Visual Studio Code Power User: Tips and Extensions

You spend 6-8 hours a day in VS Code. Optimizing your environment isn't procrastination—it's sharpening your axe.

Essential Keyboard Shortcuts (Mac)

Cmd + P: Go to file (Fuzzy search)
Cmd + Shift + F: Search in all files
Cmd + D: Multicursor selection (Select next occurrence)
Alt + Click: Add cursor anywhere
Option + Up/Down: Move line up/down
Cmd + B: Toggle sidebar
Cmd + J: Toggle terminal

Pro Tip: Remap Caps Lock to Escape. You use Escape a lot in Vim mode or just closing modals.

Must-Have Extensions

1. GitLens

Visualizes code authorship. "Who wrote this buggy code? Oh, it was me 3 months ago."

2. Prettier + ESLint

Automate formatting. Never argue about semicolons again. "editor.formatOnSave": true

3. Error Lens

Shows error messages inline, right next to the code. No need to hover.

4. Rest Client

Test APIs directly in VS Code. Better than Postman for simple checks. Create a .http file:

GET https://api.github.com/users/octocat

Pair program remotely with low latency.

Snippets

Stop typing boilerplate.

Type rfc in a file -> Generates React Functional Component. Type clg -> Generates console.log(object).

Create your own: Preferences -> Configure User Snippets

"Console Log": {
  "prefix": "clg",
  "body": ["console.log('$1', $2);"],
  "description": "Log output to console"
}

Settings You Should Change

Add to settings.json:

{
  "editor.fontFamily": "'Fira Code', monospace",
  "editor.fontLigatures": true,
  "editor.minimap.enabled": false, // Save screen space
  "editor.renderWhitespace": "selection",
  "terminal.integrated.fontSize": 14,
  "files.autoSave": "onFocusChange"
}

Debugging

Stop using console.log for everything.

Click the gutter to set a breakpoint (red dot).
Press F5 to start debugging.
Inspect variables, call stack, and watch expressions live.

It changes how you understand your code execution flow.

Zen Mode

Press Cmd + K Z. Hides everything except the code. Perfect for deep work sessions.