Move over Sublime, Brackets and Atom, there’s a new code editor on the scene and this one is worth sitting up for. Enter Microsoft Visual Studio Code, a new source code editor that is making waves on the development scene.
Don’t be put off by the name. Microsoft has done something great here and given us a free open-source code editor that should not be confused with it’s current “Visual Studio”.
I made the switch to VS Code back in April 2016 when version 1.0 was launched and since then, I haven’t looked back. Now sitting at version 1.10, the editor has matured into something noteworthy thanks to it’s monthly updates – it’s definitely on the up and up among the web coders.
Let’s take a look at the features of VS Code and why it’s such a formidable editor:
– Git integration
– Built-in debugger
– Extensions
– Side-by-side editing
– Tab support
– Command Palette
– IntelliSense
– Integrated terminal
– Highly customizable – themes, keymaps, extensions, file icon themes
– Hot Exit support
– Available for macOS, Linux and Windows
– Monthly updates and great support
– 100% free and open source
I personally love the Git and terminal integration. The Git integration highlights code what’s been added/removed since the last commit and the terminal integration makes sure that you never have to leave your code editor to run some cmd/bash commands.
The community support around it is growing quickly and the list of ever-growing great extensions is alone, worth checking out. I plan to do a top 10 VS Code extensions blog post in the near future highlighting some of my most used extensions.
The only thing I can critique about the editor is the name. I think a lot of people are either put off, uninterested or confused about the title and I can see why. But just remember; Microsoft Visual Studio Code != Microsoft Visual Studio
If you’re looking to try something new or even just interested in using something other than what you’re used to, I highly recommend trying out VS Code, you won’t be sorry.