Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!stanford.edu!rutgers!modus!gear!cadlab!martelli
From: martelli@cadlab.sublink.ORG (Alex Martelli)
Newsgroups: comp.editors
Subject: Re: Question on tab stops in vi
Keywords: vi tabs
Message-ID: <843@cadlab.sublink.ORG>
Date: 11 May 91 09:17:59 GMT
Article-I.D.: cadlab.843
References: <1991May09.190644.13627@Kesa.COM>
Distribution: comp
Organization: CAD.LAB, Bologna, Italia
Lines: 18

jerry@Kesa.COM (Jerry E. Dunmire) writes:
	...
:   Is there a way to get a 4 space indent in vi without changing tab stops?
Yup, :set shiftwidth 4.  You now need a ^T to indent (and a ^D to unindent),
although I guess you could :map! ^I to ^T if this bothers you.  This of
course also affects the < and > commands.
MY own dream would be to have autoindent *without* allowing vi to use
tabs or blanks according to some optimization criterion, but rather
forcing it to use, say, the same leading whitespace as the above line
(whose indent is being copied).  Unfortunately, having leading ws as
tabs or spaces is NOT equivalent for many tools, such as f77 and make.
This may have been an unfortunate design decision on said tools' authors
part, but it would be nice to :set notaboptimize and cease worrying...
-- 
Alex Martelli - CAD.LAB s.p.a., v. Stalingrado 53, Bologna, Italia
Email: (work:) martelli@cadlab.sublink.org, (home:) alex@am.sublink.org
Phone: (work:) ++39 (51) 371099, (home:) ++39 (51) 250434; 
Fax: ++39 (51) 366964 (work only), Fidonet: 332/407.314 (home only).