While I agree with most of your points it does matter to me that I can do the few editing actions I do quickly otherwise it breaks my concentration of focussing on the code.
I also need to be able to navigate the code quickly but that might be part if your "tools to help me understand" remark.
> I also need to be able to navigate the code quickly but that might be part if your "tools to help me understand" remark.
It often takes me 20-30 minutes to edit a single line of code. Understanding why I need to change the program, what the effects of making that change are, determining which line of the code to edit, figuring out whether I need to edit or refactor, spending time in a REPL to test the proposed changes...
For me, part of getting that understanding is navigating the code and I do not always have room for another window on my screens.
It seems we have different approaches to working on code, or perhaps we just use different language. The main languages I currently work in are: Common Lisp, Python, JavaScript and C++.
I also need to be able to navigate the code quickly but that might be part if your "tools to help me understand" remark.