Choosing a Vim Plugin Manager
vim-plug
Vim-plug [6] is a minimalist plugin manager, designed to be quickly installed and edited (Figure 4). To install, run the command:
curl -fLo ~/.vim/autoload/plug.vim --create-dirs https://raw.githubusercontent.com/junegunn/vim-plug/master/plug.vim

To automatically update plug.vim
, place Listing 2 in .vimrc
before the line that starts with call plug#begin()
.
Listing 2
Code to Auto Update plug.vim
if empty(glob('~/.vim/autoload/plug.vim')) silent !curl -fLo ~/.vim/autoload/plug.vim --create-dirs \ https://raw.githubusercontent.com/junegunn/vim-plug/master/plug.vim autocmd VimEnter * PlugInstall --sync | source $MYVIMRC endif
To install new plugins, below the line that starts with call plug#begin
, add one plugin per line in the format Plug <PATH>
, much like in dein.vim. To borrow the example from the vim-plug tutorial, if your plugin source is GitHub, enter:
call plug#begin('~/.vim/plugged') " Declare the list of plugins. Plug 'tpope/vim-sensible' Plug 'junegunn/seoul256.vim' "
Note the double quotation marks around the list.
When the list is complete, restart Vim and run :PlugUpdate
to complete the process. You can either review the changes by pressing D in the window or by running :PlugDiff
. Should another plugin no longer work or interfere with another, you can see the latest changes with :PlugDiff
. Scroll to the plugin's line and roll back the changes by scrolling to its entry and pressing the X key. To remove a plugin, delete its .vimrc
entry and run :PlugClean
.
Vim-plug is a popular manager, because it offers many of the same features as more complex managers, but with an elegant simplicity. If I was recommending a single manager for all user levels, it would be vim-plug.
vim-addon-manager
Properly speaking, vim-addon-manager [7] is not a Vim plugin. Instead, it is an ordinary Linux package that is installed with a second package that contains over 20 classic Vim add-ons. Each of these add-ons has a status of installed, removed, disabled, broken, or unavailable. Using the command structure
vim-addon-manager install ADD-ON
users can install multiple add-ons, using a space-separated list (Figure 5).
Vim-addon-manager is useful as an introduction to Vim extensions. In addition, it places extension management into general package management, simplifying system administration. Its main drawback is the limited selection. However, the selection can be extended by placing other add-ons in /usr/share/vim/addons
– a matter of file management rather than editing configuration files.
Volt
First released in 2015, Volt [8] uses the go-git library in its operations, a basic implementation of git
's "porcelain" or high-level, user-friendly options, operating partly outside of Vim. It can be installed with:
go get github.com/vim-volt/volt
Then, to make Volt functional, set the environment variables by adding to .vimrc
:
$HOME/volt/rc/default/vimrc.vim (installed to: $HOME/.vim/vimrc)
Another profile can replace default
, using the online instructions [9]. If necessary, change the path to match your preference (Figure 6).
Plugins can be installed using the command:
volt get https://github.com/CREATOR/PLUGIN
The command can be shortened to start with GitHub or even omit it, so long as GitHub is the source. The full command has the advantage of using what you copy and paste.
All plugins can be updated with:
volt get -l -u
Individual plugins can be updated with:
volt get -u /CREATOR/PLUGIN
Similarly, Volt itself can be updated with the command volt self-upgrade
.
Volt is ideal for users familiar with git
, or those who, while familiar with the command line, are only moderately comfortable with Vim and only occasionally use it.
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