Ergoemacs also supports modal editing. It doesn't emulate vi, but uses Alt key for most frequently used commands. For example, moving cursor is Alt plus right hand inverted T. Deleting char or word is Alt with left hand home-row keys. Key choices are based on command frequency and key's position for ease-of-press.

• To start modal editing, Alt+ any inverted Key. Then, user no longer need to hold Alt. Once a non-movement key/command is called, modal exits.

Advantages:

• Part of GNU Emacs, in ELPA.
• Supports “universal” Windows/Linux keys out of the box. e.g. Open (C-o), Close (C-w), Select all (C-a), Copy (C-c), Cut (C-x), Paste (C-v), etc.
• Fairly popular.
• Supports many layouts, including Qwerty, dvorak, colemak, bepo, and many other international layouts.
• Keys are customizable via a extension system, by creating a theme.
• Emacs C-x and C-c commands can be called without needing to hold modifier, similar to god-mode.

Disadvantages:

• Slow on start.
• Complex code.

Ergoemacs also supports modal editing. It doesn't emulate vi, but uses Alt key for most frequently used commands. For example, moving cursor is Alt plus right hand inverted T. (On QWERTY it is Alt+j for left, Alt+l for right, Alt+i for up and Alt+k for down). Deleting char or word is Alt with left hand home-row keys. Key choices are based on command frequency and key's position for ease-of-press.

• To start modal editing, the user can press f6.
• Once f6 was pressed, the most frequently used keys no longer require an alt key combination.
• Therefore, on QWERTY, j is left, j is right, i is up and k is down).
• The modal command mode is exited by pressing return, f6 or escape.

In addition to the traditional modal paradigm, there is a quasi modal paradigm that allows any C-x or C-c key combination to be reached without using any modifiers (like god-mode).

• The quasi-modal is started with the QWERTY apps f for C-c with the control key pressed down and the QWERTY apps d for C-x.
• While completing this key sequence the apps key will change the type of modifiers that are assumed to be pressed down.
• Once the command has been called, ergoemacs resumes the editing mode.
• During any key sequence you can also change the types of keys that are held down. This is by simply pressing the apps key again.

In addition to changing the command keys, ergoemacs-mode allows you to change things about the key sequence while typing it:

• You can edit the prefix argument during the middle of a key sequence by pressing f2.
• Pressing backspace takes back the last key pressed.
• Apps allows you to change the keys held down during any key sequence.

ergoemacs-mode also attempts to respect anything the mode does to the fundamental keys. For example, if org-mode defines a special key for next-line, ergoemacs uses this command for Alt+k when in org-mode.

Advantages:

• Part of GNU Emacs, in ELPA.
• Supports “universal” Windows/Linux keys out of the box. e.g. Open (C-o), Close (C-w), Select all (C-a), Copy (C-c), Cut (C-x), Paste (C-v), etc.
• Fairly popular.
• Supports many layouts, including Qwerty, dvorak, colemak, bepo, and many other international layouts that adjust the keys to make sure they are on the home row (M-i in QWERTY would be M-u in colemak).
• Shows an image of your keyboard layout in emacs by describing the theme.
• Keys are customizable via a extension system, by creating a theme.
• You can setup any arbitrary modal keymap (not yet documented).

Disadvantages:

• Stable is slow on startup.
• In the unstable master, the first startup is slow (~5 seconds for minimal setup), (~20 seconds for my startup)
• The second second startup is much quicker (for my complex setup it is ~4 seconds).
• This is because ergoemacs-mode is changing and caching every active keymap in emacs. On second startup, these settings are saved.
• Complex code.

Ergoemacs also supports modal editing. It doesn't emulate vi/vim, etc, but rather by default makes the Alt+ key for ergoemacs-mode keys.

The mecahnisim for creating modal editing is expandable and extensible in ergoemacs-mode. It is easy to emulate god-mode style keys in ergoemacs-mode as well.

In addition to modal editing, with the use of the "Apps" key any key can be reached by a key sequence that does not involve a key chord.

See https://github.com/ergoemacs/ergoemacs-mode

Ergoemacs also supports modal editing. It doesn't emulate vi, but uses Alt key for most frequently used commands. For example, moving cursor is Alt plus right hand inverted T. Deleting char or word is Alt with left hand home-row keys. Key choices are based on command frequency and key's position for ease-of-press.

• To start modal editing, Alt+ any inverted Key. Then, user no longer need to hold Alt. Once a non-movement key/command is called, modal exits.

Advantages:

• Part of GNU Emacs, in ELPA.
• Supports “universal” Windows/Linux keys out of the box. e.g. Open (C-o), Close (C-w), Select all (C-a), Copy (C-c), Cut (C-x), Paste (C-v), etc.
• Fairly popular.
• Supports many layouts, including Qwerty, dvorak, colemak, bepo, and many other international layouts.
• Keys are customizable via a extension system, by creating a theme.
• Emacs C-x and C-c commands can be called without needing to hold modifier, similar to god-mode.

Disadvantages:

• Slow on start.
• Complex code.

See https://github.com/ergoemacs/ergoemacs-mode