Visual Studio Live Share, Microsofts solution to multiple users coding together

[Guest]

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With VS or VS Code, you/we will now have the ability to code together with others like you would with a Google Docs, Word, or any other relevant/current word processor.

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Live Share is Microsoft's solution. It provides a shared editing experience within Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code (currently only for JavaScript, TypeScript, and C#) that's similar to the shared editing found in word processors; each person can see the other's cursor and text selections; each person can make edits—but it goes further, by enabling shared debugging, too. A project can be launched under the debugger, and both people can see the call stack, examine in-scope variables, or even change values in the immediate window. Both sides can single step the debugger to advance through a program.

 

It provides rich collaboration—while still allowing both developers to use the environment that they're comfortable and familiar with. If you prefer to use Visual Studio, with your windows laid out just so, and still use the same key bindings as you learned for Visual C++ 6 back in the '90s, you can do so, and it doesn't matter that your peer is using Visual Studio Code on a Mac, with (ugh) vim key bindings. With Live Share, you just send a sharing request to your colleague and they can connect to your project, editor, and debugger from the comfort of their own environment.

 

The feature will be released as a preview for Visual Studio Code and Visual Studio at some unspecified point in the future, using a combination of updates to the core programs and extensions to round out the functionality. Microsoft stresses that the preview is still at an early stage. Technically, it allows multi-way collaboration (not just pairs), though this may not be enabled initially. At some point it will allow direct connections between systems on the same network, but, initially, it may require sharing activity to bounce through a Microsoft server.

Sadly this is currently limited to JavaScript, TypeScript, and C# in VS Code (Curious to know why this is a limitation though, maybe the debugger support?) and isn't available for testing yet. What are your thoughts on this? Would you use this, or is it irrelevant to your work flow?

 

Update 1:

Its now up on their blog with more details!

Blog: https://code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2017/11/15/live-share

Beta/Preview: https://code.visualstudio.com/visual-studio-live-share

Intro Video: https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Connect/2017/T254 (Same video on other links)

As usual, you need to sign up for the limited (Number and US only) preview, but I'm still not 100% certain as to whether we will need to sign in in order to share in the public version. All I know is that for now, a link is generated on your machine (Which goes through Microsoft's servers for now, but might be peer to peer later on) and another user can use the link to access your workspace. ETA for the preview seems to be 1Q 2018, I didn't see an ETA for public release.

 

Sources (Ars Technica)

Edited November 16, 2017 by Guest
Update 1

[Bcat00]

best thing evaaaaaa!!!

[GDRRiley]

sounds cool but I don't care about it until it comes for Java as that is what I code in. 

[ignaloidas]

why not just use git and divide tasks?

[Guest]

1 minute ago, ignaloidas said:

why not just use git and divide tasks?

This seems to be more for pair programming than large programs. (So basically training and working together in real time (In the editor itself))

[2FA]

3 minutes ago, tjcater said:

This seems to be more for pair programming than large programs. (So basically training and working together in real time (In the editor itself))

I mean it could still be used on large programs, just not all the time. It could be used when 2-3 people are working/discussing on one particular part.

[Doobeedoo]

That's neat. Other languages to follow so that's good. 

[HarryNyquist]

I like this as a tool for something like tutoring or homework help. The language limitation seems silly though. Hopefully they add more to that.

[LAwLz]

This sounds like a horrible idea for actual work, but neat if you ever need to help someone out. That relies on the system for joining/leaving being good though.

For proper projects you really don't want multiple people making changes to code at the same time.

[Nowak]

4 minutes ago, LAwLz said:

This sounds like a horrible idea for actual work, but neat if you ever need to help someone out. That relies on the system for joining/leaving being good though.

For proper projects you really don't want multiple people making changes to code at the same time.

Maybe this is for code review? Or as you said, if you ever need to help someone out.

[Ryujin2003]

I really hope this doesn't create issues with versioning. Otherwise, super awesome.

[thexzenon]

This sounds like a great feature for pair programming.

[Bananasplit_00]

this could be really nice actiually

[AlTech]

17 hours ago, tjcater said:

Snip

Yay. Love to see geeky/nerdy programming stuff in tech news .

 

Also, does this require VS Code to be signed into an MS account and when is this coming to VS & Code?

[schwellmo92]

Ah this will be epic, pair programming over Skype sucks. Can’t wait to try it out

[Guest]

 

Update 1:

Its now up on their blog with more details!

Blog: https://code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2017/11/15/live-share

Beta/Preview: https://code.visualstudio.com/visual-studio-live-share

Intro Video: https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Connect/2017/T254 (Same video on other links)

As usual, you need to sign up for the limited (Number and US only) preview, but I'm still not 100% certain as to whether we will need to sign in in order to share in the public version. All I know is that for now, a link is generated on your machine (Which goes through Microsoft's servers for now, but might be peer to peer later on) and another user can use the link to access your workspace. ETA for the preview seems to be 1Q 2018, I didn't see an ETA for public release.

 

6 hours ago, AluminiumTech said:

Yay. Love to see geeky/nerdy programming stuff in tech news .

 

Also, does this require VS Code to be signed into an MS account and when is this coming to VS & Code?

 

[LAwLz]

19 minutes ago, tjcater said:

As usual, you need to sign up for the limited (Number and US only) preview, but I'm still not 100% certain as to whether we will need to sign in in order to share in the public version. All I know is that for now, a link is generated on your machine (Which goes through Microsoft's servers for now, but might be peer to peer later on) and another user can use the link to access your workspace. ETA for the preview seems to be 1Q 2018, I didn't see an ETA for public release.

Ohh boy, in before your code gets uploaded to Microsoft servers in the final version.

If it's just the linking that goes through Microsoft's servers then fine, it makes it so that you don't need to mess around with port forwarding or other firewall rules. But if the collaborative workspace is hosted on Microsoft's servers, so that all code goes to them... That would be typical Microsoft.