Changing default key bindings in vim

Question

After attempting to use vim a number of times, I\'m always been put off by its default key bindings. After some research, I decided to remap the default keys to more sane on

Answer 1

The command set of vi / Vim has 40 years of wisdom encoded into it; completely changing it is a bad idea. I can only repeat the reference to this answer from the comments; that should convince you (to accept this, or choose another editor).

Give the default commands another try. It'll take some time to get used to, but most Vim users swear by these. It's fine to make minor adjustments "for personal style": careful evolution, but not revolution. Also, some people with odd keyboard layouts (like Dvorak or Colemak) swap several keys for convenience.

The move-cursor-left is just h; aided by the excellent :help, you should be able to "read" your remappings just fine.

In general, even though it's possible to write extensions / plugins in integrated languages like Perl, Python, Ruby, etc. (based on support for them compiled into the Vim binary), you won't get around learning some key Vim internals and parts of Vimscript. If you don't feel comfortable at all about this, I'd suggest to use another editor. Unfortunately, with your requirements of full extensibility (and probably broad acceptance and platform support), there's only one serious alternative: Emacs (which cannot only be turned into everything but a kitchen sink, but also into a modal editor, too).