Copy and paste content from one file to another file in vi

If you are using Vim on Windows, you can get access to the clipboard (MS copy/paste) using:

"*dd -- cut a line (or 3dd to cut three lines)

"*yy -- copy a line (or 3yy to copy three lines)

"*p -- paste line(s) on line after the cursor

"*P -- paste line(s) on line before the cursor

The lets you paste between separate Vim windows or between Vim and PC applications (Notepad, Microsoft Word, etc.).

Since you already know how to cut/yank text, here are a few ideas for pasting it back into another file:

• Edit the first file, yanking the text you want. Then open your second file from within vi (:e /path/to/other/file) and paste it

• Open both files together in a split window and navigate between them using Ctrl + w, Up/Down either by:

  • vi -o /path/to/file1 /path/to/file2
  • From within the first file, Ctrl + w, s

Use the variations of d like dd to cut.

To write a range of lines to another file you can use:

:<n>,<m> w filename

Where <n> and <m> are numbers (or symbols) that designate a range of lines.

For using the desktop clipboard, take a look at the +g commands.