From Vim To Emacs
Text Editors Are Tools
There are lots of great editors. Vim and Emacs are just two of them. Try lots of them and choose the one that makes you happy.
Where I'm Coming From
- Daily Vim user for 14 years at home and work
- Have used Vim for nearly anything that can be written, including text-based wikis, books, log files, and programs in a dozen different languages.
- Sometimes I still
gqipin my sleep.
Cool Things About Emacs
It's Not Really A Text Editor
Emacs is less of a text editor and more of a platform on which you can build applications.
Image: http://www.lisperati.com/logo.html
init.el demo
Org Mode
Image: http://www.toryanderson.com/tech/upgrading-emacs-built-org-mode-4-easy-steps
Org Mode demo
Lisp / Clojure Programming
It's really hard to find a better editor for programming in any Lisp-style language
Clojure programming demo
What I Miss About Vim
Modal Editing
Image: http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/shop/advantage-for-pc-mac/
Universal Compatiblity
Vi(m) is installed on every Unix and Linx server in the world. Emacs is not.
Learning Resources
Beginners
- Sacha Chua's Blog - Lots of great resources for beginners and more experienced Emacs users. She also hosts an Emacs Chat Podcast. Finally her Read Lisp, Tweak Emacs series is really great for getting started with configuration.
- ErgoEmacs - Not only is it a great source of information on how to use Emacs ergonomically, but it also has tons of great scripts and tutorials.
Org Mode
- The Compact Org-mode Guide - A fantastic free book that gives you 90% of what you need to get started.
Clojure Programming
- Clojure For The Brave And True - An excellent, free book on programming with Clojure using Emacs
Lisp-Style Programming In General
Configuring Emacs is much easier when you are comfortable writing Lisp-style code. Skimming the first few chapters of either of these books will help you do that: