indenting

Some variables you might want to set:

:set tabstop 8 - tabs are at proper location
:set expandtab - don't use actual tab character (ctrl-v)
:set shiftwidth=4 - indenting is 4 spaces
:set autoindent - turns it on
:set smartindent - does the right thing (mostly) in programs
:set cindent - stricter rules for C programs

I like having auto on, but smart does funny things based on keywords.

To indent the current line, or a visual block:

ctrl-t, ctrl-d - indent current line forward, backwards
(insert mode)
visual > or < - indent block by sw (repeat with . )

To stop indenting when pasting with the mouse, add this to your .vimrc:

:set pastetoggle=<f5>

then try hitting the F5 key while in insert mode (or just :set paste).