dwallach@soda.Berkeley.EDU (Dan Wallach) (03/07/91)
>[wanting macros that take user parameters]
Sure. You could do it, but it wouldn't be exactly elegant. Let's say
you wanted to do an exaggerated search/replace thing.
(in your .exrc -- ^V's left off for brevity and sanity :)
(This probably has bugs in it, even if you get the ^V's right, and I'm
not claiming it works. Bleah, bleah, bleah. You get the idea.)
map \getreplace "addddkk2dd0i:%s/^[$a//g^V^M^[hhh"aP"add:unmap! ^V^M ^M@a
map \doreplace oPlease enter replace text^M^[:map! ^V^M \getreplace^M
map \dosearch Go-----^MPlease enter search text then hit <return>^M^[map! ^V^M \doreplace^M
map SR \dosearch
Gack! That was fun. Basically, the user types SR (vi allows key combinations)
It goes and runs a more complicated macro \dosearch (which may or may not
parse on your version of VI. Use a shorter name if you really want...)
\dosearch goes and writes some text at the end of the file, leaves the
user on a blank line, and remaps the return key to go and run the next
macro. Warning: remapping the return key is always a nightmare because
you want to use it later in other mappings. Beware! Expect to use lots
more ^V's than I did.
The real fun happens in \getreplace. Translated: delete the current line
into buffer A. Delete the three information lines, with the cursor ending
up on the first line. Insert :%s/ before it and //g^M afterward. Stuff
the replacement text between those two /'s. Delete the line into buffer
A. Unmap return. Execute the buffer.
This goes along nicely with what the previous anti-vi-flame-thrower was
saying about illegible macros, but it shows the general idea.
Are you sure you really want to do this? The last time I played around
with the return key turned about to be an entire evening of hell (and
avoiding studying for a midterm, much like my midterm tomorrow :-).
If anybody's interested, I've got some cool tcsh/csh aliaes that go and run
ex in open mode on your command history, letting you hit <return> to
actually execute that command (based on something similar by Mike Cuddy
and Tony Sanders). They're more useful than tcsh command histories
for searching and then doing funky editing.
Enjoy.
Dan Wallach
dwallach@soda.berkeley.edu
Maybe some sadistic compiler guy could write a vi macro high-level language,
somewhat like EASE for sendmail. Then all those nasty ^V's and things won't
be so nasty any more. I'd just hate to see the output. You thought Tom's
.exrc was pretty nasty...