is visible, zero
5139 otherwise. See |ins-completion-menu|.
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00005140 This can be used to avoid some things that would remove the
5141 popup menu.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005142
Bram Moolenaare6ae6222013-05-21 21:01:10 +02005143 *E860*
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02005144py3eval({expr}) *py3eval()*
5145 Evaluate Python expression {expr} and return its result
5146 converted to Vim data structures.
5147 Numbers and strings are returned as they are (strings are
Bram Moolenaar2b8388b2015-02-28 13:11:45 +01005148 copied though, Unicode strings are additionally converted to
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02005149 'encoding').
5150 Lists are represented as Vim |List| type.
5151 Dictionaries are represented as Vim |Dictionary| type with
5152 keys converted to strings.
5153 {only available when compiled with the |+python3| feature}
5154
5155 *E858* *E859*
5156pyeval({expr}) *pyeval()*
5157 Evaluate Python expression {expr} and return its result
5158 converted to Vim data structures.
5159 Numbers and strings are returned as they are (strings are
5160 copied though).
5161 Lists are represented as Vim |List| type.
Bram Moolenaard09acef2012-09-21 14:54:30 +02005162 Dictionaries are represented as Vim |Dictionary| type,
5163 non-string keys result in error.
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02005164 {only available when compiled with the |+python| feature}
5165
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00005166 *E726* *E727*
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005167range({expr} [, {max} [, {stride}]]) *range()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00005168 Returns a |List| with Numbers:
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005169 - If only {expr} is specified: [0, 1, ..., {expr} - 1]
5170 - If {max} is specified: [{expr}, {expr} + 1, ..., {max}]
5171 - If {stride} is specified: [{expr}, {expr} + {stride}, ...,
5172 {max}] (increasing {expr} with {stride} each time, not
5173 producing a value past {max}).
Bram Moolenaare7566042005-06-17 22:00:15 +00005174 When the maximum is one before the start the result is an
5175 empty list. When the maximum is more than one before the
5176 start this is an error.
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005177 Examples: >
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00005178 range(4) " [0, 1, 2, 3]
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005179 range(2, 4) " [2, 3, 4]
5180 range(2, 9, 3) " [2, 5, 8]
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00005181 range(2, -2, -1) " [2, 1, 0, -1, -2]
Bram Moolenaare7566042005-06-17 22:00:15 +00005182 range(0) " []
5183 range(2, 0) " error!
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005184<
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00005185 *readfile()*
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00005186readfile({fname} [, {binary} [, {max}]])
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00005187 Read file {fname} and return a |List|, each line of the file
5188 as an item. Lines broken at NL characters. Macintosh files
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00005189 separated with CR will result in a single long line (unless a
5190 NL appears somewhere).
Bram Moolenaar06583f12010-08-07 20:30:49 +02005191 All NUL characters are replaced with a NL character.
Bram Moolenaar86ae7202015-07-10 19:31:35 +02005192 When {binary} contains "b" binary mode is used:
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00005193 - When the last line ends in a NL an extra empty list item is
5194 added.
5195 - No CR characters are removed.
5196 Otherwise:
5197 - CR characters that appear before a NL are removed.
5198 - Whether the last line ends in a NL or not does not matter.
Bram Moolenaar06583f12010-08-07 20:30:49 +02005199 - When 'encoding' is Unicode any UTF-8 byte order mark is
5200 removed from the text.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00005201 When {max} is given this specifies the maximum number of lines
5202 to be read. Useful if you only want to check the first ten
5203 lines of a file: >
5204 :for line in readfile(fname, '', 10)
5205 : if line =~ 'Date' | echo line | endif
5206 :endfor
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00005207< When {max} is negative -{max} lines from the end of the file
5208 are returned, or as many as there are.
5209 When {max} is zero the result is an empty list.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00005210 Note that without {max} the whole file is read into memory.
5211 Also note that there is no recognition of encoding. Read a
5212 file into a buffer if you need to.
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00005213 When the file can't be opened an error message is given and
5214 the result is an empty list.
5215 Also see |writefile()|.
5216
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00005217reltime([{start} [, {end}]]) *reltime()*
5218 Return an item that represents a time value. The format of
5219 the item depends on the system. It can be passed to
5220 |reltimestr()| to convert it to a string.
5221 Without an argument it returns the current time.
5222 With one argument is returns the time passed since the time
5223 specified in the argument.
Bram Moolenaar551dbcc2006-04-25 22:13:59 +00005224 With two arguments it returns the time passed between {start}
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00005225 and {end}.
5226 The {start} and {end} arguments must be values returned by
5227 reltime().
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02005228 {only available when compiled with the |+reltime| feature}
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00005229
5230reltimestr({time}) *reltimestr()*
5231 Return a String that represents the time value of {time}.
5232 This is the number of seconds, a dot and the number of
5233 microseconds. Example: >
5234 let start = reltime()
5235 call MyFunction()
5236 echo reltimestr(reltime(start))
5237< Note that overhead for the commands will be added to the time.
5238 The accuracy depends on the system.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00005239 Leading spaces are used to make the string align nicely. You
5240 can use split() to remove it. >
5241 echo split(reltimestr(reltime(start)))[0]
5242< Also see |profiling|.
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02005243 {only available when compiled with the |+reltime| feature}
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00005244
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005245 *remote_expr()* *E449*
5246remote_expr({server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005247 Send the {string} to {server}. The string is sent as an
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005248 expression and the result is returned after evaluation.
Bram Moolenaar362e1a32006-03-06 23:29:24 +00005249 The result must be a String or a |List|. A |List| is turned
5250 into a String by joining the items with a line break in
5251 between (not at the end), like with join(expr, "\n").
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005252 If {idvar} is present, it is taken as the name of a
5253 variable and a {serverid} for later use with
5254 remote_read() is stored there.
5255 See also |clientserver| |RemoteReply|.
5256 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5257 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
5258 Note: Any errors will cause a local error message to be issued
5259 and the result will be the empty string.
5260 Examples: >
5261 :echo remote_expr("gvim", "2+2")
5262 :echo remote_expr("gvim1", "b:current_syntax")
5263<
5264
5265remote_foreground({server}) *remote_foreground()*
5266 Move the Vim server with the name {server} to the foreground.
5267 This works like: >
5268 remote_expr({server}, "foreground()")
5269< Except that on Win32 systems the client does the work, to work
5270 around the problem that the OS doesn't always allow the server
5271 to bring itself to the foreground.
Bram Moolenaar9372a112005-12-06 19:59:18 +00005272 Note: This does not restore the window if it was minimized,
5273 like foreground() does.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005274 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5275 {only in the Win32, Athena, Motif and GTK GUI versions and the
5276 Win32 console version}
5277
5278
5279remote_peek({serverid} [, {retvar}]) *remote_peek()*
5280 Returns a positive number if there are available strings
5281 from {serverid}. Copies any reply string into the variable
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005282 {retvar} if specified. {retvar} must be a string with the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005283 name of a variable.
5284 Returns zero if none are available.
5285 Returns -1 if something is wrong.
5286 See also |clientserver|.
5287 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5288 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
5289 Examples: >
5290 :let repl = ""
5291 :echo "PEEK: ".remote_peek(id, "repl").": ".repl
5292
5293remote_read({serverid}) *remote_read()*
5294 Return the oldest available reply from {serverid} and consume
5295 it. It blocks until a reply is available.
5296 See also |clientserver|.
5297 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5298 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
5299 Example: >
5300 :echo remote_read(id)
5301<
5302 *remote_send()* *E241*
5303remote_send({server}, {string} [, {idvar}])
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005304 Send the {string} to {server}. The string is sent as input
Bram Moolenaard4755bb2004-09-02 19:12:26 +00005305 keys and the function returns immediately. At the Vim server
5306 the keys are not mapped |:map|.
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00005307 If {idvar} is present, it is taken as the name of a variable
5308 and a {serverid} for later use with remote_read() is stored
5309 there.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005310 See also |clientserver| |RemoteReply|.
5311 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5312 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
5313 Note: Any errors will be reported in the server and may mess
5314 up the display.
5315 Examples: >
5316 :echo remote_send("gvim", ":DropAndReply ".file, "serverid").
5317 \ remote_read(serverid)
5318
5319 :autocmd NONE RemoteReply *
5320 \ echo remote_read(expand("<amatch>"))
5321 :echo remote_send("gvim", ":sleep 10 | echo ".
5322 \ 'server2client(expand("<client>"), "HELLO")<CR>')
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00005323<
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005324remove({list}, {idx} [, {end}]) *remove()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00005325 Without {end}: Remove the item at {idx} from |List| {list} and
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01005326 return the item.
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005327 With {end}: Remove items from {idx} to {end} (inclusive) and
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01005328 return a List with these items. When {idx} points to the same
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005329 item as {end} a list with one item is returned. When {end}
5330 points to an item before {idx} this is an error.
5331 See |list-index| for possible values of {idx} and {end}.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00005332 Example: >
5333 :echo "last item: " . remove(mylist, -1)
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005334 :call remove(mylist, 0, 9)
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005335remove({dict}, {key})
5336 Remove the entry from {dict} with key {key}. Example: >
5337 :echo "removed " . remove(dict, "one")
5338< If there is no {key} in {dict} this is an error.
5339
5340 Use |delete()| to remove a file.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00005341
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005342rename({from}, {to}) *rename()*
5343 Rename the file by the name {from} to the name {to}. This
5344 should also work to move files across file systems. The
5345 result is a Number, which is 0 if the file was renamed
5346 successfully, and non-zero when the renaming failed.
Bram Moolenaar798b30b2009-04-22 10:56:16 +00005347 NOTE: If {to} exists it is overwritten without warning.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005348 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5349
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00005350repeat({expr}, {count}) *repeat()*
5351 Repeat {expr} {count} times and return the concatenated
5352 result. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar551dbcc2006-04-25 22:13:59 +00005353 :let separator = repeat('-', 80)
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00005354< When {count} is zero or negative the result is empty.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00005355 When {expr} is a |List| the result is {expr} concatenated
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005356 {count} times. Example: >
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00005357 :let longlist = repeat(['a', 'b'], 3)
5358< Results in ['a', 'b', 'a', 'b', 'a', 'b'].
Bram Moolenaarab79bcb2004-07-18 21:34:53 +00005359
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00005360
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005361resolve({filename}) *resolve()* *E655*
5362 On MS-Windows, when {filename} is a shortcut (a .lnk file),
5363 returns the path the shortcut points to in a simplified form.
5364 On Unix, repeat resolving symbolic links in all path
5365 components of {filename} and return the simplified result.
5366 To cope with link cycles, resolving of symbolic links is
5367 stopped after 100 iterations.
5368 On other systems, return the simplified {filename}.
5369 The simplification step is done as by |simplify()|.
5370 resolve() keeps a leading path component specifying the
5371 current directory (provided the result is still a relative
5372 path name) and also keeps a trailing path separator.
5373
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00005374 *reverse()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005375reverse({list}) Reverse the order of items in {list} in-place. Returns
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00005376 {list}.
5377 If you want a list to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
5378 :let revlist = reverse(copy(mylist))
5379
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005380round({expr}) *round()*
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00005381 Round off {expr} to the nearest integral value and return it
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005382 as a |Float|. If {expr} lies halfway between two integral
5383 values, then use the larger one (away from zero).
5384 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
5385 Examples: >
5386 echo round(0.456)
5387< 0.0 >
5388 echo round(4.5)
5389< 5.0 >
5390 echo round(-4.5)
5391< -5.0
5392 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaar34feacb2012-12-05 19:01:43 +01005393
Bram Moolenaar9a773482013-06-11 18:40:13 +02005394screenattr(row, col) *screenattr()*
5395 Like screenchar(), but return the attribute. This is a rather
5396 arbitrary number that can only be used to compare to the
5397 attribute at other positions.
5398
5399screenchar(row, col) *screenchar()*
5400 The result is a Number, which is the character at position
5401 [row, col] on the screen. This works for every possible
5402 screen position, also status lines, window separators and the
5403 command line. The top left position is row one, column one
5404 The character excludes composing characters. For double-byte
5405 encodings it may only be the first byte.
5406 This is mainly to be used for testing.
5407 Returns -1 when row or col is out of range.
5408
Bram Moolenaar34feacb2012-12-05 19:01:43 +01005409screencol() *screencol()*
5410 The result is a Number, which is the current screen column of
5411 the cursor. The leftmost column has number 1.
5412 This function is mainly used for testing.
5413
5414 Note: Always returns the current screen column, thus if used
5415 in a command (e.g. ":echo screencol()") it will return the
5416 column inside the command line, which is 1 when the command is
5417 executed. To get the cursor position in the file use one of
5418 the following mappings: >
5419 nnoremap <expr> GG ":echom ".screencol()."\n"
5420 nnoremap <silent> GG :echom screencol()<CR>
5421<
5422screenrow() *screenrow()*
5423 The result is a Number, which is the current screen row of the
5424 cursor. The top line has number one.
5425 This function is mainly used for testing.
5426
5427 Note: Same restrictions as with |screencol()|.
5428
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005429search({pattern} [, {flags} [, {stopline} [, {timeout}]]]) *search()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005430 Search for regexp pattern {pattern}. The search starts at the
Bram Moolenaar383f9bc2005-01-19 22:18:32 +00005431 cursor position (you can use |cursor()| to set it).
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005432
Bram Moolenaar2df58b42012-11-28 18:21:11 +01005433 When a match has been found its line number is returned.
Bram Moolenaarb8ff1fb2012-02-04 21:59:01 +01005434 If there is no match a 0 is returned and the cursor doesn't
5435 move. No error message is given.
Bram Moolenaarb8ff1fb2012-02-04 21:59:01 +01005436
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005437 {flags} is a String, which can contain these character flags:
Bram Moolenaarad4d8a12015-12-28 19:20:36 +01005438 'b' search Backward instead of forward
5439 'c' accept a match at the Cursor position
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00005440 'e' move to the End of the match
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00005441 'n' do Not move the cursor
Bram Moolenaarad4d8a12015-12-28 19:20:36 +01005442 'p' return number of matching sub-Pattern (see below)
5443 's' Set the ' mark at the previous location of the cursor
5444 'w' Wrap around the end of the file
5445 'W' don't Wrap around the end of the file
5446 'z' start searching at the cursor column instead of zero
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005447 If neither 'w' or 'W' is given, the 'wrapscan' option applies.
5448
Bram Moolenaar02743632005-07-25 20:42:36 +00005449 If the 's' flag is supplied, the ' mark is set, only if the
5450 cursor is moved. The 's' flag cannot be combined with the 'n'
5451 flag.
5452
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00005453 'ignorecase', 'smartcase' and 'magic' are used.
Bram Moolenaarad4d8a12015-12-28 19:20:36 +01005454
Bram Moolenaar85084ef2016-01-17 22:26:33 +01005455 When the 'z' flag is not given, searching always starts in
Bram Moolenaarad4d8a12015-12-28 19:20:36 +01005456 column zero and then matches before the cursor are skipped.
5457 When the 'c' flag is present in 'cpo' the next search starts
5458 after the match. Without the 'c' flag the next search starts
5459 one column further.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00005460
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00005461 When the {stopline} argument is given then the search stops
5462 after searching this line. This is useful to restrict the
5463 search to a range of lines. Examples: >
5464 let match = search('(', 'b', line("w0"))
5465 let end = search('END', '', line("w$"))
5466< When {stopline} is used and it is not zero this also implies
5467 that the search does not wrap around the end of the file.
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005468 A zero value is equal to not giving the argument.
5469
5470 When the {timeout} argument is given the search stops when
Bram Moolenaar1aeaf8c2012-05-18 13:46:39 +02005471 more than this many milliseconds have passed. Thus when
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005472 {timeout} is 500 the search stops after half a second.
5473 The value must not be negative. A zero value is like not
5474 giving the argument.
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02005475 {only available when compiled with the |+reltime| feature}
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00005476
Bram Moolenaar362e1a32006-03-06 23:29:24 +00005477 *search()-sub-match*
5478 With the 'p' flag the returned value is one more than the
5479 first sub-match in \(\). One if none of them matched but the
5480 whole pattern did match.
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00005481 To get the column number too use |searchpos()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005482
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00005483 The cursor will be positioned at the match, unless the 'n'
5484 flag is used.
5485
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005486 Example (goes over all files in the argument list): >
5487 :let n = 1
5488 :while n <= argc() " loop over all files in arglist
5489 : exe "argument " . n
5490 : " start at the last char in the file and wrap for the
5491 : " first search to find match at start of file
5492 : normal G$
5493 : let flags = "w"
5494 : while search("foo", flags) > 0
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005495 : s/foo/bar/g
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005496 : let flags = "W"
5497 : endwhile
5498 : update " write the file if modified
5499 : let n = n + 1
5500 :endwhile
5501<
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00005502 Example for using some flags: >
5503 :echo search('\<if\|\(else\)\|\(endif\)', 'ncpe')
5504< This will search for the keywords "if", "else", and "endif"
5505 under or after the cursor. Because of the 'p' flag, it
5506 returns 1, 2, or 3 depending on which keyword is found, or 0
5507 if the search fails. With the cursor on the first word of the
5508 line:
5509 if (foo == 0) | let foo = foo + 1 | endif ~
5510 the function returns 1. Without the 'c' flag, the function
5511 finds the "endif" and returns 3. The same thing happens
5512 without the 'e' flag if the cursor is on the "f" of "if".
5513 The 'n' flag tells the function not to move the cursor.
5514
Bram Moolenaar92d640f2005-09-05 22:11:52 +00005515
Bram Moolenaarf75a9632005-09-13 21:20:47 +00005516searchdecl({name} [, {global} [, {thisblock}]]) *searchdecl()*
5517 Search for the declaration of {name}.
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00005518
Bram Moolenaarf75a9632005-09-13 21:20:47 +00005519 With a non-zero {global} argument it works like |gD|, find
5520 first match in the file. Otherwise it works like |gd|, find
5521 first match in the function.
5522
5523 With a non-zero {thisblock} argument matches in a {} block
5524 that ends before the cursor position are ignored. Avoids
5525 finding variable declarations only valid in another scope.
5526
Bram Moolenaar92d640f2005-09-05 22:11:52 +00005527 Moves the cursor to the found match.
5528 Returns zero for success, non-zero for failure.
5529 Example: >
5530 if searchdecl('myvar') == 0
5531 echo getline('.')
5532 endif
5533<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005534 *searchpair()*
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005535searchpair({start}, {middle}, {end} [, {flags} [, {skip}
5536 [, {stopline} [, {timeout}]]]])
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005537 Search for the match of a nested start-end pair. This can be
5538 used to find the "endif" that matches an "if", while other
5539 if/endif pairs in between are ignored.
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00005540 The search starts at the cursor. The default is to search
5541 forward, include 'b' in {flags} to search backward.
5542 If a match is found, the cursor is positioned at it and the
5543 line number is returned. If no match is found 0 or -1 is
5544 returned and the cursor doesn't move. No error message is
5545 given.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005546
5547 {start}, {middle} and {end} are patterns, see |pattern|. They
5548 must not contain \( \) pairs. Use of \%( \) is allowed. When
5549 {middle} is not empty, it is found when searching from either
5550 direction, but only when not in a nested start-end pair. A
5551 typical use is: >
5552 searchpair('\<if\>', '\<else\>', '\<endif\>')
5553< By leaving {middle} empty the "else" is skipped.
5554
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00005555 {flags} 'b', 'c', 'n', 's', 'w' and 'W' are used like with
5556 |search()|. Additionally:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005557 'r' Repeat until no more matches found; will find the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005558 outer pair. Implies the 'W' flag.
5559 'm' Return number of matches instead of line number with
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00005560 the match; will be > 1 when 'r' is used.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005561 Note: it's nearly always a good idea to use the 'W' flag, to
5562 avoid wrapping around the end of the file.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005563
5564 When a match for {start}, {middle} or {end} is found, the
5565 {skip} expression is evaluated with the cursor positioned on
5566 the start of the match. It should return non-zero if this
5567 match is to be skipped. E.g., because it is inside a comment
5568 or a string.
5569 When {skip} is omitted or empty, every match is accepted.
5570 When evaluating {skip} causes an error the search is aborted
5571 and -1 returned.
5572
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005573 For {stopline} and {timeout} see |search()|.
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00005574
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005575 The value of 'ignorecase' is used. 'magic' is ignored, the
5576 patterns are used like it's on.
5577
5578 The search starts exactly at the cursor. A match with
5579 {start}, {middle} or {end} at the next character, in the
5580 direction of searching, is the first one found. Example: >
5581 if 1
5582 if 2
5583 endif 2
5584 endif 1
5585< When starting at the "if 2", with the cursor on the "i", and
5586 searching forwards, the "endif 2" is found. When starting on
5587 the character just before the "if 2", the "endif 1" will be
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005588 found. That's because the "if 2" will be found first, and
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005589 then this is considered to be a nested if/endif from "if 2" to
5590 "endif 2".
5591 When searching backwards and {end} is more than one character,
5592 it may be useful to put "\zs" at the end of the pattern, so
5593 that when the cursor is inside a match with the end it finds
5594 the matching start.
5595
5596 Example, to find the "endif" command in a Vim script: >
5597
5598 :echo searchpair('\<if\>', '\<el\%[seif]\>', '\<en\%[dif]\>', 'W',
5599 \ 'getline(".") =~ "^\\s*\""')
5600
5601< The cursor must be at or after the "if" for which a match is
5602 to be found. Note that single-quote strings are used to avoid
5603 having to double the backslashes. The skip expression only
5604 catches comments at the start of a line, not after a command.
5605 Also, a word "en" or "if" halfway a line is considered a
5606 match.
5607 Another example, to search for the matching "{" of a "}": >
5608
5609 :echo searchpair('{', '', '}', 'bW')
5610
5611< This works when the cursor is at or before the "}" for which a
5612 match is to be found. To reject matches that syntax
5613 highlighting recognized as strings: >
5614
5615 :echo searchpair('{', '', '}', 'bW',
5616 \ 'synIDattr(synID(line("."), col("."), 0), "name") =~? "string"')
5617<
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00005618 *searchpairpos()*
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005619searchpairpos({start}, {middle}, {end} [, {flags} [, {skip}
5620 [, {stopline} [, {timeout}]]]])
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01005621 Same as |searchpair()|, but returns a |List| with the line and
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00005622 column position of the match. The first element of the |List|
5623 is the line number and the second element is the byte index of
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00005624 the column position of the match. If no match is found,
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02005625 returns [0, 0]. >
5626
Bram Moolenaar1d2ba7f2006-02-14 22:29:30 +00005627 :let [lnum,col] = searchpairpos('{', '', '}', 'n')
5628<
5629 See |match-parens| for a bigger and more useful example.
5630
Bram Moolenaar76929292008-01-06 19:07:36 +00005631searchpos({pattern} [, {flags} [, {stopline} [, {timeout}]]]) *searchpos()*
Bram Moolenaara23ccb82006-02-27 00:08:02 +00005632 Same as |search()|, but returns a |List| with the line and
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00005633 column position of the match. The first element of the |List|
5634 is the line number and the second element is the byte index of
5635 the column position of the match. If no match is found,
5636 returns [0, 0].
Bram Moolenaar362e1a32006-03-06 23:29:24 +00005637 Example: >
5638 :let [lnum, col] = searchpos('mypattern', 'n')
5639
5640< When the 'p' flag is given then there is an extra item with
5641 the sub-pattern match number |search()-sub-match|. Example: >
5642 :let [lnum, col, submatch] = searchpos('\(\l\)\|\(\u\)', 'np')
5643< In this example "submatch" is 2 when a lowercase letter is
5644 found |/\l|, 3 when an uppercase letter is found |/\u|.
5645
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005646server2client( {clientid}, {string}) *server2client()*
5647 Send a reply string to {clientid}. The most recent {clientid}
5648 that sent a string can be retrieved with expand("<client>").
5649 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
5650 Note:
5651 This id has to be stored before the next command can be
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00005652 received. I.e. before returning from the received command and
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005653 before calling any commands that waits for input.
5654 See also |clientserver|.
5655 Example: >
5656 :echo server2client(expand("<client>"), "HELLO")
5657<
5658serverlist() *serverlist()*
5659 Return a list of available server names, one per line.
5660 When there are no servers or the information is not available
5661 an empty string is returned. See also |clientserver|.
5662 {only available when compiled with the |+clientserver| feature}
5663 Example: >
5664 :echo serverlist()
5665<
5666setbufvar({expr}, {varname}, {val}) *setbufvar()*
5667 Set option or local variable {varname} in buffer {expr} to
5668 {val}.
5669 This also works for a global or local window option, but it
5670 doesn't work for a global or local window variable.
5671 For a local window option the global value is unchanged.
5672 For the use of {expr}, see |bufname()| above.
5673 Note that the variable name without "b:" must be used.
5674 Examples: >
5675 :call setbufvar(1, "&mod", 1)
5676 :call setbufvar("todo", "myvar", "foobar")
5677< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5678
Bram Moolenaar12969c02015-09-08 23:36:10 +02005679setcharsearch({dict}) *setcharsearch()*
Bram Moolenaardbd24b52015-08-11 14:26:19 +02005680 Set the current character search information to {dict},
5681 which contains one or more of the following entries:
5682
5683 char character which will be used for a subsequent
5684 |,| or |;| command; an empty string clears the
5685 character search
5686 forward direction of character search; 1 for forward,
5687 0 for backward
5688 until type of character search; 1 for a |t| or |T|
5689 character search, 0 for an |f| or |F|
5690 character search
5691
5692 This can be useful to save/restore a user's character search
5693 from a script: >
5694 :let prevsearch = getcharsearch()
5695 :" Perform a command which clobbers user's search
5696 :call setcharsearch(prevsearch)
5697< Also see |getcharsearch()|.
5698
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005699setcmdpos({pos}) *setcmdpos()*
5700 Set the cursor position in the command line to byte position
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005701 {pos}. The first position is 1.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005702 Use |getcmdpos()| to obtain the current position.
5703 Only works while editing the command line, thus you must use
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00005704 |c_CTRL-\_e|, |c_CTRL-R_=| or |c_CTRL-R_CTRL-R| with '='. For
5705 |c_CTRL-\_e| and |c_CTRL-R_CTRL-R| with '=' the position is
5706 set after the command line is set to the expression. For
5707 |c_CTRL-R_=| it is set after evaluating the expression but
5708 before inserting the resulting text.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005709 When the number is too big the cursor is put at the end of the
5710 line. A number smaller than one has undefined results.
5711 Returns 0 when successful, 1 when not editing the command
5712 line.
5713
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005714setline({lnum}, {text}) *setline()*
Bram Moolenaarb8ff1fb2012-02-04 21:59:01 +01005715 Set line {lnum} of the current buffer to {text}. To insert
5716 lines use |append()|.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00005717 {lnum} is used like with |getline()|.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005718 When {lnum} is just below the last line the {text} will be
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00005719 added as a new line.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00005720 If this succeeds, 0 is returned. If this fails (most likely
5721 because {lnum} is invalid) 1 is returned. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005722 :call setline(5, strftime("%c"))
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005723< When {text} is a |List| then line {lnum} and following lines
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00005724 will be set to the items in the list. Example: >
5725 :call setline(5, ['aaa', 'bbb', 'ccc'])
5726< This is equivalent to: >
Bram Moolenaar53bfca22012-04-13 23:04:47 +02005727 :for [n, l] in [[5, 'aaa'], [6, 'bbb'], [7, 'ccc']]
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00005728 : call setline(n, l)
5729 :endfor
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005730< Note: The '[ and '] marks are not set.
5731
Bram Moolenaar17c7c012006-01-26 22:25:15 +00005732setloclist({nr}, {list} [, {action}]) *setloclist()*
5733 Create or replace or add to the location list for window {nr}.
5734 When {nr} is zero the current window is used. For a location
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00005735 list window, the displayed location list is modified. For an
5736 invalid window number {nr}, -1 is returned.
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00005737 Otherwise, same as |setqflist()|.
5738 Also see |location-list|.
5739
5740setmatches({list}) *setmatches()*
5741 Restores a list of matches saved by |getmatches()|. Returns 0
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005742 if successful, otherwise -1. All current matches are cleared
Bram Moolenaar6ee10162007-07-26 20:58:42 +00005743 before the list is restored. See example for |getmatches()|.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005744
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005745 *setpos()*
5746setpos({expr}, {list})
5747 Set the position for {expr}. Possible values:
5748 . the cursor
5749 'x mark x
5750
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02005751 {list} must be a |List| with four or five numbers:
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005752 [bufnum, lnum, col, off]
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02005753 [bufnum, lnum, col, off, curswant]
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005754
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005755 "bufnum" is the buffer number. Zero can be used for the
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00005756 current buffer. Setting the cursor is only possible for
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005757 the current buffer. To set a mark in another buffer you can
5758 use the |bufnr()| function to turn a file name into a buffer
5759 number.
Bram Moolenaardb552d602006-03-23 22:59:57 +00005760 Does not change the jumplist.
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005761
5762 "lnum" and "col" are the position in the buffer. The first
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01005763 column is 1. Use a zero "lnum" to delete a mark. If "col" is
5764 smaller than 1 then 1 is used.
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005765
5766 The "off" number is only used when 'virtualedit' is set. Then
5767 it is the offset in screen columns from the start of the
Bram Moolenaard46bbc72007-05-12 14:38:41 +00005768 character. E.g., a position within a <Tab> or after the last
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005769 character.
5770
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02005771 The "curswant" number is only used when setting the cursor
5772 position. It sets the preferred column for when moving the
5773 cursor vertically. When the "curswant" number is missing the
5774 preferred column is not set. When it is present and setting a
5775 mark position it is not used.
5776
Bram Moolenaardfb18412013-12-11 18:53:29 +01005777 Note that for '< and '> changing the line number may result in
5778 the marks to be effectively be swapped, so that '< is always
5779 before '>.
5780
Bram Moolenaar08250432008-02-13 11:42:46 +00005781 Returns 0 when the position could be set, -1 otherwise.
5782 An error message is given if {expr} is invalid.
5783
Bram Moolenaar6f6c0f82014-05-28 20:31:42 +02005784 Also see |getpos()| and |getcurpos()|.
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005785
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00005786 This does not restore the preferred column for moving
Bram Moolenaar493c1782014-05-28 14:34:46 +02005787 vertically; if you set the cursor position with this, |j| and
5788 |k| motions will jump to previous columns! Use |cursor()| to
5789 also set the preferred column. Also see the "curswant" key in
5790 |winrestview()|.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00005791
Bram Moolenaar65c923a2006-03-03 22:56:30 +00005792
Bram Moolenaar35c54e52005-05-20 21:25:31 +00005793setqflist({list} [, {action}]) *setqflist()*
Bram Moolenaar17c7c012006-01-26 22:25:15 +00005794 Create or replace or add to the quickfix list using the items
5795 in {list}. Each item in {list} is a dictionary.
5796 Non-dictionary items in {list} are ignored. Each dictionary
5797 item can contain the following entries:
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005798
Bram Moolenaar48b66fb2007-02-04 01:58:18 +00005799 bufnr buffer number; must be the number of a valid
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005800 buffer
Bram Moolenaar48b66fb2007-02-04 01:58:18 +00005801 filename name of a file; only used when "bufnr" is not
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005802 present or it is invalid.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005803 lnum line number in the file
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005804 pattern search pattern used to locate the error
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00005805 col column number
5806 vcol when non-zero: "col" is visual column
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00005807 when zero: "col" is byte index
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00005808 nr error number
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005809 text description of the error
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00005810 type single-character error type, 'E', 'W', etc.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005811
Bram Moolenaar582fd852005-03-28 20:58:01 +00005812 The "col", "vcol", "nr", "type" and "text" entries are
5813 optional. Either "lnum" or "pattern" entry can be used to
5814 locate a matching error line.
Bram Moolenaar48b66fb2007-02-04 01:58:18 +00005815 If the "filename" and "bufnr" entries are not present or
5816 neither the "lnum" or "pattern" entries are present, then the
5817 item will not be handled as an error line.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005818 If both "pattern" and "lnum" are present then "pattern" will
5819 be used.
Bram Moolenaar00a927d2010-05-14 23:24:24 +02005820 If you supply an empty {list}, the quickfix list will be
5821 cleared.
Bram Moolenaar48b66fb2007-02-04 01:58:18 +00005822 Note that the list is not exactly the same as what
5823 |getqflist()| returns.
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005824
Bram Moolenaar35c54e52005-05-20 21:25:31 +00005825 If {action} is set to 'a', then the items from {list} are
5826 added to the existing quickfix list. If there is no existing
5827 list, then a new list is created. If {action} is set to 'r',
5828 then the items from the current quickfix list are replaced
5829 with the items from {list}. If {action} is not present or is
5830 set to ' ', then a new list is created.
5831
Bram Moolenaar68b76a62005-03-25 21:53:48 +00005832 Returns zero for success, -1 for failure.
5833
5834 This function can be used to create a quickfix list
5835 independent of the 'errorformat' setting. Use a command like
5836 ":cc 1" to jump to the first position.
5837
5838
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005839 *setreg()*
5840setreg({regname}, {value} [,{options}])
5841 Set the register {regname} to {value}.
Bram Moolenaar5a50c222014-04-02 22:17:10 +02005842 {value} may be any value returned by |getreg()|, including
5843 a |List|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005844 If {options} contains "a" or {regname} is upper case,
5845 then the value is appended.
Bram Moolenaarc6485bc2010-07-28 17:02:55 +02005846 {options} can also contain a register type specification:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005847 "c" or "v" |characterwise| mode
5848 "l" or "V" |linewise| mode
5849 "b" or "<CTRL-V>" |blockwise-visual| mode
5850 If a number immediately follows "b" or "<CTRL-V>" then this is
5851 used as the width of the selection - if it is not specified
5852 then the width of the block is set to the number of characters
Bram Moolenaard46bbc72007-05-12 14:38:41 +00005853 in the longest line (counting a <Tab> as 1 character).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005854
5855 If {options} contains no register settings, then the default
Bram Moolenaar5a50c222014-04-02 22:17:10 +02005856 is to use character mode unless {value} ends in a <NL> for
5857 string {value} and linewise mode for list {value}. Blockwise
5858 mode is never selected automatically.
5859 Returns zero for success, non-zero for failure.
5860
5861 *E883*
Bram Moolenaar34401cc2014-08-29 15:12:19 +02005862 Note: you may not use |List| containing more than one item to
Bram Moolenaar5a50c222014-04-02 22:17:10 +02005863 set search and expression registers. Lists containing no
5864 items act like empty strings.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005865
5866 Examples: >
5867 :call setreg(v:register, @*)
5868 :call setreg('*', @%, 'ac')
5869 :call setreg('a', "1\n2\n3", 'b5')
5870
5871< This example shows using the functions to save and restore a
Bram Moolenaar5a50c222014-04-02 22:17:10 +02005872 register (note: you may not reliably restore register value
5873 without using the third argument to |getreg()| as without it
5874 newlines are represented as newlines AND Nul bytes are
5875 represented as newlines as well, see |NL-used-for-Nul|). >
5876 :let var_a = getreg('a', 1, 1)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005877 :let var_amode = getregtype('a')
5878 ....
5879 :call setreg('a', var_a, var_amode)
5880
5881< You can also change the type of a register by appending
5882 nothing: >
5883 :call setreg('a', '', 'al')
5884
Bram Moolenaar06b5d512010-05-22 15:37:44 +02005885settabvar({tabnr}, {varname}, {val}) *settabvar()*
5886 Set tab-local variable {varname} to {val} in tab page {tabnr}.
5887 |t:var|
5888 Note that the variable name without "t:" must be used.
5889 Tabs are numbered starting with one.
Bram Moolenaar06b5d512010-05-22 15:37:44 +02005890 This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5891
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00005892settabwinvar({tabnr}, {winnr}, {varname}, {val}) *settabwinvar()*
5893 Set option or local variable {varname} in window {winnr} to
5894 {val}.
5895 Tabs are numbered starting with one. For the current tabpage
5896 use |setwinvar()|.
5897 When {winnr} is zero the current window is used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005898 This also works for a global or local buffer option, but it
5899 doesn't work for a global or local buffer variable.
5900 For a local buffer option the global value is unchanged.
5901 Note that the variable name without "w:" must be used.
Bram Moolenaarc6249bb2006-04-15 20:25:09 +00005902 Examples: >
5903 :call settabwinvar(1, 1, "&list", 0)
5904 :call settabwinvar(3, 2, "myvar", "foobar")
5905< This function is not available in the |sandbox|.
5906
5907setwinvar({nr}, {varname}, {val}) *setwinvar()*
5908 Like |settabwinvar()| for the current tab page.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005909 Examples: >
5910 :call setwinvar(1, "&list", 0)
5911 :call setwinvar(2, "myvar", "foobar")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005912
Bram Moolenaaraf9aeb92013-02-13 17:35:04 +01005913sha256({string}) *sha256()*
Bram Moolenaar2b8388b2015-02-28 13:11:45 +01005914 Returns a String with 64 hex characters, which is the SHA256
Bram Moolenaaraf9aeb92013-02-13 17:35:04 +01005915 checksum of {string}.
5916 {only available when compiled with the |+cryptv| feature}
5917
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00005918shellescape({string} [, {special}]) *shellescape()*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01005919 Escape {string} for use as a shell command argument.
Bram Moolenaar60a495f2006-10-03 12:44:42 +00005920 On MS-Windows and MS-DOS, when 'shellslash' is not set, it
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00005921 will enclose {string} in double quotes and double all double
Bram Moolenaar60a495f2006-10-03 12:44:42 +00005922 quotes within {string}.
5923 For other systems, it will enclose {string} in single quotes
5924 and replace all "'" with "'\''".
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00005925 When the {special} argument is present and it's a non-zero
5926 Number or a non-empty String (|non-zero-arg|), then special
Bram Moolenaare37d50a2008-08-06 17:06:04 +00005927 items such as "!", "%", "#" and "<cword>" will be preceded by
5928 a backslash. This backslash will be removed again by the |:!|
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00005929 command.
Bram Moolenaare37d50a2008-08-06 17:06:04 +00005930 The "!" character will be escaped (again with a |non-zero-arg|
5931 {special}) when 'shell' contains "csh" in the tail. That is
5932 because for csh and tcsh "!" is used for history replacement
5933 even when inside single quotes.
5934 The <NL> character is also escaped. With a |non-zero-arg|
5935 {special} and 'shell' containing "csh" in the tail it's
5936 escaped a second time.
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00005937 Example of use with a |:!| command: >
5938 :exe '!dir ' . shellescape(expand('<cfile>'), 1)
5939< This results in a directory listing for the file under the
5940 cursor. Example of use with |system()|: >
5941 :call system("chmod +w -- " . shellescape(expand("%")))
Bram Moolenaar26df0922014-02-23 23:39:13 +01005942< See also |::S|.
Bram Moolenaar60a495f2006-10-03 12:44:42 +00005943
5944
Bram Moolenaar2d17fa32012-10-21 00:45:18 +02005945shiftwidth() *shiftwidth()*
5946 Returns the effective value of 'shiftwidth'. This is the
5947 'shiftwidth' value unless it is zero, in which case it is the
Bram Moolenaar009d84a2016-01-28 14:12:00 +01005948 'tabstop' value. This function was introduced with patch
5949 7.3.694 in 2012, everybody should have it by now.
Bram Moolenaar2d17fa32012-10-21 00:45:18 +02005950
5951
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00005952simplify({filename}) *simplify()*
5953 Simplify the file name as much as possible without changing
5954 the meaning. Shortcuts (on MS-Windows) or symbolic links (on
5955 Unix) are not resolved. If the first path component in
5956 {filename} designates the current directory, this will be
5957 valid for the result as well. A trailing path separator is
5958 not removed either.
5959 Example: >
5960 simplify("./dir/.././/file/") == "./file/"
5961< Note: The combination "dir/.." is only removed if "dir" is
5962 a searchable directory or does not exist. On Unix, it is also
5963 removed when "dir" is a symbolic link within the same
5964 directory. In order to resolve all the involved symbolic
5965 links before simplifying the path name, use |resolve()|.
5966
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00005967
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00005968sin({expr}) *sin()*
5969 Return the sine of {expr}, measured in radians, as a |Float|.
5970 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
5971 Examples: >
5972 :echo sin(100)
5973< -0.506366 >
5974 :echo sin(-4.01)
5975< 0.763301
5976 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
5977
5978
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02005979sinh({expr}) *sinh()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02005980 Return the hyperbolic sine of {expr} as a |Float| in the range
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02005981 [-inf, inf].
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02005982 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02005983 Examples: >
5984 :echo sinh(0.5)
5985< 0.521095 >
5986 :echo sinh(-0.9)
5987< -1.026517
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02005988 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02005989
5990
Bram Moolenaar5f894962011-06-19 02:55:37 +02005991sort({list} [, {func} [, {dict}]]) *sort()* *E702*
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +01005992 Sort the items in {list} in-place. Returns {list}.
5993
5994 If you want a list to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00005995 :let sortedlist = sort(copy(mylist))
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +02005996
Bram Moolenaar946e27a2014-06-25 18:50:27 +02005997< When {func} is omitted, is empty or zero, then sort() uses the
5998 string representation of each item to sort on. Numbers sort
5999 after Strings, |Lists| after Numbers. For sorting text in the
6000 current buffer use |:sort|.
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +01006001
Bram Moolenaar34401cc2014-08-29 15:12:19 +02006002 When {func} is given and it is '1' or 'i' then case is
Bram Moolenaar946e27a2014-06-25 18:50:27 +02006003 ignored.
6004
6005 When {func} is given and it is 'n' then all items will be
6006 sorted numerical (Implementation detail: This uses the
6007 strtod() function to parse numbers, Strings, Lists, Dicts and
6008 Funcrefs will be considered as being 0).
6009
Bram Moolenaarb00da1d2015-12-03 16:33:12 +01006010 When {func} is given and it is 'N' then all items will be
6011 sorted numerical. This is like 'n' but a string containing
6012 digits will be used as the number they represent.
6013
Bram Moolenaar13d5aee2016-01-21 23:36:05 +01006014 When {func} is given and it is 'f' then all items will be
6015 sorted numerical. All values must be a Number or a Float.
6016
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00006017 When {func} is a |Funcref| or a function name, this function
6018 is called to compare items. The function is invoked with two
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01006019 items as argument and must return zero if they are equal, 1 or
6020 bigger if the first one sorts after the second one, -1 or
6021 smaller if the first one sorts before the second one.
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +01006022
6023 {dict} is for functions with the "dict" attribute. It will be
6024 used to set the local variable "self". |Dictionary-function|
6025
Bram Moolenaar8bb1c3e2014-07-04 16:43:17 +02006026 The sort is stable, items which compare equal (as number or as
6027 string) will keep their relative position. E.g., when sorting
Bram Moolenaardb6ea062014-07-10 22:01:47 +02006028 on numbers, text strings will sort next to each other, in the
Bram Moolenaar8bb1c3e2014-07-04 16:43:17 +02006029 same order as they were originally.
6030
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +01006031 Also see |uniq()|.
6032
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01006033 Example: >
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00006034 func MyCompare(i1, i2)
6035 return a:i1 == a:i2 ? 0 : a:i1 > a:i2 ? 1 : -1
6036 endfunc
6037 let sortedlist = sort(mylist, "MyCompare")
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01006038< A shorter compare version for this specific simple case, which
6039 ignores overflow: >
6040 func MyCompare(i1, i2)
6041 return a:i1 - a:i2
6042 endfunc
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006043<
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00006044 *soundfold()*
6045soundfold({word})
6046 Return the sound-folded equivalent of {word}. Uses the first
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006047 language in 'spelllang' for the current window that supports
Bram Moolenaar42eeac32005-06-29 22:40:58 +00006048 soundfolding. 'spell' must be set. When no sound folding is
6049 possible the {word} is returned unmodified.
Bram Moolenaar24bbcfe2005-06-28 23:32:02 +00006050 This can be used for making spelling suggestions. Note that
6051 the method can be quite slow.
6052
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006053 *spellbadword()*
Bram Moolenaar1e015462005-09-25 22:16:38 +00006054spellbadword([{sentence}])
6055 Without argument: The result is the badly spelled word under
6056 or after the cursor. The cursor is moved to the start of the
6057 bad word. When no bad word is found in the cursor line the
6058 result is an empty string and the cursor doesn't move.
6059
6060 With argument: The result is the first word in {sentence} that
6061 is badly spelled. If there are no spelling mistakes the
6062 result is an empty string.
6063
6064 The return value is a list with two items:
6065 - The badly spelled word or an empty string.
6066 - The type of the spelling error:
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00006067 "bad" spelling mistake
Bram Moolenaar1e015462005-09-25 22:16:38 +00006068 "rare" rare word
6069 "local" word only valid in another region
6070 "caps" word should start with Capital
6071 Example: >
6072 echo spellbadword("the quik brown fox")
6073< ['quik', 'bad'] ~
6074
6075 The spelling information for the current window is used. The
6076 'spell' option must be set and the value of 'spelllang' is
6077 used.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006078
6079 *spellsuggest()*
Bram Moolenaarc54b8a72005-09-30 21:20:29 +00006080spellsuggest({word} [, {max} [, {capital}]])
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00006081 Return a |List| with spelling suggestions to replace {word}.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006082 When {max} is given up to this number of suggestions are
6083 returned. Otherwise up to 25 suggestions are returned.
6084
Bram Moolenaarc54b8a72005-09-30 21:20:29 +00006085 When the {capital} argument is given and it's non-zero only
6086 suggestions with a leading capital will be given. Use this
6087 after a match with 'spellcapcheck'.
6088
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006089 {word} can be a badly spelled word followed by other text.
6090 This allows for joining two words that were split. The
Bram Moolenaarf461c8e2005-06-25 23:04:51 +00006091 suggestions also include the following text, thus you can
6092 replace a line.
6093
6094 {word} may also be a good word. Similar words will then be
Bram Moolenaarc54b8a72005-09-30 21:20:29 +00006095 returned. {word} itself is not included in the suggestions,
6096 although it may appear capitalized.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006097
6098 The spelling information for the current window is used. The
Bram Moolenaar42eeac32005-06-29 22:40:58 +00006099 'spell' option must be set and the values of 'spelllang' and
6100 'spellsuggest' are used.
Bram Moolenaard857f0e2005-06-21 22:37:39 +00006101
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00006102
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00006103split({expr} [, {pattern} [, {keepempty}]]) *split()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00006104 Make a |List| out of {expr}. When {pattern} is omitted or
6105 empty each white-separated sequence of characters becomes an
6106 item.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00006107 Otherwise the string is split where {pattern} matches,
Bram Moolenaar97d62492012-11-15 21:28:22 +01006108 removing the matched characters. 'ignorecase' is not used
6109 here, add \c to ignore case. |/\c|
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00006110 When the first or last item is empty it is omitted, unless the
6111 {keepempty} argument is given and it's non-zero.
Bram Moolenaar5c06f8b2005-05-31 22:14:58 +00006112 Other empty items are kept when {pattern} matches at least one
6113 character or when {keepempty} is non-zero.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00006114 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00006115 :let words = split(getline('.'), '\W\+')
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00006116< To split a string in individual characters: >
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00006117 :for c in split(mystring, '\zs')
Bram Moolenaar12969c02015-09-08 23:36:10 +02006118< If you want to keep the separator you can also use '\zs' at
6119 the end of the pattern: >
Bram Moolenaar0cb032e2005-04-23 20:52:00 +00006120 :echo split('abc:def:ghi', ':\zs')
6121< ['abc:', 'def:', 'ghi'] ~
Bram Moolenaar2389c3c2005-05-22 22:07:59 +00006122 Splitting a table where the first element can be empty: >
6123 :let items = split(line, ':', 1)
6124< The opposite function is |join()|.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00006125
6126
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006127sqrt({expr}) *sqrt()*
6128 Return the non-negative square root of Float {expr} as a
6129 |Float|.
6130 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|. When {expr}
6131 is negative the result is NaN (Not a Number).
6132 Examples: >
6133 :echo sqrt(100)
6134< 10.0 >
6135 :echo sqrt(-4.01)
6136< nan
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00006137 "nan" may be different, it depends on system libraries.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006138 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
6139
6140
6141str2float( {expr}) *str2float()*
6142 Convert String {expr} to a Float. This mostly works the same
6143 as when using a floating point number in an expression, see
6144 |floating-point-format|. But it's a bit more permissive.
6145 E.g., "1e40" is accepted, while in an expression you need to
6146 write "1.0e40".
6147 Text after the number is silently ignored.
6148 The decimal point is always '.', no matter what the locale is
6149 set to. A comma ends the number: "12,345.67" is converted to
6150 12.0. You can strip out thousands separators with
6151 |substitute()|: >
6152 let f = str2float(substitute(text, ',', '', 'g'))
6153< {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
6154
6155
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00006156str2nr( {expr} [, {base}]) *str2nr()*
6157 Convert string {expr} to a number.
Bram Moolenaarfa735342016-01-03 22:14:44 +01006158 {base} is the conversion base, it can be 2, 8, 10 or 16.
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00006159 When {base} is omitted base 10 is used. This also means that
6160 a leading zero doesn't cause octal conversion to be used, as
6161 with the default String to Number conversion.
6162 When {base} is 16 a leading "0x" or "0X" is ignored. With a
Bram Moolenaarfa735342016-01-03 22:14:44 +01006163 different base the result will be zero. Similarly, when
6164 {base} is 8 a leading "0" is ignored, and when {base} is 2 a
6165 leading "0b" or "0B" is ignored.
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00006166 Text after the number is silently ignored.
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00006167
Bram Moolenaar97b2ad32006-03-18 21:40:56 +00006168
Bram Moolenaar979243b2015-06-26 19:35:49 +02006169strchars({expr} [, {skipcc}]) *strchars()*
Bram Moolenaar72597a52010-07-18 15:31:08 +02006170 The result is a Number, which is the number of characters
Bram Moolenaar979243b2015-06-26 19:35:49 +02006171 in String {expr}.
6172 When {skipcc} is omitted or zero, composing characters are
6173 counted separately.
6174 When {skipcc} set to 1, Composing characters are ignored.
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02006175 Also see |strlen()|, |strdisplaywidth()| and |strwidth()|.
6176
Bram Moolenaar86ae7202015-07-10 19:31:35 +02006177
6178 {skipcc} is only available after 7.4.755. For backward
6179 compatibility, you can define a wrapper function: >
6180 if has("patch-7.4.755")
6181 function s:strchars(str, skipcc)
6182 return strchars(a:str, a:skipcc)
6183 endfunction
6184 else
6185 function s:strchars(str, skipcc)
6186 if a:skipcc
6187 return strlen(substitute(a:str, ".", "x", "g"))
6188 else
6189 return strchars(a:str)
6190 endif
6191 endfunction
6192 endif
6193<
6194
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02006195strdisplaywidth({expr}[, {col}]) *strdisplaywidth()*
6196 The result is a Number, which is the number of display cells
Bram Moolenaar979243b2015-06-26 19:35:49 +02006197 String {expr} occupies on the screen when it starts at {col}.
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02006198 When {col} is omitted zero is used. Otherwise it is the
6199 screen column where to start. This matters for Tab
6200 characters.
Bram Moolenaar4d32c2d2010-07-18 22:10:01 +02006201 The option settings of the current window are used. This
6202 matters for anything that's displayed differently, such as
6203 'tabstop' and 'display'.
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02006204 When {expr} contains characters with East Asian Width Class
6205 Ambiguous, this function's return value depends on 'ambiwidth'.
6206 Also see |strlen()|, |strwidth()| and |strchars()|.
Bram Moolenaar72597a52010-07-18 15:31:08 +02006207
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006208strftime({format} [, {time}]) *strftime()*
6209 The result is a String, which is a formatted date and time, as
6210 specified by the {format} string. The given {time} is used,
6211 or the current time if no time is given. The accepted
6212 {format} depends on your system, thus this is not portable!
6213 See the manual page of the C function strftime() for the
6214 format. The maximum length of the result is 80 characters.
6215 See also |localtime()| and |getftime()|.
6216 The language can be changed with the |:language| command.
6217 Examples: >
6218 :echo strftime("%c") Sun Apr 27 11:49:23 1997
6219 :echo strftime("%Y %b %d %X") 1997 Apr 27 11:53:25
6220 :echo strftime("%y%m%d %T") 970427 11:53:55
6221 :echo strftime("%H:%M") 11:55
6222 :echo strftime("%c", getftime("file.c"))
6223 Show mod time of file.c.
Bram Moolenaara14de3d2005-01-07 21:48:26 +00006224< Not available on all systems. To check use: >
6225 :if exists("*strftime")
6226
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00006227stridx({haystack}, {needle} [, {start}]) *stridx()*
6228 The result is a Number, which gives the byte index in
6229 {haystack} of the first occurrence of the String {needle}.
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00006230 If {start} is specified, the search starts at index {start}.
6231 This can be used to find a second match: >
Bram Moolenaar81af9252010-12-10 20:35:50 +01006232 :let colon1 = stridx(line, ":")
6233 :let colon2 = stridx(line, ":", colon1 + 1)
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00006234< The search is done case-sensitive.
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006235 For pattern searches use |match()|.
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00006236 -1 is returned if the {needle} does not occur in {haystack}.
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00006237 See also |strridx()|.
6238 Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006239 :echo stridx("An Example", "Example") 3
6240 :echo stridx("Starting point", "Start") 0
6241 :echo stridx("Starting point", "start") -1
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00006242< *strstr()* *strchr()*
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00006243 stridx() works similar to the C function strstr(). When used
6244 with a single character it works similar to strchr().
6245
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00006246 *string()*
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00006247string({expr}) Return {expr} converted to a String. If {expr} is a Number,
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006248 Float, String or a composition of them, then the result can be
6249 parsed back with |eval()|.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00006250 {expr} type result ~
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00006251 String 'string'
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00006252 Number 123
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006253 Float 123.123456 or 1.123456e8
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00006254 Funcref function('name')
Bram Moolenaar5f2bb9f2005-01-11 21:29:04 +00006255 List [item, item]
Bram Moolenaar9ba0eb82005-06-13 22:28:56 +00006256 Dictionary {key: value, key: value}
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00006257 Note that in String values the ' character is doubled.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006258 Also see |strtrans()|.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00006259
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006260 *strlen()*
6261strlen({expr}) The result is a Number, which is the length of the String
Bram Moolenaare344bea2005-09-01 20:46:49 +00006262 {expr} in bytes.
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00006263 If the argument is a Number it is first converted to a String.
6264 For other types an error is given.
Bram Moolenaar641e48c2015-06-25 16:09:26 +02006265 If you want to count the number of multi-byte characters use
6266 |strchars()|.
6267 Also see |len()|, |strdisplaywidth()| and |strwidth()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006268
6269strpart({src}, {start}[, {len}]) *strpart()*
6270 The result is a String, which is part of {src}, starting from
Bram Moolenaar9372a112005-12-06 19:59:18 +00006271 byte {start}, with the byte length {len}.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006272 When non-existing bytes are included, this doesn't result in
6273 an error, the bytes are simply omitted.
6274 If {len} is missing, the copy continues from {start} till the
6275 end of the {src}. >
6276 strpart("abcdefg", 3, 2) == "de"
6277 strpart("abcdefg", -2, 4) == "ab"
6278 strpart("abcdefg", 5, 4) == "fg"
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006279 strpart("abcdefg", 3) == "defg"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006280< Note: To get the first character, {start} must be 0. For
6281 example, to get three bytes under and after the cursor: >
Bram Moolenaar61660ea2006-04-07 21:40:07 +00006282 strpart(getline("."), col(".") - 1, 3)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006283<
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00006284strridx({haystack}, {needle} [, {start}]) *strridx()*
6285 The result is a Number, which gives the byte index in
6286 {haystack} of the last occurrence of the String {needle}.
6287 When {start} is specified, matches beyond this index are
6288 ignored. This can be used to find a match before a previous
6289 match: >
6290 :let lastcomma = strridx(line, ",")
6291 :let comma2 = strridx(line, ",", lastcomma - 1)
6292< The search is done case-sensitive.
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00006293 For pattern searches use |match()|.
6294 -1 is returned if the {needle} does not occur in {haystack}.
Bram Moolenaard4755bb2004-09-02 19:12:26 +00006295 If the {needle} is empty the length of {haystack} is returned.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00006296 See also |stridx()|. Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006297 :echo strridx("an angry armadillo", "an") 3
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00006298< *strrchr()*
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00006299 When used with a single character it works similar to the C
6300 function strrchr().
6301
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006302strtrans({expr}) *strtrans()*
6303 The result is a String, which is {expr} with all unprintable
6304 characters translated into printable characters |'isprint'|.
6305 Like they are shown in a window. Example: >
6306 echo strtrans(@a)
6307< This displays a newline in register a as "^@" instead of
6308 starting a new line.
6309
Bram Moolenaar72597a52010-07-18 15:31:08 +02006310strwidth({expr}) *strwidth()*
6311 The result is a Number, which is the number of display cells
6312 String {expr} occupies. A Tab character is counted as one
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02006313 cell, alternatively use |strdisplaywidth()|.
Bram Moolenaar72597a52010-07-18 15:31:08 +02006314 When {expr} contains characters with East Asian Width Class
6315 Ambiguous, this function's return value depends on 'ambiwidth'.
Bram Moolenaardc536092010-07-18 15:45:49 +02006316 Also see |strlen()|, |strdisplaywidth()| and |strchars()|.
Bram Moolenaar72597a52010-07-18 15:31:08 +02006317
Bram Moolenaar41571762014-04-02 19:00:58 +02006318submatch({nr}[, {list}]) *submatch()*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006319 Only for an expression in a |:substitute| command or
6320 substitute() function.
6321 Returns the {nr}'th submatch of the matched text. When {nr}
6322 is 0 the whole matched text is returned.
Bram Moolenaar41571762014-04-02 19:00:58 +02006323 Note that a NL in the string can stand for a line break of a
6324 multi-line match or a NUL character in the text.
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006325 Also see |sub-replace-expression|.
Bram Moolenaar41571762014-04-02 19:00:58 +02006326
6327 If {list} is present and non-zero then submatch() returns
6328 a list of strings, similar to |getline()| with two arguments.
6329 NL characters in the text represent NUL characters in the
6330 text.
6331 Only returns more than one item for |:substitute|, inside
6332 |substitute()| this list will always contain one or zero
6333 items, since there are no real line breaks.
6334
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006335 Example: >
6336 :s/\d\+/\=submatch(0) + 1/
6337< This finds the first number in the line and adds one to it.
6338 A line break is included as a newline character.
6339
6340substitute({expr}, {pat}, {sub}, {flags}) *substitute()*
6341 The result is a String, which is a copy of {expr}, in which
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006342 the first match of {pat} is replaced with {sub}.
6343 When {flags} is "g", all matches of {pat} in {expr} are
6344 replaced. Otherwise {flags} should be "".
6345
6346 This works like the ":substitute" command (without any flags).
6347 But the matching with {pat} is always done like the 'magic'
6348 option is set and 'cpoptions' is empty (to make scripts
Bram Moolenaar2df58b42012-11-28 18:21:11 +01006349 portable). 'ignorecase' is still relevant, use |/\c| or |/\C|
6350 if you want to ignore or match case and ignore 'ignorecase'.
6351 'smartcase' is not used. See |string-match| for how {pat} is
6352 used.
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006353
6354 A "~" in {sub} is not replaced with the previous {sub}.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006355 Note that some codes in {sub} have a special meaning
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006356 |sub-replace-special|. For example, to replace something with
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006357 "\n" (two characters), use "\\\\n" or '\\n'.
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006358
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006359 When {pat} does not match in {expr}, {expr} is returned
6360 unmodified.
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006361
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006362 Example: >
6363 :let &path = substitute(&path, ",\\=[^,]*$", "", "")
6364< This removes the last component of the 'path' option. >
6365 :echo substitute("testing", ".*", "\\U\\0", "")
6366< results in "TESTING".
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02006367
6368 When {sub} starts with "\=", the remainder is interpreted as
6369 an expression. See |sub-replace-expression|. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar20f90cf2011-05-19 12:22:51 +02006370 :echo substitute(s, '%\(\x\x\)',
6371 \ '\=nr2char("0x" . submatch(1))', 'g')
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006372
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00006373synID({lnum}, {col}, {trans}) *synID()*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006374 The result is a Number, which is the syntax ID at the position
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00006375 {lnum} and {col} in the current window.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006376 The syntax ID can be used with |synIDattr()| and
6377 |synIDtrans()| to obtain syntax information about text.
Bram Moolenaarce0842a2005-07-18 21:58:11 +00006378
Bram Moolenaar47136d72004-10-12 20:02:24 +00006379 {col} is 1 for the leftmost column, {lnum} is 1 for the first
Bram Moolenaarce0842a2005-07-18 21:58:11 +00006380 line. 'synmaxcol' applies, in a longer line zero is returned.
Bram Moolenaarca635012015-09-25 20:34:21 +02006381 Note that when the position is after the last character,
6382 that's where the cursor can be in Insert mode, synID() returns
6383 zero.
Bram Moolenaarce0842a2005-07-18 21:58:11 +00006384
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006385 When {trans} is non-zero, transparent items are reduced to the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006386 item that they reveal. This is useful when wanting to know
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006387 the effective color. When {trans} is zero, the transparent
6388 item is returned. This is useful when wanting to know which
6389 syntax item is effective (e.g. inside parens).
6390 Warning: This function can be very slow. Best speed is
6391 obtained by going through the file in forward direction.
6392
6393 Example (echoes the name of the syntax item under the cursor): >
6394 :echo synIDattr(synID(line("."), col("."), 1), "name")
6395<
Bram Moolenaar7510fe72010-07-25 12:46:44 +02006396
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006397synIDattr({synID}, {what} [, {mode}]) *synIDattr()*
6398 The result is a String, which is the {what} attribute of
6399 syntax ID {synID}. This can be used to obtain information
6400 about a syntax item.
6401 {mode} can be "gui", "cterm" or "term", to get the attributes
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006402 for that mode. When {mode} is omitted, or an invalid value is
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006403 used, the attributes for the currently active highlighting are
6404 used (GUI, cterm or term).
6405 Use synIDtrans() to follow linked highlight groups.
6406 {what} result
6407 "name" the name of the syntax item
6408 "fg" foreground color (GUI: color name used to set
6409 the color, cterm: color number as a string,
6410 term: empty string)
Bram Moolenaar6f507d62008-11-28 10:16:05 +00006411 "bg" background color (as with "fg")
Bram Moolenaar12682fd2010-03-10 13:43:49 +01006412 "font" font name (only available in the GUI)
6413 |highlight-font|
Bram Moolenaar6f507d62008-11-28 10:16:05 +00006414 "sp" special color (as with "fg") |highlight-guisp|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006415 "fg#" like "fg", but for the GUI and the GUI is
6416 running the name in "#RRGGBB" form
6417 "bg#" like "fg#" for "bg"
Bram Moolenaar6f507d62008-11-28 10:16:05 +00006418 "sp#" like "fg#" for "sp"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006419 "bold" "1" if bold
6420 "italic" "1" if italic
6421 "reverse" "1" if reverse
6422 "inverse" "1" if inverse (= reverse)
Bram Moolenaar12682fd2010-03-10 13:43:49 +01006423 "standout" "1" if standout
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006424 "underline" "1" if underlined
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006425 "undercurl" "1" if undercurled
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006426
6427 Example (echoes the color of the syntax item under the
6428 cursor): >
6429 :echo synIDattr(synIDtrans(synID(line("."), col("."), 1)), "fg")
6430<
6431synIDtrans({synID}) *synIDtrans()*
6432 The result is a Number, which is the translated syntax ID of
6433 {synID}. This is the syntax group ID of what is being used to
6434 highlight the character. Highlight links given with
6435 ":highlight link" are followed.
6436
Bram Moolenaar483c5d82010-10-20 18:45:33 +02006437synconcealed({lnum}, {col}) *synconcealed()*
6438 The result is a List. The first item in the list is 0 if the
6439 character at the position {lnum} and {col} is not part of a
6440 concealable region, 1 if it is. The second item in the list is
6441 a string. If the first item is 1, the second item contains the
6442 text which will be displayed in place of the concealed text,
6443 depending on the current setting of 'conceallevel'. The third
6444 and final item in the list is a unique number representing the
6445 specific syntax region matched. This allows detection of the
6446 beginning of a new concealable region if there are two
6447 consecutive regions with the same replacement character.
6448 For an example use see $VIMRUNTIME/syntax/2html.vim .
6449
6450
Bram Moolenaar9d188ab2008-01-10 21:24:39 +00006451synstack({lnum}, {col}) *synstack()*
6452 Return a |List|, which is the stack of syntax items at the
6453 position {lnum} and {col} in the current window. Each item in
6454 the List is an ID like what |synID()| returns.
Bram Moolenaar9d188ab2008-01-10 21:24:39 +00006455 The first item in the List is the outer region, following are
6456 items contained in that one. The last one is what |synID()|
6457 returns, unless not the whole item is highlighted or it is a
6458 transparent item.
6459 This function is useful for debugging a syntax file.
6460 Example that shows the syntax stack under the cursor: >
6461 for id in synstack(line("."), col("."))
6462 echo synIDattr(id, "name")
6463 endfor
Bram Moolenaar0bc380a2010-07-10 13:52:13 +02006464< When the position specified with {lnum} and {col} is invalid
6465 nothing is returned. The position just after the last
6466 character in a line and the first column in an empty line are
6467 valid positions.
Bram Moolenaar9d188ab2008-01-10 21:24:39 +00006468
Bram Moolenaarc0197e22004-09-13 20:26:32 +00006469system({expr} [, {input}]) *system()* *E677*
Bram Moolenaar39c29ed2014-04-05 19:44:40 +02006470 Get the output of the shell command {expr} as a string. See
6471 |systemlist()| to get the output as a List.
Bram Moolenaar57ebe6e2014-04-05 18:55:46 +02006472
6473 When {input} is given and is a string this string is written
6474 to a file and passed as stdin to the command. The string is
6475 written as-is, you need to take care of using the correct line
6476 separators yourself.
6477 If {input} is given and is a |List| it is written to the file
6478 in a way |writefile()| does with {binary} set to "b" (i.e.
6479 with a newline between each list item with newlines inside
6480 list items converted to NULs).
6481 Pipes are not used.
6482
Bram Moolenaar52a72462014-08-29 15:53:52 +02006483 When prepended by |:silent| the shell will not be set to
6484 cooked mode. This is meant to be used for commands that do
6485 not need the user to type. It avoids stray characters showing
6486 up on the screen which require |CTRL-L| to remove. >
6487 :silent let f = system('ls *.vim')
6488<
Bram Moolenaar26df0922014-02-23 23:39:13 +01006489 Note: Use |shellescape()| or |::S| with |expand()| or
6490 |fnamemodify()| to escape special characters in a command
6491 argument. Newlines in {expr} may cause the command to fail.
6492 The characters in 'shellquote' and 'shellxquote' may also
6493 cause trouble.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006494 This is not to be used for interactive commands.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006495
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00006496 The result is a String. Example: >
6497 :let files = system("ls " . shellescape(expand('%:h')))
Bram Moolenaar26df0922014-02-23 23:39:13 +01006498 :let files = system('ls ' . expand('%:h:S'))
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006499
6500< To make the result more system-independent, the shell output
6501 is filtered to replace <CR> with <NL> for Macintosh, and
6502 <CR><NL> with <NL> for DOS-like systems.
Bram Moolenaar9d98fe92013-08-03 18:35:36 +02006503 To avoid the string being truncated at a NUL, all NUL
6504 characters are replaced with SOH (0x01).
6505
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006506 The command executed is constructed using several options:
6507 'shell' 'shellcmdflag' 'shellxquote' {expr} 'shellredir' {tmp} 'shellxquote'
6508 ({tmp} is an automatically generated file name).
6509 For Unix and OS/2 braces are put around {expr} to allow for
6510 concatenated commands.
6511
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00006512 The command will be executed in "cooked" mode, so that a
6513 CTRL-C will interrupt the command (on Unix at least).
6514
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006515 The resulting error code can be found in |v:shell_error|.
6516 This function will fail in |restricted-mode|.
Bram Moolenaar4770d092006-01-12 23:22:24 +00006517
6518 Note that any wrong value in the options mentioned above may
6519 make the function fail. It has also been reported to fail
6520 when using a security agent application.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006521 Unlike ":!cmd" there is no automatic check for changed files.
6522 Use |:checktime| to force a check.
6523
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006524
Bram Moolenaar39c29ed2014-04-05 19:44:40 +02006525systemlist({expr} [, {input}]) *systemlist()*
6526 Same as |system()|, but returns a |List| with lines (parts of
6527 output separated by NL) with NULs transformed into NLs. Output
6528 is the same as |readfile()| will output with {binary} argument
6529 set to "b".
6530
6531 Returns an empty string on error, so be careful not to run
6532 into |E706|.
6533
6534
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00006535tabpagebuflist([{arg}]) *tabpagebuflist()*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00006536 The result is a |List|, where each item is the number of the
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00006537 buffer associated with each window in the current tab page.
6538 {arg} specifies the number of tab page to be used. When
6539 omitted the current tab page is used.
6540 When {arg} is invalid the number zero is returned.
6541 To get a list of all buffers in all tabs use this: >
Bram Moolenaar61d35bd2012-03-28 20:51:51 +02006542 let buflist = []
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00006543 for i in range(tabpagenr('$'))
Bram Moolenaar61d35bd2012-03-28 20:51:51 +02006544 call extend(buflist, tabpagebuflist(i + 1))
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00006545 endfor
6546< Note that a buffer may appear in more than one window.
6547
6548
6549tabpagenr([{arg}]) *tabpagenr()*
Bram Moolenaar7e8fd632006-02-18 22:14:51 +00006550 The result is a Number, which is the number of the current
6551 tab page. The first tab page has number 1.
6552 When the optional argument is "$", the number of the last tab
6553 page is returned (the tab page count).
6554 The number can be used with the |:tab| command.
6555
6556
Bram Moolenaar76f3b1a2014-03-27 22:30:07 +01006557tabpagewinnr({tabarg} [, {arg}]) *tabpagewinnr()*
Bram Moolenaard04f4402010-08-15 13:30:34 +02006558 Like |winnr()| but for tab page {tabarg}.
Bram Moolenaarfaa959a2006-02-20 21:37:40 +00006559 {tabarg} specifies the number of tab page to be used.
6560 {arg} is used like with |winnr()|:
6561 - When omitted the current window number is returned. This is
6562 the window which will be used when going to this tab page.
6563 - When "$" the number of windows is returned.
6564 - When "#" the previous window nr is returned.
6565 Useful examples: >
6566 tabpagewinnr(1) " current window of tab page 1
6567 tabpagewinnr(4, '$') " number of windows in tab page 4
6568< When {tabarg} is invalid zero is returned.
6569
Bram Moolenaarfa1d1402006-03-25 21:59:56 +00006570 *tagfiles()*
6571tagfiles() Returns a |List| with the file names used to search for tags
6572 for the current buffer. This is the 'tags' option expanded.
6573
6574
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006575taglist({expr}) *taglist()*
6576 Returns a list of tags matching the regular expression {expr}.
Bram Moolenaard8c00872005-07-22 21:52:15 +00006577 Each list item is a dictionary with at least the following
6578 entries:
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00006579 name Name of the tag.
6580 filename Name of the file where the tag is
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006581 defined. It is either relative to the
6582 current directory or a full path.
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006583 cmd Ex command used to locate the tag in
6584 the file.
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00006585 kind Type of the tag. The value for this
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006586 entry depends on the language specific
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006587 kind values. Only available when
6588 using a tags file generated by
6589 Exuberant ctags or hdrtag.
Bram Moolenaar280f1262006-01-30 00:14:18 +00006590 static A file specific tag. Refer to
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006591 |static-tag| for more information.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006592 More entries may be present, depending on the content of the
6593 tags file: access, implementation, inherits and signature.
6594 Refer to the ctags documentation for information about these
6595 fields. For C code the fields "struct", "class" and "enum"
6596 may appear, they give the name of the entity the tag is
6597 contained in.
Bram Moolenaar5a8684e2005-07-30 22:43:24 +00006598
Bram Moolenaar4317d9b2005-03-18 20:25:31 +00006599 The ex-command 'cmd' can be either an ex search pattern, a
6600 line number or a line number followed by a byte number.
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006601
6602 If there are no matching tags, then an empty list is returned.
6603
6604 To get an exact tag match, the anchors '^' and '$' should be
Bram Moolenaara3e6bc92013-01-30 14:18:00 +01006605 used in {expr}. This also make the function work faster.
6606 Refer to |tag-regexp| for more information about the tag
6607 search regular expression pattern.
Bram Moolenaare2cc9702005-03-15 22:43:58 +00006608
6609 Refer to |'tags'| for information about how the tags file is
6610 located by Vim. Refer to |tags-file-format| for the format of
6611 the tags file generated by the different ctags tools.
6612
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006613tempname() *tempname()* *temp-file-name*
6614 The result is a String, which is the name of a file that
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006615 doesn't exist. It can be used for a temporary file. The name
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006616 is different for at least 26 consecutive calls. Example: >
6617 :let tmpfile = tempname()
6618 :exe "redir > " . tmpfile
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01006619< For Unix, the file will be in a private directory |tempfile|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006620 For MS-Windows forward slashes are used when the 'shellslash'
6621 option is set or when 'shellcmdflag' starts with '-'.
6622
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006623
6624tan({expr}) *tan()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02006625 Return the tangent of {expr}, measured in radians, as a |Float|
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006626 in the range [-inf, inf].
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02006627 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006628 Examples: >
6629 :echo tan(10)
6630< 0.648361 >
6631 :echo tan(-4.01)
6632< -1.181502
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02006633 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006634
6635
6636tanh({expr}) *tanh()*
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02006637 Return the hyperbolic tangent of {expr} as a |Float| in the
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006638 range [-1, 1].
Bram Moolenaar9855d6b2010-07-18 14:34:51 +02006639 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006640 Examples: >
6641 :echo tanh(0.5)
6642< 0.462117 >
6643 :echo tanh(-1)
6644< -0.761594
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02006645 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
Bram Moolenaardb7c6862010-05-21 16:33:48 +02006646
6647
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006648tolower({expr}) *tolower()*
6649 The result is a copy of the String given, with all uppercase
6650 characters turned into lowercase (just like applying |gu| to
6651 the string).
6652
6653toupper({expr}) *toupper()*
6654 The result is a copy of the String given, with all lowercase
6655 characters turned into uppercase (just like applying |gU| to
6656 the string).
6657
Bram Moolenaar8299df92004-07-10 09:47:34 +00006658tr({src}, {fromstr}, {tostr}) *tr()*
6659 The result is a copy of the {src} string with all characters
6660 which appear in {fromstr} replaced by the character in that
6661 position in the {tostr} string. Thus the first character in
6662 {fromstr} is translated into the first character in {tostr}
6663 and so on. Exactly like the unix "tr" command.
6664 This code also deals with multibyte characters properly.
6665
6666 Examples: >
6667 echo tr("hello there", "ht", "HT")
6668< returns "Hello THere" >
6669 echo tr("<blob>", "<>", "{}")
6670< returns "{blob}"
6671
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006672trunc({expr}) *trunc()*
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00006673 Return the largest integral value with magnitude less than or
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006674 equal to {expr} as a |Float| (truncate towards zero).
6675 {expr} must evaluate to a |Float| or a |Number|.
6676 Examples: >
6677 echo trunc(1.456)
6678< 1.0 >
6679 echo trunc(-5.456)
6680< -5.0 >
6681 echo trunc(4.0)
6682< 4.0
6683 {only available when compiled with the |+float| feature}
6684
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00006685 *type()*
6686type({expr}) The result is a Number, depending on the type of {expr}:
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00006687 Number: 0
6688 String: 1
6689 Funcref: 2
6690 List: 3
6691 Dictionary: 4
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006692 Float: 5
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01006693 Boolean: 6 (v:false and v:true)
6694 None 7 (v:null and v:none)
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00006695 To avoid the magic numbers it should be used this way: >
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00006696 :if type(myvar) == type(0)
6697 :if type(myvar) == type("")
6698 :if type(myvar) == type(function("tr"))
6699 :if type(myvar) == type([])
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00006700 :if type(myvar) == type({})
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006701 :if type(myvar) == type(0.0)
Bram Moolenaar705ada12016-01-24 17:56:50 +01006702 :if type(myvar) == type(v:false)
6703 :if type(myvar) == type(v:none
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006704
Bram Moolenaara17d4c12010-05-30 18:30:36 +02006705undofile({name}) *undofile()*
6706 Return the name of the undo file that would be used for a file
6707 with name {name} when writing. This uses the 'undodir'
6708 option, finding directories that exist. It does not check if
Bram Moolenaar860cae12010-06-05 23:22:07 +02006709 the undo file exists.
Bram Moolenaar945e2db2010-06-05 17:43:32 +02006710 {name} is always expanded to the full path, since that is what
6711 is used internally.
Bram Moolenaar80716072012-05-01 21:14:34 +02006712 If {name} is empty undofile() returns an empty string, since a
6713 buffer without a file name will not write an undo file.
Bram Moolenaara17d4c12010-05-30 18:30:36 +02006714 Useful in combination with |:wundo| and |:rundo|.
6715 When compiled without the +persistent_undo option this always
6716 returns an empty string.
6717
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02006718undotree() *undotree()*
6719 Return the current state of the undo tree in a dictionary with
6720 the following items:
6721 "seq_last" The highest undo sequence number used.
6722 "seq_cur" The sequence number of the current position in
6723 the undo tree. This differs from "seq_last"
6724 when some changes were undone.
6725 "time_cur" Time last used for |:earlier| and related
6726 commands. Use |strftime()| to convert to
6727 something readable.
6728 "save_last" Number of the last file write. Zero when no
6729 write yet.
Bram Moolenaar730cde92010-06-27 05:18:54 +02006730 "save_cur" Number of the current position in the undo
6731 tree.
Bram Moolenaara800b422010-06-27 01:15:55 +02006732 "synced" Non-zero when the last undo block was synced.
6733 This happens when waiting from input from the
6734 user. See |undo-blocks|.
6735 "entries" A list of dictionaries with information about
6736 undo blocks.
6737
6738 The first item in the "entries" list is the oldest undo item.
6739 Each List item is a Dictionary with these items:
6740 "seq" Undo sequence number. Same as what appears in
6741 |:undolist|.
6742 "time" Timestamp when the change happened. Use
6743 |strftime()| to convert to something readable.
6744 "newhead" Only appears in the item that is the last one
6745 that was added. This marks the last change
6746 and where further changes will be added.
6747 "curhead" Only appears in the item that is the last one
6748 that was undone. This marks the current
6749 position in the undo tree, the block that will
6750 be used by a redo command. When nothing was
6751 undone after the last change this item will
6752 not appear anywhere.
6753 "save" Only appears on the last block before a file
6754 write. The number is the write count. The
6755 first write has number 1, the last one the
6756 "save_last" mentioned above.
6757 "alt" Alternate entry. This is again a List of undo
6758 blocks. Each item may again have an "alt"
6759 item.
6760
Bram Moolenaar327aa022014-03-25 18:24:23 +01006761uniq({list} [, {func} [, {dict}]]) *uniq()* *E882*
6762 Remove second and succeeding copies of repeated adjacent
6763 {list} items in-place. Returns {list}. If you want a list
6764 to remain unmodified make a copy first: >
6765 :let newlist = uniq(copy(mylist))
6766< The default compare function uses the string representation of
6767 each item. For the use of {func} and {dict} see |sort()|.
6768
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00006769values({dict}) *values()*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006770 Return a |List| with all the values of {dict}. The |List| is
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00006771 in arbitrary order.
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00006772
6773
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006774virtcol({expr}) *virtcol()*
6775 The result is a Number, which is the screen column of the file
6776 position given with {expr}. That is, the last screen position
6777 occupied by the character at that position, when the screen
6778 would be of unlimited width. When there is a <Tab> at the
6779 position, the returned Number will be the column at the end of
6780 the <Tab>. For example, for a <Tab> in column 1, with 'ts'
Bram Moolenaar61d35bd2012-03-28 20:51:51 +02006781 set to 8, it returns 8. |conceal| is ignored.
Bram Moolenaar477933c2007-07-17 14:32:23 +00006782 For the byte position use |col()|.
6783 For the use of {expr} see |col()|.
6784 When 'virtualedit' is used {expr} can be [lnum, col, off], where
Bram Moolenaar0b238792006-03-02 22:49:12 +00006785 "off" is the offset in screen columns from the start of the
Bram Moolenaard46bbc72007-05-12 14:38:41 +00006786 character. E.g., a position within a <Tab> or after the last
Bram Moolenaar97293012011-07-18 19:40:27 +02006787 character. When "off" is omitted zero is used.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006788 When Virtual editing is active in the current mode, a position
6789 beyond the end of the line can be returned. |'virtualedit'|
6790 The accepted positions are:
6791 . the cursor position
6792 $ the end of the cursor line (the result is the
6793 number of displayed characters in the cursor line
6794 plus one)
6795 'x position of mark x (if the mark is not set, 0 is
6796 returned)
Bram Moolenaare3faf442014-12-14 01:27:49 +01006797 v In Visual mode: the start of the Visual area (the
6798 cursor is the end). When not in Visual mode
6799 returns the cursor position. Differs from |'<| in
6800 that it's updated right away.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006801 Note that only marks in the current file can be used.
6802 Examples: >
6803 virtcol(".") with text "foo^Lbar", with cursor on the "^L", returns 5
6804 virtcol("$") with text "foo^Lbar", returns 9
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006805 virtcol("'t") with text " there", with 't at 'h', returns 6
6806< The first column is 1. 0 is returned for an error.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006807 A more advanced example that echoes the maximum length of
6808 all lines: >
6809 echo max(map(range(1, line('$')), "virtcol([v:val, '$'])"))
6810
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006811
6812visualmode([expr]) *visualmode()*
6813 The result is a String, which describes the last Visual mode
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00006814 used in the current buffer. Initially it returns an empty
6815 string, but once Visual mode has been used, it returns "v",
6816 "V", or "<CTRL-V>" (a single CTRL-V character) for
6817 character-wise, line-wise, or block-wise Visual mode
6818 respectively.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006819 Example: >
6820 :exe "normal " . visualmode()
6821< This enters the same Visual mode as before. It is also useful
6822 in scripts if you wish to act differently depending on the
6823 Visual mode that was used.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006824 If Visual mode is active, use |mode()| to get the Visual mode
6825 (e.g., in a |:vmap|).
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00006826 *non-zero-arg*
6827 If [expr] is supplied and it evaluates to a non-zero Number or
6828 a non-empty String, then the Visual mode will be cleared and
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006829 the old value is returned. Note that " " and "0" are also
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00006830 non-empty strings, thus cause the mode to be cleared. A List,
6831 Dictionary or Float is not a Number or String, thus does not
6832 cause the mode to be cleared.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006833
Bram Moolenaar8738fc12013-02-20 17:59:11 +01006834wildmenumode() *wildmenumode()*
6835 Returns non-zero when the wildmenu is active and zero
6836 otherwise. See 'wildmenu' and 'wildmode'.
6837 This can be used in mappings to handle the 'wildcharm' option
6838 gracefully. (Makes only sense with |mapmode-c| mappings).
6839
6840 For example to make <c-j> work like <down> in wildmode, use: >
6841 :cnoremap <expr> <C-j> wildmenumode() ? "\<Down>\<Tab>" : "\<c-j>"
6842<
6843 (Note, this needs the 'wildcharm' option set appropriately).
6844
6845
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006846 *winbufnr()*
6847winbufnr({nr}) The result is a Number, which is the number of the buffer
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00006848 associated with window {nr}. When {nr} is zero, the number of
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006849 the buffer in the current window is returned. When window
6850 {nr} doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
6851 Example: >
6852 :echo "The file in the current window is " . bufname(winbufnr(0))
6853<
6854 *wincol()*
6855wincol() The result is a Number, which is the virtual column of the
6856 cursor in the window. This is counting screen cells from the
6857 left side of the window. The leftmost column is one.
6858
6859winheight({nr}) *winheight()*
6860 The result is a Number, which is the height of window {nr}.
6861 When {nr} is zero, the height of the current window is
6862 returned. When window {nr} doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
6863 An existing window always has a height of zero or more.
6864 Examples: >
6865 :echo "The current window has " . winheight(0) . " lines."
6866<
6867 *winline()*
6868winline() The result is a Number, which is the screen line of the cursor
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00006869 in the window. This is counting screen lines from the top of
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006870 the window. The first line is one.
Bram Moolenaarbfd8fc02005-09-20 23:22:24 +00006871 If the cursor was moved the view on the file will be updated
6872 first, this may cause a scroll.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006873
6874 *winnr()*
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00006875winnr([{arg}]) The result is a Number, which is the number of the current
6876 window. The top window has number 1.
6877 When the optional argument is "$", the number of the
Bram Moolenaar2df58b42012-11-28 18:21:11 +01006878 last window is returned (the window count). >
6879 let window_count = winnr('$')
6880< When the optional argument is "#", the number of the last
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00006881 accessed window is returned (where |CTRL-W_p| goes to).
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006882 If there is no previous window or it is in another tab page 0
6883 is returned.
Bram Moolenaar5eb86f92004-07-26 12:53:41 +00006884 The number can be used with |CTRL-W_w| and ":wincmd w"
6885 |:wincmd|.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00006886 Also see |tabpagewinnr()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006887
6888 *winrestcmd()*
6889winrestcmd() Returns a sequence of |:resize| commands that should restore
6890 the current window sizes. Only works properly when no windows
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00006891 are opened or closed and the current window and tab page is
6892 unchanged.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006893 Example: >
6894 :let cmd = winrestcmd()
6895 :call MessWithWindowSizes()
6896 :exe cmd
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00006897<
6898 *winrestview()*
6899winrestview({dict})
6900 Uses the |Dictionary| returned by |winsaveview()| to restore
6901 the view of the current window.
Bram Moolenaar82c25852014-05-28 16:47:16 +02006902 Note: The {dict} does not have to contain all values, that are
6903 returned by |winsaveview()|. If values are missing, those
6904 settings won't be restored. So you can use: >
6905 :call winrestview({'curswant': 4})
6906<
6907 This will only set the curswant value (the column the cursor
6908 wants to move on vertical movements) of the cursor to column 5
6909 (yes, that is 5), while all other settings will remain the
6910 same. This is useful, if you set the cursor position manually.
6911
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00006912 If you have changed the values the result is unpredictable.
6913 If the window size changed the result won't be the same.
6914
6915 *winsaveview()*
6916winsaveview() Returns a |Dictionary| that contains information to restore
6917 the view of the current window. Use |winrestview()| to
6918 restore the view.
6919 This is useful if you have a mapping that jumps around in the
6920 buffer and you want to go back to the original view.
6921 This does not save fold information. Use the 'foldenable'
Bram Moolenaardb552d602006-03-23 22:59:57 +00006922 option to temporarily switch off folding, so that folds are
Bram Moolenaar07d87792014-07-19 14:04:47 +02006923 not opened when moving around. This may have side effects.
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00006924 The return value includes:
6925 lnum cursor line number
Bram Moolenaar82c25852014-05-28 16:47:16 +02006926 col cursor column (Note: the first column
6927 zero, as opposed to what getpos()
6928 returns)
Bram Moolenaar87b5ca52006-03-04 21:55:31 +00006929 coladd cursor column offset for 'virtualedit'
6930 curswant column for vertical movement
6931 topline first line in the window
6932 topfill filler lines, only in diff mode
6933 leftcol first column displayed
6934 skipcol columns skipped
6935 Note that no option values are saved.
6936
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00006937
6938winwidth({nr}) *winwidth()*
6939 The result is a Number, which is the width of window {nr}.
6940 When {nr} is zero, the width of the current window is
6941 returned. When window {nr} doesn't exist, -1 is returned.
6942 An existing window always has a width of zero or more.
6943 Examples: >
6944 :echo "The current window has " . winwidth(0) . " columns."
6945 :if winwidth(0) <= 50
6946 : exe "normal 50\<C-W>|"
6947 :endif
6948<
Bram Moolenaared767a22016-01-03 22:49:16 +01006949wordcount() *wordcount()*
6950 The result is a dictionary of byte/chars/word statistics for
6951 the current buffer. This is the same info as provided by
6952 |g_CTRL-G|
6953 The return value includes:
6954 bytes Number of bytes in the buffer
6955 chars Number of chars in the buffer
6956 words Number of words in the buffer
6957 cursor_bytes Number of bytes before cursor position
6958 (not in Visual mode)
6959 cursor_chars Number of chars before cursor position
6960 (not in Visual mode)
6961 cursor_words Number of words before cursor position
6962 (not in Visual mode)
6963 visual_bytes Number of bytes visually selected
6964 (only in Visual mode)
6965 visual_chars Number of chars visually selected
6966 (only in Visual mode)
6967 visual_words Number of chars visually selected
6968 (only in Visual mode)
6969
6970
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00006971 *writefile()*
Bram Moolenaar6b2e9382014-11-05 18:06:01 +01006972writefile({list}, {fname} [, {flags}])
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00006973 Write |List| {list} to file {fname}. Each list item is
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00006974 separated with a NL. Each list item must be a String or
6975 Number.
Bram Moolenaar6b2e9382014-11-05 18:06:01 +01006976 When {flags} contains "b" then binary mode is used: There will
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00006977 not be a NL after the last list item. An empty item at the
6978 end does cause the last line in the file to end in a NL.
Bram Moolenaar6b2e9382014-11-05 18:06:01 +01006979
6980 When {flags} contains "a" then append mode is used, lines are
6981 append to the file: >
6982 :call writefile(["foo"], "event.log", "a")
6983 :call writefile(["bar"], "event.log", "a")
6984>
6985< All NL characters are replaced with a NUL character.
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00006986 Inserting CR characters needs to be done before passing {list}
6987 to writefile().
6988 An existing file is overwritten, if possible.
6989 When the write fails -1 is returned, otherwise 0. There is an
6990 error message if the file can't be created or when writing
6991 fails.
6992 Also see |readfile()|.
6993 To copy a file byte for byte: >
6994 :let fl = readfile("foo", "b")
6995 :call writefile(fl, "foocopy", "b")
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01006996
6997
6998xor({expr}, {expr}) *xor()*
6999 Bitwise XOR on the two arguments. The arguments are converted
7000 to a number. A List, Dict or Float argument causes an error.
7001 Example: >
7002 :let bits = xor(bits, 0x80)
Bram Moolenaar6ee8d892012-01-10 14:55:01 +01007003<
Bram Moolenaard6e256c2011-12-14 15:32:50 +01007004
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007005
7006 *feature-list*
Bram Moolenaar946e27a2014-06-25 18:50:27 +02007007There are four types of features:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000070081. Features that are only supported when they have been enabled when Vim
7009 was compiled |+feature-list|. Example: >
7010 :if has("cindent")
70112. Features that are only supported when certain conditions have been met.
7012 Example: >
7013 :if has("gui_running")
7014< *has-patch*
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +020070153. Included patches. The "patch123" feature means that patch 123 has been
7016 included. Note that this form does not check the version of Vim, you need
7017 to inspect |v:version| for that.
7018 Example (checking version 6.2.148 or later): >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007019 :if v:version > 602 || v:version == 602 && has("patch148")
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +02007020< Note that it's possible for patch 147 to be omitted even though 148 is
7021 included.
7022
70234. Beyond a certain version or at a certain version and including a specific
Bram Moolenaarbcb98982014-05-01 14:08:19 +02007024 patch. The "patch-7.4.237" feature means that the Vim version is 7.5 or
7025 later, or it is version 7.4 and patch 237 was included.
7026 Note that this only works for patch 7.4.237 and later, before that you
7027 need to use the example above that checks v:version. Example: >
7028 :if has("patch-7.4.248")
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +02007029< Note that it's possible for patch 147 to be omitted even though 148 is
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007030 included.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007031
Bram Moolenaar7cba6c02013-09-05 22:13:31 +02007032acl Compiled with |ACL| support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007033all_builtin_terms Compiled with all builtin terminals enabled.
7034amiga Amiga version of Vim.
7035arabic Compiled with Arabic support |Arabic|.
7036arp Compiled with ARP support (Amiga).
Bram Moolenaara9b1e742005-12-19 22:14:58 +00007037autocmd Compiled with autocommand support. |autocommand|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007038balloon_eval Compiled with |balloon-eval| support.
Bram Moolenaar45360022005-07-21 21:08:21 +00007039balloon_multiline GUI supports multiline balloons.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007040beos BeOS version of Vim.
7041browse Compiled with |:browse| support, and browse() will
7042 work.
Bram Moolenaar30b65812012-07-12 22:01:11 +02007043browsefilter Compiled with support for |browsefilter|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007044builtin_terms Compiled with some builtin terminals.
7045byte_offset Compiled with support for 'o' in 'statusline'
7046cindent Compiled with 'cindent' support.
7047clientserver Compiled with remote invocation support |clientserver|.
7048clipboard Compiled with 'clipboard' support.
7049cmdline_compl Compiled with |cmdline-completion| support.
7050cmdline_hist Compiled with |cmdline-history| support.
7051cmdline_info Compiled with 'showcmd' and 'ruler' support.
7052comments Compiled with |'comments'| support.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007053compatible Compiled to be very Vi compatible.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007054cryptv Compiled with encryption support |encryption|.
7055cscope Compiled with |cscope| support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007056debug Compiled with "DEBUG" defined.
7057dialog_con Compiled with console dialog support.
7058dialog_gui Compiled with GUI dialog support.
7059diff Compiled with |vimdiff| and 'diff' support.
7060digraphs Compiled with support for digraphs.
Bram Moolenaarb5a7a8b2014-08-06 14:52:30 +02007061directx Compiled with support for Direct-X and 'renderoptions'.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007062dnd Compiled with support for the "~ register |quote_~|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007063dos16 16 bits DOS version of Vim.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007064dos32 32 bits DOS (DJGPP) version of Vim.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007065ebcdic Compiled on a machine with ebcdic character set.
7066emacs_tags Compiled with support for Emacs tags.
7067eval Compiled with expression evaluation support. Always
7068 true, of course!
Bram Moolenaar5e9b2fa2016-02-01 22:37:05 +01007069ex_extra |+ex_extra|, always true now
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007070extra_search Compiled with support for |'incsearch'| and
7071 |'hlsearch'|
7072farsi Compiled with Farsi support |farsi|.
7073file_in_path Compiled with support for |gf| and |<cfile>|
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007074filterpipe When 'shelltemp' is off pipes are used for shell
7075 read/write/filter commands
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007076find_in_path Compiled with support for include file searches
7077 |+find_in_path|.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007078float Compiled with support for |Float|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007079fname_case Case in file names matters (for Amiga, MS-DOS, and
7080 Windows this is not present).
7081folding Compiled with |folding| support.
7082footer Compiled with GUI footer support. |gui-footer|
7083fork Compiled to use fork()/exec() instead of system().
7084gettext Compiled with message translation |multi-lang|
7085gui Compiled with GUI enabled.
7086gui_athena Compiled with Athena GUI.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007087gui_gnome Compiled with Gnome support (gui_gtk is also defined).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007088gui_gtk Compiled with GTK+ GUI (any version).
7089gui_gtk2 Compiled with GTK+ 2 GUI (gui_gtk is also defined).
7090gui_mac Compiled with Macintosh GUI.
7091gui_motif Compiled with Motif GUI.
7092gui_photon Compiled with Photon GUI.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007093gui_running Vim is running in the GUI, or it will start soon.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007094gui_win32 Compiled with MS Windows Win32 GUI.
7095gui_win32s idem, and Win32s system being used (Windows 3.1)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007096hangul_input Compiled with Hangul input support. |hangul|
7097iconv Can use iconv() for conversion.
7098insert_expand Compiled with support for CTRL-X expansion commands in
7099 Insert mode.
7100jumplist Compiled with |jumplist| support.
7101keymap Compiled with 'keymap' support.
7102langmap Compiled with 'langmap' support.
7103libcall Compiled with |libcall()| support.
Bram Moolenaar597a4222014-06-25 14:39:50 +02007104linebreak Compiled with 'linebreak', 'breakat', 'showbreak' and
7105 'breakindent' support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007106lispindent Compiled with support for lisp indenting.
7107listcmds Compiled with commands for the buffer list |:files|
7108 and the argument list |arglist|.
7109localmap Compiled with local mappings and abbr. |:map-local|
Bram Moolenaar0ba04292010-07-14 23:23:17 +02007110lua Compiled with Lua interface |Lua|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007111mac Macintosh version of Vim.
7112macunix Macintosh version of Vim, using Unix files (OS-X).
7113menu Compiled with support for |:menu|.
7114mksession Compiled with support for |:mksession|.
7115modify_fname Compiled with file name modifiers. |filename-modifiers|
7116mouse Compiled with support mouse.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007117mouse_dec Compiled with support for Dec terminal mouse.
7118mouse_gpm Compiled with support for gpm (Linux console mouse)
7119mouse_netterm Compiled with support for netterm mouse.
7120mouse_pterm Compiled with support for qnx pterm mouse.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007121mouse_sysmouse Compiled with support for sysmouse (*BSD console mouse)
Bram Moolenaar9b451252012-08-15 17:43:31 +02007122mouse_sgr Compiled with support for sgr mouse.
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +01007123mouse_urxvt Compiled with support for urxvt mouse.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007124mouse_xterm Compiled with support for xterm mouse.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007125mouseshape Compiled with support for 'mouseshape'.
Bram Moolenaar42022d52008-12-09 09:57:49 +00007126multi_byte Compiled with support for 'encoding'
7127multi_byte_encoding 'encoding' is set to a multi-byte encoding.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007128multi_byte_ime Compiled with support for IME input method.
7129multi_lang Compiled with support for multiple languages.
Bram Moolenaar325b7a22004-07-05 15:58:32 +00007130mzscheme Compiled with MzScheme interface |mzscheme|.
Bram Moolenaarb26e6322010-05-22 21:34:09 +02007131netbeans_enabled Compiled with support for |netbeans| and connected.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007132netbeans_intg Compiled with support for |netbeans|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007133ole Compiled with OLE automation support for Win32.
7134os2 OS/2 version of Vim.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007135path_extra Compiled with up/downwards search in 'path' and 'tags'
7136perl Compiled with Perl interface.
Bram Moolenaar55debbe2010-05-23 23:34:36 +02007137persistent_undo Compiled with support for persistent undo history.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007138postscript Compiled with PostScript file printing.
7139printer Compiled with |:hardcopy| support.
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00007140profile Compiled with |:profile| support.
Bram Moolenaar446beb42011-05-10 17:18:44 +02007141python Compiled with Python 2.x interface. |has-python|
7142python3 Compiled with Python 3.x interface. |has-python|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007143qnx QNX version of Vim.
7144quickfix Compiled with |quickfix| support.
Bram Moolenaard68071d2006-05-02 22:08:30 +00007145reltime Compiled with |reltime()| support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007146rightleft Compiled with 'rightleft' support.
7147ruby Compiled with Ruby interface |ruby|.
7148scrollbind Compiled with 'scrollbind' support.
7149showcmd Compiled with 'showcmd' support.
7150signs Compiled with |:sign| support.
7151smartindent Compiled with 'smartindent' support.
Bram Moolenaar69a7cb42004-06-20 12:51:53 +00007152sniff Compiled with SNiFF interface support.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007153spell Compiled with spell checking support |spell|.
Bram Moolenaaref94eec2009-11-11 13:22:11 +00007154startuptime Compiled with |--startuptime| support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007155statusline Compiled with support for 'statusline', 'rulerformat'
7156 and special formats of 'titlestring' and 'iconstring'.
7157sun_workshop Compiled with support for Sun |workshop|.
Bram Moolenaar82cf9b62005-06-07 21:09:25 +00007158syntax Compiled with syntax highlighting support |syntax|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007159syntax_items There are active syntax highlighting items for the
7160 current buffer.
7161system Compiled to use system() instead of fork()/exec().
7162tag_binary Compiled with binary searching in tags files
7163 |tag-binary-search|.
7164tag_old_static Compiled with support for old static tags
7165 |tag-old-static|.
7166tag_any_white Compiled with support for any white characters in tags
7167 files |tag-any-white|.
7168tcl Compiled with Tcl interface.
7169terminfo Compiled with terminfo instead of termcap.
7170termresponse Compiled with support for |t_RV| and |v:termresponse|.
7171textobjects Compiled with support for |text-objects|.
7172tgetent Compiled with tgetent support, able to use a termcap
7173 or terminfo file.
7174title Compiled with window title support |'title'|.
7175toolbar Compiled with support for |gui-toolbar|.
7176unix Unix version of Vim.
7177user_commands User-defined commands.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007178vertsplit Compiled with vertically split windows |:vsplit|.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007179vim_starting True while initial source'ing takes place. |startup|
7180viminfo Compiled with viminfo support.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007181virtualedit Compiled with 'virtualedit' option.
7182visual Compiled with Visual mode.
7183visualextra Compiled with extra Visual mode commands.
7184 |blockwise-operators|.
7185vms VMS version of Vim.
7186vreplace Compiled with |gR| and |gr| commands.
7187wildignore Compiled with 'wildignore' option.
7188wildmenu Compiled with 'wildmenu' option.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007189win16 Win16 version of Vim (MS-Windows 3.1).
Bram Moolenaard58e9292011-02-09 17:07:58 +01007190win32 Win32 version of Vim (MS-Windows 95 and later, 32 or
7191 64 bits)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007192win32unix Win32 version of Vim, using Unix files (Cygwin)
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007193win64 Win64 version of Vim (MS-Windows 64 bit).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007194win95 Win32 version for MS-Windows 95/98/ME.
Bram Moolenaar2a8a3ec2011-01-08 16:06:37 +01007195winaltkeys Compiled with 'winaltkeys' option.
7196windows Compiled with support for more than one window.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007197writebackup Compiled with 'writebackup' default on.
7198xfontset Compiled with X fontset support |xfontset|.
7199xim Compiled with X input method support |xim|.
Bram Moolenaar7cba6c02013-09-05 22:13:31 +02007200xpm Compiled with pixmap support.
7201xpm_w32 Compiled with pixmap support for Win32. (Only for
7202 backward compatibility. Use "xpm" instead.)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007203xsmp Compiled with X session management support.
7204xsmp_interact Compiled with interactive X session management support.
7205xterm_clipboard Compiled with support for xterm clipboard.
7206xterm_save Compiled with support for saving and restoring the
7207 xterm screen.
7208x11 Compiled with X11 support.
7209
7210 *string-match*
7211Matching a pattern in a String
7212
7213A regexp pattern as explained at |pattern| is normally used to find a match in
7214the buffer lines. When a pattern is used to find a match in a String, almost
7215everything works in the same way. The difference is that a String is handled
7216like it is one line. When it contains a "\n" character, this is not seen as a
7217line break for the pattern. It can be matched with a "\n" in the pattern, or
7218with ".". Example: >
7219 :let a = "aaaa\nxxxx"
7220 :echo matchstr(a, "..\n..")
7221 aa
7222 xx
7223 :echo matchstr(a, "a.x")
7224 a
7225 x
7226
7227Don't forget that "^" will only match at the first character of the String and
7228"$" at the last character of the string. They don't match after or before a
7229"\n".
7230
7231==============================================================================
72325. Defining functions *user-functions*
7233
7234New functions can be defined. These can be called just like builtin
7235functions. The function executes a sequence of Ex commands. Normal mode
7236commands can be executed with the |:normal| command.
7237
7238The function name must start with an uppercase letter, to avoid confusion with
7239builtin functions. To prevent from using the same name in different scripts
7240avoid obvious, short names. A good habit is to start the function name with
7241the name of the script, e.g., "HTMLcolor()".
7242
Bram Moolenaar92d640f2005-09-05 22:11:52 +00007243It's also possible to use curly braces, see |curly-braces-names|. And the
7244|autoload| facility is useful to define a function only when it's called.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007245
7246 *local-function*
7247A function local to a script must start with "s:". A local script function
7248can only be called from within the script and from functions, user commands
7249and autocommands defined in the script. It is also possible to call the
Bram Moolenaare37d50a2008-08-06 17:06:04 +00007250function from a mapping defined in the script, but then |<SID>| must be used
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007251instead of "s:" when the mapping is expanded outside of the script.
Bram Moolenaarbcb98982014-05-01 14:08:19 +02007252There are only script-local functions, no buffer-local or window-local
7253functions.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007254
7255 *:fu* *:function* *E128* *E129* *E123*
7256:fu[nction] List all functions and their arguments.
7257
7258:fu[nction] {name} List function {name}.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007259 {name} can also be a |Dictionary| entry that is a
7260 |Funcref|: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007261 :function dict.init
Bram Moolenaar92d640f2005-09-05 22:11:52 +00007262
7263:fu[nction] /{pattern} List functions with a name matching {pattern}.
7264 Example that lists all functions ending with "File": >
7265 :function /File$
Bram Moolenaar5b8d8fd2005-08-16 23:01:50 +00007266<
7267 *:function-verbose*
7268When 'verbose' is non-zero, listing a function will also display where it was
7269last defined. Example: >
7270
7271 :verbose function SetFileTypeSH
7272 function SetFileTypeSH(name)
7273 Last set from /usr/share/vim/vim-7.0/filetype.vim
7274<
Bram Moolenaar8aff23a2005-08-19 20:40:30 +00007275See |:verbose-cmd| for more information.
Bram Moolenaar5b8d8fd2005-08-16 23:01:50 +00007276
Bram Moolenaarbcb98982014-05-01 14:08:19 +02007277 *E124* *E125* *E853* *E884*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00007278:fu[nction][!] {name}([arguments]) [range] [abort] [dict]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007279 Define a new function by the name {name}. The name
7280 must be made of alphanumeric characters and '_', and
Bram Moolenaarbcb98982014-05-01 14:08:19 +02007281 must start with a capital or "s:" (see above). Note
7282 that using "b:" or "g:" is not allowed. (since patch
7283 7.4.260 E884 is given if the function name has a colon
7284 in the name, e.g. for "foo:bar()". Before that patch
7285 no error was given).
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007286
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007287 {name} can also be a |Dictionary| entry that is a
7288 |Funcref|: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007289 :function dict.init(arg)
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007290< "dict" must be an existing dictionary. The entry
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007291 "init" is added if it didn't exist yet. Otherwise [!]
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007292 is required to overwrite an existing function. The
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007293 result is a |Funcref| to a numbered function. The
7294 function can only be used with a |Funcref| and will be
7295 deleted if there are no more references to it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007296 *E127* *E122*
7297 When a function by this name already exists and [!] is
7298 not used an error message is given. When [!] is used,
7299 an existing function is silently replaced. Unless it
7300 is currently being executed, that is an error.
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00007301
7302 For the {arguments} see |function-argument|.
7303
Bram Moolenaar8d043172014-01-23 14:24:41 +01007304 *:func-range* *a:firstline* *a:lastline*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007305 When the [range] argument is added, the function is
7306 expected to take care of a range itself. The range is
7307 passed as "a:firstline" and "a:lastline". If [range]
7308 is excluded, ":{range}call" will call the function for
7309 each line in the range, with the cursor on the start
7310 of each line. See |function-range-example|.
Bram Moolenaar2df58b42012-11-28 18:21:11 +01007311 The cursor is still moved to the first line of the
7312 range, as is the case with all Ex commands.
Bram Moolenaar8d043172014-01-23 14:24:41 +01007313 *:func-abort*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007314 When the [abort] argument is added, the function will
7315 abort as soon as an error is detected.
Bram Moolenaar8d043172014-01-23 14:24:41 +01007316 *:func-dict*
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00007317 When the [dict] argument is added, the function must
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007318 be invoked through an entry in a |Dictionary|. The
Bram Moolenaar2fda12f2005-01-15 22:14:15 +00007319 local variable "self" will then be set to the
7320 dictionary. See |Dictionary-function|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007321
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007322 *function-search-undo*
Bram Moolenaar98692072006-02-04 00:57:42 +00007323 The last used search pattern and the redo command "."
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007324 will not be changed by the function. This also
7325 implies that the effect of |:nohlsearch| is undone
7326 when the function returns.
Bram Moolenaar98692072006-02-04 00:57:42 +00007327
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007328 *:endf* *:endfunction* *E126* *E193*
7329:endf[unction] The end of a function definition. Must be on a line
7330 by its own, without other commands.
7331
7332 *:delf* *:delfunction* *E130* *E131*
7333:delf[unction] {name} Delete function {name}.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007334 {name} can also be a |Dictionary| entry that is a
7335 |Funcref|: >
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007336 :delfunc dict.init
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007337< This will remove the "init" entry from "dict". The
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007338 function is deleted if there are no more references to
7339 it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007340 *:retu* *:return* *E133*
7341:retu[rn] [expr] Return from a function. When "[expr]" is given, it is
7342 evaluated and returned as the result of the function.
7343 If "[expr]" is not given, the number 0 is returned.
7344 When a function ends without an explicit ":return",
7345 the number 0 is returned.
7346 Note that there is no check for unreachable lines,
7347 thus there is no warning if commands follow ":return".
7348
7349 If the ":return" is used after a |:try| but before the
7350 matching |:finally| (if present), the commands
7351 following the ":finally" up to the matching |:endtry|
7352 are executed first. This process applies to all
7353 nested ":try"s inside the function. The function
7354 returns at the outermost ":endtry".
7355
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00007356 *function-argument* *a:var*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007357An argument can be defined by giving its name. In the function this can then
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00007358be used as "a:name" ("a:" for argument).
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007359 *a:0* *a:1* *a:000* *E740* *...*
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00007360Up to 20 arguments can be given, separated by commas. After the named
7361arguments an argument "..." can be specified, which means that more arguments
7362may optionally be following. In the function the extra arguments can be used
7363as "a:1", "a:2", etc. "a:0" is set to the number of extra arguments (which
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007364can be 0). "a:000" is set to a |List| that contains these arguments. Note
7365that "a:1" is the same as "a:000[0]".
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007366 *E742*
7367The a: scope and the variables in it cannot be changed, they are fixed.
Bram Moolenaare37d50a2008-08-06 17:06:04 +00007368However, if a |List| or |Dictionary| is used, you can change their contents.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007369Thus you can pass a |List| to a function and have the function add an item to
7370it. If you want to make sure the function cannot change a |List| or
7371|Dictionary| use |:lockvar|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007372
Bram Moolenaar8f999f12005-01-25 22:12:55 +00007373When not using "...", the number of arguments in a function call must be equal
7374to the number of named arguments. When using "...", the number of arguments
7375may be larger.
7376
7377It is also possible to define a function without any arguments. You must
7378still supply the () then. The body of the function follows in the next lines,
7379until the matching |:endfunction|. It is allowed to define another function
7380inside a function body.
7381
7382 *local-variables*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007383Inside a function variables can be used. These are local variables, which
7384will disappear when the function returns. Global variables need to be
7385accessed with "g:".
7386
7387Example: >
7388 :function Table(title, ...)
7389 : echohl Title
7390 : echo a:title
7391 : echohl None
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00007392 : echo a:0 . " items:"
7393 : for s in a:000
7394 : echon ' ' . s
7395 : endfor
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007396 :endfunction
7397
7398This function can then be called with: >
Bram Moolenaar677ee682005-01-27 14:41:15 +00007399 call Table("Table", "line1", "line2")
7400 call Table("Empty Table")
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007401
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007402To return more than one value, return a |List|: >
7403 :function Compute(n1, n2)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007404 : if a:n2 == 0
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007405 : return ["fail", 0]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007406 : endif
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007407 : return ["ok", a:n1 / a:n2]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007408 :endfunction
7409
7410This function can then be called with: >
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007411 :let [success, div] = Compute(102, 6)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007412 :if success == "ok"
7413 : echo div
7414 :endif
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007415<
Bram Moolenaar39f05632006-03-19 22:15:26 +00007416 *:cal* *:call* *E107* *E117*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007417:[range]cal[l] {name}([arguments])
7418 Call a function. The name of the function and its arguments
7419 are as specified with |:function|. Up to 20 arguments can be
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007420 used. The returned value is discarded.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007421 Without a range and for functions that accept a range, the
7422 function is called once. When a range is given the cursor is
7423 positioned at the start of the first line before executing the
7424 function.
7425 When a range is given and the function doesn't handle it
7426 itself, the function is executed for each line in the range,
7427 with the cursor in the first column of that line. The cursor
7428 is left at the last line (possibly moved by the last function
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007429 call). The arguments are re-evaluated for each line. Thus
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007430 this works:
7431 *function-range-example* >
7432 :function Mynumber(arg)
7433 : echo line(".") . " " . a:arg
7434 :endfunction
7435 :1,5call Mynumber(getline("."))
7436<
7437 The "a:firstline" and "a:lastline" are defined anyway, they
7438 can be used to do something different at the start or end of
7439 the range.
7440
7441 Example of a function that handles the range itself: >
7442
7443 :function Cont() range
7444 : execute (a:firstline + 1) . "," . a:lastline . 's/^/\t\\ '
7445 :endfunction
7446 :4,8call Cont()
7447<
7448 This function inserts the continuation character "\" in front
7449 of all the lines in the range, except the first one.
7450
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007451 When the function returns a composite value it can be further
7452 dereferenced, but the range will not be used then. Example: >
7453 :4,8call GetDict().method()
7454< Here GetDict() gets the range but method() does not.
7455
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007456 *E132*
7457The recursiveness of user functions is restricted with the |'maxfuncdepth'|
7458option.
7459
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007460
7461AUTOMATICALLY LOADING FUNCTIONS ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007462 *autoload-functions*
7463When using many or large functions, it's possible to automatically define them
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007464only when they are used. There are two methods: with an autocommand and with
7465the "autoload" directory in 'runtimepath'.
7466
7467
7468Using an autocommand ~
7469
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00007470This is introduced in the user manual, section |41.14|.
7471
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007472The autocommand is useful if you have a plugin that is a long Vim script file.
7473You can define the autocommand and quickly quit the script with |:finish|.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007474That makes Vim startup faster. The autocommand should then load the same file
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007475again, setting a variable to skip the |:finish| command.
7476
7477Use the FuncUndefined autocommand event with a pattern that matches the
7478function(s) to be defined. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007479
7480 :au FuncUndefined BufNet* source ~/vim/bufnetfuncs.vim
7481
7482The file "~/vim/bufnetfuncs.vim" should then define functions that start with
7483"BufNet". Also see |FuncUndefined|.
7484
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007485
7486Using an autoload script ~
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007487 *autoload* *E746*
Bram Moolenaar05159a02005-02-26 23:04:13 +00007488This is introduced in the user manual, section |41.15|.
7489
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007490Using a script in the "autoload" directory is simpler, but requires using
7491exactly the right file name. A function that can be autoloaded has a name
7492like this: >
7493
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00007494 :call filename#funcname()
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007495
7496When such a function is called, and it is not defined yet, Vim will search the
7497"autoload" directories in 'runtimepath' for a script file called
7498"filename.vim". For example "~/.vim/autoload/filename.vim". That file should
7499then define the function like this: >
7500
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00007501 function filename#funcname()
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007502 echo "Done!"
7503 endfunction
7504
Bram Moolenaar60a795a2005-09-16 21:55:43 +00007505The file name and the name used before the # in the function must match
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007506exactly, and the defined function must have the name exactly as it will be
7507called.
7508
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00007509It is possible to use subdirectories. Every # in the function name works like
7510a path separator. Thus when calling a function: >
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007511
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00007512 :call foo#bar#func()
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007513
7514Vim will look for the file "autoload/foo/bar.vim" in 'runtimepath'.
7515
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007516This also works when reading a variable that has not been set yet: >
7517
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00007518 :let l = foo#bar#lvar
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007519
Bram Moolenaara5792f52005-11-23 21:25:05 +00007520However, when the autoload script was already loaded it won't be loaded again
7521for an unknown variable.
7522
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007523When assigning a value to such a variable nothing special happens. This can
7524be used to pass settings to the autoload script before it's loaded: >
7525
Bram Moolenaara7fc0102005-05-18 22:17:12 +00007526 :let foo#bar#toggle = 1
7527 :call foo#bar#func()
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007528
Bram Moolenaar4399ef42005-02-12 14:29:27 +00007529Note that when you make a mistake and call a function that is supposed to be
7530defined in an autoload script, but the script doesn't actually define the
7531function, the script will be sourced every time you try to call the function.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007532And you will get an error message every time.
7533
7534Also note that if you have two script files, and one calls a function in the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007535other and vice versa, before the used function is defined, it won't work.
Bram Moolenaar26a60b42005-02-22 08:49:11 +00007536Avoid using the autoload functionality at the toplevel.
Bram Moolenaar7c626922005-02-07 22:01:03 +00007537
Bram Moolenaar433f7c82006-03-21 21:29:36 +00007538Hint: If you distribute a bunch of scripts you can pack them together with the
7539|vimball| utility. Also read the user manual |distribute-script|.
7540
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007541==============================================================================
75426. Curly braces names *curly-braces-names*
7543
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01007544In most places where you can use a variable, you can use a "curly braces name"
7545variable. This is a regular variable name with one or more expressions
7546wrapped in braces {} like this: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007547 my_{adjective}_variable
7548
7549When Vim encounters this, it evaluates the expression inside the braces, puts
7550that in place of the expression, and re-interprets the whole as a variable
7551name. So in the above example, if the variable "adjective" was set to
7552"noisy", then the reference would be to "my_noisy_variable", whereas if
7553"adjective" was set to "quiet", then it would be to "my_quiet_variable".
7554
7555One application for this is to create a set of variables governed by an option
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007556value. For example, the statement >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007557 echo my_{&background}_message
7558
7559would output the contents of "my_dark_message" or "my_light_message" depending
7560on the current value of 'background'.
7561
7562You can use multiple brace pairs: >
7563 echo my_{adverb}_{adjective}_message
7564..or even nest them: >
7565 echo my_{ad{end_of_word}}_message
7566where "end_of_word" is either "verb" or "jective".
7567
7568However, the expression inside the braces must evaluate to a valid single
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00007569variable name, e.g. this is invalid: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007570 :let foo='a + b'
7571 :echo c{foo}d
7572.. since the result of expansion is "ca + bd", which is not a variable name.
7573
7574 *curly-braces-function-names*
7575You can call and define functions by an evaluated name in a similar way.
7576Example: >
7577 :let func_end='whizz'
7578 :call my_func_{func_end}(parameter)
7579
7580This would call the function "my_func_whizz(parameter)".
7581
Bram Moolenaar84f72352012-03-11 15:57:40 +01007582This does NOT work: >
7583 :let i = 3
7584 :let @{i} = '' " error
7585 :echo @{i} " error
7586
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007587==============================================================================
75887. Commands *expression-commands*
7589
7590:let {var-name} = {expr1} *:let* *E18*
7591 Set internal variable {var-name} to the result of the
7592 expression {expr1}. The variable will get the type
7593 from the {expr}. If {var-name} didn't exist yet, it
7594 is created.
7595
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00007596:let {var-name}[{idx}] = {expr1} *E689*
7597 Set a list item to the result of the expression
7598 {expr1}. {var-name} must refer to a list and {idx}
7599 must be a valid index in that list. For nested list
7600 the index can be repeated.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007601 This cannot be used to add an item to a |List|.
7602 This cannot be used to set a byte in a String. You
7603 can do that like this: >
7604 :let var = var[0:2] . 'X' . var[4:]
7605<
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007606 *E711* *E719*
7607:let {var-name}[{idx1}:{idx2}] = {expr1} *E708* *E709* *E710*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007608 Set a sequence of items in a |List| to the result of
7609 the expression {expr1}, which must be a list with the
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00007610 correct number of items.
7611 {idx1} can be omitted, zero is used instead.
7612 {idx2} can be omitted, meaning the end of the list.
7613 When the selected range of items is partly past the
7614 end of the list, items will be added.
7615
Bram Moolenaar748bf032005-02-02 23:04:36 +00007616 *:let+=* *:let-=* *:let.=* *E734*
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007617:let {var} += {expr1} Like ":let {var} = {var} + {expr1}".
7618:let {var} -= {expr1} Like ":let {var} = {var} - {expr1}".
7619:let {var} .= {expr1} Like ":let {var} = {var} . {expr1}".
7620 These fail if {var} was not set yet and when the type
7621 of {var} and {expr1} don't fit the operator.
7622
7623
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007624:let ${env-name} = {expr1} *:let-environment* *:let-$*
7625 Set environment variable {env-name} to the result of
7626 the expression {expr1}. The type is always String.
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007627:let ${env-name} .= {expr1}
7628 Append {expr1} to the environment variable {env-name}.
7629 If the environment variable didn't exist yet this
7630 works like "=".
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007631
7632:let @{reg-name} = {expr1} *:let-register* *:let-@*
7633 Write the result of the expression {expr1} in register
7634 {reg-name}. {reg-name} must be a single letter, and
7635 must be the name of a writable register (see
7636 |registers|). "@@" can be used for the unnamed
7637 register, "@/" for the search pattern.
7638 If the result of {expr1} ends in a <CR> or <NL>, the
7639 register will be linewise, otherwise it will be set to
7640 characterwise.
7641 This can be used to clear the last search pattern: >
7642 :let @/ = ""
7643< This is different from searching for an empty string,
7644 that would match everywhere.
7645
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007646:let @{reg-name} .= {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007647 Append {expr1} to register {reg-name}. If the
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007648 register was empty it's like setting it to {expr1}.
7649
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007650:let &{option-name} = {expr1} *:let-option* *:let-&*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007651 Set option {option-name} to the result of the
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00007652 expression {expr1}. A String or Number value is
7653 always converted to the type of the option.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007654 For an option local to a window or buffer the effect
7655 is just like using the |:set| command: both the local
Bram Moolenaara5fac542005-10-12 20:58:49 +00007656 value and the global value are changed.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00007657 Example: >
7658 :let &path = &path . ',/usr/local/include'
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007659
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007660:let &{option-name} .= {expr1}
7661 For a string option: Append {expr1} to the value.
7662 Does not insert a comma like |:set+=|.
7663
7664:let &{option-name} += {expr1}
7665:let &{option-name} -= {expr1}
7666 For a number or boolean option: Add or subtract
7667 {expr1}.
7668
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007669:let &l:{option-name} = {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007670:let &l:{option-name} .= {expr1}
7671:let &l:{option-name} += {expr1}
7672:let &l:{option-name} -= {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007673 Like above, but only set the local value of an option
7674 (if there is one). Works like |:setlocal|.
7675
7676:let &g:{option-name} = {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007677:let &g:{option-name} .= {expr1}
7678:let &g:{option-name} += {expr1}
7679:let &g:{option-name} -= {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007680 Like above, but only set the global value of an option
7681 (if there is one). Works like |:setglobal|.
7682
Bram Moolenaar13065c42005-01-08 16:08:21 +00007683:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] = {expr1} *:let-unpack* *E687* *E688*
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007684 {expr1} must evaluate to a |List|. The first item in
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00007685 the list is assigned to {name1}, the second item to
7686 {name2}, etc.
7687 The number of names must match the number of items in
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007688 the |List|.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00007689 Each name can be one of the items of the ":let"
7690 command as mentioned above.
7691 Example: >
7692 :let [s, item] = GetItem(s)
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007693< Detail: {expr1} is evaluated first, then the
7694 assignments are done in sequence. This matters if
7695 {name2} depends on {name1}. Example: >
7696 :let x = [0, 1]
7697 :let i = 0
7698 :let [i, x[i]] = [1, 2]
7699 :echo x
7700< The result is [0, 2].
7701
7702:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] .= {expr1}
7703:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] += {expr1}
7704:let [{name1}, {name2}, ...] -= {expr1}
7705 Like above, but append/add/subtract the value for each
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007706 |List| item.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00007707
7708:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] = {expr1}
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007709 Like |:let-unpack| above, but the |List| may have more
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007710 items than there are names. A list of the remaining
7711 items is assigned to {lastname}. If there are no
7712 remaining items {lastname} is set to an empty list.
Bram Moolenaarfca34d62005-01-04 21:38:36 +00007713 Example: >
7714 :let [a, b; rest] = ["aval", "bval", 3, 4]
7715<
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007716:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] .= {expr1}
7717:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] += {expr1}
7718:let [{name}, ..., ; {lastname}] -= {expr1}
7719 Like above, but append/add/subtract the value for each
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007720 |List| item.
Bram Moolenaar4a748032010-09-30 21:47:56 +02007721
7722 *E121*
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007723:let {var-name} .. List the value of variable {var-name}. Multiple
Bram Moolenaardcaf10e2005-01-21 11:55:25 +00007724 variable names may be given. Special names recognized
7725 here: *E738*
Bram Moolenaarca003e12006-03-17 23:19:38 +00007726 g: global variables
7727 b: local buffer variables
7728 w: local window variables
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00007729 t: local tab page variables
Bram Moolenaarca003e12006-03-17 23:19:38 +00007730 s: script-local variables
7731 l: local function variables
Bram Moolenaardcaf10e2005-01-21 11:55:25 +00007732 v: Vim variables.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007733
Bram Moolenaard7ee7ce2005-01-03 21:02:03 +00007734:let List the values of all variables. The type of the
7735 variable is indicated before the value:
7736 <nothing> String
7737 # Number
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00007738 * Funcref
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007739
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007740
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00007741:unl[et][!] {name} ... *:unlet* *:unl* *E108* *E795*
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007742 Remove the internal variable {name}. Several variable
7743 names can be given, they are all removed. The name
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007744 may also be a |List| or |Dictionary| item.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007745 With [!] no error message is given for non-existing
7746 variables.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007747 One or more items from a |List| can be removed: >
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +00007748 :unlet list[3] " remove fourth item
7749 :unlet list[3:] " remove fourth item to last
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007750< One item from a |Dictionary| can be removed at a time: >
Bram Moolenaar9cd15162005-01-16 22:02:49 +00007751 :unlet dict['two']
7752 :unlet dict.two
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +00007753< This is especially useful to clean up used global
7754 variables and script-local variables (these are not
7755 deleted when the script ends). Function-local
7756 variables are automatically deleted when the function
7757 ends.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007758
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007759:lockv[ar][!] [depth] {name} ... *:lockvar* *:lockv*
7760 Lock the internal variable {name}. Locking means that
7761 it can no longer be changed (until it is unlocked).
7762 A locked variable can be deleted: >
7763 :lockvar v
7764 :let v = 'asdf' " fails!
7765 :unlet v
7766< *E741*
7767 If you try to change a locked variable you get an
Bram Moolenaar8a94d872015-01-25 13:02:57 +01007768 error message: "E741: Value is locked: {name}"
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007769
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007770 [depth] is relevant when locking a |List| or
7771 |Dictionary|. It specifies how deep the locking goes:
7772 1 Lock the |List| or |Dictionary| itself,
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007773 cannot add or remove items, but can
7774 still change their values.
7775 2 Also lock the values, cannot change
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007776 the items. If an item is a |List| or
7777 |Dictionary|, cannot add or remove
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007778 items, but can still change the
7779 values.
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007780 3 Like 2 but for the |List| /
7781 |Dictionary| in the |List| /
7782 |Dictionary|, one level deeper.
7783 The default [depth] is 2, thus when {name} is a |List|
7784 or |Dictionary| the values cannot be changed.
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007785 *E743*
7786 For unlimited depth use [!] and omit [depth].
7787 However, there is a maximum depth of 100 to catch
7788 loops.
7789
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00007790 Note that when two variables refer to the same |List|
7791 and you lock one of them, the |List| will also be
Bram Moolenaar910f66f2006-04-05 20:41:53 +00007792 locked when used through the other variable.
7793 Example: >
Bram Moolenaar2ce06f62005-01-31 19:19:04 +00007794 :let l = [0, 1, 2, 3]
7795 :let cl = l
7796 :lockvar l
7797 :let cl[1] = 99 " won't work!
7798< You may want to make a copy of a list to avoid this.
7799 See |deepcopy()|.
7800
7801
7802:unlo[ckvar][!] [depth] {name} ... *:unlockvar* *:unlo*
7803 Unlock the internal variable {name}. Does the
7804 opposite of |:lockvar|.
7805
7806
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007807:if {expr1} *:if* *:endif* *:en* *E171* *E579* *E580*
7808:en[dif] Execute the commands until the next matching ":else"
7809 or ":endif" if {expr1} evaluates to non-zero.
7810
7811 From Vim version 4.5 until 5.0, every Ex command in
7812 between the ":if" and ":endif" is ignored. These two
7813 commands were just to allow for future expansions in a
Bram Moolenaar85084ef2016-01-17 22:26:33 +01007814 backward compatible way. Nesting was allowed. Note
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007815 that any ":else" or ":elseif" was ignored, the "else"
7816 part was not executed either.
7817
7818 You can use this to remain compatible with older
7819 versions: >
7820 :if version >= 500
7821 : version-5-specific-commands
7822 :endif
7823< The commands still need to be parsed to find the
7824 "endif". Sometimes an older Vim has a problem with a
7825 new command. For example, ":silent" is recognized as
7826 a ":substitute" command. In that case ":execute" can
7827 avoid problems: >
7828 :if version >= 600
7829 : execute "silent 1,$delete"
7830 :endif
7831<
7832 NOTE: The ":append" and ":insert" commands don't work
7833 properly in between ":if" and ":endif".
7834
7835 *:else* *:el* *E581* *E583*
7836:el[se] Execute the commands until the next matching ":else"
7837 or ":endif" if they previously were not being
7838 executed.
7839
7840 *:elseif* *:elsei* *E582* *E584*
7841:elsei[f] {expr1} Short for ":else" ":if", with the addition that there
7842 is no extra ":endif".
7843
7844:wh[ile] {expr1} *:while* *:endwhile* *:wh* *:endw*
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007845 *E170* *E585* *E588* *E733*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007846:endw[hile] Repeat the commands between ":while" and ":endwhile",
7847 as long as {expr1} evaluates to non-zero.
7848 When an error is detected from a command inside the
7849 loop, execution continues after the "endwhile".
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007850 Example: >
7851 :let lnum = 1
7852 :while lnum <= line("$")
7853 :call FixLine(lnum)
7854 :let lnum = lnum + 1
7855 :endwhile
7856<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007857 NOTE: The ":append" and ":insert" commands don't work
Bram Moolenaard8b02732005-01-14 21:48:43 +00007858 properly inside a ":while" and ":for" loop.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007859
Bram Moolenaar3a3a7232005-01-17 22:16:15 +00007860:for {var} in {list} *:for* *E690* *E732*
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007861:endfo[r] *:endfo* *:endfor*
7862 Repeat the commands between ":for" and ":endfor" for
Bram Moolenaar3a7c85b2005-02-05 21:39:53 +00007863 each item in {list}. Variable {var} is set to the
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00007864 value of each item.
7865 When an error is detected for a command inside the
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007866 loop, execution continues after the "endfor".
Bram Moolenaar572cb562005-08-05 21:35:02 +00007867 Changing {list} inside the loop affects what items are
7868 used. Make a copy if this is unwanted: >
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00007869 :for item in copy(mylist)
7870< When not making a copy, Vim stores a reference to the
7871 next item in the list, before executing the commands
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00007872 with the current item. Thus the current item can be
Bram Moolenaarde8866b2005-01-06 23:24:37 +00007873 removed without effect. Removing any later item means
7874 it will not be found. Thus the following example
7875 works (an inefficient way to make a list empty): >
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01007876 for item in mylist
7877 call remove(mylist, 0)
7878 endfor
Bram Moolenaar9588a0f2005-01-08 21:45:39 +00007879< Note that reordering the list (e.g., with sort() or
7880 reverse()) may have unexpected effects.
7881 Note that the type of each list item should be
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007882 identical to avoid errors for the type of {var}
7883 changing. Unlet the variable at the end of the loop
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01007884 to allow multiple item types: >
7885 for item in ["foo", ["bar"]]
7886 echo item
7887 unlet item " E706 without this
7888 endfor
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007889
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007890:for [{var1}, {var2}, ...] in {listlist}
7891:endfo[r]
7892 Like ":for" above, but each item in {listlist} must be
7893 a list, of which each item is assigned to {var1},
7894 {var2}, etc. Example: >
7895 :for [lnum, col] in [[1, 3], [2, 5], [3, 8]]
7896 :echo getline(lnum)[col]
7897 :endfor
7898<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007899 *:continue* *:con* *E586*
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007900:con[tinue] When used inside a ":while" or ":for" loop, jumps back
7901 to the start of the loop.
7902 If it is used after a |:try| inside the loop but
7903 before the matching |:finally| (if present), the
7904 commands following the ":finally" up to the matching
7905 |:endtry| are executed first. This process applies to
7906 all nested ":try"s inside the loop. The outermost
7907 ":endtry" then jumps back to the start of the loop.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007908
7909 *:break* *:brea* *E587*
Bram Moolenaar12805862005-01-05 22:16:17 +00007910:brea[k] When used inside a ":while" or ":for" loop, skips to
7911 the command after the matching ":endwhile" or
7912 ":endfor".
7913 If it is used after a |:try| inside the loop but
7914 before the matching |:finally| (if present), the
7915 commands following the ":finally" up to the matching
7916 |:endtry| are executed first. This process applies to
7917 all nested ":try"s inside the loop. The outermost
7918 ":endtry" then jumps to the command after the loop.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007919
7920:try *:try* *:endt* *:endtry* *E600* *E601* *E602*
7921:endt[ry] Change the error handling for the commands between
7922 ":try" and ":endtry" including everything being
7923 executed across ":source" commands, function calls,
7924 or autocommand invocations.
7925
7926 When an error or interrupt is detected and there is
7927 a |:finally| command following, execution continues
7928 after the ":finally". Otherwise, or when the
7929 ":endtry" is reached thereafter, the next
7930 (dynamically) surrounding ":try" is checked for
7931 a corresponding ":finally" etc. Then the script
7932 processing is terminated. (Whether a function
7933 definition has an "abort" argument does not matter.)
7934 Example: >
7935 :try | edit too much | finally | echo "cleanup" | endtry
7936 :echo "impossible" " not reached, script terminated above
7937<
7938 Moreover, an error or interrupt (dynamically) inside
7939 ":try" and ":endtry" is converted to an exception. It
7940 can be caught as if it were thrown by a |:throw|
7941 command (see |:catch|). In this case, the script
7942 processing is not terminated.
7943
7944 The value "Vim:Interrupt" is used for an interrupt
7945 exception. An error in a Vim command is converted
7946 to a value of the form "Vim({command}):{errmsg}",
7947 other errors are converted to a value of the form
7948 "Vim:{errmsg}". {command} is the full command name,
7949 and {errmsg} is the message that is displayed if the
7950 error exception is not caught, always beginning with
7951 the error number.
7952 Examples: >
7953 :try | sleep 100 | catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/ | endtry
7954 :try | edit | catch /^Vim(edit):E\d\+/ | echo "error" | endtry
7955<
7956 *:cat* *:catch* *E603* *E604* *E605*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01007957:cat[ch] /{pattern}/ The following commands until the next |:catch|,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007958 |:finally|, or |:endtry| that belongs to the same
7959 |:try| as the ":catch" are executed when an exception
7960 matching {pattern} is being thrown and has not yet
7961 been caught by a previous ":catch". Otherwise, these
7962 commands are skipped.
7963 When {pattern} is omitted all errors are caught.
7964 Examples: >
7965 :catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/ " catch interrupts (CTRL-C)
7966 :catch /^Vim\%((\a\+)\)\=:E/ " catch all Vim errors
7967 :catch /^Vim\%((\a\+)\)\=:/ " catch errors and interrupts
7968 :catch /^Vim(write):/ " catch all errors in :write
7969 :catch /^Vim\%((\a\+)\)\=:E123/ " catch error E123
7970 :catch /my-exception/ " catch user exception
7971 :catch /.*/ " catch everything
7972 :catch " same as /.*/
7973<
7974 Another character can be used instead of / around the
7975 {pattern}, so long as it does not have a special
7976 meaning (e.g., '|' or '"') and doesn't occur inside
7977 {pattern}.
Bram Moolenaar7e38ea22014-04-05 22:55:53 +02007978 Information about the exception is available in
7979 |v:exception|. Also see |throw-variables|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00007980 NOTE: It is not reliable to ":catch" the TEXT of
7981 an error message because it may vary in different
7982 locales.
7983
7984 *:fina* *:finally* *E606* *E607*
7985:fina[lly] The following commands until the matching |:endtry|
7986 are executed whenever the part between the matching
7987 |:try| and the ":finally" is left: either by falling
7988 through to the ":finally" or by a |:continue|,
7989 |:break|, |:finish|, or |:return|, or by an error or
7990 interrupt or exception (see |:throw|).
7991
7992 *:th* *:throw* *E608*
7993:th[row] {expr1} The {expr1} is evaluated and thrown as an exception.
7994 If the ":throw" is used after a |:try| but before the
7995 first corresponding |:catch|, commands are skipped
7996 until the first ":catch" matching {expr1} is reached.
7997 If there is no such ":catch" or if the ":throw" is
7998 used after a ":catch" but before the |:finally|, the
7999 commands following the ":finally" (if present) up to
8000 the matching |:endtry| are executed. If the ":throw"
8001 is after the ":finally", commands up to the ":endtry"
8002 are skipped. At the ":endtry", this process applies
8003 again for the next dynamically surrounding ":try"
8004 (which may be found in a calling function or sourcing
8005 script), until a matching ":catch" has been found.
8006 If the exception is not caught, the command processing
8007 is terminated.
8008 Example: >
8009 :try | throw "oops" | catch /^oo/ | echo "caught" | endtry
Bram Moolenaar662db672011-03-22 14:05:35 +01008010< Note that "catch" may need to be on a separate line
8011 for when an error causes the parsing to skip the whole
8012 line and not see the "|" that separates the commands.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008013
8014 *:ec* *:echo*
8015:ec[ho] {expr1} .. Echoes each {expr1}, with a space in between. The
8016 first {expr1} starts on a new line.
8017 Also see |:comment|.
8018 Use "\n" to start a new line. Use "\r" to move the
8019 cursor to the first column.
8020 Uses the highlighting set by the |:echohl| command.
8021 Cannot be followed by a comment.
8022 Example: >
8023 :echo "the value of 'shell' is" &shell
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00008024< *:echo-redraw*
8025 A later redraw may make the message disappear again.
8026 And since Vim mostly postpones redrawing until it's
8027 finished with a sequence of commands this happens
8028 quite often. To avoid that a command from before the
8029 ":echo" causes a redraw afterwards (redraws are often
8030 postponed until you type something), force a redraw
8031 with the |:redraw| command. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008032 :new | redraw | echo "there is a new window"
8033<
8034 *:echon*
8035:echon {expr1} .. Echoes each {expr1}, without anything added. Also see
8036 |:comment|.
8037 Uses the highlighting set by the |:echohl| command.
8038 Cannot be followed by a comment.
8039 Example: >
8040 :echon "the value of 'shell' is " &shell
8041<
8042 Note the difference between using ":echo", which is a
8043 Vim command, and ":!echo", which is an external shell
8044 command: >
8045 :!echo % --> filename
8046< The arguments of ":!" are expanded, see |:_%|. >
8047 :!echo "%" --> filename or "filename"
8048< Like the previous example. Whether you see the double
8049 quotes or not depends on your 'shell'. >
8050 :echo % --> nothing
8051< The '%' is an illegal character in an expression. >
8052 :echo "%" --> %
8053< This just echoes the '%' character. >
8054 :echo expand("%") --> filename
8055< This calls the expand() function to expand the '%'.
8056
8057 *:echoh* *:echohl*
8058:echoh[l] {name} Use the highlight group {name} for the following
8059 |:echo|, |:echon| and |:echomsg| commands. Also used
8060 for the |input()| prompt. Example: >
8061 :echohl WarningMsg | echo "Don't panic!" | echohl None
8062< Don't forget to set the group back to "None",
8063 otherwise all following echo's will be highlighted.
8064
8065 *:echom* *:echomsg*
8066:echom[sg] {expr1} .. Echo the expression(s) as a true message, saving the
8067 message in the |message-history|.
8068 Spaces are placed between the arguments as with the
8069 |:echo| command. But unprintable characters are
8070 displayed, not interpreted.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00008071 The parsing works slightly different from |:echo|,
8072 more like |:execute|. All the expressions are first
8073 evaluated and concatenated before echoing anything.
8074 The expressions must evaluate to a Number or String, a
8075 Dictionary or List causes an error.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008076 Uses the highlighting set by the |:echohl| command.
8077 Example: >
8078 :echomsg "It's a Zizzer Zazzer Zuzz, as you can plainly see."
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00008079< See |:echo-redraw| to avoid the message disappearing
8080 when the screen is redrawn.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008081 *:echoe* *:echoerr*
8082:echoe[rr] {expr1} .. Echo the expression(s) as an error message, saving the
8083 message in the |message-history|. When used in a
8084 script or function the line number will be added.
8085 Spaces are placed between the arguments as with the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008086 :echo command. When used inside a try conditional,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008087 the message is raised as an error exception instead
8088 (see |try-echoerr|).
8089 Example: >
8090 :echoerr "This script just failed!"
8091< If you just want a highlighted message use |:echohl|.
8092 And to get a beep: >
8093 :exe "normal \<Esc>"
8094<
8095 *:exe* *:execute*
8096:exe[cute] {expr1} .. Executes the string that results from the evaluation
Bram Moolenaar00a927d2010-05-14 23:24:24 +02008097 of {expr1} as an Ex command.
8098 Multiple arguments are concatenated, with a space in
8099 between. To avoid the extra space use the "."
8100 operator to concatenate strings into one argument.
8101 {expr1} is used as the processed command, command line
8102 editing keys are not recognized.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008103 Cannot be followed by a comment.
8104 Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar00a927d2010-05-14 23:24:24 +02008105 :execute "buffer" nextbuf
8106 :execute "normal" count . "w"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008107<
8108 ":execute" can be used to append a command to commands
8109 that don't accept a '|'. Example: >
8110 :execute '!ls' | echo "theend"
8111
8112< ":execute" is also a nice way to avoid having to type
8113 control characters in a Vim script for a ":normal"
8114 command: >
8115 :execute "normal ixxx\<Esc>"
8116< This has an <Esc> character, see |expr-string|.
8117
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008118 Be careful to correctly escape special characters in
8119 file names. The |fnameescape()| function can be used
Bram Moolenaar05bb9532008-07-04 09:44:11 +00008120 for Vim commands, |shellescape()| for |:!| commands.
8121 Examples: >
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008122 :execute "e " . fnameescape(filename)
Bram Moolenaar251835e2014-02-24 02:51:51 +01008123 :execute "!ls " . shellescape(filename, 1)
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008124<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008125 Note: The executed string may be any command-line, but
Bram Moolenaar76f3b1a2014-03-27 22:30:07 +01008126 starting or ending "if", "while" and "for" does not
8127 always work, because when commands are skipped the
8128 ":execute" is not evaluated and Vim loses track of
8129 where blocks start and end. Also "break" and
8130 "continue" should not be inside ":execute".
8131 This example does not work, because the ":execute" is
8132 not evaluated and Vim does not see the "while", and
8133 gives an error for finding an ":endwhile": >
8134 :if 0
8135 : execute 'while i > 5'
8136 : echo "test"
8137 : endwhile
8138 :endif
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008139<
8140 It is allowed to have a "while" or "if" command
8141 completely in the executed string: >
8142 :execute 'while i < 5 | echo i | let i = i + 1 | endwhile'
8143<
8144
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01008145 *:exe-comment*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008146 ":execute", ":echo" and ":echon" cannot be followed by
8147 a comment directly, because they see the '"' as the
8148 start of a string. But, you can use '|' followed by a
8149 comment. Example: >
8150 :echo "foo" | "this is a comment
8151
8152==============================================================================
81538. Exception handling *exception-handling*
8154
8155The Vim script language comprises an exception handling feature. This section
8156explains how it can be used in a Vim script.
8157
8158Exceptions may be raised by Vim on an error or on interrupt, see
8159|catch-errors| and |catch-interrupt|. You can also explicitly throw an
8160exception by using the ":throw" command, see |throw-catch|.
8161
8162
8163TRY CONDITIONALS *try-conditionals*
8164
8165Exceptions can be caught or can cause cleanup code to be executed. You can
8166use a try conditional to specify catch clauses (that catch exceptions) and/or
8167a finally clause (to be executed for cleanup).
8168 A try conditional begins with a |:try| command and ends at the matching
8169|:endtry| command. In between, you can use a |:catch| command to start
8170a catch clause, or a |:finally| command to start a finally clause. There may
8171be none or multiple catch clauses, but there is at most one finally clause,
8172which must not be followed by any catch clauses. The lines before the catch
8173clauses and the finally clause is called a try block. >
8174
8175 :try
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008176 : ...
8177 : ... TRY BLOCK
8178 : ...
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008179 :catch /{pattern}/
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008180 : ...
8181 : ... CATCH CLAUSE
8182 : ...
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008183 :catch /{pattern}/
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008184 : ...
8185 : ... CATCH CLAUSE
8186 : ...
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008187 :finally
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008188 : ...
8189 : ... FINALLY CLAUSE
8190 : ...
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008191 :endtry
8192
8193The try conditional allows to watch code for exceptions and to take the
8194appropriate actions. Exceptions from the try block may be caught. Exceptions
8195from the try block and also the catch clauses may cause cleanup actions.
8196 When no exception is thrown during execution of the try block, the control
8197is transferred to the finally clause, if present. After its execution, the
8198script continues with the line following the ":endtry".
8199 When an exception occurs during execution of the try block, the remaining
8200lines in the try block are skipped. The exception is matched against the
8201patterns specified as arguments to the ":catch" commands. The catch clause
8202after the first matching ":catch" is taken, other catch clauses are not
8203executed. The catch clause ends when the next ":catch", ":finally", or
8204":endtry" command is reached - whatever is first. Then, the finally clause
8205(if present) is executed. When the ":endtry" is reached, the script execution
8206continues in the following line as usual.
8207 When an exception that does not match any of the patterns specified by the
8208":catch" commands is thrown in the try block, the exception is not caught by
8209that try conditional and none of the catch clauses is executed. Only the
8210finally clause, if present, is taken. The exception pends during execution of
8211the finally clause. It is resumed at the ":endtry", so that commands after
8212the ":endtry" are not executed and the exception might be caught elsewhere,
8213see |try-nesting|.
8214 When during execution of a catch clause another exception is thrown, the
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008215remaining lines in that catch clause are not executed. The new exception is
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008216not matched against the patterns in any of the ":catch" commands of the same
8217try conditional and none of its catch clauses is taken. If there is, however,
8218a finally clause, it is executed, and the exception pends during its
8219execution. The commands following the ":endtry" are not executed. The new
8220exception might, however, be caught elsewhere, see |try-nesting|.
8221 When during execution of the finally clause (if present) an exception is
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008222thrown, the remaining lines in the finally clause are skipped. If the finally
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008223clause has been taken because of an exception from the try block or one of the
8224catch clauses, the original (pending) exception is discarded. The commands
8225following the ":endtry" are not executed, and the exception from the finally
8226clause is propagated and can be caught elsewhere, see |try-nesting|.
8227
8228The finally clause is also executed, when a ":break" or ":continue" for
8229a ":while" loop enclosing the complete try conditional is executed from the
8230try block or a catch clause. Or when a ":return" or ":finish" is executed
8231from the try block or a catch clause of a try conditional in a function or
8232sourced script, respectively. The ":break", ":continue", ":return", or
8233":finish" pends during execution of the finally clause and is resumed when the
8234":endtry" is reached. It is, however, discarded when an exception is thrown
8235from the finally clause.
8236 When a ":break" or ":continue" for a ":while" loop enclosing the complete
8237try conditional or when a ":return" or ":finish" is encountered in the finally
8238clause, the rest of the finally clause is skipped, and the ":break",
8239":continue", ":return" or ":finish" is executed as usual. If the finally
8240clause has been taken because of an exception or an earlier ":break",
8241":continue", ":return", or ":finish" from the try block or a catch clause,
8242this pending exception or command is discarded.
8243
8244For examples see |throw-catch| and |try-finally|.
8245
8246
8247NESTING OF TRY CONDITIONALS *try-nesting*
8248
8249Try conditionals can be nested arbitrarily. That is, a complete try
8250conditional can be put into the try block, a catch clause, or the finally
8251clause of another try conditional. If the inner try conditional does not
8252catch an exception thrown in its try block or throws a new exception from one
8253of its catch clauses or its finally clause, the outer try conditional is
8254checked according to the rules above. If the inner try conditional is in the
8255try block of the outer try conditional, its catch clauses are checked, but
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008256otherwise only the finally clause is executed. It does not matter for
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008257nesting, whether the inner try conditional is directly contained in the outer
8258one, or whether the outer one sources a script or calls a function containing
8259the inner try conditional.
8260
8261When none of the active try conditionals catches an exception, just their
8262finally clauses are executed. Thereafter, the script processing terminates.
8263An error message is displayed in case of an uncaught exception explicitly
8264thrown by a ":throw" command. For uncaught error and interrupt exceptions
8265implicitly raised by Vim, the error message(s) or interrupt message are shown
8266as usual.
8267
8268For examples see |throw-catch|.
8269
8270
8271EXAMINING EXCEPTION HANDLING CODE *except-examine*
8272
8273Exception handling code can get tricky. If you are in doubt what happens, set
8274'verbose' to 13 or use the ":13verbose" command modifier when sourcing your
8275script file. Then you see when an exception is thrown, discarded, caught, or
8276finished. When using a verbosity level of at least 14, things pending in
8277a finally clause are also shown. This information is also given in debug mode
8278(see |debug-scripts|).
8279
8280
8281THROWING AND CATCHING EXCEPTIONS *throw-catch*
8282
8283You can throw any number or string as an exception. Use the |:throw| command
8284and pass the value to be thrown as argument: >
8285 :throw 4711
8286 :throw "string"
8287< *throw-expression*
8288You can also specify an expression argument. The expression is then evaluated
8289first, and the result is thrown: >
8290 :throw 4705 + strlen("string")
8291 :throw strpart("strings", 0, 6)
8292
8293An exception might be thrown during evaluation of the argument of the ":throw"
8294command. Unless it is caught there, the expression evaluation is abandoned.
8295The ":throw" command then does not throw a new exception.
8296 Example: >
8297
8298 :function! Foo(arg)
8299 : try
8300 : throw a:arg
8301 : catch /foo/
8302 : endtry
8303 : return 1
8304 :endfunction
8305 :
8306 :function! Bar()
8307 : echo "in Bar"
8308 : return 4710
8309 :endfunction
8310 :
8311 :throw Foo("arrgh") + Bar()
8312
8313This throws "arrgh", and "in Bar" is not displayed since Bar() is not
8314executed. >
8315 :throw Foo("foo") + Bar()
8316however displays "in Bar" and throws 4711.
8317
8318Any other command that takes an expression as argument might also be
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008319abandoned by an (uncaught) exception during the expression evaluation. The
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008320exception is then propagated to the caller of the command.
8321 Example: >
8322
8323 :if Foo("arrgh")
8324 : echo "then"
8325 :else
8326 : echo "else"
8327 :endif
8328
8329Here neither of "then" or "else" is displayed.
8330
8331 *catch-order*
8332Exceptions can be caught by a try conditional with one or more |:catch|
8333commands, see |try-conditionals|. The values to be caught by each ":catch"
8334command can be specified as a pattern argument. The subsequent catch clause
8335gets executed when a matching exception is caught.
8336 Example: >
8337
8338 :function! Foo(value)
8339 : try
8340 : throw a:value
8341 : catch /^\d\+$/
8342 : echo "Number thrown"
8343 : catch /.*/
8344 : echo "String thrown"
8345 : endtry
8346 :endfunction
8347 :
8348 :call Foo(0x1267)
8349 :call Foo('string')
8350
8351The first call to Foo() displays "Number thrown", the second "String thrown".
8352An exception is matched against the ":catch" commands in the order they are
8353specified. Only the first match counts. So you should place the more
8354specific ":catch" first. The following order does not make sense: >
8355
8356 : catch /.*/
8357 : echo "String thrown"
8358 : catch /^\d\+$/
8359 : echo "Number thrown"
8360
8361The first ":catch" here matches always, so that the second catch clause is
8362never taken.
8363
8364 *throw-variables*
8365If you catch an exception by a general pattern, you may access the exact value
8366in the variable |v:exception|: >
8367
8368 : catch /^\d\+$/
8369 : echo "Number thrown. Value is" v:exception
8370
8371You may also be interested where an exception was thrown. This is stored in
8372|v:throwpoint|. Note that "v:exception" and "v:throwpoint" are valid for the
8373exception most recently caught as long it is not finished.
8374 Example: >
8375
8376 :function! Caught()
8377 : if v:exception != ""
8378 : echo 'Caught "' . v:exception . '" in ' . v:throwpoint
8379 : else
8380 : echo 'Nothing caught'
8381 : endif
8382 :endfunction
8383 :
8384 :function! Foo()
8385 : try
8386 : try
8387 : try
8388 : throw 4711
8389 : finally
8390 : call Caught()
8391 : endtry
8392 : catch /.*/
8393 : call Caught()
8394 : throw "oops"
8395 : endtry
8396 : catch /.*/
8397 : call Caught()
8398 : finally
8399 : call Caught()
8400 : endtry
8401 :endfunction
8402 :
8403 :call Foo()
8404
8405This displays >
8406
8407 Nothing caught
8408 Caught "4711" in function Foo, line 4
8409 Caught "oops" in function Foo, line 10
8410 Nothing caught
8411
8412A practical example: The following command ":LineNumber" displays the line
8413number in the script or function where it has been used: >
8414
8415 :function! LineNumber()
8416 : return substitute(v:throwpoint, '.*\D\(\d\+\).*', '\1', "")
8417 :endfunction
8418 :command! LineNumber try | throw "" | catch | echo LineNumber() | endtry
8419<
8420 *try-nested*
8421An exception that is not caught by a try conditional can be caught by
8422a surrounding try conditional: >
8423
8424 :try
8425 : try
8426 : throw "foo"
8427 : catch /foobar/
8428 : echo "foobar"
8429 : finally
8430 : echo "inner finally"
8431 : endtry
8432 :catch /foo/
8433 : echo "foo"
8434 :endtry
8435
8436The inner try conditional does not catch the exception, just its finally
8437clause is executed. The exception is then caught by the outer try
8438conditional. The example displays "inner finally" and then "foo".
8439
8440 *throw-from-catch*
8441You can catch an exception and throw a new one to be caught elsewhere from the
8442catch clause: >
8443
8444 :function! Foo()
8445 : throw "foo"
8446 :endfunction
8447 :
8448 :function! Bar()
8449 : try
8450 : call Foo()
8451 : catch /foo/
8452 : echo "Caught foo, throw bar"
8453 : throw "bar"
8454 : endtry
8455 :endfunction
8456 :
8457 :try
8458 : call Bar()
8459 :catch /.*/
8460 : echo "Caught" v:exception
8461 :endtry
8462
8463This displays "Caught foo, throw bar" and then "Caught bar".
8464
8465 *rethrow*
8466There is no real rethrow in the Vim script language, but you may throw
8467"v:exception" instead: >
8468
8469 :function! Bar()
8470 : try
8471 : call Foo()
8472 : catch /.*/
8473 : echo "Rethrow" v:exception
8474 : throw v:exception
8475 : endtry
8476 :endfunction
8477< *try-echoerr*
8478Note that this method cannot be used to "rethrow" Vim error or interrupt
8479exceptions, because it is not possible to fake Vim internal exceptions.
8480Trying so causes an error exception. You should throw your own exception
8481denoting the situation. If you want to cause a Vim error exception containing
8482the original error exception value, you can use the |:echoerr| command: >
8483
8484 :try
8485 : try
8486 : asdf
8487 : catch /.*/
8488 : echoerr v:exception
8489 : endtry
8490 :catch /.*/
8491 : echo v:exception
8492 :endtry
8493
8494This code displays
8495
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008496 Vim(echoerr):Vim:E492: Not an editor command: asdf ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008497
8498
8499CLEANUP CODE *try-finally*
8500
8501Scripts often change global settings and restore them at their end. If the
8502user however interrupts the script by pressing CTRL-C, the settings remain in
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008503an inconsistent state. The same may happen to you in the development phase of
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008504a script when an error occurs or you explicitly throw an exception without
8505catching it. You can solve these problems by using a try conditional with
8506a finally clause for restoring the settings. Its execution is guaranteed on
8507normal control flow, on error, on an explicit ":throw", and on interrupt.
8508(Note that errors and interrupts from inside the try conditional are converted
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008509to exceptions. When not caught, they terminate the script after the finally
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008510clause has been executed.)
8511Example: >
8512
8513 :try
8514 : let s:saved_ts = &ts
8515 : set ts=17
8516 :
8517 : " Do the hard work here.
8518 :
8519 :finally
8520 : let &ts = s:saved_ts
8521 : unlet s:saved_ts
8522 :endtry
8523
8524This method should be used locally whenever a function or part of a script
8525changes global settings which need to be restored on failure or normal exit of
8526that function or script part.
8527
8528 *break-finally*
8529Cleanup code works also when the try block or a catch clause is left by
8530a ":continue", ":break", ":return", or ":finish".
8531 Example: >
8532
8533 :let first = 1
8534 :while 1
8535 : try
8536 : if first
8537 : echo "first"
8538 : let first = 0
8539 : continue
8540 : else
8541 : throw "second"
8542 : endif
8543 : catch /.*/
8544 : echo v:exception
8545 : break
8546 : finally
8547 : echo "cleanup"
8548 : endtry
8549 : echo "still in while"
8550 :endwhile
8551 :echo "end"
8552
8553This displays "first", "cleanup", "second", "cleanup", and "end". >
8554
8555 :function! Foo()
8556 : try
8557 : return 4711
8558 : finally
8559 : echo "cleanup\n"
8560 : endtry
8561 : echo "Foo still active"
8562 :endfunction
8563 :
8564 :echo Foo() "returned by Foo"
8565
8566This displays "cleanup" and "4711 returned by Foo". You don't need to add an
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008567extra ":return" in the finally clause. (Above all, this would override the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008568return value.)
8569
8570 *except-from-finally*
8571Using either of ":continue", ":break", ":return", ":finish", or ":throw" in
8572a finally clause is possible, but not recommended since it abandons the
8573cleanup actions for the try conditional. But, of course, interrupt and error
8574exceptions might get raised from a finally clause.
8575 Example where an error in the finally clause stops an interrupt from
8576working correctly: >
8577
8578 :try
8579 : try
8580 : echo "Press CTRL-C for interrupt"
8581 : while 1
8582 : endwhile
8583 : finally
8584 : unlet novar
8585 : endtry
8586 :catch /novar/
8587 :endtry
8588 :echo "Script still running"
8589 :sleep 1
8590
8591If you need to put commands that could fail into a finally clause, you should
8592think about catching or ignoring the errors in these commands, see
8593|catch-errors| and |ignore-errors|.
8594
8595
8596CATCHING ERRORS *catch-errors*
8597
8598If you want to catch specific errors, you just have to put the code to be
8599watched in a try block and add a catch clause for the error message. The
8600presence of the try conditional causes all errors to be converted to an
8601exception. No message is displayed and |v:errmsg| is not set then. To find
8602the right pattern for the ":catch" command, you have to know how the format of
8603the error exception is.
8604 Error exceptions have the following format: >
8605
8606 Vim({cmdname}):{errmsg}
8607or >
8608 Vim:{errmsg}
8609
8610{cmdname} is the name of the command that failed; the second form is used when
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008611the command name is not known. {errmsg} is the error message usually produced
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008612when the error occurs outside try conditionals. It always begins with
8613a capital "E", followed by a two or three-digit error number, a colon, and
8614a space.
8615
8616Examples:
8617
8618The command >
8619 :unlet novar
8620normally produces the error message >
8621 E108: No such variable: "novar"
8622which is converted inside try conditionals to an exception >
8623 Vim(unlet):E108: No such variable: "novar"
8624
8625The command >
8626 :dwim
8627normally produces the error message >
8628 E492: Not an editor command: dwim
8629which is converted inside try conditionals to an exception >
8630 Vim:E492: Not an editor command: dwim
8631
8632You can catch all ":unlet" errors by a >
8633 :catch /^Vim(unlet):/
8634or all errors for misspelled command names by a >
8635 :catch /^Vim:E492:/
8636
8637Some error messages may be produced by different commands: >
8638 :function nofunc
8639and >
8640 :delfunction nofunc
8641both produce the error message >
8642 E128: Function name must start with a capital: nofunc
8643which is converted inside try conditionals to an exception >
8644 Vim(function):E128: Function name must start with a capital: nofunc
8645or >
8646 Vim(delfunction):E128: Function name must start with a capital: nofunc
8647respectively. You can catch the error by its number independently on the
8648command that caused it if you use the following pattern: >
8649 :catch /^Vim(\a\+):E128:/
8650
8651Some commands like >
8652 :let x = novar
8653produce multiple error messages, here: >
8654 E121: Undefined variable: novar
8655 E15: Invalid expression: novar
8656Only the first is used for the exception value, since it is the most specific
8657one (see |except-several-errors|). So you can catch it by >
8658 :catch /^Vim(\a\+):E121:/
8659
8660You can catch all errors related to the name "nofunc" by >
8661 :catch /\<nofunc\>/
8662
8663You can catch all Vim errors in the ":write" and ":read" commands by >
8664 :catch /^Vim(\(write\|read\)):E\d\+:/
8665
8666You can catch all Vim errors by the pattern >
8667 :catch /^Vim\((\a\+)\)\=:E\d\+:/
8668<
8669 *catch-text*
8670NOTE: You should never catch the error message text itself: >
8671 :catch /No such variable/
Bram Moolenaar2b8388b2015-02-28 13:11:45 +01008672only works in the English locale, but not when the user has selected
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008673a different language by the |:language| command. It is however helpful to
8674cite the message text in a comment: >
8675 :catch /^Vim(\a\+):E108:/ " No such variable
8676
8677
8678IGNORING ERRORS *ignore-errors*
8679
8680You can ignore errors in a specific Vim command by catching them locally: >
8681
8682 :try
8683 : write
8684 :catch
8685 :endtry
8686
8687But you are strongly recommended NOT to use this simple form, since it could
8688catch more than you want. With the ":write" command, some autocommands could
8689be executed and cause errors not related to writing, for instance: >
8690
8691 :au BufWritePre * unlet novar
8692
8693There could even be such errors you are not responsible for as a script
8694writer: a user of your script might have defined such autocommands. You would
8695then hide the error from the user.
8696 It is much better to use >
8697
8698 :try
8699 : write
8700 :catch /^Vim(write):/
8701 :endtry
8702
8703which only catches real write errors. So catch only what you'd like to ignore
8704intentionally.
8705
8706For a single command that does not cause execution of autocommands, you could
8707even suppress the conversion of errors to exceptions by the ":silent!"
8708command: >
8709 :silent! nunmap k
8710This works also when a try conditional is active.
8711
8712
8713CATCHING INTERRUPTS *catch-interrupt*
8714
8715When there are active try conditionals, an interrupt (CTRL-C) is converted to
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008716the exception "Vim:Interrupt". You can catch it like every exception. The
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008717script is not terminated, then.
8718 Example: >
8719
8720 :function! TASK1()
8721 : sleep 10
8722 :endfunction
8723
8724 :function! TASK2()
8725 : sleep 20
8726 :endfunction
8727
8728 :while 1
8729 : let command = input("Type a command: ")
8730 : try
8731 : if command == ""
8732 : continue
8733 : elseif command == "END"
8734 : break
8735 : elseif command == "TASK1"
8736 : call TASK1()
8737 : elseif command == "TASK2"
8738 : call TASK2()
8739 : else
8740 : echo "\nIllegal command:" command
8741 : continue
8742 : endif
8743 : catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/
8744 : echo "\nCommand interrupted"
8745 : " Caught the interrupt. Continue with next prompt.
8746 : endtry
8747 :endwhile
8748
8749You can interrupt a task here by pressing CTRL-C; the script then asks for
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008750a new command. If you press CTRL-C at the prompt, the script is terminated.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008751
8752For testing what happens when CTRL-C would be pressed on a specific line in
8753your script, use the debug mode and execute the |>quit| or |>interrupt|
8754command on that line. See |debug-scripts|.
8755
8756
8757CATCHING ALL *catch-all*
8758
8759The commands >
8760
8761 :catch /.*/
8762 :catch //
8763 :catch
8764
8765catch everything, error exceptions, interrupt exceptions and exceptions
8766explicitly thrown by the |:throw| command. This is useful at the top level of
8767a script in order to catch unexpected things.
8768 Example: >
8769
8770 :try
8771 :
8772 : " do the hard work here
8773 :
8774 :catch /MyException/
8775 :
8776 : " handle known problem
8777 :
8778 :catch /^Vim:Interrupt$/
8779 : echo "Script interrupted"
8780 :catch /.*/
8781 : echo "Internal error (" . v:exception . ")"
8782 : echo " - occurred at " . v:throwpoint
8783 :endtry
8784 :" end of script
8785
8786Note: Catching all might catch more things than you want. Thus, you are
8787strongly encouraged to catch only for problems that you can really handle by
8788specifying a pattern argument to the ":catch".
8789 Example: Catching all could make it nearly impossible to interrupt a script
8790by pressing CTRL-C: >
8791
8792 :while 1
8793 : try
8794 : sleep 1
8795 : catch
8796 : endtry
8797 :endwhile
8798
8799
8800EXCEPTIONS AND AUTOCOMMANDS *except-autocmd*
8801
8802Exceptions may be used during execution of autocommands. Example: >
8803
8804 :autocmd User x try
8805 :autocmd User x throw "Oops!"
8806 :autocmd User x catch
8807 :autocmd User x echo v:exception
8808 :autocmd User x endtry
8809 :autocmd User x throw "Arrgh!"
8810 :autocmd User x echo "Should not be displayed"
8811 :
8812 :try
8813 : doautocmd User x
8814 :catch
8815 : echo v:exception
8816 :endtry
8817
8818This displays "Oops!" and "Arrgh!".
8819
8820 *except-autocmd-Pre*
8821For some commands, autocommands get executed before the main action of the
8822command takes place. If an exception is thrown and not caught in the sequence
8823of autocommands, the sequence and the command that caused its execution are
8824abandoned and the exception is propagated to the caller of the command.
8825 Example: >
8826
8827 :autocmd BufWritePre * throw "FAIL"
8828 :autocmd BufWritePre * echo "Should not be displayed"
8829 :
8830 :try
8831 : write
8832 :catch
8833 : echo "Caught:" v:exception "from" v:throwpoint
8834 :endtry
8835
8836Here, the ":write" command does not write the file currently being edited (as
8837you can see by checking 'modified'), since the exception from the BufWritePre
8838autocommand abandons the ":write". The exception is then caught and the
8839script displays: >
8840
8841 Caught: FAIL from BufWrite Auto commands for "*"
8842<
8843 *except-autocmd-Post*
8844For some commands, autocommands get executed after the main action of the
8845command has taken place. If this main action fails and the command is inside
8846an active try conditional, the autocommands are skipped and an error exception
8847is thrown that can be caught by the caller of the command.
8848 Example: >
8849
8850 :autocmd BufWritePost * echo "File successfully written!"
8851 :
8852 :try
8853 : write /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
8854 :catch
8855 : echo v:exception
8856 :endtry
8857
8858This just displays: >
8859
8860 Vim(write):E212: Can't open file for writing (/i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e)
8861
8862If you really need to execute the autocommands even when the main action
8863fails, trigger the event from the catch clause.
8864 Example: >
8865
8866 :autocmd BufWritePre * set noreadonly
8867 :autocmd BufWritePost * set readonly
8868 :
8869 :try
8870 : write /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
8871 :catch
8872 : doautocmd BufWritePost /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
8873 :endtry
8874<
8875You can also use ":silent!": >
8876
8877 :let x = "ok"
8878 :let v:errmsg = ""
8879 :autocmd BufWritePost * if v:errmsg != ""
8880 :autocmd BufWritePost * let x = "after fail"
8881 :autocmd BufWritePost * endif
8882 :try
8883 : silent! write /i/m/p/o/s/s/i/b/l/e
8884 :catch
8885 :endtry
8886 :echo x
8887
8888This displays "after fail".
8889
8890If the main action of the command does not fail, exceptions from the
8891autocommands will be catchable by the caller of the command: >
8892
8893 :autocmd BufWritePost * throw ":-("
8894 :autocmd BufWritePost * echo "Should not be displayed"
8895 :
8896 :try
8897 : write
8898 :catch
8899 : echo v:exception
8900 :endtry
8901<
8902 *except-autocmd-Cmd*
8903For some commands, the normal action can be replaced by a sequence of
8904autocommands. Exceptions from that sequence will be catchable by the caller
8905of the command.
8906 Example: For the ":write" command, the caller cannot know whether the file
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00008907had actually been written when the exception occurred. You need to tell it in
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00008908some way. >
8909
8910 :if !exists("cnt")
8911 : let cnt = 0
8912 :
8913 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * if &modified
8914 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * let cnt = cnt + 1
8915 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * if cnt % 3 == 2
8916 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * throw "BufWriteCmdError"
8917 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * endif
8918 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * write | set nomodified
8919 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * if cnt % 3 == 0
8920 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * throw "BufWriteCmdError"
8921 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * endif
8922 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * echo "File successfully written!"
8923 : autocmd BufWriteCmd * endif
8924 :endif
8925 :
8926 :try
8927 : write
8928 :catch /^BufWriteCmdError$/
8929 : if &modified
8930 : echo "Error on writing (file contents not changed)"
8931 : else
8932 : echo "Error after writing"
8933 : endif
8934 :catch /^Vim(write):/
8935 : echo "Error on writing"
8936 :endtry
8937
8938When this script is sourced several times after making changes, it displays
8939first >
8940 File successfully written!
8941then >
8942 Error on writing (file contents not changed)
8943then >
8944 Error after writing
8945etc.
8946
8947 *except-autocmd-ill*
8948You cannot spread a try conditional over autocommands for different events.
8949The following code is ill-formed: >
8950
8951 :autocmd BufWritePre * try
8952 :
8953 :autocmd BufWritePost * catch
8954 :autocmd BufWritePost * echo v:exception
8955 :autocmd BufWritePost * endtry
8956 :
8957 :write
8958
8959
8960EXCEPTION HIERARCHIES AND PARAMETERIZED EXCEPTIONS *except-hier-param*
8961
8962Some programming languages allow to use hierarchies of exception classes or to
8963pass additional information with the object of an exception class. You can do
8964similar things in Vim.
8965 In order to throw an exception from a hierarchy, just throw the complete
8966class name with the components separated by a colon, for instance throw the
8967string "EXCEPT:MATHERR:OVERFLOW" for an overflow in a mathematical library.
8968 When you want to pass additional information with your exception class, add
8969it in parentheses, for instance throw the string "EXCEPT:IO:WRITEERR(myfile)"
8970for an error when writing "myfile".
8971 With the appropriate patterns in the ":catch" command, you can catch for
8972base classes or derived classes of your hierarchy. Additional information in
8973parentheses can be cut out from |v:exception| with the ":substitute" command.
8974 Example: >
8975
8976 :function! CheckRange(a, func)
8977 : if a:a < 0
8978 : throw "EXCEPT:MATHERR:RANGE(" . a:func . ")"
8979 : endif
8980 :endfunction
8981 :
8982 :function! Add(a, b)
8983 : call CheckRange(a:a, "Add")
8984 : call CheckRange(a:b, "Add")
8985 : let c = a:a + a:b
8986 : if c < 0
8987 : throw "EXCEPT:MATHERR:OVERFLOW"
8988 : endif
8989 : return c
8990 :endfunction
8991 :
8992 :function! Div(a, b)
8993 : call CheckRange(a:a, "Div")
8994 : call CheckRange(a:b, "Div")
8995 : if (a:b == 0)
8996 : throw "EXCEPT:MATHERR:ZERODIV"
8997 : endif
8998 : return a:a / a:b
8999 :endfunction
9000 :
9001 :function! Write(file)
9002 : try
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009003 : execute "write" fnameescape(a:file)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009004 : catch /^Vim(write):/
9005 : throw "EXCEPT:IO(" . getcwd() . ", " . a:file . "):WRITEERR"
9006 : endtry
9007 :endfunction
9008 :
9009 :try
9010 :
9011 : " something with arithmetics and I/O
9012 :
9013 :catch /^EXCEPT:MATHERR:RANGE/
9014 : let function = substitute(v:exception, '.*(\(\a\+\)).*', '\1', "")
9015 : echo "Range error in" function
9016 :
9017 :catch /^EXCEPT:MATHERR/ " catches OVERFLOW and ZERODIV
9018 : echo "Math error"
9019 :
9020 :catch /^EXCEPT:IO/
9021 : let dir = substitute(v:exception, '.*(\(.\+\),\s*.\+).*', '\1', "")
9022 : let file = substitute(v:exception, '.*(.\+,\s*\(.\+\)).*', '\1', "")
9023 : if file !~ '^/'
9024 : let file = dir . "/" . file
9025 : endif
9026 : echo 'I/O error for "' . file . '"'
9027 :
9028 :catch /^EXCEPT/
9029 : echo "Unspecified error"
9030 :
9031 :endtry
9032
9033The exceptions raised by Vim itself (on error or when pressing CTRL-C) use
9034a flat hierarchy: they are all in the "Vim" class. You cannot throw yourself
9035exceptions with the "Vim" prefix; they are reserved for Vim.
9036 Vim error exceptions are parameterized with the name of the command that
9037failed, if known. See |catch-errors|.
9038
9039
9040PECULIARITIES
9041 *except-compat*
9042The exception handling concept requires that the command sequence causing the
9043exception is aborted immediately and control is transferred to finally clauses
9044and/or a catch clause.
9045
9046In the Vim script language there are cases where scripts and functions
9047continue after an error: in functions without the "abort" flag or in a command
9048after ":silent!", control flow goes to the following line, and outside
9049functions, control flow goes to the line following the outermost ":endwhile"
9050or ":endif". On the other hand, errors should be catchable as exceptions
9051(thus, requiring the immediate abortion).
9052
9053This problem has been solved by converting errors to exceptions and using
9054immediate abortion (if not suppressed by ":silent!") only when a try
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009055conditional is active. This is no restriction since an (error) exception can
9056be caught only from an active try conditional. If you want an immediate
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009057termination without catching the error, just use a try conditional without
9058catch clause. (You can cause cleanup code being executed before termination
9059by specifying a finally clause.)
9060
9061When no try conditional is active, the usual abortion and continuation
9062behavior is used instead of immediate abortion. This ensures compatibility of
9063scripts written for Vim 6.1 and earlier.
9064
9065However, when sourcing an existing script that does not use exception handling
9066commands (or when calling one of its functions) from inside an active try
9067conditional of a new script, you might change the control flow of the existing
9068script on error. You get the immediate abortion on error and can catch the
9069error in the new script. If however the sourced script suppresses error
9070messages by using the ":silent!" command (checking for errors by testing
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009071|v:errmsg| if appropriate), its execution path is not changed. The error is
9072not converted to an exception. (See |:silent|.) So the only remaining cause
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009073where this happens is for scripts that don't care about errors and produce
9074error messages. You probably won't want to use such code from your new
9075scripts.
9076
9077 *except-syntax-err*
9078Syntax errors in the exception handling commands are never caught by any of
9079the ":catch" commands of the try conditional they belong to. Its finally
9080clauses, however, is executed.
9081 Example: >
9082
9083 :try
9084 : try
9085 : throw 4711
9086 : catch /\(/
9087 : echo "in catch with syntax error"
9088 : catch
9089 : echo "inner catch-all"
9090 : finally
9091 : echo "inner finally"
9092 : endtry
9093 :catch
9094 : echo 'outer catch-all caught "' . v:exception . '"'
9095 : finally
9096 : echo "outer finally"
9097 :endtry
9098
9099This displays: >
9100 inner finally
9101 outer catch-all caught "Vim(catch):E54: Unmatched \("
9102 outer finally
9103The original exception is discarded and an error exception is raised, instead.
9104
9105 *except-single-line*
9106The ":try", ":catch", ":finally", and ":endtry" commands can be put on
9107a single line, but then syntax errors may make it difficult to recognize the
9108"catch" line, thus you better avoid this.
9109 Example: >
9110 :try | unlet! foo # | catch | endtry
9111raises an error exception for the trailing characters after the ":unlet!"
9112argument, but does not see the ":catch" and ":endtry" commands, so that the
9113error exception is discarded and the "E488: Trailing characters" message gets
9114displayed.
9115
9116 *except-several-errors*
9117When several errors appear in a single command, the first error message is
9118usually the most specific one and therefor converted to the error exception.
9119 Example: >
9120 echo novar
9121causes >
9122 E121: Undefined variable: novar
9123 E15: Invalid expression: novar
9124The value of the error exception inside try conditionals is: >
9125 Vim(echo):E121: Undefined variable: novar
9126< *except-syntax-error*
9127But when a syntax error is detected after a normal error in the same command,
9128the syntax error is used for the exception being thrown.
9129 Example: >
9130 unlet novar #
9131causes >
9132 E108: No such variable: "novar"
9133 E488: Trailing characters
9134The value of the error exception inside try conditionals is: >
9135 Vim(unlet):E488: Trailing characters
9136This is done because the syntax error might change the execution path in a way
9137not intended by the user. Example: >
9138 try
9139 try | unlet novar # | catch | echo v:exception | endtry
9140 catch /.*/
9141 echo "outer catch:" v:exception
9142 endtry
9143This displays "outer catch: Vim(unlet):E488: Trailing characters", and then
9144a "E600: Missing :endtry" error message is given, see |except-single-line|.
9145
9146==============================================================================
91479. Examples *eval-examples*
9148
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009149Printing in Binary ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009150>
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01009151 :" The function Nr2Bin() returns the binary string representation of a number.
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009152 :func Nr2Bin(nr)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009153 : let n = a:nr
9154 : let r = ""
9155 : while n
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009156 : let r = '01'[n % 2] . r
9157 : let n = n / 2
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009158 : endwhile
9159 : return r
9160 :endfunc
9161
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009162 :" The function String2Bin() converts each character in a string to a
9163 :" binary string, separated with dashes.
9164 :func String2Bin(str)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009165 : let out = ''
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009166 : for ix in range(strlen(a:str))
9167 : let out = out . '-' . Nr2Bin(char2nr(a:str[ix]))
9168 : endfor
9169 : return out[1:]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009170 :endfunc
9171
9172Example of its use: >
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009173 :echo Nr2Bin(32)
9174result: "100000" >
9175 :echo String2Bin("32")
9176result: "110011-110010"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009177
9178
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009179Sorting lines ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009180
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009181This example sorts lines with a specific compare function. >
9182
9183 :func SortBuffer()
9184 : let lines = getline(1, '$')
9185 : call sort(lines, function("Strcmp"))
9186 : call setline(1, lines)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009187 :endfunction
9188
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009189As a one-liner: >
9190 :call setline(1, sort(getline(1, '$'), function("Strcmp")))
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009191
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009192
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009193scanf() replacement ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009194 *sscanf*
9195There is no sscanf() function in Vim. If you need to extract parts from a
9196line, you can use matchstr() and substitute() to do it. This example shows
9197how to get the file name, line number and column number out of a line like
9198"foobar.txt, 123, 45". >
9199 :" Set up the match bit
9200 :let mx='\(\f\+\),\s*\(\d\+\),\s*\(\d\+\)'
9201 :"get the part matching the whole expression
9202 :let l = matchstr(line, mx)
9203 :"get each item out of the match
9204 :let file = substitute(l, mx, '\1', '')
9205 :let lnum = substitute(l, mx, '\2', '')
9206 :let col = substitute(l, mx, '\3', '')
9207
9208The input is in the variable "line", the results in the variables "file",
9209"lnum" and "col". (idea from Michael Geddes)
9210
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009211
9212getting the scriptnames in a Dictionary ~
9213 *scriptnames-dictionary*
9214The |:scriptnames| command can be used to get a list of all script files that
9215have been sourced. There is no equivalent function or variable for this
9216(because it's rarely needed). In case you need to manipulate the list this
9217code can be used: >
9218 " Get the output of ":scriptnames" in the scriptnames_output variable.
9219 let scriptnames_output = ''
9220 redir => scriptnames_output
9221 silent scriptnames
9222 redir END
9223
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009224 " Split the output into lines and parse each line. Add an entry to the
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009225 " "scripts" dictionary.
9226 let scripts = {}
9227 for line in split(scriptnames_output, "\n")
9228 " Only do non-blank lines.
9229 if line =~ '\S'
9230 " Get the first number in the line.
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009231 let nr = matchstr(line, '\d\+')
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009232 " Get the file name, remove the script number " 123: ".
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009233 let name = substitute(line, '.\+:\s*', '', '')
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009234 " Add an item to the Dictionary
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009235 let scripts[nr] = name
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009236 endif
9237 endfor
9238 unlet scriptnames_output
9239
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009240==============================================================================
924110. No +eval feature *no-eval-feature*
9242
9243When the |+eval| feature was disabled at compile time, none of the expression
9244evaluation commands are available. To prevent this from causing Vim scripts
9245to generate all kinds of errors, the ":if" and ":endif" commands are still
9246recognized, though the argument of the ":if" and everything between the ":if"
9247and the matching ":endif" is ignored. Nesting of ":if" blocks is allowed, but
9248only if the commands are at the start of the line. The ":else" command is not
9249recognized.
9250
9251Example of how to avoid executing commands when the |+eval| feature is
9252missing: >
9253
9254 :if 1
9255 : echo "Expression evaluation is compiled in"
9256 :else
9257 : echo "You will _never_ see this message"
9258 :endif
9259
9260==============================================================================
926111. The sandbox *eval-sandbox* *sandbox* *E48*
9262
Bram Moolenaar368373e2010-07-19 20:46:22 +02009263The 'foldexpr', 'formatexpr', 'includeexpr', 'indentexpr', 'statusline' and
9264'foldtext' options may be evaluated in a sandbox. This means that you are
9265protected from these expressions having nasty side effects. This gives some
9266safety for when these options are set from a modeline. It is also used when
9267the command from a tags file is executed and for CTRL-R = in the command line.
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00009268The sandbox is also used for the |:sandbox| command.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009269
9270These items are not allowed in the sandbox:
9271 - changing the buffer text
9272 - defining or changing mapping, autocommands, functions, user commands
9273 - setting certain options (see |option-summary|)
Bram Moolenaaref2f6562007-05-06 13:32:59 +00009274 - setting certain v: variables (see |v:var|) *E794*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009275 - executing a shell command
9276 - reading or writing a file
9277 - jumping to another buffer or editing a file
Bram Moolenaar4770d092006-01-12 23:22:24 +00009278 - executing Python, Perl, etc. commands
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00009279This is not guaranteed 100% secure, but it should block most attacks.
9280
9281 *:san* *:sandbox*
Bram Moolenaar045e82d2005-07-08 22:25:33 +00009282:san[dbox] {cmd} Execute {cmd} in the sandbox. Useful to evaluate an
Bram Moolenaar7b0294c2004-10-11 10:16:09 +00009283 option that may have been set from a modeline, e.g.
9284 'foldexpr'.
9285
Bram Moolenaarb71eaae2006-01-20 23:10:18 +00009286 *sandbox-option*
9287A few options contain an expression. When this expression is evaluated it may
Bram Moolenaar9b2200a2006-03-20 21:55:45 +00009288have to be done in the sandbox to avoid a security risk. But the sandbox is
Bram Moolenaarb71eaae2006-01-20 23:10:18 +00009289restrictive, thus this only happens when the option was set from an insecure
9290location. Insecure in this context are:
Bram Moolenaar551dbcc2006-04-25 22:13:59 +00009291- sourcing a .vimrc or .exrc in the current directory
Bram Moolenaarb71eaae2006-01-20 23:10:18 +00009292- while executing in the sandbox
9293- value coming from a modeline
9294
9295Note that when in the sandbox and saving an option value and restoring it, the
9296option will still be marked as it was set in the sandbox.
9297
9298==============================================================================
929912. Textlock *textlock*
9300
9301In a few situations it is not allowed to change the text in the buffer, jump
9302to another window and some other things that might confuse or break what Vim
9303is currently doing. This mostly applies to things that happen when Vim is
Bram Moolenaar446cb832008-06-24 21:56:24 +00009304actually doing something else. For example, evaluating the 'balloonexpr' may
Bram Moolenaarb71eaae2006-01-20 23:10:18 +00009305happen any moment the mouse cursor is resting at some position.
9306
9307This is not allowed when the textlock is active:
9308 - changing the buffer text
9309 - jumping to another buffer or window
9310 - editing another file
9311 - closing a window or quitting Vim
9312 - etc.
9313
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00009314
9315 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: