Best way to run VIM on OS X?

Question

What is the best way to run VIM in OS X? Should I open the terminal and type vim or use the macvim package?

I like the terminal version, but I can't run it by simply clicking an icon in the dock. I always need to go to Go->Utilities->Terminal.

Any suggestion would be appreciated!

Solution 1

I've already answered a very similar question.

The short version: I use GUI Vim and CLI Vim exactly the same way with the same config. For all intent and purpose, I consider them to be the same editor so using one or the other is just a matter of context.

Solution 2

There are a few ways you can approach this.

• You can use Spotlight and type 'term' and it should just show up
• Once you have term show up in your dock, right click on term -> 'options' -> 'Keep in dock'

As for the best way to run Vim, I'd say that it depends on your usage. Macvim is great, but if you are in/out of a terminal session a lot, then might want to use the one in term.

Also, if you are looking for a good editor, Sublime Text 2 has a vintage mode which allows for Vim commands to be run with a traditional editor.