It works wonderfully with make, so you can run “make $file” in a couple strokes. I use this when writing markdown (to generate html with pandoc), editing test files, etc.

Another example is when I’m “cleaning” a large csv file. Most times, I can record my movements cleaning a single line, and then replay those actions N times. You could do the same thing with a regex sometimes, but for really complicated files this is easier.

A final, simpler one: I have <Leader>f mapped to fd piped into fzf piped into open. Other editors probably have fuzzy file finders. Some of them maybe even use fzf internally.

But I think this example demonstrates how vim embodies UNIX ideas, as a modal text editor that depends on other binaries for complex behavior. People levy this as a complaint, that it doesn’t come feature complete, but it’s in reality a strength. Because while other editors wax and wane in terms of features and performance, vim only ever gets faster, as the binaries you depend on are swall out for better replacements every couple years.