NeoVim's :execute Command Doesn't Even Show Output In NeoVim of ^M's
As a blogger, I'm debating whether to refactor my blogging system or to just use another keyboard shortcut from NeoVim. I asked Bing how to execute shell commands from NeoVim and found out that the :execute command doesn't even show output. Bing suggested using the `:terminal` command, mapping it to a keyboard shortcut, or using `vim.api.nvim_command` to execute a command. After realizing that this means my old macros look a little messed up
Debating Whether to Refactor my Blogging System or Use Another Keyboard Shortcut from NeoVim
By Michael Levin
Saturday, April 1, 2023
I’m going to clean up my blogging slice & dice system a bit. I am tempted to re-write it just to modernize it. But don’t. Do an 80/20-rule approach. Very light touch.
Hmmm, I’m not sure if just cleaning it up is the best idea anymore. I could probably run another system side-by-side. Just use another keyboard shortcut from NeoVim. Go in baby-steps and reassert your control over the whole process.
Interesting case of chasing the rabbit vs. taking a much more light touch.
This is the keyboard macro for the existing blog system:
let @p = “:execute ‘!clear;python ~/repos/skite/skite.py -f ~/repos/hide/journal/sites.csv -x ‘ . expand(‘%:p:h’) . ‘; read -p "Press Enter to Continue…"‘^M”
Here’s a much better way of slicing the one long markdown file into lots of smaller files:
file = "../hide/MikeLev.in/journal.md"
def split_file(filename):
delimiter = 80 * '-'
with open(filename) as f:
chunk = []
for line in f:
chunk.append(line)
if delimiter in line:
yield chunk
chunk = []
if chunk:
yield chunk
for i, chunk in enumerate(split_file(file)):
with open(f'files/file_{i}.txt', 'w') as f:
f.writelines(chunk)
So get a little wedge in here for a new system. Don’t bite off more than you can chew, but built it up in tiny bits.
This is a macro that executes a hello world program from the same directory as my current blog slicer program.
let @q = ":execute '!clear;python ~/repos/skite/hello.py'^M"
When you see ^M in the context of vim macros, it actually stands for the Enter key. You get the control key by either recording a macro or typing directly in insert mode by pressing Ctrl+V (if the OS doesn’t intercept) and then the Enter key.
Hmm, I just found the comment:
! does not have interaction in NeoVim.
…on this Reddit discussion. https://www.reddit.com/r/NeoVim/comments/tazw3r/how_to_do_read_interactive_command_output/
This is something of an issue. Hmmm. I don’t want to refactor everything.
Mike Levin: how do you execute shell commands from NeoVim?
Bing: You can use :terminal to run interactive commands inside NeoVim¹⁴. You can change your mappings to run shell commands by using nnoremap <f4> :terminal node %<CR>¹. You can also use vim.api.nvim_command(":1Tclear") and vim.api.nvim_command(":1T ".. cmd) to execute a command².
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
Source: Conversation with Bing, 4/1/2023
(1) How to pass a shell command to a vim function and execute it in the .... https://vi.stackexchange.com/questions/31867/how-to-pass-a-shell-command-to-a-vim-function-and-execute-it-in-the-NeoVim-termi Accessed 4/1/2023.
(2) terminal - How can I emulate :shell command in NeoVim? - Vi and Vim .... https://vi.stackexchange.com/questions/19705/how-can-i-emulate-shell-command-in-NeoVim Accessed 4/1/2023.
(3) Running command line tasks in NeoVim - Jack Franklin. https://www.jackfranklin.co.uk/blog/executing-tasks-in-NeoVim/ Accessed 4/1/2023.
(4) How to access shell or run external commands from within Vim. https://www.howtoforge.com/tutorial/how-to-access-shell-or-run-external-commands-from-within-vim/ Accessed 4/1/2023.
(5) NeoVim - How to map a shell command in the lua nvim config? - Stack .... https://stackoverflow.com/questions/73099752/how-to-map-a-shell-command-in-the-lua-nvim-config Accessed 4/1/2023.
(6) How to run terminal command in interactive mode from NeoVim?. https://vi.stackexchange.com/questions/29318/how-to-run-terminal-command-in-interactive-mode-from-NeoVim Accessed 4/1/2023.
(7) Vim - how to run a command immediately when starting vim?. https://stackoverflow.com/questions/6821033/vim-how-to-run-a-command-immediately-when-starting-vim Accessed 4/1/2023.
Mike Levin: What about :execute ‘! command?
Bing: You can use :terminal to run interactive commands inside NeoVim¹⁴. You can also use vim.api.nvim_command(":1Tclear") and vim.api.nvim_command(":1T ".. cmd) to execute a command².
:execute '! command' is used to execute a shell command from Vim⁵. You can use it in NeoVim as well.
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
Source: Conversation with Bing, 4/1/2023
(1) How to pass a shell command to a vim function and execute it in the .... https://vi.stackexchange.com/questions/31867/how-to-pass-a-shell-command-to-a-vim-function-and-execute-it-in-the-NeoVim-termi Accessed 4/1/2023.
(2) How to run terminal command in interactive mode from NeoVim?. https://vi.stackexchange.com/questions/29318/how-to-run-terminal-command-in-interactive-mode-from-NeoVim Accessed 4/1/2023.
(3) terminal - How can I emulate :shell command in NeoVim? - Vi and Vim .... https://vi.stackexchange.com/questions/19705/how-can-i-emulate-shell-command-in-NeoVim Accessed 4/1/2023.
(4) Vim - how to run a command immediately when starting vim?. https://stackoverflow.com/questions/6821033/vim-how-to-run-a-command-immediately-when-starting-vim Accessed 4/1/2023.
(5) Running command line tasks in NeoVim - Jack Franklin. https://www.jackfranklin.co.uk/blog/executing-tasks-in-NeoVim/ Accessed 4/1/2023.
Mike Levin: So is it safe to say that :terminal is the preferred way to run commands inside NeoVim because :execute ‘! command’ is not interactive in NeoVim the way they are in vim?
Bing: Yes, that’s correct. :execute '! command' is not interactive in NeoVim the way they are in Vim. :terminal is the preferred way to run commands inside NeoVim .
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
Also on this page: https://www.reddit.com/r/NeoVim/comments/khv172/how_to_run_python_code_with_user_input_in_NeoVim/
I found: In NeoVim :! only runs non-interactive programs. For interactive programs use :term This is one of the main differences between NeoVim and vim.
Ugh! While my old macros are working in NeoVim, they look a little messed up. It’s because of the reasons I just documented. NeoVim doesn’t support interactivity when using the :execute command (only for :terminal).
I have to think this one through. I either keep my macros vim-compatible for the day (if ever) I go back to vim after ditching Copilot or switching machines. Remind myself that a major reason a .vimrc is valuable is in how it floats between different machines, and even between Windows and Linux-side on the same machine. Living with crappy output using :execute may be the right way to go. Do some experiments.