Leap is a general-purpose motion plugin for Neovim, building and improving primarily on vim-sneak, with the ultimate goal of establishing a new standard interface for moving around in the visible area in Vim-like modal editors. It allows you to reach any target in a very fast, uniform way, and minimizes the required focus level while executing a jump.
Leap's default motions allow you to jump to any position in the visible editor area by entering a 2-character search pattern, and then potentially a label character to pick your target from multiple matches, similar to Sneak. The main novel idea in Leap is that you get a preview of the target labels - you can see which key you will need to press before you actually need to do that.
- Initiate the search in the forward (
s) or backward (S) direction, or in the other windows (gs). (Note: you can use a single key for the current window or even the whole tab page, if you are okay with the trade-offs.) - Start typing a 2-character pattern (
{char1}{char2}). - After typing the first character, you see "labels" appearing next to some of
the
{char1}{?}pairs. You cannot use the labels yet - they only get active after finishing the pattern. - Enter
{char2}. If the pair was not labeled, then voilà, you're already there. You can safely ignore the remaining labels, and continue editing - those are guaranteed non-conflicting letters, disappearing on the next keypress. - Else: type the label character, that is now active. If there are more matches
than available labels, you can switch between groups, using
<space>and<backspace>.
Character pairs give you full coverage of the screen:
s{char}<space>jumps to the last character on a line.s<space><space>jumps to actual end-of-line characters, including empty lines.
At any stage, <enter> consistently jumps to the next available target
(<backspace> steps back):
s<enter>...repeats the previous search.s{char}<enter>...can be used as a multiline substitute forfFtTmotions.
It is ridiculously fast: not counting the trigger key, leaping to literally anywhere on the screen rarely takes more than 3 keystrokes in total, that can be typed in one go. Often 2 is enough.
At the same time, it reduces mental effort to almost zero:
-
You don't have to weigh alternatives: a single universal motion type can be used in all non-trivial situations.
-
You don't have to compose in your head: one command achieves one logical movement.
-
You don't have to be aware of the context: the eyes can keep focusing on the target the whole time.
-
You don't have to make decisions on the fly: the sequence you should enter is determined from the very beginning.
-
You don't have to pause in the middle: if typing at a moderate speed, at each step you already know what the immediate next keypress should be, and your mind can process the rest in the background.
The plugin is not 100% stable yet, but don't let that stop you - the usage basics are extremely unlikely to change. To follow breaking changes, subscribe to the corresponding issue.
- Neovim >= 0.7.0 stable, or latest nightly
- repeat.vim, for dot-repeats (
.) to work
Use your preferred method or plugin manager. No extra steps needed besides
defining keybindings - to use the default ones, put the following into your
config (overrides s, S and gs in all modes):
require('leap').create_default_mappings() (init.lua)
lua require('leap').create_default_mappings() (init.vim)
Alternative key mappings
Calling require('leap').create_default_mappings() is equivalent to:
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'x', 'o'}, 's', '<Plug>(leap-forward)')
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'x', 'o'}, 'S', '<Plug>(leap-backward)')
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'x', 'o'}, 'gs', '<Plug>(leap-from-window)')A suggested alternative arrangement (bidirectional s for Normal mode):
vim.keymap.set('n', 's', '<Plug>(leap)')
vim.keymap.set('n', 'S', '<Plug>(leap-from-window)')
vim.keymap.set({'x', 'o'}, 's', '<Plug>(leap-forward)')
vim.keymap.set({'x', 'o'}, 'S', '<Plug>(leap-backward)')Mapping to <Plug>(leap) is not recommended for Visual mode, as autojumping in
a random direction might be too disorienting with the selection highlight on,
and neither for Operator-pending mode, as dot-repeat cannot be used if the
search is non-directional.
Note that compared to using separate keys for the two directions, you will get
twice as many targets and thus half as many autojumps on average, but not
needing to press the Shift key for backward motions might compensate for that.
Another caveat is that you cannot traverse through the matches (:h leap-traversal), although invoking repeat right away (:h leap-repeat) can
substitute for that.
<Plug>(leap) sorts matches by euclidean distance from the cursor, with the
exception that the current line, and on the current line, forward direction is
prioritized. That is, you can always be sure that the targets right in front of
you will be the first ones.
See :h leap-custom-mappings for more.
Suggested additional tweaks
-- Define equivalence classes for brackets and quotes, in addition to
-- the default whitespace group.
require('leap').opts.equivalence_classes = { ' \t\r\n', '([{', ')]}', '\'"`' }
-- Use the traversal keys to repeat the previous motion without explicitly
-- invoking Leap.
require('leap.user').set_repeat_keys('<enter>', '<backspace>')Workaround for the duplicate cursor bug when autojumping
For Neovim versions < 0.10 (neovim/neovim#20793):
-- Hide the (real) cursor when leaping, and restore it afterwards.
vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd('User', { pattern = 'LeapEnter',
callback = function()
vim.cmd.hi('Cursor', 'blend=100')
vim.opt.guicursor:append { 'a:Cursor/lCursor' }
end,
}
)
vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd('User', { pattern = 'LeapLeave',
callback = function()
vim.cmd.hi('Cursor', 'blend=0')
vim.opt.guicursor:remove { 'a:Cursor/lCursor' }
end,
}
)Caveat: If you experience any problems after using the above snippet, check #70 and #143 to tweak it.
Lazy loading
...is all the rage now, but doing it via your plugin manager is unnecessary, as
Leap lazy loads itself. Using the keys feature of lazy.nvim might even cause
problems.
Experimental features, APIs might be subject to change.
Incremental treesitter node selection
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'x', 'o'}, 'ga', function ()
require('leap.treesitter').select()
end)
-- Linewise.
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'x', 'o'}, 'gA',
'V<cmd>lua require("leap.treesitter").select()<cr>'
)Besides choosing a label (ga{label}), in Normal/Visual mode you can also use
the traversal keys for incremental selection (; and , are automatically
added to the default keys). The labels are forced to be safe, so you can
operate on the current selection right away (ga;;y).
Tips
-
The traversal can "wrap around" backwards, so you can select the root node right away (
ga,), instead of going forward (ga;;;...). -
Linewise mode skips the current line, and redundant nodes are also filtered out (only the outermost are kept among the ones that span the same line ranges).
-
You can set the trigger key (or the suffix of it) and its inverted case to increase/decrease the selection (see clever-f.vim):
-- "clever-a" vim.keymap.set({'n', 'x', 'o'}, 'ga', function () local sk = vim.deepcopy(require('leap').opts.special_keys) -- The items in `special_keys` can be both strings or tables - the -- shortest workaround might be the below one: sk.next_target = vim.fn.flatten(vim.list_extend({'a'}, {sk.next_target})) sk.prev_target = vim.fn.flatten(vim.list_extend({'A'}, {sk.prev_target})) require('leap.treesitter').select { opts = { special_keys = sk } } end)
Remote operations ("spooky actions at a distance")
Inspired by leap-spooky.nvim, and flash.nvim's similar feature.
This function allows you to perform an action in a remote location: it forgets the current mode or pending operator, lets you leap with the cursor (to anywhere on the tab page), then continues where it left off. Once an operation or insertion is finished, it moves the cursor back to the original position, as if you had operated from the distance.
-- If using the default mappings (`gs` for multi-window mode), you can
-- map e.g. `gS` here.
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'o'}, 'gs', function ()
require('leap.remote').action()
end)Example: gs{leap}yap yanks the paragraph at the position specified by
{leap}. Getting used to the Normal-mode command is recommended over
Operator-pending mode (ygs{leap}ap), since the former requires the
same number of keystrokes, but it is much more flexible, as it allows
you to move around freely, or to visually select a region before
operating on it (that is, mistakes can be corrected, and more complex
selections are possible). It might be more intuitive too, since the jump
does not tear the operator and the selection command apart.
Tips
-
Swapping regions becomes moderately simple, without needing a custom plugin:
d{region1}gs{leap}v{region2}pP. Example (swapping two words):diwgs{leap}viwpP. -
As the remote mode is active until returning to Normal mode again (by any means),
<ctrl-o>becomes your friend in Insert mode, or when doing change operations.
Icing on the cake, no. 1 - automatic paste after yanking
With this, you can clone text objects or regions in the blink of an eye, even from another window.
vim.api.nvim_create_augroup('LeapRemote', {})
vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd('User', {
pattern = 'RemoteOperationDone',
group = 'LeapRemote',
callback = function (event)
-- Do not paste if some special register was in use.
if vim.v.operator == 'y' and event.data.register == '"' then
vim.cmd('normal! p')
end
end,
})Icing on the cake, no. 2 - giving input ahead of time
The input parameter lets you feed keystrokes ahead of time, e.g. to
automatically trigger visual selection (v) (so you can gs{leap}apy),
or create a forced linewise version of the command (V):
vim.keymap.set({'n', 'o'}, 'gS', function ()
require('leap.remote').action { input = 'V' }
end)This also lets you create remote text objects, for an even more
intuitive workflow (yarp{leap}):
local default_text_objects = {
'iw', 'iW', 'is', 'ip', 'i[', 'i]', 'i(', 'i)', 'ib',
'i>', 'i<', 'it', 'i{', 'i}', 'iB', 'i"', 'i\'', 'i`',
'aw', 'aW', 'as', 'ap', 'a[', 'a]', 'a(', 'a)', 'ab',
'a>', 'a<', 'at', 'a{', 'a}', 'aB', 'a"', 'a\'', 'a`',
}
-- Create remote versions of all native text objects by inserting `r`
-- into the middle (`iw` becomes `irw`, etc.):
for _, tobj in ipairs(default_text_objects) do
vim.keymap.set({'x', 'o'}, tobj:sub(1,1)..'r'..tobj:sub(2), function ()
require('leap.remote').action { input = tobj }
end)
endHelp files are not exactly page-turners, but I suggest at least skimming
:help leap, even if you don't have a specific question yet
(if nothing else: :h leap-usage, :h leap-config, :h leap-events). While
Leap has deeply thought-through, opinionated defaults, its small(ish) but
comprehensive API makes it pretty flexible.
Premise: jumping from point A to B on the screen should not be some exciting puzzle, for which you should train yourself; it should be a non-issue. An ideal keyboard-driven interface would impose almost no more cognitive burden than using a mouse, without the constant context-switching required by the latter.
That is, you do not want to think about
- the command: we need one fundamental targeting method that can bring you anywhere: a jetpack on the back, instead of airline routes (↔ EasyMotion and its derivatives)
- the context: it should be enough to look at the target, and nothing else (↔ vanilla Vim motion combinations using relative line numbers and/or repeats)
- the steps: the motion should be atomic (↔ Vim motion combos), and ideally you should be able to type the whole sequence in one go, on more or less autopilot (↔ any kind of "just-in-time" labeling method; note that the "search command on steroids" approach by Pounce and Flash, where the labels appear at an unknown time by design, makes this last goal impossible)
All the while using as few keystrokes as possible, and getting distracted by as little incidental visual noise as possible.
It is obviously impossible to achieve all of the above at the same time, without
some trade-offs at least; but in our opinion Leap comes pretty close, occupying
a sweet spot in the design space. (The worst remaining offender might be visual
noise, but clever filtering in the preview phase can help - see :h leap.opts.preview_filter.)
The one-step shift between perception and action is the big idea that cuts the Gordian knot: a fixed pattern length combined with previewing labels can eliminate the surprise factor from the search-based method (which is the only viable approach - see "jetpack" above). Fortunately, a 2-character pattern - the shortest one with which we can play this trick - is also long enough to sufficiently narrow down the matches in the vast majority of cases.
Fixed pattern length also makes (safe) automatic jump to the first target
possible. You cannot improve on jumping directly, just like how f and t
works, not having to read a label at all, and not having to accept the match
with <enter> either. However, we can do this in a smart way: if there are
many targets (more than 15-20), we stay put, so we can use a bigger, "unsafe"
label set - getting the best of both worlds. The non-determinism we're
introducing is less of an issue here, since the outcome is known in advance.
In sum, compared to other methods based on labeling targets, Leap's approach is unique in that it
-
offers a smoother experience, by (somewhat) eliminating the pause before typing the label
-
feels natural to use for both distant and close targets
Workaround for the duplicate cursor bug when autojumping
For Neovim versions < 0.10 (neovim/neovim#20793):
-- Hide the (real) cursor when leaping, and restore it afterwards.
vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd('User', { pattern = 'LeapEnter',
callback = function()
vim.cmd.hi('Cursor', 'blend=100')
vim.opt.guicursor:append { 'a:Cursor/lCursor' }
end,
}
)
vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd('User', { pattern = 'LeapLeave',
callback = function()
vim.cmd.hi('Cursor', 'blend=0')
vim.opt.guicursor:remove { 'a:Cursor/lCursor' }
end,
}
)Caveat: If you experience any problems after using the above snippet, check #70 and #143 to tweak it.
Why remap `s`/`S`?
Common operations should use the fewest keystrokes and the most comfortable keys, so it makes sense to take those over by Leap, especially given that both native commands have synonyms:
Normal mode
s=cl(orxi)S=cc
Visual mode
s=cS=Vc, orcif already in linewise mode
If you are not convinced, just head to :h leap-custom-mappings.
Search in all windows
vim.keymap.set('n', 's', function ()
require('leap').leap {
target_windows = require('leap.user').get_focusable_windows()
}
end)The additional trade-off here is that if you have multiple windows open on the tab page, then you will almost never get an autojump, except if all targets are in the same window (it would be too disorienting if the cursor could suddenly jump in/to a different window than your goal, right before selecting the target, not to mention that we don't want to change the state of a window we're not targeting).
Smart case sensitivity, wildcard characters (one-way aliases)
The preview phase, unfortunately, makes them impossible, by design: for a potential match, we might need to show two different labels (corresponding to two different futures) at the same time. (1, 2, 3)
Arbitrary remote actions instead of jumping
Basic template:
local function remote_action ()
require('leap').leap {
target_windows = require('leap.user').get_focusable_windows(),
action = function (target)
local winid = target.wininfo.winid
local lnum, col = unpack(target.pos) -- 1/1-based indexing!
-- ... do something at the given position ...
end,
}
endSee Extending Leap for more.
Disable auto-jumping to the first match
require('leap').opts.safe_labels = {}Disable previewing labels
require('leap').opts.preview_filter = function () return false endGreying out the search area
-- Or just set to grey directly, e.g. { fg = '#777777' },
-- if Comment is saturated.
vim.api.nvim_set_hl(0, 'LeapBackdrop', { link = 'Comment' })Lightspeed-style highlighting
-- The below settings make Leap's highlighting closer to what you've been
-- used to in Lightspeed.
vim.api.nvim_set_hl(0, 'LeapBackdrop', { link = 'Comment' }) -- or some grey
vim.api.nvim_set_hl(0, 'LeapMatch', {
-- For light themes, set to 'black' or similar.
fg = 'white', bold = true, nocombine = true,
})
-- Deprecated option. Try it without this setting first, you might find
-- you don't even miss it.
require('leap').opts.highlight_unlabeled_phase_one_targets = trueWorking with non-English text
If a language-mapping
('keymap') is active,
Leap waits for keymapped sequences as needed and searches for the keymapped
result as expected.
Also check out opts.equivalence_classes, that lets you group certain
characters together as mutual aliases, e.g.:
{
' \t\r\n', 'aäàáâãā', 'dḍ', 'eëéèêē', 'gǧğ', 'hḥḫ',
'iïīíìîı', 'nñ', 'oō', 'sṣšß', 'tṭ', 'uúûüűū', 'zẓ'
}Was the name inspired by Jef Raskin's Leap?
To paraphrase Steve Jobs about their logo and Turing's poison apple, I wish it were, but it is a coincidence. "Leap" is just another synonym for "jump", that happens to rhyme with Sneak. That said, in some respects you can indeed think of leap.nvim as a spiritual successor to Raskin's work, and thus the name as a little tribute to the great pioneer of interface design, even though embracing the modal paradigm is a fundamental difference in our approach.
There are lots of ways you can extend the plugin and bend it to your will - see
:h leap.leap() and :h leap-events. Besides tweaking the basic parameters of
the function (search scope, jump offset, etc.), you can:
- give it a custom action to perform, instead of jumping
- feed it with custom targets, and only use it as labeler/selector
- customize its behavior on a per-call basis via autocommands
Some practical examples:
Linewise motions
local function get_line_starts(winid, skip_range)
local wininfo = vim.fn.getwininfo(winid)[1]
local cur_line = vim.fn.line('.')
-- Skip lines close to the cursor.
local skip_range = skip_range or 2
-- Get targets.
local targets = {}
local lnum = wininfo.topline
while lnum <= wininfo.botline do
local fold_end = vim.fn.foldclosedend(lnum)
-- Skip folded ranges.
if fold_end ~= -1 then
lnum = fold_end + 1
else
if (lnum < cur_line - skip_range) or (lnum > cur_line + skip_range) then
table.insert(targets, { pos = { lnum, 1 } })
end
lnum = lnum + 1
end
end
-- Sort them by vertical screen distance from cursor.
local cur_screen_row = vim.fn.screenpos(winid, cur_line, 1)['row']
local function screen_rows_from_cur(t)
local t_screen_row = vim.fn.screenpos(winid, t.pos[1], t.pos[2])['row']
return math.abs(cur_screen_row - t_screen_row)
end
table.sort(targets, function (t1, t2)
return screen_rows_from_cur(t1) < screen_rows_from_cur(t2)
end)
if #targets >= 1 then
return targets
end
end
-- You can pass an argument to specify a range to be skipped
-- before/after the cursor (default is +/-2).
function leap_line_start(skip_range)
local winid = vim.api.nvim_get_current_win()
require('leap').leap {
target_windows = { winid },
targets = get_line_starts(winid, skip_range),
}
end
-- For maximum comfort, force linewise selection in the mappings:
vim.keymap.set('x', '|', function ()
-- Only force V if not already in it (otherwise it would exit Visual mode).
if vim.fn.mode(1) ~= 'V' then vim.cmd('normal! V') end
leap_line_start()
end)
vim.keymap.set('o', '|', "V<cmd>lua leap_line_start()<cr>")Shortcuts to Telescope results
-- NOTE: If you try to use this before entering any input, an error is thrown.
-- (Help would be appreciated, if someone knows a fix.)
local function get_targets (buf)
local pick = require('telescope.actions.state').get_current_picker(buf)
local scroller = require('telescope.pickers.scroller')
local wininfo = vim.fn.getwininfo(pick.results_win)[1]
local top = math.max(
scroller.top(pick.sorting_strategy, pick.max_results, pick.manager:num_results()),
wininfo.topline - 1
)
local bottom = wininfo.botline - 2 -- skip the current row
local targets = {}
for lnum = bottom, top, -1 do -- start labeling from the closest (bottom) row
table.insert(targets, { wininfo = wininfo, pos = { lnum + 1, 1 }, pick = pick, })
end
return targets
end
local function pick_with_leap (buf)
require('leap').leap {
targets = function () return get_targets(buf) end,
action = function (target)
target.pick:set_selection(target.pos[1] - 1)
require('telescope.actions').select_default(buf)
end,
}
end
require('telescope').setup {
defaults = {
mappings = {
i = { ['<a-p>'] = pick_with_leap },
}
}
}Enhanced f/t motions
See flit.nvim. Note that this is not a proper extension plugin, as it uses undocumented API too.