documentation/commands.md

   1 <!--
   2 This is part of the VimFx documentation.
   3 Copyright Simon Lydell 2015.
   4 See the file README.md for copying conditions.
   5 -->
   6
   7 # Commands
   8
   9 Most of VimFx’s commands are straight-forward enough to not need any
  10 documentation. For some commands, though, there is a bit more to know.
  11
  12 In this document, many commands are referred to by their default shortcut. You
  13 can of course [change those] if you like.
  14
  15 [change those]: shortcuts.md
  16
  17 ## Counts
  18
  19 Some commands support _counts._ That means that you can type a number before a
  20 command and it will change its behavior based on that number—the count. For
  21 example, typing `12x` would close 12 tabs.
  22
  23 (As opposed to vim, you may only supply a count _before_ a command, not in the
  24 middle of one. This is because VimFx’s commands are simple sequences, while
  25 vim’s are operators and motions.)
  26
  27 ### `gu`
  28
  29 Goes _count_ levels up in the URL hierarchy.
  30
  31 ### `H` and `L`
  32
  33 Goes _count_ pages backward/forward in history.
  34
  35 ### Scrolling commands
  36
  37 Specifying a count make them scroll _count_ times as far.
  38
  39 ### `J`, `K`
  40
  41 Selects the tab _count_ tabs backward/forward.
  42
  43 If the count is greater than one they don’t wrap around when reaching the ends
  44 of the tab bar, unless:
  45
  46 - the first tab is selected and `J` is used.
  47 - the last tab is selected and `K` is used.
  48
  49 They only wrap around _once._
  50
  51 ### `gJ`, `gK`
  52
  53 Moves the current tab _count_ tabs forward/backward.
  54
  55 As opposed to `J` and `K`, pinned and non-pinned tabs are handled separately.
  56 The first non-pinned tab wraps to the last tab, and the last tab wraps to the
  57 first non-pinned tab, and vice versa for non-pinned tabs. Use `gp` to move a tab
  58 between the pinned and non-pinned parts of the tab bar.
  59
  60 Other than the above, the count and wrap semantics work like `J` and `K`.
  61
  62 ### `g0`, `g^`, `g$`
  63
  64 `g0` selects the tab at index _count,_ counting from the start.
  65
  66 `g^` selects the tab at index _count,_ counting from the first non-pinned tab.
  67
  68 `g$` selects the tab at index _count,_ counting from the end.
  69
  70 ### `x`
  71
  72 Closes the current tab and _count_ minus one of the following tabs.
  73
  74 ### `X`
  75
  76 Restores the _count_ last closed tabs.
  77
  78 ### `I`
  79
  80 Passes on the next _count_ keypresses to the page, without activating VimFx
  81 commands.
  82
  83 ### The `f` commands
  84
  85 Explained in the their own section below.
  86
  87 ### `gi`
  88
  89 Explained in its own section below.
  90
  91
  92 ## Scrolling commands
  93
  94 Firefox lets you scroll with the arrow keys, page down, page up, home, end and
  95 space by default. VimFx provides similar scrolling commands (and actually
  96 overrides `<space>`), but they work a little bit differently.
  97
  98 They scroll _the currently focused element._ If the currently focused element
  99 isn’t scrollable, the largest scrollable element on the page (if any, and
 100 including the entire page itself) is scrolled.
 101
 102 You can focus scrollable elements using the `zf` command (or the `f` command).
 103 The right border of hint markers for scrollable elements is styled to remind of
 104 a scroll bar, making them easier to recognize among hints for links.
 105
 106 Note that `zf` and `f` do _not_ add a hint marker for the _largest_ scrollable
 107 element (such as the entire page). There’s no need to focus that element, since
 108 it is scrolled by default if no other scrollable element is focused, as
 109 explained above. (This prevents the largest scrollable element from likely
 110 eating your best hint char on most pages; see [The `f` commands]).
 111
 112 [The `f` commands]: #the-f-commands-1
 113
 114
 115 ## `gi`
 116
 117 `gi` focuses the text input you last used, or the first one on the page. Note
 118 that a [prevented autofocus] still counts as having focused and used a text
 119 input. This allows you to have your cake and eat it too: You can enable
 120 autofocus prevention, and type `gi` when you wish you hadn’t.
 121
 122 `gi` takes a count. It then selects the `counth` text input on the page. Note
 123 that `gi` and `1gi` are different: The latter _always_ focuses the first input
 124 of the page, regradless of which input you used last.
 125
 126 After having focused a text input using `gi`, `<tab>` and `<s-tab>` will _only
 127 cycle between text inputs,_ instead of moving the focus between _all_ focusable
 128 elements as they usually do. (See also the [`focus_previous_key` and
 129 `focus_next_key`] advanced options.)
 130
 131 [prevented autofocus]: options.md#prevent-autofocus
 132 [`focus_previous_key` and `focus_next_key`]: options.md#focus_previous_key-and-focus_next_key
 133
 134
 135 ## The `f` commands
 136
 137 When invoking one of the `f` commands you enter Hints mode. In Hints mode,
 138 markers with hints are shown for some elements. By typing the letters of a hint
 139 something is done to that element, depending on the command.
 140
 141 Which elements get hints depends on the command as well:
 142
 143 - `f` and `af`: Anything clickable—links, buttons, form controls.
 144 - `F` and `gf`: Anything that can be opened in a new tabs—links.
 145 - `yf`: Anything that has something useful to copy—links (their URL) and text
 146   inputs (their text).
 147 - `zf`: Anything focusable—links, buttons, form controls, scrollable elements,
 148   frames.
 149
 150 It might seem simpler to match the same set of elements for _all_ of the
 151 commands. The reason that is not the case is because the fewer elements the
 152 shorter the hints. (Also, what should happen if you tried to `F` a button?)
 153
 154 (You can also customize [which elements do and don’t get hints][hint-matcher].)
 155
 156 Another way to make hints shorter is to assign the same hint to all links with
 157 the same URL. So don’t get surprised if you see the same hint repeated several
 158 times.
 159
 160 VimFx also tries to give you shorter hints for elements that you are more likely
 161 to click. This is done by the surprisingly simple rule: The larger the element,
 162 the shorter the hint.
 163
 164 There are standardized elements which are always clickable—_semantically_
 165 clickable elements. Unfortunately, many sites use unclickable elements and then
 166 make them clickable using JavaScript—<em>un</em>semantically clickable elements.
 167 Such elements are difficult to find. VimFx has a few techniques for doing so,
 168 which works many times but not always, but unfortunately they sometimes produce
 169 false positives. Many times those false positives are pretty large elements,
 170 which according to the last paragraph would give them really short hints, making
 171 other more important elements suffer by getting longer ones. Therefore VimFx
 172 favors semantic elements over unsemantic ones and takes that into account when
 173 deciding the hint length for elements.
 174
 175 Some hint characters are easier to type than others. The ones on the home row
 176 are of course the best. When customizing the [hint chars] option you should put
 177 the best keys to the left and the worst ones to the right. VimFx favors keys to
 178 the left, so that should give you the optimal hints.
 179
 180 Hints are added on top of the corresponding element. If they obscure the display
 181 too much you can hold shift to make them transparent. (See [Styling] if you’d
 182 like to change that.) The hints can also sometimes cover each other. Press
 183 `<space>` and `<s-space>` to switch which one should be on top.
 184
 185 When giving a count to an `f` command, all markers will be re-shown after you’ve
 186 typed the hint characters of one of them, _count_ minus one times. All but the
 187 last time, the marker’s link will be opened in a new background tab. The last
 188 time the command opens links as normal (in the current tab (`f`) or in a new
 189 background (`F`) or foreground tab (`gf`)).
 190
 191 Note that the `f` command adds markers not only to links, but to buttons and
 192 form controls as well. What happens the _count_ minus one times then? Buttons,
 193 checkboxes and the like are simply clicked, allowing you to quickly check many
 194 checkboxes in one go, for example. Text inputs cancel the command.
 195
 196 `af` works as if you’d supplied an infinite count to `f`. (In fact, the `af`
 197 command is implemented by running the same function as for the `f` command,
 198 passing `Infinity` as the `count` argument!) Therefore the `af` command does not
 199 accept a count itself.
 200
 201 The `zf` and `yf` commands do not accept counts.
 202
 203 Press `<enter>` to increase the count by one. This is useful when you’ve already
 204 entered Hints mode but realize that you want to interact with yet a marker. This
 205 can be faster than going into Hints mode once more.
 206
 207 If you’ve pressed `f` but realize that you’d rather open a link in a new tab you
 208 can hold ctrl while typing the last hint character. This is similar to how you
 209 can press `<c-enter>` on a focused link to open it in a new tab (while just
 210 `<enter>` would have opened it in the same tab). Hold alt to open in a new
 211 foreground tab. In other words, holding ctrl works as if you’d pressed `F` from
 212 the beginning, and holding alt works as if you’d pressed `gf`.
 213
 214 For the `F` and `gf` commands, holding ctrl makes them open links in the same
 215 tab instead, as if you’d used the `f` command. Holding alt toggles whether to
 216 open tabs in the background or foreground—it makes `F` work like `gf`, and `gf`
 217 like `F`.
 218
 219 (Also see the advanced prefs [hints\_toggle\_in\_tab] and
 220 [hints\_toggle\_in\_background].)
 221
 222 [hint-matcher]: api.md#vimfxhintmatcher
 223 [hint chars]: options.md#hint-chars
 224 [Styling]: styling.md
 225 [hints\_toggle\_in\_tab]: options.md#hints_toggle_in_tab
 226 [hints\_toggle\_in\_background]: options.md#hints_toggle_in_background
 227
 228
 229 ## Ignore mode `<s-f1>`
 230
 231 Ignore mode is all about ignoring VimFx commands and sending the keys to the
 232 page instead. Sometimes, though, you might want to run some VimFx command even
 233 when in Insert mode.
 234
 235 One way of doing that is to press `<s-escape>` to exit Ignore mode, run your
 236 command and then enter Ignore mode again using `i`. However, it might be
 237 inconvenient having to remember to re-enter Ignore mode, and sometimes that’s
 238 not even possible, such as if you ran the `K` command to get to the next tab.
 239
 240 Another way is to press `<s-f1>` followed by the Normal mode command you wanted
 241 to run. (`<s-f1>` is essentially the inverse of the `I` command, which passes
 242 the next keypress on to the page. Internally they’re called “quote” and
 243 “unquote.”) This is handy if you’d like to switch away from a [blacklisted]
 244 page: Just press for example `<s-f1>K`.
 245
 246 `<s-f1>` was chosen as the default shortcut because on a typical keyboard `<f1>`
 247 is located just beside `<escape>`, which makes it very similar to `<s-escape>`,
 248 which is used to exit Ignore mode. Both of those are uncommonly used by web
 249 pages, so they shouldn’t be in the way. If you ever actually do need to send any
 250 of those to the page, you can prefix them with `<s-f1>`, because if the key you
 251 press after `<s-f1>` is not part of any Normal mode command, the key is sent to
 252 the page. (Another way is for example `<s-f1>I<s-escape>`.)
 253
 254 [blacklisted]: options.md#blacklist
 255
 256
 257 ## Ex commands
 258
 259 vim has something called “ex” commands. Want something similar in VimFx? True to
 260 its spirit, VimFx embraces a standard Firefox feature for this purpose: The
 261 [Developer Toolbar]. That link also includes instructions on how to extend it
 262 with your own commands.
 263
 264 In the future VimFx might even ship with a few extra “ex” commands by default.
 265 We’re open for suggestions!
 266
 267 [Developer Toolbar]: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Tools/GCLI