Wait, I need you to please elaborate on this. Where was he sourcing all code he pasted? Did he have a "snippet file" like a painter with a palette or something?
Typically in the code repository with other files that shared a similar pattern context that he was working with.
Sometimes he would need a portion of a word and he would remember that it was in an email he had open, and he would alt+tab and grab the portion of the word from the email, then alt+tab back to the editor and paste the word portion in.
He would go to extreme lengths to not have to move his hands to the home row on the keyboard.
I am a bit dyslexic and even though I am an avid vim user, I do often rely on copy paste to avoid silly typos that cost so much time for me to fix. Because I cannot even see the typo, even in the compiler output!
Sometimes he would need a portion of a word and he would remember that it was in an email he had open, and he would alt+tab and grab the portion of the word from the email, then alt+tab back to the editor and paste the word portion in.
He would go to extreme lengths to not have to move his hands to the home row on the keyboard.