{"componentChunkName":"component---src-templates-blog-post-js","path":"/vs-code-a-tool-for-writers/","result":{"data":{"site":{"siteMetadata":{"title":"Rope and Tire","author":"Suprada Urval"}},"markdownRemark":{"id":"fd11b7cd-fd38-514c-a032-e4e14c2a10ce","excerpt":"Can this be? VS Code – A tool for writers? Writers use various tools to write. For digital words, we have many options of text editors, word processors and apps. I have used OneNote, Evernote, Google Keep, the WordPress built-in editor, 750 words…","html":"

Can this be? VS Code – A tool for writers?

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Writers use various tools to write. For digital words, we have many options of text editors, word processors and apps. I have used OneNote, Evernote, Google Keep, the WordPress built-in editor, 750 words — in addition to the old-school style of college-rule notebooks, yellow pads and Moleskine journals — for various kinds of writing — blog posts, free form writing, brainstorming or stream-of-consciousness dumping.

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However, till now, I had not used a text editor. So why not try to use VS Code – the coding editor I have fallen in love with?

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But what exactly are my needs for a writing editor?

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  1. A distraction free writing environment
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  2. Should count words
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  3. Awesome if it can count characters
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  4. Spell Checker
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  5. Markdown support
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  6. Markdown Preview when writing would be so awesome
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  7. Auto-save constantly
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  8. Lives on the cloud – accessible from all devices
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So are these requirements met with VSCode? VS Code – A tool for writers?

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Yes!

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  1. \n

    A Zen mode and a Fullscreen mode (this shows the word and character counts).

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  2. \n

    VSCode has plugins for Word counter and character counter and spell checkers.

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  3. \n

    It has beautiful themes (I’m now enjoying the yellow pad looking Solarized Light Theme). I can install fonts (enjoying Hasklig with ligatures).

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    4. \n
  4. \n

    Markdown support and Preview with Auto-Open Markdown (opens in a preview window side-by-side when writing) and Instant Markdown (opens in a new browser) plugins. Even a plugin to convert markdown to pdf, html or text exists.

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    5. \n
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    Auto-save – yes.

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    6. \n
  6. \n

    To save on the cloud, I’m going with the nerdy git + bitbucket. And for the truly obsessive, you can sync bitbucket to Google Drive via Zapier.

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    7. \n
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So yeah, VS Code is really awesome!

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So what does VS Code not have, that I miss? Flashy Distracting Features That I still love like from:

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  1. \n

    OneNote: I love the feature where different text boxes can be moved around like a bunch of stickies on a piece of paper. But admittedly, that is not a distraction-free environment. Great for brainstorming – not so great for distraction-free writing.

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    2. \n
  2. \n

    750 Words:

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    I love the distraction free environment, the simplicity of the interface.

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    I love the badges

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    I loved the word counters and the notification when you reach 750 words.

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    I love the statistics.

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    I love the Seinfeld style – Don’t break the chain strip which counts the days you have shown up to write and met your goal.

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    I loved that it use the text-analysis system called the Regressive Imagery Dictionary to calculate the various emotional content of each day’s entry

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    3. \n
","frontmatter":{"title":"VS Code – A tool for writers","date":"September 07, 2017","url":"/vs-code-a-tool-for-writers/","tags":["my-cool-tools","Thoughts"]}}},"pageContext":{"slug":"/vs-code-a-tool-for-writers/","previous":{"fields":{"slug":"/vs-code-setup-guide/2017-05-10-vs-code-setup-guide/"},"frontmatter":{"title":"VS Code Setup Guide","url":"/vs-code-setup-guide/","tags":["web-development"]}},"next":{"fields":{"slug":"/introducing-book-notes-highlights/2017-10-02-introducing-book-notes-highlights/"},"frontmatter":{"title":"Introducing Book-Notes – my notes and highlights from the books I have read","url":"/introducing-book-notes-highlights/","tags":["Books","Thoughts","web-development"]}}}},"staticQueryHashes":["3128451518","426816048"]}