latex-unicoder.vim

A plugin to type Unicode chars in Vim, using their LaTeX names. This is a more extensive version of rtdavis22/latex2unicode.

I obtained the LaTeX-character map from here.

If you'd like to write Agda in Vim, you can use this as a substitute for agda-input, even though the character names are different.

Usage

When in normal mode or insert mode, use the shortcut C-l (l standing for LaTeX), and then type the LaTeX code of the symbol to the status bar. Even though the plugin takes you to normal mode, you will be taken back to insert mode if you were in insert mode before pressing C-l.

I wanted the shortcut to be usable in insert mode too, so I used a modifier key in it.

If you don't want to type the entire thing, just type the first characters and press Tab, the plugin will complete it for you. If you're looking for something else that starts with the same characters, press Tab again. You can also omit the backslash in the beginning and let the autocomplete type it for you.

If you are in visual mode, you can select a LaTeX code and press C-l. The plugin will convert the selected text, say, \lambda, to λ for you. This can be used on multiple characters as well; for example, if you type \forall \alpha \in A : \exists a \in A : a \cdot \alpha = 1, select it and press C-l, your selection will be converted to ∀ α ∈ A : ∃ a ∈ A : a ⋅ α = 1!

Installation

You can install it the way you install any other plugin with Vundle or Pathogen.

You also have the option to cancel the default mappings and create the mappings for yourself. You can change and add these lines to your .vimrc as you wish:

let g:unicoder_cancel_normal = 1
let g:unicoder_cancel_insert = 1
let g:unicoder_cancel_visual = 1
nnoremap <C-l> :call unicoder#start(0)<CR>
inoremap <C-l> <Esc>:call unicoder#start(1)<CR>
vnoremap <C-l> :<C-u>call unicoder#selection()<CR>

You can add additional custom symbols by defining g:unicode_map in your .vimrc, for instance:

let g:unicode_map = {
  \ "\\box" : "□" ,
  \ "\\sep" : "∗" ,
  \ }

Contributions

There might be certain symbols and aliases that I miss. Pull requests are welcome. If you have other suggestions about the plugin usage, I'd like to hear them as well.

License

MIT