Vim - Go to previous location
VimVim Problem Overview
Say I open a file in vim. I start on line 1 column 1 and hold down j until I am on line 14. Pressing :7CR puts me on line 7. I press yy to "yank".
How do I return to line 14? Using CTRL + o takes me back to the top of the file. ` ` gives me the same results.
Vim Solutions
Solution 1 - Vim
You can type 7G to jump to line#7, then type Ctrl-o to jump back.
:set showcmd to show what you have typed at the right bottom.
To yank line#7 (No cursor moving):
:7y
To paste line#7 below line#14:
:7t14
Solution 2 - Vim
<C-o> and <C-i> allow you to go down and up the jumplist. They work with "jump" commands but not with jjjjjjjjjjj.
To take advantage of this feature — and save a lot of time and keypresses in the process — I'd advise you to get into the habit of using better ways to navigate through your code : /?^$fFtTbBeEwW{} and so on.
And yes, use marks.
Solution 3 - Vim
One more way: To jump back to another line, you can use ''. This works similar to an automatic mark, which is set for certain jump movements.
Solution 4 - Vim
Why not set a mark using ma for example, and then return to it later using `a or 'a?
Solution 5 - Vim
Mark the line you were originally on using ma, then 'a to return there.
Solution 6 - Vim
If you want to return to a previous location, first you have to mark that location using the mark (m) command, followed by any letter a-z or A-Z, like ma to mark a location as 'a'.
To return to that location you would enter `a.