esc-emacs/idee

Unified way to perform IDE-like tasks across multiple languages and frameworks in Emacs.

IDE for Emacs

Unified way to perform IDE-like tasks across multiple languages and frameworks in Emacs.

Features

• Integration with projectile, treemacs and yasnippet.
• Global shortcuts and functions for all languages and frameworks.
• Traditional IDE-like swapable layouts.
• Advanced navigation control (back and forth).
• File template support.
• File header management.
• Project factory support.

Overview

The initial idea behind this project was to provide an IDE-like window layout (project tree, editor & command line interface). This is functionality already provided by existing plugins, so this plugin was meant to better integrate these plugins.

Global shortcuts and functions for all languages and frameworks.

Golang developers may be using the oracle or guru, two different plugins with similar functions. To jump to the definition of a symbol guru users use `go-guru-definition` while oracle users use `go-oracle-definition`. In python the same functionality is provided by `anacoda-mode-find-definitions` (for anacoda users) and so on.

The more languages and frameworks added, the harder it gets to remember the right functions and their shortcuts.

This plugin provides a gloabl set of functions and shortcuts that works for all underlying modes, languages and frameworks. Also this is backed by a hydra, which makes these functions easier to remember.

Advanced navigation control

Jumping to a symbols definition, finding callers, looking up functions etc, is of no use if you can’t easily return to the point from which the query was originated. Some plugins do provide `jump back` functionality, others don’t. Even the ones that do provide `jump back` most of the time don’t provide `jump further back` or `jump forth`. And of course this is something that doesn’t play nicely in polyglot projects or even across different projects.

This plugin does provide the following functions:

• idee-jump-back
• idee-jump-forward
• idee-forget-current-buffer (remove the current buffer/point from the back/forth stacks).

File template support

For code snippets yasnippet has been an excellent choice. I often use yasnippet to provide a full-file template. But I always felt that there should be a line between snippets and templates (even though if the backing plugin is the same, e.g. yasnippet).

Why?

Because, I’d like the file template mechanism to kick in automatically when a new file is created. And this is how this plugin approaches file templates:

How it works?

When a new file is created, the plugin checks the file extension and detects the corresponding major mode that is going to be used. Then it searches for the target major mode, all available file templates that are found under <template dir>/<major mode>. A list of all available templates is provided to the user and after the user selected a new file based on the template is created.

For example for java files, the list of available templates can be: (“class”, “annotation”, “enum”, “interface”).

File header management

Open-source developers are familiar with the processes of adding license headers to their files. But even if this is a pretty common use-case nowadays, even commercial IDE doesn’t have a good story around that. Most of the times, this is a configuration that needs to be performed per project with very little room for re usability.

This project introduces the idea of `global license header repository` that its a folder that users can store multiple different header profiles, which can then be selected per project.

Regardless, of how you specify the header of choice, you can add a call to `idee-header` in your file template, so that all new files create contain the header.

Project factories

Each language and framework has its own way of creating or scaffolding a project. The idea behind project factories is to allow integrating these approaches into this plugin, so that its easy to create new project.

Each time the users want to create a new project, he is prompted to select one among the known project factories. Then the factory is invoked to generate the project. The factory may or may not require further input.

A list of potential project factories:

• A maven archetype factory.
• A Spring intializer factory.
• A JBoss forge factory.
• A lein factory.
• A cask factory.
• and more.

Spring intializer project factory

A simple project factory that uses https://start.spring.io to scaffold a new project.

The factory prompts the user to select from a list of:

• languages
• build tools
• dependencies

and then it generates and opens the project.