TextMate Basics Tutorial

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Abstraction: TextMate editor bundle system, snippets, and keyboard shortcuts overview

Key points:

Bundles are language-centered containers holding Commands (shell scripts), Snippets (intelligent text blocks with tab stops), Macros (recorded keystrokes), Language Grammars, and Preference Items
Snippets support placeholder tab stops (${1:name}), embedded shell code, and regex transformations; invoked by typing a trigger word then Tab
Scopes (defined by Language Grammars) control where commands/snippets are active and drive syntax highlighting; analogous to CSS selectors
Key shortcut Ctrl+Cmd+T opens the Bundle Item selector to search all available commands/snippets in the current scope
Column selection mode activated by holding Option key with a multi-line selection; enables block insert/delete across columns
Execute Line/Selection as shell command with Ctrl+R; Filter Through Command (Opt+Cmd+R) pipes selection through arbitrary shell commands

Connections: Textmate · Text Editor · Code Snippets