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I have a few questions about vi and its current relationship with Vim. First of all, is Vim minimal (i.e. the default vi on Cygwin) basically a POSIX compliant implementation of vi? I believe POSIX sets minimum standards and so allows additional features not specified in the standard. Does this common minimal vi implementation have any features not found in the standard? What other common 'minimal' vi's exist?

Secondly, I am aware that there are a lot of differences between vi and Vim. Is there a comprehensive list of how Vim enhances on vi?

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is Vim minimal (i.e. the default vi on Cygwin) basically a POSIX compliant implementation of vi?

No. The vi in Cygwin's vim-minimal package still has features not defined by POSIX. I've verified the availability of visual mode and windowing support, for example.

What other common 'minimal' vi's exist?

BSD's nvi is pretty minimal, though it has some features not present in Cygwin's vim-minimal, such as multiple undo.

But if you're looking for a true throwback, I suggest that you look at Heirloom vi.

Is there a comprehensive list of how Vim enhances on vi?

Yes. See the vi_diff section of the user manual. It's also available in the online help via :help vi_diff, though ironically the online help isn't included in Cygwin's vim-minimal package.

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  • Are you saying that POSIX requires that vi not have features not defined in its specification? May 10, 2020 at 18:55
  • @MichaelHampton No, it means POSIX defines a certain minimal set of features and no more. Everything else is therefore non-minimal, which is what this question is about. May 10, 2020 at 19:29
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What other common 'minimal' vi's exist?

There is also xvi.sf.net mantained at github.com/martinwguy/xvi which is a different implementation based on STEVIE.

It's the smallest full-featured vi clone but has not been checked for POSIX compliant. Bug reports of variations from the standard would be welcome.

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