Fedora Developers Restart Talk Over Using Nano As The Default Text Editor

[pmorph]

people who use command line should be expert users so know how to set their own default

And what a memorable day it is, when an expert launches the cli for the first time.

[programmerjake]

While I appreciate vi[m] are useful, I don't think they should be the default simply because they have a different interface from most GUI editors these days. nano is much closer, therefore more intuitive to start using.

I personally use nano whenever I need to edit something in a terminal since it's good enough when you don't want to spend the time required to walk over to a desktop and copy the files back and forth to allow using an IDE instead of just using nano with ssh and Termux.

I'll eventually take the time to learn more than how to quit vim.

[tildearrow]

Debating over the default text editor does little to inspire confidence in the project. It is a user settable, and people who use command line should be expert users so know how to set their own default. Non techie users will use GUI start menu to find their text editor under "text editors". Most GUI text editors make a good default since most follow the same paradigm. Projects which argue over stuff like this seem to be the most capable of improving other things. Take a look at the Fedora default GUI, useless rubbish, where you cant configure anything.

All that aside, VIM is ridiculous for even some programmers to use. It is such an odd and esoteric text editor that I think many people learn it because they are told "they should" rather than it being intuitive and functional for them from the get go.

Ooo, time to think of a compromise solution!

Here.

On first launch the EDITOR variable is set to editor-selector or something like that, which allows the user to select their preferred editor, like this:

Please select your default text editor:
(1) Simple (nano)
(2) Programmer/Advanced (vim)
Input number (default 1)?

After selection, the EDITOR variable will permanently be set to the user's choice.

[programmerjake]

Ooo, time to think of a compromise solution!

Here.

On first launch the EDITOR variable is set to editor-selector or something like that, which allows the user to select their preferred editor, like this:

Please select your default text editor:
(1) Simple (nano)
(2) Programmer/Advanced (vim)
Input number (default 1)?

After selection, the EDITOR variable will permanently be set to the user's choice.

Write a shell script that does that and Fedora might include it by default.

[TemplarGR]

nano: easy for the typical user; hard for the programmer.
Vim: easy for the programmer; hard for the typical user.


Vi is not an option, as it has a bug which causes it to crash (endless "At EOF") when pressing Ctrl-C while doing a merge commit.

This is not true actually. Vim is hard for everyone, and nano is not hard for a programmer, but a programmer today has no need to use nano at all. Those command line editors aren't really needed in 2020, the world has moved on, you know. Even if you don't need a full-blown IDE, there are far better editors to use if you are a programmer. Yeah i know, "heresy", but vi(m) is for old, really old programmers that are used to it and don't want to change. Which is fine, by the way, but i don't see any new people picking up vim in droves....

[Nille]

Too bad there isn't an easy way for users to resolve this horrible dilemma, like "dnf install nano" or something....

nano: easy for the typical user; hard for the programmer.
Vim: easy for the programmer; hard for the typical user.

But the change that the programmer know how to change the default editor is way higher than the typical user.

[Space Heater]

Debating over the default text editor does little to inspire confidence in the project.

You interpret having an open discussion about changing a default to be a weakness of a project?

[starshipeleven]

nano: easy for the typical user; hard for the programmer.
Vim: easy for the programmer; hard for the typical user.
Vi is not an option, as it has a bug which causes it to crash (endless "At EOF") when pressing Ctrl-C while doing a merge commit.

Vi is not an option because its interface is complete trash that requires reading documentation for, while nano works as any normal text editor does.

I can accept Vi only on embedded systems where there is only busybox's Vi, for a distro on a normal PC/Server/bigger embedded there is NO reason to use it.

[vegabook]

Why are we trying to make things all easy for people on the command line.

You asked for it - you opened a shell. You got the power. Now learn to use it, young apprentice.

This is like giving young skywalker a water pistol.

[starshipeleven]

I disagree with Nano being an easy to use editor. Easy Editor or ee on BSD systems is the perfect user friendly editor that easily explains how to exit and save files. Nano's control commands are easy to use, but if you don't know what the symbols in the menu mean then you are just a clueless as someone dropped into vi.

" Welcome to nano. For basic help, type Ctrl+G." appears when you open it and if you press those keys it will explain what the "^" symbol means.

On Vi there is no such thing.