Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft and Canonical Launch Visual Studio Code Snap For Linux (betanews.com)
Following the release of Visual Studio 2019 for Windows and Mac platforms, Microsoft today is releasing a snap version of Visual Studio Code. A report adds: No, the source-code editor is not the Windows-maker's first snap -- it also released one for Skype, for instance. "As of today, Visual Studio Code is available for Linux as a snap, providing seamless auto-updates for its users. Visual Studio Code, a free, lightweight code editor, has redefined editors for building modern web and cloud applications, with built-in support for debugging, task running, and version control for a variety of languages and frameworks," says Canonical. Joao Moreno, Software Development Engineer, Microsoft Visual Studio Code offers the following statement: "The automatic update functionality of snaps is a major benefit. It is clear there is a thriving community around snaps and that it is moving forward at great pace. The backing of Canonical ensures our confidence in its ongoing development and long-term future."
I installed a snap version of VSCode months ago on one or two of my Ubuntu boxes. yawn
Forty years of vi vs emacs flamewars will finally come to an end now that they both can be retired.
Just to be clear, Visual Studio Code is a massive monument to Javascript. There are people out there who would view that as a positive feature. In fact, there are massive hordes of people thinking exactly that, because all they really know in their technophile life is Javascript. Some other view this with horror, something like going around the corner and coming face to face with an endless sea of shuffling Zombies. Please don't bite me!
I installed "Code" as they like to call it, on my system a few months back, and I agree, it's a pretty sensible editor. It does a lot of things right. But it is Javascript, and that inevitably shows through from time to time. (Like a body part sometimes falls off a zombie?) What ultimately lead me to purge it off my system is its habit of leaving processes running even after exiting. I can't view that kind of behavior as anything other than a warning.
Then, this is from Microsoft. Say what you will, Microsoft is still the same Microsoft. Still controlled by self serving puppeteer Gates. Somewhat humbled by the ascent of Google, Apple and Facebook perhaps, but never forget that this is Microsoft. Not chastened at all for past misdeeds, but rather seething with resentment and cunning, determined to rise up and defeat its old foes. Which very much includes Linux.
Look, if you are an open source developer and you like this thing, then get busy and clone it, preferably in some nontoxic language like Go. That is the way we have always done things, why should now be different? Otherwise you are just asking for it.
When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
I would like to see somebody get busy on a clean sheet reimplementation of the best aspects of Eclipse and Visual Studio in a non-insane language like Go or Rust. And remember Visual Age, the predecessor of Eclipse, which was written in Smalltalk? It could do some amazing things that its successor doesn't attempt, like recompile parts of a large program while it is running. Why can't Eclipse do that? When we changed out Smalltack for Java, did we get more stupid? And why is Eclipse so freaking slow, I thought Java was supposed to be fast? (No, actually, I was never fooled.) And Javascript... don't get me started.
When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.