Date: Tue, 12 Jun 2001 11:56:50 -0400 From: dochawk@psu.edu To: Roelof Osinga <roelof@nisser.com> Cc: Jason Halbert <jason@jason-n3xt.org>, questions@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: vi Message-ID: <200106121556.f5CFupb48865@fac13.ds.psu.edu> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Sat, 09 Jun 2001 14:41:51 %2B0200." <3B22198F.CB4908A3@nisser.com>
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Roelof roled, > Jason Halbert wrote: > > Why is vi the default choice of editor for UNIX and how did it become= > > the default? I find it cumbersome. > Because they weren't there at the time. Besides, it's a big step up fro= m > having to use ed. As far as I can remember there were only vi and an > early version of emacs. WordStar only came on the scene 1980 something > and ran only on CP/M. It also *is* the standard. If you know vi, you can count on being = able to edit at any unix machine you come across from the last 20 = years or so; this isn't true for any other editor (ok, ed & ex, but ex = and vi are the same program anyway). In fact, at nearly anything other = than debian, you can use vi on a partway installed system or from = rescue disks. Therefore anyone serious about the issue knows vi, = therefore all systems have it, . . . Settling on a new stanadard, simple editor would require universal = agreement, and do you really think that *that* is going to happen? Besides, vi is the one true editor, and only heretics use emacs. > It was available, the rest wasn't <g>. The edge over emacs was its size= > and simplicity. Not to mention its weird attraction on programmers ;). ahem. It is a natural and glorious attraction. When God wrote the = universe in Fortran, he used vi. hawk -- = Prof. Richard E. Hawkins, Esq. /"\ ASCII ribbon cam= paign = dochawk@psu.edu Smeal 178 (814) 375-4700 \ / against HTML mai= l These opinions will not be those of X and postings = Penn State until it pays my retainer. / \ = To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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