1README_dos.txt for version 7.3 of Vim: Vi IMproved. 2 3This file explains the installation of Vim on MS-DOS and MS-Windows systems. 4See "README.txt" for general information about Vim. 5 6There are two ways to install Vim: 7A. Use the self-installing .exe file. 8B. Unpack .zip files and run the install.exe program. 9 10 11A. Using the self-installing .exe 12--------------------------------- 13 14This is mostly self-explaining. Just follow the prompts and make the 15selections. A few things to watch out for: 16 17- When an existing installation is detected, you are offered to first remove 18 this. The uninstall program is then started while the install program waits 19 for it to complete. Sometimes the windows overlap each other, which can be 20 confusing. Be sure the complete the uninstalling before continuing the 21 installation. Watch the taskbar for uninstall windows. 22 23- When selecting a directory to install Vim, use the same place where other 24 versions are located. This makes it easier to find your _vimrc file. For 25 example "C:\Program Files\vim" or "D:\vim". A name ending in "vim" is 26 preferred. 27 28- After selecting the directory where to install Vim, clicking on "Next" will 29 start the installation. 30 31 32B. Using .zip files 33------------------- 34 35These are the normal steps to install Vim from the .zip archives: 36 371. Go to the directory where you want to put the Vim files. Examples: 38 cd C:\ 39 cd D:\editors 40 If you already have a "vim" directory, go to the directory in which it is 41 located. Check the $VIM setting to see where it points to: 42 set VIM 43 For example, if you have 44 C:\vim\vim54 45 do 46 cd C:\ 47 Binary and runtime Vim archives are normally unpacked in the same location, 48 on top of each other. 49 502. Unpack the zip archives. This will create a new directory "vim\vim73", 51 in which all the distributed Vim files are placed. Since the directory 52 name includes the version number, it is unlikely that you overwrite 53 existing files. 54 Examples: 55 pkunzip -d gvim73.zip 56 unzip vim73w32.zip 57 58 You need to unpack the runtime archive and at least one of the binary 59 archives. When using more than one binary version, be careful not to 60 overwrite one version with the other, the names of the executables 61 "vim.exe" and "gvim.exe" are the same. 62 63 After you unpacked the files, you can still move the whole directory tree 64 to another location. That is where they will stay, the install program 65 won't move or copy the runtime files. 66 67 Only for the 32 bit DOS version on MS-DOS without DPMI support (trying to 68 run install.exe will produce an error message): Unpack the CSDPMI4B.ZIP 69 archive and follow the instructions in the documentation. 70 713. Change to the new directory: 72 cd vim\vim73 73 Run the "install.exe" program. It will ask you a number of questions about 74 how you would like to have your Vim setup. Among these are: 75 - You can tell it to write a "_vimrc" file with your preferences in the 76 parent directory. 77 - It can also install an "Edit with Vim" entry in the Windows Explorer 78 popup menu. 79 - You can have it create batch files, so that you can run Vim from the 80 console or in a shell. You can select one of the directories in your 81 $PATH. If you skip this, you can add Vim to the search path manually: 82 The simplest is to add a line to your autoexec.bat. Examples: 83 set path=%path%;C:\vim\vim73 84 set path=%path%;D:\editors\vim\vim73 85 - Create entries for Vim on the desktop and in the Start menu. 86 87That's it! 88 89 90Remarks: 91 92- If Vim can't find the runtime files, ":help" won't work and the GUI version 93 won't show a menubar. Then you need to set the $VIM environment variable to 94 point to the top directory of your Vim files. Example: 95 set VIM=C:\editors\vim 96 Vim version 7.3 will look for your vimrc file in $VIM, and for the runtime 97 files in $VIM/vim73. See ":help $VIM" for more information. 98 99- To avoid confusion between distributed files of different versions and your 100 own modified vim scripts, it is recommended to use this directory layout: 101 ("C:\vim" is used here as the root, replace it with the path you use) 102 Your own files: 103 C:\vim\_vimrc Your personal vimrc. 104 C:\vim\_viminfo Dynamic info for 'viminfo'. 105 C:\vim\vimfiles\ftplugin\*.vim Filetype plugins 106 C:\vim\... Other files you made. 107 Distributed files: 108 C:\vim\vim73\vim.exe The Vim version 7.3 executable. 109 C:\vim\vim73\doc\*.txt The version 7.3 documentation files. 110 C:\vim\vim73\bugreport.vim A Vim version 7.3 script. 111 C:\vim\vim73\... Other version 7.3 distributed files. 112 In this case the $VIM environment variable would be set like this: 113 set VIM=C:\vim 114 Then $VIMRUNTIME will automatically be set to "$VIM\vim73". Don't add 115 "vim73" to $VIM, that won't work. 116 117- You can put your Vim executable anywhere else. If the executable is not 118 with the other Vim files, you should set $VIM. The simplest is to add a line 119 to your autoexec.bat. Examples: 120 set VIM=c:\vim 121 set VIM=d:\editors\vim 122 123- If you have told the "install.exe" program to add the "Edit with Vim" menu 124 entry, you can remove it by running the "uninstal.exe". See 125 ":help win32-popup-menu". 126 127- In Windows 95/98/NT you can create a shortcut to Vim. This works for all 128 DOS and Win32 console versions. For the console version this gives you the 129 opportunity to set defaults for the Console where Vim runs in. 130 131 1. On the desktop, click right to get a menu. Select New/Shortcut. 132 2. In the dialog, enter Command line: "C:\command.com". Click "Next". 133 3. Enter any name. Click "Finish". 134 The new shortcut will appear on the desktop. 135 4. With the mouse pointer on the new shortcut, click right to get a menu. 136 Select Properties. 137 5. In the Program tab, change the "Cmdline" to add "/c" and the name of the 138 Vim executable. Examples: 139 C:\command.com /c C:\vim\vim73\vim.exe 140 C:\command.com /c D:\editors\vim\vim73\vim.exe 141 6. Select the font, window size, etc. that you like. If this isn't 142 possible, select "Advanced" in the Program tab, and deselect "MS-DOS 143 mode". 144 7. Click OK. 145 146 For gvim, you can use a normal shortcut on the desktop, and set the size of 147 the Window in your $VIM/_gvimrc: 148 set lines=30 columns=90 149 150 151For further information, type one of these inside Vim: 152 :help dos 153 :help msdos 154 :help win32 155