obsession.vim

Vim features a :mksession command to write a file containing the current
state of Vim: window positions, open folds, stuff like that. For most of my
existence, I found the interface way too awkward and manual to be useful, but
I’ve recently discovered that the only thing standing between me and simple,
no-hassle Vim sessions is a few tweaks:

• Instead of making me remember to capture the session immediately before
  exiting Vim, allow me to do it at any time, and automatically re-invoke
  :mksession immediately before exit.
• Also invoke :mksession whenever the layout changes (in particular, on
  BufEnter), so that even if Vim exits abnormally, I’m good to go.
• If I load an existing session, automatically keep it updated as above.
• If I try to create a new session on top of an existing session, don’t refuse
  to overwrite it. Just do what I mean.
• If I pass in a directory rather than a file name, just create a
  Session.vim inside of it.
• Don’t capture options and maps. Options are sometimes mutilated and maps
  just interfere with updating plugins.

Use :Obsess (with optional file/directory name) to start recording to a
session file and :Obsess! to stop and throw it away. That’s it. Load a
session in the usual manner: vim -S, or :source it.

There’s also an indicator you can put in 'statusline', 'tabline', or
'titlestring'. See :help obsession-status.

Installation

If you don’t have a preferred installation method, I recommend
installing pathogen.vim, and
then simply copy and paste:

cd ~/.vim/bundle
git clone https://github.com/tpope/vim-obsession.git
vim -u NONE -c "helptags vim-obsession/doc" -c q

Self-Promotion

Like obsession.vim? Follow the repository on
GitHub and vote for it on
vim.org. And if
you’re feeling especially charitable, follow tpope on
Twitter and
GitHub.

License

Copyright © Tim Pope. Distributed under the same terms as Vim itself.
See :help license.