Ok…so VIM (born in 1991) is not exactly new…at least its not new to students who have done TELE301 in the past. If you have never used Linux before, its quite hard to get your head around it at first. I still remember the first time I saw VIM in the Tele301 lab…my first impression was:

This is the Text Editor from HELL!!!

But once you put a little time and effort into it…discovering tips and tricks, its not that bad after all

Last week, after seeing a few of my friends using VIM for the first time in the INFO404 lab, I thought I should write a post on it so they can pick up the basics and work more comfortability with it asap.

Useful links:

Vim – from Wikipedia

Vim Commands Cheat Sheet

vi – from Wikipedia

Difference Between VIM and vi

welcome home : vim online

Welcome to the Vim Tips wiki

Reading about VIM is one thing, actually using it is another. If you just want to know the basic commands asap so you can get on with your work, you should really give the VIM Tutor a try:

Step 0: Open up Terminal.

Step 1: Type in vimtutor, you should get:

The screen shot above is taken from Mac OS X Leopard’s terminal, your terminal window might look differently from mine.

Last but not least…Enjoy your VIM Tutor

If you are doing INFO 404 this year and you are preparing for the Practical Test, you might find the following links to be quite useful. Most of the material below are from Noria’s notes. I’ve put them here simply because you CAN NOT COPY and PASTE the http address from the PDF files!!! (yeah…its hard to imagine you still have to typing in the ten meter long http address these days) Anyway, enjoy the link below and I will keep posting new entries regarding the PIX firewall technology from Cisco.

Firewall Part

PIX Introduction

Cisco PIX – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cisco PIX Firewall Commands Quick Reference, Version 6.1

Using nat, global, static, conduit, and access-list Commands and Port Redirection(Forwarding) on PIX

Cisco Secure PIX Firewall Frequently Asked Questions

IP Subnet Calculations

An interesting side note:

End-of-Life
On January 28, 2008, Cisco announced the end-of-sale and end-of-life dates for Cisco PIX Security Appliances, software, accessories, and licenses. The last day for purchasing Cisco PIX Security Appliance platforms and bundles will be July 28, 2008. The last day to purchase accessories and licenses will be January 27, 2009. It is important to note that Cisco will continue to support Cisco PIX Security Appliance customers through July 27, 2013.

We are probably the last class to use the PIX firewalls before they head off to the IT Museums around the world

Router Part