Re: [9fans] text editor

[Alexander Viro <viro@math.psu.edu>]

On Fri, 26 Apr 2002 nigel@9fs.org wrote:

> As rog points out, if you don't want to watch the screen, you're not
> using a visual editor.

.... or at that moment you are looking at the other part of text. Or at
the graph in another window.  Or at the book on your table.

> hjkl does solve the hand motion issue, but a strong reason for that

Sorry.  All other reasons aside, there is an issue with bandwidth of
channels we can't change - eyes and fingers.  And in quite a few
situations that can become a scarce resource.  So much that having half
of output and large part of input bandwidth tied up whenever you need
to change the location where you are editing text gets rather annoying.

_Having_ the text on-screen in real-time is nice and often very useful.
Being forced to follow the cursor, OTOH...

To each his own.  As I've said, I'm comfortable with vi on Unix boxen
and with sam on Plan 9.  Your mileage may vary.  There are situations
when mouse-intensive interface becomes a problem; if you don't have to
deal with any of them - more power to you, but that doesn't make your
preferences One True Way(tm).