The Arduino Editor

Projects General Guidance
1

I wasn't really sure where else to put this post, so I put it in here...

There are a few things that make this IDE difficult to use.

  1. Using Tab only indents two spaces, and it's not even a tab, it's just two spaces! In the preferences file, I tried to change it, but it didn't have an effect
  2. When pressing Shift+BKSP (normally by accident), it is treated as a DELETE, and normally this is accidentally done at the end of the line, so then everything from the previous line ends up on that line. I don't know if that's just a Java thing, or if there's a way to change it.
  3. The CTRL+SHIFT+END or CTRL+SHIFT+HOME keystrokes become SHIFT+END and SHIFT+HOME keystrokes. I have had this issue in Java using JTextAreas, and I wonder if this is an issue from the Java side of this editor.

Are there ways to fix any of these, or is this something that I have to go into the source code to fix? They seem like high level issues that could be fixed by settings or a configuration file, but I have not seen anything.

2
  1. use CTRL-T, auto-format will align things nicely for you. Also makes it easy to read when posted here.
  2. Shift+BKSP - those are pretty far apart, don't think I've had that one occur.
  3. 3 keys at once, also something I don't do.
3

CrossRoads:

  1. use CTRL-T, auto-format will align things nicely for you. Also makes it easy to read when posted here.
  2. Shift+BKSP - those are pretty far apart, don't think I've had that one occur.
  3. 3 keys at once, also something I don't do.

Cross pretty much covered it.

I'm on OSX and my tabs are full tabs right out of the box, so to speak?

Shift+Backspace is universally considered delete. The shift (inverse) of backspace is forward erase (delete).

Not sure about the third item.

4

Is this really a Project Guidance issue?

5

dubbleM:
2) When pressing Shift+BKSP (normally by accident), it is treated as a DELETE, and normally this is accidentally done at the end of the line

Yeah, I'm with you. I accidentally hit every time I'm on working code. Generally happens when I'm using shift-arrows to highlight sections of code. When I hit backspace to get rid of the highlighted section I accidentally keep the shift key pressed.

Eclipse doesn't have the same behavior, so I'm not certain it is right to just point the finger at Java.

magnethead794:
Shift+Backspace is universally considered delete. The shift (inverse) of backspace is forward erase

It is? I guess by "universally" you mean "only in the Arduino IDE." None of my other OSX or Windows applications change the backspace's behavior based on shift.

6

Same with the shift bckspc,
Very annoying at times, mostly when im editing

7

I gave up on trying to live with the weak editor in the IDE and now use Notepad2 set to C highlighting syntax, and am much much much happier coding.