I propose/present here a set of VIM ftplugins designed for editing C++ files and C files.

You will found all the links for downloading the described files at the end of this part.

The script that follow is meant to be placed into one of your {rtp}/ftplugin/c/ directories.

c_set.vim defines many things that I found useful when programming in C. They could be used for C++ and Java programming as well.

Features and Originalities

• Well there exist, over the WWW, a lot of configurations and mappings regarding C programming. Once again you will find in this file shortcuts for if, else, elif (I know it is not a C keyword, but else if are), for, while, switch and main.
  What is unique is the fact that if you type if in insert mode, it will automatically expand into ...

      if () {
      } 

  ... in respect of the context. I.e.: within comments or strings (delimited by single or double quotes) if is not expanded. If keyword characters precede the typing, if is not expanded as well. Thus variables like tarif can be used without getting any headache.
  In visual mode, ,if wraps the selection within the curly brackets and inserts if () just before. In normal mode ,if does the same thing under the consideration that the selection is considered to be the current line under the cursor. Actually, it is not ,if but <LocalLeader>if, with maplocalleader assigned by default to ,.
  All the three mode oriented mappings respect and force the indentation regarding the current setting and what was typed.

  More precisely, regarding the value of the buffer relative option b:usemarks (cf. common_brackets.vim), if could be expanded into :

      if () {
  	«»
      }«»
  

  I do not present more precisely the other mappings alike. There are twin mappings !

• Some other abbreviations ease the insertion of some formatted comments.
• And of course there are some very classical settings for C editing.

Dependencies :

• VIM 6.0+
• misc_map.vim defines two functions used in every mapping and abbreviation of the language keywords ; it enables to define context dependent macros.
• common_bracket.vim defines a set of mappings that ease the management of brackets, quotes, parenthesis, etc.. These mappings are customized for C & C++ programming.
• a.vim very nice when we want to swap between .h, .inl and .c and .cpp files. Could be found of sourceforge -- not critical regarding the mappings defined.
• LoadHeaderFile.vim very nice in order to go to included files. Could be found of sourceforge -- not critical regarding the mappings defined.

The script that follow is meant to be placed into one of your {rtp}/ftplugin/cpp/ directories.

Classical features : cpp_set.vim

cpp_set.vim :
• sources c_set.vim,
• specializes some settings like the format of comments ;
• adds 2-3 new mappings for try & catch ;
• adds shortcuts for public:, protected:, private:, template<>, virtual and std:: ;
• defines /*<space> that expands into :/** */«»
  and /** that expands into :

  	/**
  	 */«» 

• proposes the insert-mode mapping <c-x>be that expands algo(container_expr§) into algo(container_expr.begin(), container_expr.end()§), where § represents the current cursor position.

Enhanced features

The more interesting part comes with four new files full of functions and commands :
• cpp_options.vim that is the ideal place for custom C++ preferences.
• cpp_BuildTemplates.vim defines my own template preferences regarding the format of comments and classes -- many headers plus some doxygen constructs.
• cpp_FindContextClass.vim extracts the name of the class the cursor is within.
• cpp_InsertAccessors.vim defines certainly one of the two most useful features : an easy way to add (to a class) new attributes and their accessors and mutators (get and set methods).
• cpp_GotoFunctionImpl.vim defines the second most useful feature : a way to jump from the prototype to the implementation of a function, and if the implementation has not beeing defined yet, an empty implementation is inserted in the .cpp file.

Some explanations about the enhanced C++ ftplugins

All the scripts that follow are meant to be placed into one of your {rtp}/ftplugin/cpp/ directories.

cpp_options.vim is the ideal place for custom C++ preferences like the prefix and postfix notations used for member data and their accessors, the file where inlines should go, if accessors must be inlined, etc. ; this file is used to configure cpp_BuildTemplates.vim, cpp_InsertAccessors.vim and cpp_GotoFunctionImpl.vim.

Drop it into your {rtp}/ftplugin/cpp/ directory ; it will be shared by all your projects. And if for a particular project other rules are required, copy and specialize this file into every directory containing the C++ source files.

cpp_options-commands.vim only defines the command :CheckOptions that is used by the other scripts to load the correct options (i.e. cpp_options.vim).

This file defines my own template preferences regarding the format of comments and classes -- many "rulers" plus some doxygen constructs. You may not be directly interested in this file ; moreover, it will evolve to take advantage of Gergely Kontra's mu-template. The commands are :

• ;HE <main class name> which produces a template for the header file dedicated to the specified class name.
• ;CL <main class name> which produces a class template for specified class name.
• ;BL <title> which produces three lines of '=' around the title -- BigLines.
• ;GR <group title> which inserts a Doc++/Doxygen group -- GRoup.
• ;MGR <group title> which inserts a Doc++/Doxygen group plus a comment line -- MegaGRoup.
• ;RI <class name> which moves the cursor to the desired (regarding cpp_options.vim::g:inlinesPlace) location for the implementation of the inlines of the current class -- ReachInlines. The functions that the command calls are quite complex and heavily rely on the Big Line format. So if you want to change the format, you will have to adapt the function Cpp_search4line() and some other script variables. All the underlying functions used by this command are very important for the cpp_InsertAccessors.vim::AddAccessor command. So, be very careful in your customizations.
cpp_BuildTemplates.vim needs an old version of a.vim.

Given a line number, the function (in this ftplugin) extracts the name of the most embedded class around the specified line.

A this time, the template are not managed.

For something like :

 1:
 2:    class A
 3:    {
 4:        // ... 
 5:        class B {
 6:            // ... 
 7:        };
 8:        // ... 
 9:        class C {
10:            // ... 
11:        };
12:    };
13:

The possible retrieved class names are : "" [1, 13], "A" [2-4,8,12], "A::B" [5-7] and "A::C" [9-11].

This script is required by cpp_InsertAccessors.vim and cpp_GotoFunctionImpl.vim.

This file defines an easy way to add new attributes, their accessors (get methods) and their mutators (set methods) to a class.
I may use "accessor" to also designate the "mutator".

The built accessors are moreover const and ref. correct in the sense of the item 43 of Herb Sutter's Exceptional C++. BTW, if you extend (with typedefs) the list of base types, you will have to extend the function Cpp_IsBaseType().

To use this feature, place the cursor where you want your attributes (internal data members) to be written to, then press ;AA. Then first, you will be asked for the type of the new attribute and its name. And then, you will be asked whether you want :

• a get accessor or may be a proxy-get accessor -- cf. Scott Meyer's More Effective C++ for instance ;
• a set mutator -- may be a proxy-set one ;
• a reference accessor -- may be a proxy-ref one ;
Finally, you will have to move the accessors to their desired location.

Regarding the customization facilities, through cpp_options.vim you can :

• specify the notation you want to use for the internal data member ; for instance here are some common notations : m_Foo (Microsoft's one), Foo_ (Herb Sutter's one), _Foo (the one you should forget about), Foo (the very lazy one), etc..
• specify the notation you want to use for the accessors ; for instance the get accessor to the attribute Foo could be "GetFoo()", or "getFoo()", or "get_Foo()" and so on. And the same for the set and the reference accessors.
• specify how you want the implementation of the accessors to appear :
  • within the declaration of the class -- lazy behavior that should disappear thanks to this VIM script ;
  • as inlines : either at the end of the header file containing the class declaration or in a separate inline file ;
  • as non-inlines in the implementation file (.cpp).

Here is a little example of header file and the corresponding inline file generated for :

• g:implPlace=1 -- implemented as inlines ;
• g:inlinesPlace=1 -- inlines in a separate file ;
• an int attribute named AnInteger for which I asked for a get, a set and a reference accessor.
• an CComplexThing attribute named AComplexThing for which I asked for a proxy-get (of type CT_Proxy), a set and a reference accessor ;
As you can, see, the declarations have to be moved !

Note : the inline and the definition files don't need to exist. They are generated automatically.

This file defines an easy way to jump from a function-prototype to its implementation ; if the implementation does exist yet, a default one is generated on the fly.

This ftplugin has been first inspired by Leif Wickland's VIM TIP#335 (on sourceforge) and Robert Kelly IV's improvments. Then I added what I've been waiting to do for a longtime: a way to jump the implementation of a function.

Some other features :

• Works with member and non-member functions. If the class is nested into other classes, the real class name will be used ;
• Accepts prototypes written on several lines, but it won't be able to detect the return type if it is not written on the same line as the function's name.
  If you get a message saying you're not within a function-prototype, may be it comes from your cursor placement : it must be between the line of the function's name and before the closing parenthesis.
• Any comment ending a line (within the function-prototype) will be trimmed.
• Compatible with mu-template : i.e. it won't complains or do any weird and undesired thing.
• Options are set into cpp_options.vim and can be overriden when invoking the command.

The ftplugin defines :

• the command :GIMPL (GOTO_IMPL) that will provoke the jump ; The cursor must be placed between the line of the function's name and the corresponding closing parenthesis.
• the INSERT mode mapping <C-X>i ;
• the normal mode mappings ;GI and <C-W>i.
The mappings can be overrided by adding, in a file loaded before this ftplugin, something like :

	imap <buffer> whateverIWant <Plug>GotoImpl
	nmap <buffer> whateverIWant <Plug>GotoImpl
	

Several options are available (idea from Robert Kelly IV) :

• ShowVirtual (0/1) : determines whether we want the virtuality of the member function to be reminded along with the implementation ;
• ShowStatic (0/1) : determines whether we want the staticity of the function to be reminded ;
• ShowDefaultParam (0/1/2) : determines whether we want the default value of the parameters to be remininded to us.
[0: no reminder ; 1: text with comments ; 2: like 1, but the spaces are trimmed]
The default values for these options are taken into cpp_options.vim that can define the variables: g:cpp_ShowVirtual, g:cpp_ShowStatic and g:cpp_ShowDefaultParams.
However, when using the command :GIMPL, we can specify values for these different options. The format beeing : <name_of_the_option>(\d\+\|on\|off). For instance :
:GIMPL ShowVirtualoff ShowDefaultParams2.

.

lh-cpp.tar.gz <raw file> 30th  November  2002	This tarball contains all the following files and a copy of all the files they rely on. So, if you plan to have a complete and easy installation of my C & C++ ftplugins, unpack this tarball archive into one directory from your 'runtimepath'.
c_set.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002 VIM 6.x only	The main C ftplugin. It defines several settings plus a lot of mappings for C keywords. more info...	Requires : misc_map.vim, common_bracket.vim. Wants a.vim and LoadHeaderFile.vim.
cpp_set.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002 VIM 6.x only	The main C++ ftplugin. It defines some new mappings for C++ keywords, enhanced the comments management and loads all the other C++ plugins. more info...	Requires : c_set.vim, and every following cpp_.*.vim.
cpp_options-commands.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002	Script in charge of the management of the options. I.e. it loads the appropriate options-file. more info...	Needed by : cpp_BuildTemplates.vim, cpp_GotoFunctionImpl.vim and cpp_InsertAccessors.vim.
cpp_options.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002	The options-file, designated place for customizing the policies of the following files. It is meant to be overriden into your current working directory. more info...	Needed by : cpp_BuildTemplates.vim, cpp_GotoFunctionImpl.vim and cpp_InsertAccessors.vim.
cpp_BuildTemplates.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002 VIM 6.x only	Defines some template preference for the formats of comments and classes. more info...	Requires : a.vim
parse-class.sed <raw file> 15th  March  2002	Multi-line extraction of class names.	Depreciated ; Used to be required by cpp_FindContextClass.vim
cpp_FindContextClass.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002 VIM 6.x only	Extracts name of classes. more info...
cpp_InsertAccessors.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002 VIM 6.x only	Enables to easily add attributes and their accessors. more info...	Requires : cpp_options.vim, cpp_BuildTemplates.vim, cpp_FindContextClass.vim, a.vim.
cpp_GotoFunctionImpl.vim <raw file> 12th  November  2002 VIM 6.x only	Defines a command and some mappings to jump from a function prototype to its implementation ; if the implementation does exist yet, a default one is generated on the fly. more info...	Requires : cpp_options.vim, cpp_FindContextClass.vim, a.vim.
lh-cpp-readme.txt	The VIM documentation for all these scripts.	Written as a part of the tarball archive.
a.vim	Commands to switch between source files and header files.	Maintained on sourceforce.
LoadHeaderFile.vim	Loads a file from a #include line.	Maintained on sourceforce.
mu-template.vim Local copy: mu-template.vim <raw file> 30th  November  2002 Archive with some templates: mu-template.tar.gz VIM 6.x only	Gergely Kontra's script. It permits to (automatically) load template files. Little to little, I will use this plugin to replace some of my cpp_BuildTemplates.vim's functions. The version I propose here has been enhanced to support many other things and to be compatible with my other scripts.	Initial version maintained on sourceforce; Can takes advantage of searchInRuntime.vim

Back to the ftplugings page

hermitte@free.fr