Zenburn

Zenburn is a software designed to provide a low-contrast colour scheme suitable for low-light conditions. As the developer has commented, the idea behind Zenburn is to provide a pleasant experience for users working in such conditions, reducing their eyestrain. It is particularly suited for those who prefer to work in a darkened room, using fullscreen Vim. The good news is that even if you do not work in low-light environments, you can still give Zenburn a try.

What's more, there is now a higher-contrast mode available, which features a darker background. Activating this mode is easy - just type ":let g:zenburn_high_Contrast=1", then ":colors zenburn". There are also other options available in the syntax file itself.

Vim, the text editor used with Zenburn, was first released by Bram Moolenaar in 1991 for the Amiga computer. It was created as an extended version of the vi editor with additional features designed to help programmers in editing program source code. Vim is cross-platform, although it is most popular among Unix-like operating systems. Vim's license is compatible with the GNU General Public License, making it free and open source software that includes some charityware clauses.

Vim's interface is command-based, rather than relying on menus or icons. Its GUI mode, gVim, does include menus and toolbars for common commands, but Vim's full functionality is still expressed through its command line mode. Many users find learning Vim initially difficult and time-consuming. Once the basics are understood, however, users can quickly progress and editing becomes more efficient. Vim has a built-in tutorial for beginners, and the Vim Users' Manual is available online or can be accessed from within Vim. Vim also has a built-in help facility using the :help command, allowing users to navigate commands and features.

To use Zenburn, you only need Vim. The latest release of Zenburn includes many fixes and enhancements.