Top 10 AppCode Editor Actions
In this blog post, we will talk about the most useful basic AppCode actions that can help you edit code much faster. Once you learn these shortcuts and start using them regularly, you’ll come to realize just how much time they save you.
1. Duplicate a line
Place the caret at the line you want to duplicate and press ⌘D:
2. Delete a line
To delete a line at the caret, press ⌘⌫:
3. Expand/shrink the selection
In AppCode, you can select code fragments based on their structure using the Extend Selection (⌥↑) and Shrink Selection (⌥↓) actions:
In our example, the code selection is extended in the following order: the return key word, the return statement, the method body, the whole method, and then the extension. In a plain text file, the selection starts with a word and then extends to a sentence, paragraph, and so on.
4. Move a line or statement up and down
To move a line or selection up or down, press ⌥⇧↑ or ⌥⇧↓:
To move a statement (function, variable declaration, condition, etc.) up or down, use the ⇧⌘↑ and ⇧⌘↓ shortcuts:
5. Paste from clipboard history
Did you copy something but forget to paste it? You can find the missing entry in the clipboard history by pressing ⇧⌘V:
In the dialog that opens, select the entry that you want to paste and click Paste. To paste the text without formatting, click Paste as Plain Text.
6. Toggle between upper and lower case
Press ⇧⌘U to toggle selected characters between upper and lower case:
When you apply this action to CamelCase text, AppCode will convert it all to lowercase.
7. Set multiple carets
You can set multiple carets by holding ⇧⌥ and then edit code in several places simultaneously:
Another way to set multiple carets is to enable column selection mode. To do this, either activate column selection mode by pressing ⇧⌘8 or just hold ⌥ and move the mouse cursor.
You can also place carets at all occurrences of the selected symbol in the open file by pressing ⌃⌘G. Press ⇧⌃G to deselect occurrences one by one, and ⌃G to extend the selection. To remove the selection, press Esc or point the cursor somewhere else.
8. Surround with
Using the Surround With action (⌥⌘T), you can surround an arbitrary region with a code construct that you can set in a custom live template.
For example, you can add templates for wrapping SwiftUI code into the VStack or HStack elements in AppCode | Preferences | Editor | Live Templates:
There are detailed instructions on how to do this in Create a surround live template.
When a template with the $SELECTION$ keyword is added, it will be available from the Surround With popup that opens when you press ⌥⌘T:
9. Reformat code
To fix the formatting of the code in the file you’re working in, press ⌥⌘L:
The IDE will reformat your code according to the rules specified in AppCode | Preferences | Editor | Code Style. Read more on code formatting in Reformat and rearrange code.
10. Code folding
To fold classes and methods you can either use the +/- icons in the gutter or press ⌘-/⌘+. To collapse or expand all code fragments, press ⇧⌘-/⇧⌘+.
You can make any code block that is surrounded by {curly brackets} collapsible. To do this, place the cursor anywhere between the brackets and press ⇧⌘.:
Moreover, it is possible to collapse and expand a custom code selection by pressing ⌘.:
There are many other useful actions available in the AppCode editor. To learn more about this topic, read the Work with source code section of our documentation and check out the IDE Features Trainer plugin. If you are familiar with the Xcode shortcuts for similar actions, you don’t have to learn the new ones – just switch to the Xcode keymap in AppCode | Preferences | Keymap.
That’s all for today. Share your favorite shortcuts with us here in the comments!
The AppCode Team
