Vim trick - how to view directory as a "folder"?

Question

I was working in the ubuntu terminal and accidentally "vim-ed" to a folder instead of cd-ing to it. Somehow this displayed a window that displayed the directory's contents as if it were a folder on the desktop. So how do I do this again?

Accepted Answer

By default, vim opens directories into a buffer using the built-in `netrw` plugin. See `:help netrw` for information. Additionally, many users like other plugins like NERDTree to edit directories. You can edit a folder using

```
:e /path/to/directory
```

or by opening it directly when you start vim:

```
vim /path/to/directory
```

Vim trick - how to view directory as a "folder"?

Solution

Problem