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Should it be expected that all programmers use these text editors and have access to these tools? As someone that likes to keep his editor simple (to an extent--I'm using VIM after all), I always get frustrated when people try to introduce policies or procedures that work for them and their preferred setup, and who look at me as an obstacle because I prefer a different setup. I'm of the opinion that code should be written independent of the tools used to understand and modify that code. If there's anything about the code that needs to be communicated, it should be communicated via the code itself, whether through naming patterns, comments, types, or any other methodology that can be encapsulated in a text file. Other than letting each developer have their own preferred processes and coding environment, it also makes it easier to SSH into a remote box and know what's going on. A quick google shows that VS Code does allow for SSHing and browsing the remote files via VSCode. That's nice, but I don't know how well it works, and how much I like the idea of allowing another program to run commands on the remote box. I like that I can SSH into a box and use the tools natively available there to read and modify the code, and that the code is prepared in a way that makes it as easy as possible. |
If they don't have access, then the tools ought to be standardized to the point where they can be integrated into any editor. The Language Server Protocol[1] seems like a step toward this.
> I'm of the opinion that code should be written independent of the tools used to understand and modify that code.
This a widespread, "common sense" opinion that I've come to disagree with strongly. No one would argue that, e.g., illustrators, 3D modelers, music producers, etc. should be so tool-agnostic—and yet their situation is quite similar. One could produce a complex piece of music in Audacity instead of using Logic or Ableton, but musicians don't have the same mentality of picking the cheapest, most austere, or lowest-common-denominator tool. Instead, they invest in tools that enhance their productivity. And that's precisely what's at stake here. Pairing (a) a language that allows implicit "smart" features like type inference with (b) an equally smart editor to make what is implicit in the code explicit to the developer as needed, is more productive than forcing the developer to make everything explicit themselves.
Re: using VIM over ssh, your choice of scenario is revealing. Why would you limit your everyday development work based on the lowest common denominator tool you're forced to use in an emergency? Also, it's not necessary to run code inspection on the remote box. JetBrains IDEs, for example, will copy a folder from ssh or a similar environment, index and inspect them locally, and then sync them back as needed.
1: https://microsoft.github.io/language-server-protocol/