E.4 vi Quotes

Finally, here are some more vi quotes, courtesy of Bram Moolenaar, vim's author:

THEOREM: vi is perfect.

PROOF: VI in roman numerals is 6. The natural numbers less than 6 which divide 6 are 1, 2, and 3. 1 + 2 + 3 = 6. So 6 is a perfect number. Therefore, vi is perfect.

 -- Arthur Tateishi

A reaction from Nathan T. Oelger:

So, where does the above leave vim? VIM in roman numerals might be: (1000 - (5 + 1)) = 994, which happens to be equal to 2*496+2. 496 is divisible by 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 31, 62, 124, and 248 and 1+2+4+8+16+31+62+124+248 = 496. So, 496 is a perfect number. Therefore, vim is twice as perfect as vi, plus a couple extra bits of goodies. :-)

That is, vim is better than perfect.

This quote seems to sum it up for the true vi lover.

To me vi is zen. To use vi is to practice zen. Every command is a koan. Profound to the user, unintelligible to the uninitiated. You discover truth every time you use it.

 -- Satish Reddy