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As a long time vim user, I’ve tried VSCode a few times and I cannot for the life of me figure out what all the hype is about. Can anyone who is proficient with

As a long time vim user, I’ve tried VSCode a few times and I cannot for the life of me figure out what all the hype is about. Can anyone who is proficient with it explain the philosophy behind it and what makes it so great? This is a sincere question, not a rhetorical one.

oehtXRwMkIs 6y ago
It's very featureful and very easy to pick up. So I speculate that most of its popularity is with people that unfortunately have not yet been enlightened by vim/emacs.
- chongli 6y ago
  The article said 1.4 million people have installed the Vim plugin for VSCode. That's a sizeable chunk. Presumably a bunch of those people really like the editor.
- EduardoBautista 6y ago
  I used Vim for several years before switching to Sublime Text 3.0 and now VS Code. VS Code support for TypeScript is just unmatched on any other editor.
  - EQuimper 6y ago
    Webstorm typescript feel better for me
pokernaming 6y ago
I use vscode daily for everything, from note taking to programming. Here are my pros and cons. Pros: - Has plugins for anything.You're doing C++, just install C++ plugin and you're good to go. Want vim key bindings there's a plugin for that as well. I use a plugin that can scrape competitive coding websites and automatically create tests for a problem. - Git, snippets, etc all modern IDE features built-in. - It is also found on many websites as an editor. Cons: - Since it's electron. System requirements are on the higher end.
- blondin 6y ago
  cons: extensions. sharing part of OP's sentiment. in fact, i flipped the table a few weeks back because an extension downloaded a tool to my system and guess what? the installation got stuck. and guess what? my text editor hung! all i wanted was to edit text. i didn't even ask for an extension. i was presented with one that supposedly would make my text editing experience better. tiring...
- j-james 6y ago
  It's worth mentioning that even though it's Electron, it's fairly well optimized Electron. Idle, it takes up a third of a gig of RAM on my laptop. Language server extensions are responsible for the majority of the load users encounter. That's certainly a good 2-3 times more than Sublime Text, but it's not going to be a deal breaker for a majority of people.
pvg 6y ago
It's Emacs for Javascript people - a good thing since Emacs is moribund and most programmers are at least a little bit Javascript people. A highly programmable, cross-platform editor with zillions of extensions/modes that support all sorts of languages and environments. People complain about its resource requirements and performance, just like they did with Emacs. Vi(m) users are the natural enemy of VSCode, just like they were the natural enemy of Emacs, continuing their long proud tradition of being wrong about everything. I think that's roughly where it fits 'philosophically'.
- Cyph0n 6y ago
  > continuing their long proud tradition of being wrong about everything. Why do you think that Vim users were/are wrong about everything?
  - pvg 6y ago
    I don't! That's just a dumb joke. A thing that I semi-seriously think: modal editing is not some uniquely interesting or advantageous way to navigate and edit text. A thing that I mostly-seriously think: most more recent methods for editing and navigating code are a lot better vim-style modal text editing.
    - szemet 6y ago
      The only thing what makes modal editing bearable (from UX PoV) is the unlimited undo. e.g. Would anyone take a plane that has modal cockpit buttons?
      - Cyph0n 6y ago
        What does flying a plane have to do with editing and navigating code?
        szemet 6y ago
        It happens me every day: I just start to type while still in command mode, and then have to press "u" a couple of times. (But ok, thats maybe just me - thought this is a common experience, and I just wouldn't like to sit behind a pilot doing the same...)
kart23 6y ago
these are my favorite features, in no particular order. * Tons of quality extensions, incredibly easy to install and manage * Good color schemes * ssh extension - remote vscode with all your plugins, themes, etc. with basically zero setup * integrated terminal I have no doubt that you can get a better vim setup, but getting vim fine-tuned takes a while for me and figuring out what I like. VSCode is convenient and easy, and works on everything, no suprises. Don't have to worry about fonts, terminal colors, config files, etc. I do think the vim plugin for VSCode is garbage compared with the terminal.

oehtXRwMkIs 6y ago

It's very featureful and very easy to pick up. So I speculate that most of its popularity is with people that unfortunately have not yet been enlightened by vim/emacs.

chongli 6y ago
The article said 1.4 million people have installed the Vim plugin for VSCode. That's a sizeable chunk. Presumably a bunch of those people really like the editor.
EduardoBautista 6y ago
I used Vim for several years before switching to Sublime Text 3.0 and now VS Code. VS Code support for TypeScript is just unmatched on any other editor.
- EQuimper 6y ago
  Webstorm typescript feel better for me

pokernaming 6y ago

I use vscode daily for everything, from note taking to programming. Here are my pros and cons. Pros: - Has plugins for anything.You're doing C++, just install C++ plugin and you're good to go. Want vim key bindings there's a plugin for that as well. I use a plugin that can scrape competitive coding websites and automatically create tests for a problem. - Git, snippets, etc all modern IDE features built-in. - It is also found on many websites as an editor. Cons: - Since it's electron. System requirements are on the higher end.

blondin 6y ago
cons: extensions. sharing part of OP's sentiment. in fact, i flipped the table a few weeks back because an extension downloaded a tool to my system and guess what? the installation got stuck. and guess what? my text editor hung! all i wanted was to edit text. i didn't even ask for an extension. i was presented with one that supposedly would make my text editing experience better. tiring...
j-james 6y ago
It's worth mentioning that even though it's Electron, it's fairly well optimized Electron. Idle, it takes up a third of a gig of RAM on my laptop. Language server extensions are responsible for the majority of the load users encounter. That's certainly a good 2-3 times more than Sublime Text, but it's not going to be a deal breaker for a majority of people.

pvg 6y ago

It's Emacs for Javascript people - a good thing since Emacs is moribund and most programmers are at least a little bit Javascript people. A highly programmable, cross-platform editor with zillions of extensions/modes that support all sorts of languages and environments. People complain about its resource requirements and performance, just like they did with Emacs. Vi(m) users are the natural enemy of VSCode, just like they were the natural enemy of Emacs, continuing their long proud tradition of being wrong about everything. I think that's roughly where it fits 'philosophically'.

Cyph0n 6y ago
> continuing their long proud tradition of being wrong about everything. Why do you think that Vim users were/are wrong about everything?
- pvg 6y ago
  I don't! That's just a dumb joke. A thing that I semi-seriously think: modal editing is not some uniquely interesting or advantageous way to navigate and edit text. A thing that I mostly-seriously think: most more recent methods for editing and navigating code are a lot better vim-style modal text editing.
  - szemet 6y ago
    The only thing what makes modal editing bearable (from UX PoV) is the unlimited undo. e.g. Would anyone take a plane that has modal cockpit buttons?
    - Cyph0n 6y ago
      What does flying a plane have to do with editing and navigating code?
      - szemet 6y ago
        It happens me every day: I just start to type while still in command mode, and then have to press "u" a couple of times. (But ok, thats maybe just me - thought this is a common experience, and I just wouldn't like to sit behind a pilot doing the same...)

kart23 6y ago

these are my favorite features, in no particular order. * Tons of quality extensions, incredibly easy to install and manage * Good color schemes * ssh extension - remote vscode with all your plugins, themes, etc. with basically zero setup * integrated terminal I have no doubt that you can get a better vim setup, but getting vim fine-tuned takes a while for me and figuring out what I like. VSCode is convenient and easy, and works on everything, no suprises. Don't have to worry about fonts, terminal colors, config files, etc. I do think the vim plugin for VSCode is garbage compared with the terminal.