[ Thanks to Adam
Berlinsky-Schine for this link. ]
“vi is a powerful text editor for Unix-type machines. Although
it is somewhat difficult to use for new users, it is by far the
most prevalent text editor on unix-type machines. I wrote this
tutorial as a quick-start guide to vi at the request of some
programmers; it contains everything you would commonly want to
do. For a more in-depth reference on vi, I suggest reading a
book.”
“What can vi be used for? Well, anything. Use it just like you
would use Notepad in Windows: reading files, composing web pages,
writing code, etc.”
“vi has two modes: insert and command. This is pretty
self-explanatory; the insert mode is where you type your text, and
the command mode is where you enter commands such as delete,
delete-line, scroll down, etc. New users often find this pointless:
“Why have two modes when other text editors only need one?”
“As you get used to vi, it will become much easier. vi “grows
with you”, and will become more useful as you become more
experienced.”