After searching for a good 30 minutes on what should be a pretty simple solution, I decided to ask the good folks in #vim on FreeNode. I’m no stranger to IRC, so I know that if someone goes in asking a simple question that can be looked up in some manual somewhere, that someone is going to get burned pretty badly. I knew that my question was such a question, but I was different. I spent half an hour looking for a solution, trying instructions from dozens of different websites, the official instructions on the main page, and manual after manual. Surely, they would sympathize!

At the time, this was the set topic for the channel.

Vim 7.2.356: http://vim.sf.net | Don’t ask to ask, just ask! …

I’m going to stop talking now, and let the following excerpt do the talking for me. No changes have been made to the chat log. I’ve labelled myself in blue, and everyone else talking about me, or to me, in red.

[metaleks]: how do I install a .vim plugin (python.vim)? I’ve placed it in ~/.vim/plugin and in /usr/share/vim/vim72/plugin/, but nothing seems to be working.
[Araxia]: hey, naquad. i wrote an auto tag completion function last night, if you’re interested in having a look. not super pretty, but functional: http://pastey.net/132688
[naquad]: Araxia: hi!
[skrite]: do tabs in vim 7 eliminate the need of buffers? why use buffers (like with mini buff explorer) instead of tabs?
[arm]: metaleks: I think it should be in ftplugin…
[tpope]: python.vim does NOT sound like a plugin
it might be an ftplugin, might be a syntax file, might be an indenting algorithm
* spiiph bets there were installation instructions there somewhere.
[spiiph]: skrite, no
vimgor, tabs
[vimgor]: Tabs are not buffers, don’t try to force them to act like buffers. Consider tabs like viewports, layouts, or workspaces. Trying to setup 1 tab == 1 buffer is an exercise in futility. Do ‘:set hidden’ and get started. Get FuzzyFinder, LustyExplorer or BufExplorer to make getting around your buffers easier. See http://vim.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Tabs for more info.
[tpope]: I’m pretty sure the installation instructions read “head to irc and ask a question that makes you look like you don’t know what you’re talking about”
[metaleks]: there were no instructions in the .vim file
nor could I find any after a good while of searching
[naquad]: Araxia: cool. i didn’t understand even a half, but tested and it works pretty nice, thank you
[metaleks]: sorry if it seems like a newb question
I will try ftplugin, thanks
[spiiph]: metaleks, well, where did you find the file in the first place?
[arm]: is it just me, or noobs that read the smartQuestions.html keep asking FAQ shit but now saying they have not found anything when they supposedly did search for stuff in the docs
[metaleks]: spiiph, the main vimscripts site
arm, I assure you that I never resort to IRC unless I’ve spent a good while searching for the solution myself
[qz]: any ideas how to find out which plugin tries to “indent” my code when i press enter?
[arm]: metaleks: if you are desperate to get it working, try :source
[tpope]: metaleks: this one? http://www.vim.org/scripts/script.php?script_id=790
metaleks: the one that clearly says “Place python.vim file in ~/.vim/syntax/ folder.”
[Araxia]: naquad: one limitation is that it will only complete a tag that was started on the same line. a lot of the script is just using normal mode commands. if you have any questions, i’d be happy to explain.
[spiiph]: Bah, tpope beat me to it.
[metaleks]: tpope, yes, that’s the one, and yes I tried the instructions there
[tpope]: metaleks: then why’d you come in babbling about sticking it in .vim/plugin?
[metaleks]: arm, thanks for that tip, that’s one more thing I will try before coming here next time
[naquad]: Araxia: i’m learning to work with vim manual, trying to find out everything myself
[metaleks]: tpope, I was just listing stuff I tried
[Araxia]: naquad: that’s definitely the way to do it.
[tpope]: metaleks: you never once mentioned you tried following the actual instructions
[metaleks]: tpope, because that’s obvious that you would right?
[tpope]: hey guys I keep shoving cucumbers up my butt but I’m still hungry
[metaleks]: no need to be hostile
[tpope]: jesus fucking christ what is wrong with you?
[darkfuneral]: is there a way i can set a colorscheme but only or a certain plugin? i’m using vimoutliner and i only want to change it’s colorscheme for hilighting, not the entire colorscheme of vim
[tpope]: yes, when you come in playing the part of the village idiot, you do need to explain that you tried following instructions
[tpope]: darkfuneral: no. but you can create a super duper colorscheme that highlights different files different ways
[metaleks]: I’m sorry I didn’t list the 3000 different things i tried, honestly good sir, your hostility is unwarranted
[darkfuneral]: tpope: ok how
[tpope]: darkfuneral: colorschemes define very specific groups (“rubyInteger”) that link to more generic groups (“Number”). simply highlight the more specific groups instead

After that, nothing was said to me, which was good because I didn’t really feel like talking anymore. Thanks for making me feel welcome, asshat. I’ve been nothing but polite to you, but apparently it’s too much to return the favour when your ego is as big as the channel itself.

I think this sums up this strange phenomenon, because honestly, stuff like this is rampant on IRC.

In the end, I never did find a solution to my problem. I can live without the Python syntax script for now, but I’ll come back to it some time in the future. Anyway, I’d like to end this post off with one of my favourite quotes.

Edit: Boy, this thing really took off, albeit a few months later. Reddit, Twitter, blogs… I don’t promote my blog at all, so the fact that so many people have read one of my posts gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling. However, there are a few clarifications I should add.

1. The problem turned out to be Ubuntu and the way it handled autoloading of plugins. Props to Dace for the comment below on how to solve this problem.

2. Part of the problem, looking back now, was that I didn’t really articulate myself well enough while asking for help. I apologize for that, but I still think the responses I received weren’t warranted.

However, the service is now called Vreel. Don’t worry, it’s just a new name. I have no qualms with that, after all, Stage 6 was a pretty weird name itself. Regardless, the same service will be back. High definition DivX streaming! Woot! It won’t be the same as Stage 6, but it’ll be pretty damn similar! You can see Vreel here.

You really don’t need a translation for the video below.  Basically the Russian-speaking-Ukranian guy reviewing the monitor draws on the screen with a marker, draws on the screen with a nail, tries to hammer the monitor with…a hammer (surprise?), tries to hammer a nail into the screen, and then finally fires a crossbow at it.  The monitor remains unscathed after all of that.  Although, when the light flickers off of it, you can notice the smudge these things did to the screen.  But it’s barely noticeable.

I don’t know, but a monitor here in North America would need to resist the odd office nerf dart, or paper airplane.  These are the standard weapons of all office wars.  I guess in Russia, office wars are a bit more serious.