Back
Oct 11, 2010

Char search in Emacs as in Vim

In VIM there is a command for char search: f. After first use it can be repeated with ;. I like to navigate in line with it. You see that you need to go to bracket in a middle of a line - you press f( and one-two ; and you are there. There's no such command in Emacs, so I had to write my own. I've managed even to implement repetition with ;.

(setq last-search-forward-char nil)

(defun search-forward-char-continue ()
(interactive)
(if (and last-search-forward-char (or (eq (symbol-function last-command) (symbol-function 'search-forward-char))
(eq last-command this-command)))
(search-forward-char last-search-forward-char)
(progn
(insert ";")
(setq last-search-forward-char nil))))

(global-set-key (kbd "M-s") 'search-forward-char)
(global-set-key (kbd ";") 'search-forward-char-continue)

Key word here is last-command. Using the same principle other commands also can be assigned to same key.

Subscribe for the news and updates

More thoughts
Feb 3, 2025Technology
Figma for Developers: What Dev Mode Offers and How to Use It

This article explores Figma’s Dev Mode, a tool that streamlines design-to-code translation by enabling precise inspection, automated code generation, and seamless integration with design systems.

Sep 8, 2023Technology
Smooth React virtual scroll with fixed rows/columns

One of our ongoing projects, Neptyne, introduces an Excel-like grid written in React. We used a library to apply virtual scroll to it, but we stumbled upon a problem with fixed rows and columns inside the grid. Here I would like to describe this problem, how it occurs, and how we handled it.

Jul 27, 2022Technology
Forge Viewer: Our Experience with an Unusual Project

Once we received an interesting task from a client. They needed to allow their users to upload a 3D model of the building and show it in a timelapse video from the construction site.

Jun 27, 2018Technology
How to Work With Legacy Code: Code Refactoring Techniques

In this article we'll review general approach to working with the best kind of projects - the ones with old untested and undocumented spaghetti code and a tight schedule. We'll review anger management techniques, coping mechanisms and some refactoring tips that might come in handy.

Aug 25, 2017Technology
How to Upload Files With Django

File upload works differently from simple form inputs, which can be somewhat troublesome for beginners. Here I'll show you how to handle uploads with ease.

Feb 18, 2010Technology
Business logic in models

In my recent project there was a lot of data business logic, so I had to organize this code somehow. In this article I'll describe a few hints on how to it.