# Vi - Can it show filename and status ?



## mikey777 (May 10, 2020)

When vi starts, it displays the filename, status, read-only, etc, at the bottom left of the screen.
Can Vi display this ALL the time ? I've been reading the man pages and I've got verbose on, showmode on, ruler, but I do not see a 'showfilename' anywhere.


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## richardtoohey2 (May 10, 2020)

Ctrl-G will show the file name of the file you are currently editing.

man vi

     <control-G>
             Display the following file information: the file name (as given
             to vi); whether the file has been modified since it was last
             written; if the file is read-only; the current line number; the
             total number of lines in the file; and the current line number as
             a percentage of the total lines in the file.

But not aware of a way of making it show all the time


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## T-Daemon (May 10, 2020)

If you like vi/vim have a look at editors/neovim. You might find it appealing. I myself don’t want to miss it, one of the first programs I install on a fresh system. Here the list of differences to vim:






						Vim_diff - Neovim docs
					

Neovim user documentation



					neovim.io
				




You may notice under "_2. Defaults_: 'laststatus' defaults to 2 (statusline is always shown)".

Also in ports editors/neovim-qt and editors/rubygem-neovim.


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## mikey777 (May 12, 2020)

All interesting...but my unix boxes (entire lab) are not on the Net, so I can't DL stuff at a moments notice...
What I'd prefer is a Brief for unix.


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## SirDice (May 13, 2020)

Search for "vi cheat sheet". There are literately hundreds to pick from. You can print these out and keep near.


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