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Tip 796 Printable Monobook Previous Next

created 2004 · complexity basic · author David Fishburn · version 6.0


You may want to select an area of text within a file, and then search for occurrences of a string only within that selection. Then you can add the following to your vimrc.

This creates two visual maps, / and ?, the same command you would use in normal mode. Visually select a range and press /, enter your usual regex and hit enter.

function! RangeSearch(direction)
  call inputsave()
  let g:srchstr = input(a:direction)
  call inputrestore()
  if strlen(g:srchstr) > 0
    let g:srchstr = g:srchstr.
          \ '\%>'.(line("'<")-1).'l'.
          \ '\%<'.(line("'>")+1).'l'
  else
    let g:srchstr = ''
  endif
endfunction
vnoremap <silent> / :<C-U>call RangeSearch('/')<CR>:if strlen(g:srchstr) > 0\|exec '/'.g:srchstr\|endif<CR>
vnoremap <silent> ? :<C-U>call RangeSearch('?')<CR>:if strlen(g:srchstr) > 0\|exec '?'.g:srchstr\|endif<CR>

The execute is performed outside of the function so that the values remain highlighted (based on the hlsearch option), and the search history is automatically updated. So if you press / (in normal mode instead of visual mode) and press the up arrow, you will see your previous search which can be easily modified.

Comments[]

A much simpler version is to: make your visual selection and then hit <ESC> (returning to normal mode). Then prepend \%V to your search, like this:

/\%Vpattern

Then press enter. If you still want to see your visual selection while you are "n/N"ing to skip around to the other matches, then just type gv to reselect the last visual selection.


Here is another simpler solution that doesn't involve creation of functions. The main difference is that while typing the search string, you are in the real search prompt, which could be advantageous for some users (having maps, abbreviations etc. e.g.)

vnoremap / <Esc>/\%><C-R>=line("'<")-1<CR>l\%<<C-R>=line("'>")+1<CR>l
vnoremap ? <Esc>?\%><C-R>=line("'<")-1<CR>l\%<<C-R>=line("'>")+1<CR>l

So the disadvantage is when you press "/", you will see "/\%>5\%<25", and then you starting typing. This might confuse some people, but it is certainly an easy map.

I didn't realize that it doesn't matter where the line restrictions are, so I changed my function to:

let g:srchstr = '\%>'.(line("'<")-1).'l'.
\ '\%<'.(line("'>")+1).'l'.
\ g:srchstr

So when you hit the Up arrow, you do not have to backspace of the line restrictions, since they are at the beginning of the line instead.


This tip implements a portion of what VisBlocKSearch() implements, available at Visual Block Commands.

To wit: one may use / or ? to do V, v, or ctrl-v selected region searches. Works well with :set hls, by the way. The current tip addresses all visual-selections as if they were V-selected regions (i.e. line limits only).


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