VSCodeVim / VSCodeVim/Vim

Maintain mode between files

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#7,315 2 comments 5 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub

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area/not-vim-core kind/enhancement
Dominant language
TypeScript
Stars
15.2k
Forks
1.5k
Avg merge
3d 18h
Merged PRs (30d)
6

Description

Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
It's annoying when I switch files and the mode isn't persisted between them. Imagine I have multiple files open in the editor, and I'm currently in Normal mode. If I tab over to another file that was previously in Insert mode, I will go to insert mode. If I haven't edited that file in a while, I might not remember that I was in Insert mode. So essentially every file switch, I have to go into Normal mode or check my current mode, which just feels unnecessary.

Describe the solution you'd like
A boolean setting option, something like vim.maintainModeBetweenFiles: true | false, where the user can set their preference for Vim keeping the mode between files.

Describe alternatives you've considered
vim.startInInsertMode is a little closer, but there are no options for starting in Normal Mode.

Contributor guide

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First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

The issue names no files, tests, or entry points; start by locating how VSCodeVim handles file switches and tracks the current mode. Done means a configurable maintain-mode setting preserves the user's preferred mode between files while allowing the existing behavior to remain available.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
typescript, vscode
Domain
devtools
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
42/100

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