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VS Code

Why choose VS Code

While learning CS, you need a capable code editor. Although Vim is essential keyboard operation skills, you still need a feature-rich IDE for daily development. VS Code is currently the most popular code editor, balancing lightweight design with powerful features.

Free and open source

VS Code is completely free, maintained by Microsoft, with an active community and frequent updates.

Rich extension ecosystem

VS Code has a massive extension library covering virtually every programming language and development scenario. Python, C/C++, Java, JavaScript, LaTeX, Docker — all have dedicated extensions.

Built-in Git support

VS Code has built-in Git integration, allowing you to commit, manage branches, and resolve conflicts through a graphical interface — very friendly for beginners.

Remote development

Through extensions like Remote - SSH and Remote - Containers, VS Code can connect directly to remote servers or Docker containers for development with a smooth local-like experience.

Installing VS Code

Windows

Download from the VS Code website, or use Scoop:

scoop install vscode

macOS

brew install --cask visual-studio-code

Linux

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo snap install code --classic

Programming languages

  • Python — essential for Python development (by Microsoft)
  • C/C++ — C/C++ development support (by Microsoft)
  • Java Extension Pack — complete Java development toolkit
  • JavaScript (ES6) code snippets — JavaScript code snippets

Productivity tools

  • Vim — use Vim keybindings in VS Code
  • GitLens — enhanced Git features, view code history and blame
  • Error Lens — display error messages inline in code
  • Todo Tree — highlight and manage TODO comments in code

Remote development

  • Remote - SSH — connect to remote servers for development
  • Remote - Containers — develop inside Docker containers
  • WSL — develop in WSL

Other recommendations

  • LaTeX Workshop — LaTeX editing support
  • Docker — Docker management
  • Thunder Client — API testing tool
  • indent-rainbow — indentation visualization

Useful tips

Command Palette

Press Ctrl+Shift+P (Cmd+Shift+P on macOS) to open the command palette, where you can search and execute any command.

Multi-cursor editing

Hold Alt and click at multiple locations to edit multiple places simultaneously.

Quick file open

Press Ctrl+P (Cmd+P on macOS) and type a filename to quickly open files.

Sidebar minimap

Add to settings.json:

{
    "editor.minimap.enabled": true,
    "editor.formatOnSave": true,
    "editor.defaultFormatter": "esbenp.prettier-vscode"
}

Other resources