• Update on the Vim Switch

    Well, it’s been almost two weeks now, and the vimming continues unabated. So far, I have to say, I’m pretty happy with the change. The simple fact that I can run it in a screen session without feeling crippled has been wonderful, particularly since I’ve been frequently moving my editing sessions between work and home lately (all I need to do is ssh in, and do a ‘screen -DR’, and voila, my work environment is migrated over).

    As for the RSI, other than the usual stiffness from long periods of typing, the other symptoms (things like shooting pains in the hands) have been reduced or eliminated, proving once more that emacs finger is real and dangerous! And yes, I realize that I could’ve just swapped my capslock and control keys, but I use my capslock as a third modifier, so that doesn’t work as nicely for me. :)

    Meanwhile, my vocabulary of vi commands continues to expand. My biggest problem is simply remembering to use vi/vim shortcut keys and commands instead of doing things manually. This is especially a problem for me since I’m a fast enough typist that I’ll often resort to brute forcing things, rather than trying to be speedy and clever. Thing likes Ctrl+n for completion while coding is incredibly convenient, and a significant timesaver, assuming I’m smart enough to remember to use it. And being able to type things like ‘ct;' is really darn handy, when I don't accidentally find myself typing 'xxxxxxxxxxi' by mistake. But, given time, I suspect I'll internalize more of the commands and my editing speed will continue to increase.

    So, the moral of the story is that it looks like Vim has a new convert! I have officially switched sides in the infamous Editor_war.

  • Deck Happenings

    Well, we’ve finally started moving on the deck front! I went to Cedar Village this morning, the shop owned by our unbelievably generous family friend Roy Crosty, and did a little bit of deck planning. I’m incredibly excited, as the end product looks absolutely fantastic:

    image/svg+xml Basement Window   Upper Tier Lower Tier

    As you can see, we’re planning a two-tier deck. This allows us to build a full-width deck while still preserving the basement window for an additional bedroom. And for those we haven’t told, it’s going to be built from cedar! So. Sweet. Not to mention fragrant! Anyway, the materials have been ordered, so now we’re awaiting delivery, which will likely occur some time in the middle of next week. Once that’s done, it’s deck-buildin’ time!

    Of course, one can’t build a deck without some tools, so we headed to Rona and picked up a couple items, specifically:

    • 12A 7 1/4” circular saw
    • 18V cordless drill
    • Level and other random bits

    And all for just over $100! Yay for clearance items, and me being not terribly picky about my tools! I figure, in the long run, should they prove insufficient, I can always upgrade later.

    Unsurprisingly, though, I’m now itching to play with my new tools! So, tomorrow I’ll probably scavange some wood from various scrap piles nearby and build me a couple saw horses. Once that’s done, I might even attempt to move up to a set of shelves (for the new tools ;)!