Selected match in HTML tag is indistinguishable from non-selected matches in dark terminals
Steps to reproduce
For this reproduction, I'm using the MDN's basic HTML template.
- Ensure the terminal emulator is in dark style/mode
For GNOME Console and Ptyxis, this can be done from the main menu (
F10). Ptyxis users should also set the GNOME colour palette in preferences (Ctrl+,), under the 'Appearance' tab. For Konsole, ensure your profile's colour scheme is 'Breeze', which is the default for the 'Built-in' profile. - Edit the HTML file with Vim using
vim --clean index.html - Enable
hlsearchwith:set hlsearch - Perform a search for
/metawithout pressing<Enter> - Cycle between the results with
CTRL-G/CTRL-T
All matches are visually indistinguishable (black text with yellow highlight), making it impossible to tell which is selected without further configuration.
This is not an issue in light style/mode.
Expected behaviour
When the terminal emulators (Ptyxis, GNOME Console, and Konsole) are in light style/mode, Vim colours the meta text a darker shade of yellow. This distinction is important since the selected match is highlighted by reversing the text and background colour, while the non-selected matches simply use a light shade of yellow.
This means the match highlighting behaviour differs between light/dark terminal emulators:
- In light style/mode: the selected match is a dark shade of yellow, the non-selected matches are a light shade of yellow.
- In dark style/mode: all matches (selected, non-selected) share the same light shade of yellow. They're visually indistinguishable.
I'd expect the difference to be equally obvious when the terminal emulator is in dark style/mode.
I should note that setting termguicolors does make the selected match distinguishable in dark style/mode, as its background now adopts a slightly darker shade of yellow then the non-selected matches. Though it's certainly not a fix, since it remains difficult to discern the difference.
Version of Vim
9.2.1119
Environment
Operating system: Fedora Linux 43 (Workstation Edition)
Terminal: Ptyxis 49.3 (Fedora Workstation default, primary), GNOME Console 49.2, Konsole 26.08.0
Value of $TERM: xterm-256color
Shell: fish, version 4.2.0
Thank you for this wonderful software.
Source: vim/vim