Today I'd like to show off a new feature coming to the WPF and Silverlight .NET Languages Add-on:  C# text formatting!

Text formatters beautify code, making it more readable by adjusting whitespace.

C# Text Formatting Example

Let's see an example.  Here is some messy C# code loaded up in SyntaxEditor:

When we format the document, the result is:

That's a lot more readable!  The text formatter also has an option for whether open curly braces appear on the same or next line.

Intelligent Modifications

The best part about this feature is that SyntaxEditor only adjusts ranges it needs to.  It doesn't do a mass replace of the whole document.  For instance on line 7, it does a tweak of the leading whitespace on the line but doesn't touch the rest of the line.

All of the various text change operations involved in the formatting are merged into a single atomic text change that is added as a single undo stack item.  This makes it easy for the end user to quickly undo any formatting changes that were made.

Summary

These features will be in the 2013.1 versions of the WPF and Silverlight SyntaxEditor .NET Languages Add-on.

We just published new maintenance release of both the WPF and Silverlight controls.  These new builds fix a SyntaxEditor problem that we introduced in the previous maintenance release, and also have several other minor SyntaxEditor tweaks and fixes in them.

Update details are described here:

• WPF Controls
• Silverlight Controls

We recommend that you get these latest v2012.2 maintenance releases.

We're working on new features for our 2013.1 control releases and today I'd like to show off a new feature coming to the WPF and Silverlight .NET Languages Add-on in that version.

C# Var Quick Info

As seen in the screenshot below, hovering over var keywords will now show the resolved type.

In this case, the resolved type for the randomNumbers variable is List<int>, which we aliased to Int32List above in the usings.

Visual Basic Dim Quick Info

Similar features have been added for the Dim keyword in VB.

In this screenshot, the j variable is being assigned an Int32.

Summary

These features will be in the 2013.1 versions of the WPF and Silverlight SyntaxEditor .NET Languages Add-on.

In a previous post we took a look at our SyntaxEditor syntax-highlighting code editor control being run in a WinRT/XAML app on a Surface RT.  This port of SyntaxEditor from our WPF/Silverlight versions is still work in progress and isn't available for sale yet, but rest assured it's coming.  That being said, let's dig into the new Code Writer app that was just released on the Windows Store, which shows the future SyntaxEditor for WinRT/XAML control in action.

What is Code Writer?

Code Writer is a free text and code editing application designed specifically for Windows 8 devices.  It runs on any device, including desktops and ARM devices like Surface RT.

We've built it from the ground up to be fast, fluid, and powerful. Active syntax highlighting updates as you edit files, with 20 file types supported.

Multiple documents may be opened at a time. Use an intuitive tabbed document interface from a slide-down app bar to switch between documents. Browse to open any accessible document, or reopen recently-opened documents with a tap.

Color is used pervasively throughout the app to create a bond between you and various file types.

Summary

This is just a first glimpse.  Jump over to the Windows Store and try it for yourself.  If you have any suggestions or problems, please post them in the dedicated forum for the app.

We'll dig into more features soon.  And if you would like to add similar code editing features to your own apps, please check out our SyntaxEditor control, currently available for WPF, Silverlight, and WinForms.  As mentioned above, it will be available for WinRT/XAML in the future too.

Happy coding!

One thing we always wanted to do was write a small free application that used SyntaxEditor (our syntax-highlighting code editor control) and could be used as a notepad replacement.  While we have many nice demos for the control product, we've never made an app that is real-world and usable by the masses.  That is, until now.

UPDATE:  Code Writer is now live on the Windows Store.  Download it for free!

Today I'd like to share a picture of an exciting Windows 8 app running on my Surface RT:

We've created a text and code editing application for Windows 8 that uses a port of our WPF and Silverlight SyntaxEditor as its primary interface for editing documents.  And I must say, it's beautiful.

Yes, it works on any Windows 8 platform, including ARM devices such as seen in the picture above.  And best of all, our upcoming app will be free to use! 

This gives us an opportunity to show off SyntaxEditor's capabilities and heavily test the WinRT/XAML port of SyntaxEditor.  Once SyntaxEditor for WinRT/XAML is released, you will be able to add text/code editing features into your own Windows 8 apps.

We currently are putting the finishing touches on the app for a first release and hope to have it out soon.  We've worked up a very nice way for interacting with documents, and will dive into it all with some screens once the app is submitted for certification.

If you are a customer and are interested in beta testing SyntaxEditor for WinRT/XAML, please contact our sales team.  A beta may not be ready for a while, but we'd like to start collecting info on interested customers now.