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I cannot figure out how to open a file that starts with +, e.g. +models/File.m. This is a naming convention for packages in Matlab.

I've tried escaping \+models/File.m. This doesn't work because the backslash is interpreted by the shell. Double escaping \\+models/File.m allows vim to receive the backslash, but it then opens \+models/File.m literally.

The only way to do this seems to be by creating the file first with touch or whatever, and then opening inside vim with Ctrl-P. I don't want to cd into +models because I am also working on files in sibling directories. Any Ideas?

Thanks

My shell is bash if that makes a difference.

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  • 1
    On the command line: vim -- +models/File.m. From Vim: :e \+models/File.m – Sato Katsura Jul 7 '16 at 10:13
  • @SatoKatsura Please add the command line part as an answer. – maxf130 Jul 7 '16 at 10:16
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From vim --help:

Arguments:
   --                   Only file names after this
...

So this works on the command line:

vim -- +models/File.m

From inside Vim you need to escape the +:

:e \+models/File.m
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  • I was thrown off inside vim because tab-completion no longer works with the \. I never thought to just try it. Doh. – maxf130 Jul 7 '16 at 10:23
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    @maxf130 Tab completion works if you write the directory: :e \+models/<Tab> – Sato Katsura Jul 7 '16 at 10:25
  • Clearly my attention span is to low. I never made it past the first few characters. – maxf130 Jul 7 '16 at 10:27
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    @maxf130 Note that using -- to stop argument parsing is pretty standard for commandline tools. e.g. rm -- -r, less -- -f, etc. – Martin Tournoij Jul 7 '16 at 12:16
3

More generally, you can start by specifying a directory name, so that the + (plus sign) appears in the middle of the file specification instead of at the beginning.

Because all *nix operating systems, and others like MS-DOS / Windows that adopted Unix conventions, (just about any place you can run vim...,) refer to the current directory as . ("dot", "period", and so on,) then you can specify any file name beginning with an unusual symbol by preceding it with the string ./ (or in Windows with back- instead of forward-slash .<) and thus:

./+models/File.m

just about anywhere that you can use a "regular" file name.

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2

You can open vim without any arguments. And then, in command line, type :e! \+filename

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    +1 This works, though it would be better if this were possible from the command line. – maxf130 Jul 7 '16 at 10:15

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