When Vi opens a new file, the cursor is in the upper left corner. The lower left corner of the file windown shows the filename in quotes and identifi es it as a new file. When Vi opens a new or existing file, it opens in edit mode. This allows you to position the cursor in the file. You must change to insert mode before entering text.
Command mode is issued from within edit mode.
To issue a colon command, you must be in edit mode. If you are in insert mode and type a colon, it is placed in the file as another character. However, if you are in edit mode and type a colon, Vi knows you want to issue a colon command. In insert mode, you can only backspace on the current line. You cannot backspace to the preceding line.