How do I scroll the screen while also jumping to the first non-blank character of the current line?

Explanation

Vim has two sets of scroll-and-position commands: zt/zz/zb (which reposition the screen but keep the cursor column intact) and z<CR>/z./z- (which reposition the screen and move the cursor to the first non-blank character). Knowing both lets you precisely control where you land after scrolling.

How it works

The z<CR>, z., and z- variants are the lesser-known cousins of zt, zz, and zb. They perform the same scrolling but additionally move the cursor to the first non-blank character, similar to how pressing ^ would.

Example

Given a function definition indented with spaces:

    function computeResult() {   ← cursor here (column 5)
        return 42;
    }

Pressing z<CR> scrolls this line to the top of the screen and moves the cursor to f in function (first non-blank). Pressing zt would scroll identically but leave the cursor at column 5.

Tips

• Use z<CR> instead of zt^ when you want both effects in one keystroke
• All six commands accept a count prefix: 3z<CR> scrolls line 3 to the top and moves cursor there
• The same count behavior applies to zt/zz/zb — a prefix line number means "scroll so line N is at the target position"