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Products · Product

Vim

Raised as a usability problem by 880 people on Hacker News over 19 years (2008–2026), in 612 threads.

Ranked by people · period

No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads this year.

  1. 1
    Key commands are harder to compose than standard arrow-key editingUnreviewed

    17 people in the last 5 years · 13 threads

  2. 2
    People open Vim accidentally and can't work out how to exitUnreviewed

    16 people in the last 5 years · 16 threads

  3. 3
    Simple customizations take too much effort to set upUnreviewed

    14 people in the last 5 years · 11 threads

  4. 4
    Esc key is too far to reach, and Ctrl-[ is unfamiliarUnreviewed

    8 people in the last 5 years · 8 threads

  5. 5
    Simple tasks take many keystrokes because commands must be memorizedUnreviewed

    7 people in the last 5 years · 7 threads

  6. 6
    Setting up Vim as an IDE takes a lot of timeUnreviewed

    7 people in the last 5 years · 6 threads

  7. 7
    Too many shortcuts to remember and hard to look upUnreviewed

    6 people in the last 5 years · 5 threads

  8. 8
    Inconsistent key commands confuse new usersUnreviewed

    6 people in the last 5 years · 6 threads

  9. 9
    Modal editing is hard for new users to learnUnreviewed

    5 people in the last 5 years · 5 threads

  10. 10
    Moving the cursor to arbitrary text is slow without mouse or arrowsUnreviewed

    5 people in the last 5 years · 5 threads

  11. 11
    Constant mode switching and unfamiliar keys make editing hardUnreviewed

    4 people in the last 5 years · 4 threads

  12. 12
    Retraining muscle memory for Vim's keybindings is very difficultUnreviewed

    4 people in the last 5 years · 4 threads

  13. 13
    Default colors make dark blue text unreadable on black backgroundUnreviewed

    4 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  14. 14
    Heavily configured Vim becomes slow and laggy to useUnreviewed

    3 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  15. 15
    Copying and pasting from other applications into Vim is annoyingUnreviewed

    3 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  16. 16
    Commands are hard to discover without looking up plugin docsUnreviewed

    3 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  17. 17
    Macros are hard to get right and re-recording them is tediousUnreviewed

    3 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  18. 18
    Mouse selections don't copy automatically, so paste fails without pressing yUnreviewed

    3 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  19. 19
    Ends up in the wrong mode and miscounts line commands, requiring undosUnreviewed

    3 people in the last 5 years · 3 threads

  1. 1
    Simple customizations take too much effort to set upUnreviewed

    56 people since the beginning · 50 threads

  2. 2
    Key commands are harder to compose than standard arrow-key editingUnreviewed

    48 people since the beginning · 43 threads

  3. 3
    People open Vim accidentally and can't work out how to exitUnreviewed

    46 people since the beginning · 39 threads

  4. 4
    Too many shortcuts to remember and hard to look upUnreviewed

    25 people since the beginning · 23 threads

  5. 5
    Modal editing is hard for new users to learnUnreviewed

    24 people since the beginning · 23 threads

  6. 6
    Simple tasks take many keystrokes because commands must be memorizedUnreviewed

    23 people since the beginning · 22 threads

  7. 7
    Esc key is too far to reach, and Ctrl-[ is unfamiliarUnreviewed

    19 people since the beginning · 19 threads

  8. 8
    Heavily configured Vim becomes slow and laggy to useUnreviewed

    19 people since the beginning · 18 threads

  9. 9
    Setting up Vim as an IDE takes a lot of timeUnreviewed

    19 people since the beginning · 17 threads

  10. 10
    hjkl movement keys are unintuitive for newcomers to learnUnreviewed

    16 people since the beginning · 15 threads

  11. 11
    Constant mode switching and unfamiliar keys make editing hardUnreviewed

    16 people since the beginning · 15 threads

  12. 12
    Making plugins work together takes days of effortUnreviewed

    15 people since the beginning · 14 threads

  13. 13
    Unexpectedly kicked out of insert mode while typingUnreviewed

    15 people since the beginning · 12 threads

  14. 14
    Moving the cursor to arbitrary text is slow without mouse or arrowsUnreviewed

    14 people since the beginning · 14 threads

  15. 15
    Configuring and coding with Vimscript is a constant painUnreviewed

    14 people since the beginning · 12 threads

  16. 16
    Commands are hard to discover without looking up plugin docsUnreviewed

    14 people since the beginning · 11 threads

  17. 17
    Steep learning curve leaves beginners frustrated and unproductiveUnreviewed

    13 people since the beginning · 13 threads

  18. 18
    Inconsistent key commands confuse new usersUnreviewed

    12 people since the beginning · 12 threads

  19. 19
    Typing commands in insert mode or pasting in command mode causes mistakesUnreviewed

    12 people since the beginning · 10 threads

  20. 20
    Mouse selections don't copy automatically, so paste fails without pressing yUnreviewed

    10 people since the beginning · 10 threads

  21. 21
    Ctrl-C shows a message telling users to type :quit insteadUnreviewed

    10 people since the beginning · 6 threads

  22. 22
    Copying and pasting from other applications into Vim is annoyingUnreviewed

    9 people since the beginning · 9 threads

  23. 23
    Retraining muscle memory for Vim's keybindings is very difficultUnreviewed

    9 people since the beginning · 9 threads

  24. 24
    Saving needs Shift and mode switching, unlike Ctrl+sUnreviewed

    8 people since the beginning · 7 threads

  25. 25
    Easy to forget current mode, with only a small indicatorUnreviewed

    8 people since the beginning · 7 threads

  26. 26
    Mistyped keys trigger hard-to-undo commands and novices can't find the causeUnreviewed

    7 people since the beginning · 7 threads

  27. 27
    Default colors make dark blue text unreadable on black backgroundUnreviewed

    7 people since the beginning · 6 threads

  28. 28
    Macros are hard to get right and re-recording them is tediousUnreviewed

    6 people since the beginning · 6 threads

  29. 29
    Nonstandard keys for quitting and copy-paste are hard to discoverUnreviewed

    6 people since the beginning · 6 threads

  30. 30
    Without learning its shortcuts, users can't do anything in the editorUnreviewed

    6 people since the beginning · 6 threads

  31. 31
    Getting autocomplete working in Vim needs much configuration effortUnreviewed

    6 people since the beginning · 6 threads

  32. 32
    Wrapped-up config is hard for beginners to understand and modifyUnreviewed

    5 people since the beginning · 5 threads

  33. 33
    Vim-mode emulation differs subtly from real Vim and lacks featuresUnreviewed

    5 people since the beginning · 5 threads

  34. 34
    Typing 'i' or '{' lags while Vim waits for longer mappingsUnreviewed

    5 people since the beginning · 5 threads

  35. 35
    Syntax highlighting in LaTeX files lags behind typingUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  36. 36
    Ctrl-w meant for Vim window commands accidentally closes browser tabUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  37. 37
    File-per-tab model causes several pain points since tabs aren't filesUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  38. 38
    Ends up in the wrong mode and miscounts line commands, requiring undosUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  39. 39
    Selections and deletions unexpectedly remove the character after the cursorUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  40. 40
    Keyboard-only interface frustrates beginners used to the mouseUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  41. 41
    Scrolling is slow, with text taking a while to appearUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 4 threads

  42. 42
    Searching for literal text requires manually escaping special charactersUnreviewed

    4 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  43. 43
    Clojure REPL plugins are hard to get running and unreliableUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  44. 44
    Composing selection commands needs thought and is easy to get wrongUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  45. 45
    Non-programmers struggle to open, edit and save filesUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  46. 46
    Cursor keys are hard to use after switching back to QWERTYUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  47. 47
    Typing jk to leave insert mode needs an awkward key delayUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  48. 48
    Key bindings add so much mental load that users must stop and thinkUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  49. 49
    Tab commands are clunky to type, so users avoid tabsUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  50. 50
    Editing files with thousands of lines becomes very slowUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  51. 51
    q enters a recording mode instead of quitting, needing extra escapesUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  52. 52
    Automatic indenting mangles code as you typeUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  53. 53
    Can't apply the chosen markdown syntax highlightingUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  54. 54
    yy and P copy-paste commands are unexpected, unlike Cmd+c and Cmd+pUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  55. 55
    Unclear which plugin manager to use or where plugins goUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  56. 56
    Overlapping shortcuts make switching windows confusing in tmux and VimUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  57. 57
    Fails to find files accurately in larger projectsUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  58. 58
    Cannot paste line-wise yanks inline or charwise yanks on a new lineUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  59. 59
    Layouts unexpectedly collapse or clone buffers across splitsUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  60. 60
    File-finder plugin is confusing compared to other implementationsUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  61. 61
    Tab completion picks the first matching filename instead of listing matchesUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  62. 62
    Unintuitive operation that can't be learned without instructionUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  63. 63
    Mouse use unexpectedly enters visual mode, breaking copy and pasteUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  64. 64
  65. 65
    No visible cues show which commands ran, so yanks go unnoticedUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  66. 66
    Cursor jumps across wrapped lines instead of moving row by rowUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

  67. 67
    Counted-line commands like delete the following 5 lines are hard to think inUnreviewed

    3 people since the beginning · 3 threads

Every issue, all time, most people first

  1. Simple customizations take too much effort to set upUnreviewed

    56 people since 2011, in 16 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 3 people2012: 3 people2013: 3 people2014: 2 people2015: 1 person2016: 7 people2017: 7 people2018: 2 people2019: 5 people2020: 7 people2021: 3 people2022: 5 people2023: 6 people2024: 1 person2025: 1 person2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  2. Key commands are harder to compose than standard arrow-key editingUnreviewed

    48 people since 2009, in 16 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 2 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 3 people2013: 5 people2014: 3 people2015: 1 person2016: 2 people2017: 2 people2018: 3 people2019: 3 people2020: 5 people2021: 2 people2022: 5 people2023: 7 people2024: 3 people2025: 3 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  3. People open Vim accidentally and can't work out how to exitUnreviewed

    46 people since 2012, in 14 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 3 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 2 people2016: 2 people2017: 6 people2018: 1 person2019: 4 people2020: 7 people2021: 4 people2022: 5 people2023: 4 people2024: 3 people2025: 3 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  4. Too many shortcuts to remember and hard to look upUnreviewed

    25 people since 2009, in 11 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 2 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 1 person2015: 1 person2016: 4 people2017: 4 people2018: 2 people2019: 0 people2020: 2 people2021: 2 people2022: 1 person2023: 5 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  5. Simple tasks take many keystrokes because commands must be memorizedUnreviewed

    23 people since 2011, in 13 different years · 2 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 2 people2013: 2 people2014: 2 people2015: 0 people2016: 4 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 1 person2020: 1 person2021: 5 people2022: 1 person2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 2 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  6. Esc key is too far to reach, and Ctrl-[ is unfamiliarUnreviewed

    19 people since 2010, in 11 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 3 people2011: 2 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 2 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 4 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 2 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  7. Heavily configured Vim becomes slow and laggy to useUnreviewed

    19 people since 2012, in 10 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 1 person2014: 3 people2015: 2 people2016: 0 people2017: 6 people2018: 1 person2019: 1 person2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 1 person2023: 2 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  8. Setting up Vim as an IDE takes a lot of timeUnreviewed

    19 people since 2012, in 9 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 3 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 2 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 3 people2020: 2 people2021: 2 people2022: 2 people2023: 5 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  9. hjkl movement keys are unintuitive for newcomers to learnUnreviewed

    16 people since 2009, in 10 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 1 person2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 3 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 2 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 2 people2021: 3 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  10. Constant mode switching and unfamiliar keys make editing hardUnreviewed

    16 people since 2013, in 8 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 3 people2014: 3 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 3 people2021: 3 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 2 people2025: 0 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  11. Making plugins work together takes days of effortUnreviewed

    15 people since 2011, in 9 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 2 people2013: 2 people2014: 2 people2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 2 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 3 people2021: 1 person2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  12. Unexpectedly kicked out of insert mode while typingUnreviewed

    15 people since 2010, in 7 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 4 people2011: 2 people2012: 0 people2013: 2 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 3 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 2 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  13. Moving the cursor to arbitrary text is slow without mouse or arrowsUnreviewed

    14 people since 2010, in 10 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 2 people2011: 2 people2012: 1 person2013: 2 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 1 person2020: 0 people2021: 2 people2022: 2 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  14. Configuring and coding with Vimscript is a constant painUnreviewed

    14 people since 2010, in 10 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 3 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 2 people2019: 1 person2020: 2 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  15. Commands are hard to discover without looking up plugin docsUnreviewed

    14 people since 2011, in 8 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 2 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 4 people2018: 1 person2019: 2 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 2 people2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  16. Steep learning curve leaves beginners frustrated and unproductiveUnreviewed

    13 people since 2009, in 12 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 1 person2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 2 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 1 person2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 1 person2021: 1 person2022: 1 person2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  17. Inconsistent key commands confuse new usersUnreviewed

    12 people since 2008, in 11 different years · none this year

    2008: 1 person2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 2 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  18. Typing commands in insert mode or pasting in command mode causes mistakesUnreviewed

    12 people since 2009, in 10 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 1 person2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 3 people2013: 1 person2014: 1 person2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 2 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 2 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  19. Mouse selections don't copy automatically, so paste fails without pressing yUnreviewed

    10 people since 2015, in 5 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 2 people2020: 2 people2021: 3 people2022: 2 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  20. Ctrl-C shows a message telling users to type :quit insteadUnreviewed

    10 people since 2015, in 4 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 2 people2017: 5 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 2 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  21. Copying and pasting from other applications into Vim is annoyingUnreviewed

    9 people since 2011, in 9 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 1 person2015: 1 person2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 1 person2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  22. Retraining muscle memory for Vim's keybindings is very difficultUnreviewed

    9 people since 2010, in 7 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 2 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 2 people2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  23. Saving needs Shift and mode switching, unlike Ctrl+sUnreviewed

    8 people since 2014, in 6 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 2 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 2 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  24. Easy to forget current mode, with only a small indicatorUnreviewed

    8 people since 2011, in 6 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 2 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 2 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  25. Mistyped keys trigger hard-to-undo commands and novices can't find the causeUnreviewed

    7 people since 2011, in 7 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 1 person2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  26. Default colors make dark blue text unreadable on black backgroundUnreviewed

    7 people since 2010, in 5 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 2 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 2 people2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  27. Macros are hard to get right and re-recording them is tediousUnreviewed

    6 people since 2010, in 7 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  28. Nonstandard keys for quitting and copy-paste are hard to discoverUnreviewed

    6 people since 2013, in 6 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 1 person2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  29. Without learning its shortcuts, users can't do anything in the editorUnreviewed

    6 people since 2013, in 6 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  30. Getting autocomplete working in Vim needs much configuration effortUnreviewed

    6 people since 2014, in 5 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 2 people2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  31. Wrapped-up config is hard for beginners to understand and modifyUnreviewed

    5 people since 2012, in 5 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  32. Vim-mode emulation differs subtly from real Vim and lacks featuresUnreviewed

    5 people since 2012, in 5 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  33. Typing 'i' or '{' lags while Vim waits for longer mappingsUnreviewed

    5 people since 2010, in 4 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 2 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  34. Syntax highlighting in LaTeX files lags behind typingUnreviewed

    4 people since 2014, in 6 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 2 people2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  35. Ctrl-w meant for Vim window commands accidentally closes browser tabUnreviewed

    4 people since 2010, in 4 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 1 person2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  36. File-per-tab model causes several pain points since tabs aren't filesUnreviewed

    4 people since 2009, in 4 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 1 person2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  37. Ends up in the wrong mode and miscounts line commands, requiring undosUnreviewed

    4 people since 2012, in 4 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  38. Selections and deletions unexpectedly remove the character after the cursorUnreviewed

    4 people since 2011, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 2 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  39. Keyboard-only interface frustrates beginners used to the mouseUnreviewed

    4 people since 2012, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 2 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  40. Scrolling is slow, with text taking a while to appearUnreviewed

    4 people since 2015, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 2 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  41. Searching for literal text requires manually escaping special charactersUnreviewed

    4 people since 2013, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 2 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  42. Clojure REPL plugins are hard to get running and unreliableUnreviewed

    3 people since 2011, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  43. Composing selection commands needs thought and is easy to get wrongUnreviewed

    3 people since 2016, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  44. Non-programmers struggle to open, edit and save filesUnreviewed

    3 people since 2018, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 1 person2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  45. Cursor keys are hard to use after switching back to QWERTYUnreviewed

    3 people since 2010, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  46. Typing jk to leave insert mode needs an awkward key delayUnreviewed

    3 people since 2015, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 1 person2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  47. Key bindings add so much mental load that users must stop and thinkUnreviewed

    3 people since 2017, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 1 person2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  48. Tab commands are clunky to type, so users avoid tabsUnreviewed

    3 people since 2017, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  49. Editing files with thousands of lines becomes very slowUnreviewed

    3 people since 2012, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  50. q enters a recording mode instead of quitting, needing extra escapesUnreviewed

    3 people since 2018, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  51. Automatic indenting mangles code as you typeUnreviewed

    3 people since 2010, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  52. Can't apply the chosen markdown syntax highlightingUnreviewed

    3 people since 2017, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 1 person2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  53. yy and P copy-paste commands are unexpected, unlike Cmd+c and Cmd+pUnreviewed

    3 people since 2010, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 1 person2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  54. Unclear which plugin manager to use or where plugins goUnreviewed

    3 people since 2017, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  55. Overlapping shortcuts make switching windows confusing in tmux and VimUnreviewed

    3 people since 2014, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 1 person2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 1 person2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  56. Fails to find files accurately in larger projectsUnreviewed

    3 people since 2012, in 3 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 1 person2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  57. Cannot paste line-wise yanks inline or charwise yanks on a new lineUnreviewed

    3 people since 2012, in 3 different years · 1 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 1 person2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 1 person
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  58. Layouts unexpectedly collapse or clone buffers across splitsUnreviewed

    3 people since 2012, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 2 people2013: 0 people2014: 1 person2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  59. File-finder plugin is confusing compared to other implementationsUnreviewed

    3 people since 2011, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 2 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  60. Tab completion picks the first matching filename instead of listing matchesUnreviewed

    3 people since 2016, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 1 person2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 2 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  61. Unintuitive operation that can't be learned without instructionUnreviewed

    3 people since 2012, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 2 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 1 person2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  62. Mouse use unexpectedly enters visual mode, breaking copy and pasteUnreviewed

    3 people since 2011, in 2 different years · 2 this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 1 person2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 2 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  63. Reopening an open file means tabbing through windows or risking unsaved changesUnreviewed

    3 people since 2017, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 1 person2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 2 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  64. No visible cues show which commands ran, so yanks go unnoticedUnreviewed

    3 people since 2011, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 2 people2012: 0 people2013: 0 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 1 person2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  65. Cursor jumps across wrapped lines instead of moving row by rowUnreviewed

    3 people since 2013, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 1 person2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 2 people2023: 0 people2024: 0 people2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?
  66. Counted-line commands like delete the following 5 lines are hard to think inUnreviewed

    3 people since 2013, in 2 different years · none this year

    2008: 0 people2009: 0 people2010: 0 people2011: 0 people2012: 0 people2013: 2 people2014: 0 people2015: 0 people2016: 0 people2017: 0 people2018: 0 people2019: 0 people2020: 0 people2021: 0 people2022: 0 people2023: 0 people2024: 1 person2025: 0 people2026: 0 people
    20082026
    Something wrong here?

This list counts all time; the period switch above only changes the ranking. Each issue is a group of similar complaints raised by at least 3 people in 3 different months and threads. Each line under an issue is Claude Haiku's summary of one of its latest comments, not a quote; follow it to read the comment on Hacker News.

Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.

The newest 50 complaints