Vim VS Inform

• Efficiency
  Once learned, Vim can significantly speed up text editing with its modal editing, keyboard shortcuts, and commands that allow for quick navigation and manipulation of text.
• Lightweight
  Vim is a very lightweight editor, consuming minimal system resources, making it highly performant even on systems with lower specifications.
• Customizability
  Vim is highly configurable and extensible through plugins and user-defined settings, allowing users to tailor the editor to their specific needs.
• Ubiquity
  Vim is available on almost every Unix-like system and even on Windows, making it a ubiquitous tool that you can rely on being available in most environments.
• Support for Multiple Programming Languages
  Vim supports a wide range of programming languages out of the box and offers syntax highlighting, which can be enhanced through plugins.
• Powerful Search and Replace
  Vim offers robust searching and replacing functionalities, including support for regular expressions, which can be a powerful tool for developers.

Possible disadvantages

• Steep Learning Curve
  Vim's modal editing and extensive set of commands can be daunting for new users, requiring significant time and effort to master.
• Minimal Default Config
  The default configuration of Vim is quite minimalistic, which may necessitate additional setup and customization to meet modern development needs.
• Limited GUI
  Vim primarily operates in a terminal, and while there are graphical variants like GVim, they are not as feature-rich or user-friendly as modern GUI editors.
• Plugin Management
  While Vim is highly extensible, managing and configuring plugins can be cumbersome compared to more modern editors that offer integrated plugin management.
• Inconsistent Behavior Across Platforms
  There may be inconsistencies in behavior or available features of Vim across different operating systems, which can complicate its use in certain environments.
• Lack of Integrated Modern Features
  Vim lacks some modern IDE features like integrated debugging, advanced code introspection, and refined autocompletion, which often require third-party plugins to achieve.

• Natural Language Syntax
  Inform 7 allows authors to write interactive fiction using a syntax that closely resembles natural English. This makes it accessible to writers who may not have a programming background.
• Integrated Development Environment
  The Inform 7 IDE includes built-in testing tools, a game runner, and a documentation browser, which helps streamline the development process.
• Rich Documentation
  The language comes with comprehensive documentation and a large number of examples, which can significantly reduce the learning curve.
• Extensibility
  There are a variety of extensions available that allow authors to add new features and capabilities to their interactive fiction works without a deep dive into lower-level coding.
• Community Support
  Inform 7 has an active and supportive community, which can be a great resource for beginners and experienced developers alike.

Possible disadvantages

• Steep Learning Curve at Advanced Levels
  While the basics of Inform 7 are relatively easy to grasp, implementing more complex features can become challenging and may require a deeper understanding of the underlying architecture.
• Performance Limitations
  Inform 7 projects can suffer from performance issues, especially for larger and more complex games. Optimization can become a necessity in such cases.
• Limited Graphics and Multimedia Support
  Inform 7 is primarily designed for text-based interactive fiction, and it has limited support for graphics, audio, and other multimedia elements, which may be a drawback for some developers.
• Dependency on Specific IDE
  Inform 7 relies heavily on its own integrated development environment, which might not be as flexible or customizable as some developers would like.
• Niche Use Case
  The platform is highly specialized for creating interactive fiction, making it less suitable for other types of game development or software applications.

What Vim Is and Why You Should Learn It

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• regular Vim has lua?!

  Lua is quite small, encouraging distros to include it. The ubuntu gvim has, and the gvim AppImage linked from vim.org does. The default Makefile from github is set up to not include it, but you can uncomment one line there to get it. Source: over 3 years ago

• is there a way to make highlighted text persistent after quit when using something like [match Search /\%'.line('.').'l/] ?

  I've not used vimwiki locally (tho I'm old enough to remember the Vim wiki on vim.org :), but I think what you are wanting to do is extend vimwiki's syntax file. I presume it installs one at $VIMRUNTIM/syntax or or ~/.vim/syntax. If... Source: almost 4 years ago

• vim.org - Is there a reason for this 1800s-esque design?

  Vim.org has 242k total visitors, tailwindcss.com has 4.4m, planetscale.com has 412k, jpl.nasa.gov has 2.6m, all built with Tailwind, all several years younger than Vim's website. Unnecessary comparison, unnecessary defence. It's a... Source: almost 4 years ago

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• Share a niche programming language you have tinkered with before

  Inform 7 is a domain-specific language for creating parser-based works of interactive fiction (i.e. old-school "text adventure games"). It does the heavy lifting of parsing and maintaining the consistency of the world model for the... Source: about 4 years ago

• How does programming language syntax affect screen readers?

  Inform 7 takes this to the extreme, allowing code such as "A distance is a kind of value. 5 miles specifies a distance.". Source: about 4 years ago

• Does anyone have examples of "dead" game genres?

  Pure parser-based games have become niche, but they are still out there and, like others mentioned, have continued to evolve (see Inform 7). You no longer have to "guess the verb". Source: about 4 years ago

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