As if you needed another reason not to use Visual Studio, C++ extension for Visual Studio Code is live
- Reference: 1600179431
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/09/15/vs_code_cpp/
- Source link:
The Reg took it for the compulsory "Hello World!" spin in Windows 10 to see how it worked and found it quite delightful (if C++ is your thing). IntelliSense and code formatting is present and correct, as is semantic colouring to show when a variable is being used outside of scope. Code formatting and navigation also works as expected.
The C++ formatting settings familiar to Visual Studio users has been brought over and support for EditorConfig is built into the extension, permitting the creation of some truly grotesque combinations by the adventurous.
The version 1.0 release has been a while coming, and although it has been possible to type in C++ source using VS Code as an editor, the experience has not always been the best. Therefore this extension is a bit of a milestone for Microsoft, even though it continues to be a little sniffy about Windows on Arm.
Classy move: C++ 20 wins final approval in ISO technical ballot, formal publication expected by end of year [2]READ MORE
Linux on Arm and Arm64? No problem: "Version 1.0 of the C++ extension brings a first-class development experience for Linux on Arm and Arm64," exclaimed the company. Windows on Arm, on the other hand, [3]will have to wait until October's update .
Still, that Linux-on-Arm support means it is now possible to develop C++ apps on the Raspberry Pi using VS Code.
The extension can be found lurking in the marketplace, as can an [4]extension pack that adds the likes of CMake, LiveShare, and the [5]soon-to-be-axed Visual Studio Codespaces.
Available on Windows, macOS and Linux, the extension is due for some relatively quick-fire updates, having tipped over into General Availability. Version 1.1 might hit by the end of next month, with Windows on Arm64 to delight users of Microsoft's Surface Pro X flagship. (We must say that after our "Hello World!" experiment, we'd be happier to see [6]a speed bump for syntax checking .) Version 1.2 could well arrive by the end of the year.
Overall, the extension is a good addition to the VS Code toolbox and one that will be welcomed by those coding in C++. It also adds to the list of excuses not to pop into its venerable stablemate, Visual Studio. ®
Get our [7]Tech Resources
[1] https://devblogs.microsoft.com/cppblog/c-in-visual-studio-code-reaches-version-1-0/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/09/07/c_20_wins_final_approval/
[3] https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-cpptools/issues/5583
[4] https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-vscode.cpptools-extension-pack
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2020/09/07/github_codespaces/
[6] https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-cpptools/issues/6129
[7] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
No need. C++ is so complex now, no-one can get it to actually compile anymore.
No, you can get gdb up on it. As far as what is new in debugging with VS since VS6, maybe not, but if you've used VS6 all that is there.
The _FATAL_ problem isn't Code itself, it's Electron. After you open enough files the entire IDE drops into an unresponsive life wasting mess. In some cases it's just not a simple restart, sometimes plugins (platform.io) seem to vanish and in the most unfortunate cases so does your settings for them.
Microsoft thought Eclipse was too cross platform and fast, so they decided to eclipse... Eclipse. It's conceptually a really good IDE, but everything is absolutely, positively, undeniably SLOW . Because of Electron, it can literally never be, a serious IDE.
C++
But visual studio supported C++ since day one - ie about 20 (30??) years ago - I still have the installation CDs from the 90s! Did they remove it so that they can add it back in again?
Re: C++
I think it's been a bumpy path...
I used VC++6 and it had Intellisense, which was awesome.
When I later tried (the free editions of) VS 2008 and 2010, C++ support was barely visible (compared to C#): you could type, create projects (e.g. add new classes [header and body files per class]), and compile, but the clever stuff didn't work.
I always felt that if I wanted to stray outside the .NET bubble, I'd need to pay up for a real version.
Evidently, that's what's changed.
Re: C++
No, it's always been there. In fact, Visual Studio (not Code)... err... might be the best IDE for C++ (yikes I said it :-/). However, I will admit that if you're not experienced in one way or another as a system programmer, you might not know that many see MS VS as basically the C++ compiler for WinAPI... and that's it (No c#, no VB, no wtf ever).
Truthfully, getting C++ working in any IDE I've used is no different than getting C working. And if you can't get C working? People shamefully say that this or that IDE didn't have this or that for C or C++, when the reality is that if it's written anywhere in C or C++, they just have no excuse (for tools at least).
I dunno
QtCreator and/or CLion FTW. Either are more mature, more flexible, and are not from Micros~1 (3 great reasons to choose them over VSCode).
no debugger though?