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Month: September 2017

Speedy Project Navigation in Visual Studio Code

Speedy Project Navigation in Visual Studio Code

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Writing code faster involves more than quick typing and editing. Programming projects often span tens or even hundreds of source code files. It’s easy to waste time browsing around in the project directory for the specific file you’re after, so it’s worth learning a few shortcuts that will grease the transition from one area of the project to another.

Thankfully, editors and IDEs like Visual Studio Code come with all sorts of niceties to help you manage the complexity of dealing with a large codebase. Here is a shortlist of the shortcuts that will shorten your programming the most.

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Should You Ever Use the Mouse When Programming?

Should You Ever Use the Mouse When Programming?

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If you are a nerd like me and read lots of articles about keyboard shortcuts, you’ve probably come across the notion that you would ultimately be a better developer if you never touched your mouse but instead operated your computer solely with the keyboard. It’s sometimes touted as a Holy Grail of efficiency and productivity, and it presents a plausible argument. Namely, that it takes time to move your hands from the keyboard to the mouse and back again. Often, it is quicker simply to fire off a relevant key combination than to reach for the mouse, move it into position, click the button, then put your hands back on the keyboard. I can think of several scenarios where this is the case. Shortcuts such as saving a file with Ctrl-S, copying and pasting text with Ctrl-C/Ctrl-V, and launching programs via Spotlight or the Start Menu are excellent alternatives to mousing around. But is it really practical to steer clear of the mouse completely?

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