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I'm not convinced by the arguments of the article:
- actively clicking on matching parentheses has the benefit of selecting that part
- being more sensitive to the "beauty" of the code
I think syntax highlighting doesn't get in the way of these two points.
The only valid point:
- No syntax highlighting automatically supports all languages
True I guess. In the sense that no shoes support all feet.
I think language matters quite a bit when it comes to how useful this is. For simpler syntaxes like C or Java, I think the highlighting adds little. But as a language allows for more complex things like monkey patching or helper methods and the like, a little bit of color is really helpful. Knowing immediately that a method is built into the SDK or that it's some monkey patch that's been added gives me better underst…
I was an engineer on the Visual Studio team when we first introduced syntax highlighting and code completion. The rollout triggered quite a bit of internal controversy. A sizable group of developers strongly opposed these features—syntax coloring, parameter completion, signature validation—arguing that “real programmers write their code unaided.” I can’t help but wonder how those same engineers are adapting to the cu…
In that, I think there is a difference between those tools and AI. AI can write code fast, but can definitely also hurt your ability maintain a codebase if you aren't keeping it in check.
I don't think there's any level where synatax highlighting could make a codebase worse.
Syntax highlighting gains, regardless of color scheme, are not negligible. There are grayscale color schemes, for example, that remove the violent nature of some color themes.
modern editor features are very loud, and you don't notice it until you turn it off
that being said, this is not a good strategy for work editors
> In Acme I double click on the outmost marker [...] I'll represent the insufferable Emacs/Vim pricks by saying: Once I read you're using a mouse during development, my willingness to entertain your contrarian dx ideas dropped to near 0.