How do I use vim registers?

I only know of one instance using registers is via CtrlR* whereby I paste text from a clipboard.

What are other uses of registers? How to use them?

Everything you know about VI registers (let's focus on vi 7.2) -- share with us.

Solution 1:

Registers in Vim let you run actions or commands on text stored within them. To access a register, you type "a before a command, where a is the name of a register. If you want to copy the current line into register k, you can type

"kyy

Or you can append to a register by using a capital letter

"Kyy

You can then move through the document and paste it elsewhere using

"kp

To paste from system clipboard on Linux

"+p

To paste from system clipboard on Windows (or from "mouse highlight" clipboard on Linux)

"*p

To access all currently defined registers type

:reg

Solution 2:

I was pleased when I discovered the 0 register. If you yank text without assigning it to a particular register, then it will be assigned to the 0 register, as well as being saved in the default " register. The difference between the 0 and " registers is that 0 is only populated with yanked text, whereas the default register is also populated with text deleted using d/D/x/X/c/C/s/S commands.

I find this useful when I want to copy some text, delete something and replace it with the copied text. The following steps illustrate an example:

• Yank the text you want to copy with y[motion] - this text is saved in " and 0 registers
• Delete the text you want to replace with d[motion] - this text is saved in " register
• Paste the yanked text with "0p

where " is the command to use a register for the next command.

On the final step, if you were to paste from the default register (with p), it would use the text that you had just deleted (probably not what you intended).

Note that p or P pastes from the default register. The longhand equivalent would be ""p (or ""P) and "0 holds the last yank, "1holds the last delete or change.

For more info see :help registers.