I am trying to create a IDE sort of environment, and was wondering if anyone knew of a quick and easy way to utilize the code editing windows from visual studio (short of making an isolated shell app) in my app?

Id love to be able to view and edit code files in my app, and still maintain the intellisense from the VS 2008 IDE.

Thoughts?

4/16/2009 8:19:21 PM

Is creating an app part of the process, or is a complete solution with similar functionality OK?

e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ctags + http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notepad%2B%2B

[Edited on April 16, 2009 at 8:30 PM. Reason : link]

4/16/2009 8:24:39 PM

i'm fairly certain microsoft would have a problem with this

4/16/2009 8:25:23 PM

why are you trying to build your own IDE? why not just use VS?

4/16/2009 8:34:36 PM

Why would MSFT have a problem with it? They let you create your own Visual Studio through the Shell product.

And the reason for making our own IDE is because we need to have some very specific functionality in the IDE, and basically need to remove the user from the actual file/project structure, but they need to be able to edit code "snippits".


The main roadblock I have to using VS Shell in isolated mode is because it requires everything to be built using C#, which I am not that familiar with (our language is VB.NET).


I was just hoping for some kind of window like a VBA edit window or something that had basic intellisense that operated like the intellisense in VS2008 does (if youve used it, its leaps ahead of VS2005).

I was hoping someone knew of a way to use a VS2008 code edit "control".

4/16/2009 9:36:37 PM

I should also add, we have had our own IDE for the past 6-7 years, but it was for our last gen products and written in VB6. It never had real intellisense, just syntax highlighting and some lame pop up boxes.

I am trying to bring the tools up to date with our next gen stuff, and am trying to find an easier way than being pushed into C# and VS Shell.

4/16/2009 9:45:54 PM

Quote :

"And the reason for making our own IDE is because we need to have some very specific functionality in the IDE, and basically need to remove the user from the actual file/project structure, but they need to be able to edit code "snippits". "

You cannot easily do this. It sounds like you have a custom Line-of-Business application builder, and now want to update it for VB.NET. You can certainly leverage intellisense but it's going to require you building your own Shell app, code editing experience, and leveraging the VS functionality on a library level.

I'd suggest considering C# as your base language, since you are thinking about this kind of investment. The nice thing with C# and xaml (wpf/silverlight) is that you can create line-of-business applications (and application platforms) much more easily, in one language. To do it with VB.Net, you are likely going to have to build a C#/C++ shell app, that then manages VB.NET code.

Just some thoughts, I know this is a pretty tough problem to solve

4/17/2009 2:37:52 PM

Thanks for the suggestions and putting some thought into it.

I think I am going to go back to the methodology I used for the first IDE, and just build it as an app.

After thinking about it some more, I decided I can come up with a pretty decent intellisense that serves the purpose, which was really the only thing making VS Shell desirable to me.

It is an internal tool, not a client facing app, so it does change things a bit, allowing it to be less polished than it would have to be otherwise.

I think if i had a team of developers to throw at this (and I probably would if the economy were different and I wasn't forced to push my team on to billable projects) then I might explore the C#/VSShell path a little more, but as it is, cranking this out is on my shoulders.

Thanks again for thinking about it.

4/17/2009 8:35:11 PM