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by lelanthran 827 days ago
> Autocompletion doesn't need to be braindead.

I wouldn't go so far as "brain-dead", but it is an annoyance, because I am looking at the screen when I am typing, and the lines below and lines above are context that I can easily retriever without needing to store them in my head.

When the autocomplete window pops up it obscures the context above and below the line I am on, and in turn my context switches instantly from (for example) "Use the results of the previous operation as a parameter to this function" to "what was the name of the variable that I used for 'results' on the previous line? I can no longer see the previous line".

For me, I think, an autocomplete would be best if displayed off to the side, in a consistent spot that never changes. Maybe reserve a small box on the right hand side of the editing window for things that constantly change on every keystroke.

This has the advantage of being able to ignore it, and only switch my gaze (and hence my context) when I actually want to read what it is displaying.