Align selection

[schoenenberg]

Hi,

I am currently writing a table in markdown and wanted to try out the & in selection mode (align_selection). So I did a multi-cursor select and tried to run the command, but nothing happend.

Also I didn't find some docs about it. Can you please explain to me how to use it? I am also willing to document this afterwards in the Helix docs.

Thank you very much!

Best regards,
Maximilian

[QiBaobin]

Please refer to this

[archseer]

I think & is a bit buggy and doesn't quite match kakoune behaviour. I've seen some user reports but I can't find it right now. Here's an example of it misaligning lines:

https://asciinema.org/a/QZlpWUeZGbTEr4PDsUfKaivIn

Doing the same thing in kakoune:

https://asciinema.org/a/klLjDWuPHnfYA96VHMxFZnzYE

I also don't quite understand the difference between 1&/2&/3&

[QiBaobin]

It didn't consider different spaces/tabs, maybe other cases. Let me change the code and just mirror the kakoune logic anyway so that kakoune users would be familiar with it at the first place.

[schoenenberg]

I think & is a bit buggy and doesn't quite match kakoune behaviour. I've seen some user reports but I can't find it right now. Here's an example of it misaligning lines:

https://asciinema.org/a/QZlpWUeZGbTEr4PDsUfKaivIn

Doing the same thing in kakoune:

https://asciinema.org/a/klLjDWuPHnfYA96VHMxFZnzYE

I also don't quite understand the difference between 1&/2&/3&

I don't understand how to use it.. What are the prerequisites to use it successfully?

[archseer]

You need to make a bunch of selections without also selecting the empty space.

#1101 (comment)

[archseer]

For example, type a bunch of words on multiple lines, select all the lines.

s\w+<Enter> then &. & works by inserting enough spaces to make all the cursors align in each column

[schoenenberg]

I think I understand now what it is doing.. But it feels kind of weird, because the existing spaces are not reused:
https://asciinema.org/a/iheaLvJJhB4H2ekLXcvq6MEjg

[schoenenberg]

And for some reason it extends the selection to the next line after the &..
https://asciinema.org/a/Swi73Ao2yhODbUkympTDot3GJ

[archseer]

I think I understand now what it is doing.. But it feels kind of weird, because the existing spaces are not reused: https://asciinema.org/a/iheaLvJJhB4H2ekLXcvq6MEjg

Yes #1675 has addressed that

[kirawi]

Closing due to the discussion above.