First there was a Navigator, then there was an Explorer. Later it was time for a Konqueror. Now it's time for an Imperator, the VIMperator :)

Introduction

&appname; is a free browser add-on for &hostapp;, which makes it look and behave like the Vim text editor. It has similar key bindings, and you could call it a modal web browser, as key bindings differ according to which mode you are in. To provide the most authentic Vim experience, the &hostapp; menubar and toolbar are hidden.

If you really need them, type: [c]:set guioptions+=mT[c] to get them back.

If you don't like &appname; at all, you can uninstall it by typing :extdelete &appname; or :extdisable &appname; to disable it.

If you like it but can't remember the shortcuts, then press or :help to get this help window back.

author donaton sponsor

&appname; was initially written by Martin Stubenschrott but has found many other contributors in the meanwhile. If you appreciate the work on &appname; and want to encourage us working on it more, you can send us greetings, patches, or donations (thanks a lot to these people who already did):

If you prefer getting some nice products for your money, you can also support us by buying some cool merchandise like t-shirts or mugs. Of course, as we believe in free, open source software, only support us financially if you really like &appname; and the money doesn't hurt — otherwise just use it, recommend it, and like it :)

section::Help{nbsp}topics[overview]

Help topics

  1. Quick-start tutorial: A quick-start tutorial for new users.
  2. Starting &appname;: How &appname; starts up, where it reads the config file…
  3. Browsing: Basic mappings and commands needed for a browsing session (how to open a web page or go back in history).
  4. Buffer: Operations on the current document like scrolling or copying text.
  5. Command-line mode: Command-line editing.
  6. Insert mode: Insert-mode editing.
  7. Options: A description of all options.
  8. Text search commands: Searching for text in the current buffer.
  9. Tabs: Managing your tabbed browsing session.
  10. Hints: Selecting hyperlinks and other page elements.
  11. Key mappings, abbreviations, and user-defined commands: Defining new key mappings, abbreviations and user commands.
  12. Expression evaluation: Executing JavaScript.
  13. Marks: Using bookmarks, QuickMarks, history and local marks.
  14. Repeating commands: Using macros to repeat recurring workflows.
  15. Automatic commands: Automatically executing code on certain events.
  16. Printing: Printing pages.
  17. &appname;'s GUI: Accessing &hostapp; menus, dialogs and the sidebar.
  18. Styling the GUI and web pages: Changing the styling of content pages and &appname; itself.
  19. Error and informational messages: A description of messages and error messages.
  20. Developer information: How to write docs or plugins.
  21. Various commands: Other help which didn't fit into any other category.
  22. Index: An index of all commands and options.

You can also jump directly to the help of a specific command with :help o or :help :set.

Features

  • Vim-like keybindings ([m]h[m], [m]j[m], [m]k[m], [m]l[m], [m]gg[m], [m]G[m], [m]0[m], [m]$[m], [m]ZZ[m], [m][m], etc.)
  • Ex commands (:quit, :open www.foo.com, …)
  • Tab completion available for all commands with support for "longest" matching when set in 'wildmode'
  • Hit-a-hint like navigation of links (start with [m]f[m] to follow a link)
  • Advanced completion of bookmark and history URLs (searching also in title, not only URL)
  • Vim-like statusline with a Wget-like progress bar
  • Minimal GUI (easily hide useless menubar and toolbar with :set guioptions=)
  • Ability to :source JavaScript files, and to use a [a]~/.vimperatorrc[a] file with syntax highlighting if you install http://vimperator.org/trac/ticket/26[vimperator.vim]
  • Easy quick searches (:open foo will search for "foo" in google, :open ebay terminator will search for "terminator" on ebay) with support for &hostapp; keyword bookmarks and search engines
  • Count supported for many commands ([m]3[m] will go back 3 pages)
  • Beep on errors
  • Marks support ([m]m[m][a]a[a] to set mark a on a web page, [m]'[m][a]a[a] to go there)
  • QuickMarks support (quickly go to previously marked web pages with [m]go[m][a]{a-zA-Z0-9}[a])
  • :map and :command support (and feedkeys() for script writers)
  • :time support for profiling
  • Move the text cursor and select text with Vim keys and a Visual mode
  • External editor support
  • Macros to replay key strokes
  • AutoCommands to execute actions on certain events
  • A comprehensive help system, explaining all commands, mappings and options

Contact

Please send comments/bug reports/patches to the mailing list, where we will properly answer any questions. You can also join the #vimperator IRC channel on Freenode or check the Wiki for frequently asked questions (FAQ) . Make sure, you have read the TODO file first, as we are aware of many things which can be improved when we find time for it or receive patches.