IntelliJ IDEA 2023.3 EAP Is Open!

Maria Kosukhina

The Early Access Program for IntelliJ IDEA 2023.3 kicks off today, offering you a sneak peek of the exciting new features and improvements we expect to include in the next major release.

If you’re not familiar with how the EAP works, please read this blog post for an introduction to the program and an explanation of why your participation is invaluable.

We invite you to join us over the next few weeks, take a closer look at the latest additions to IntelliJ IDEA, and share your feedback on the new features.

The first IntelliJ IDEA 2023.3 EAP build offers a range of UI/UX enhancements and support for GitLab snippets, along with improvements to the indexing process and the IDE’s start-up speed.

You can download the build from our website, get it from the free Toolbox App, or update to it using snaps if you’re an Ubuntu user.

Read on to explore the new features and enhancements that you can test in this version.

User experience

Option to hide the main toolbar in the default viewing mode

In response to your feedback about the new UI, we’ve implemented an option to hide the main toolbar when using the IDE’s default viewing mode, just like in the old UI.To declutter your workspace and remove the toolbar, select View | Appearance and uncheck the Toolbar option.

Default tool window layout option 

With the release of IntelliJ IDEA 2023.1, we introduced the ability to save multiple tool window layouts and switch between them, enhancing the customizability of your workspace. In the first IntelliJ IDEA 2023.3 EAP build, we’re expanding this functionality by introducing the Default layout option, which provides a quick way to revert your workspace’s appearance to its default state. This layout is not customizable and can be accessed through Window | Layouts.

Color-coded highlighting for editor tabs by default

To enhance your navigation experience when working with a variety of file types in the editor at the same time, we’ve introduced default color-coded highlighting for editor tabs, mirroring their appearance in the Project tool window.

You can manage this setting in Settings/Preferences | Appearance & Behavior | File Colors. 

New product icon for macOS 

With the launch of the IntelliJ IDEA 2023.3 EAP, we have redesigned the IntelliJ IDEA icon for macOS to align it with the standard style guidelines of the operating system.

Java

Java 21 support

To enhance your Java coding experience, we’ve already managed to integrate support for the latest Java 21 features, and we’re keen to hear what you think. These updates include significant additions such as virtual threads, record patterns, pattern matching for switch expressions, and sequenced collections, along with previews for newly introduced language features such as string templates, scoped values, and more. 

Version control systems

Support for GitLab snippets

Expanding the GitLab integration introduced with the IntelliJ IDEA 2023.2 release, we’ve added support for GitLab snippets. You can now create public or private snippets directly within the IDE. 

To create a new snippet, select a code fragment in the editor, or a file or folder in the Project tool window, right-click on the selection to call the context menu, and choose the GitLab Snippet option. A dialog will appear, prompting you to provide general information about your snippet and define its privacy settings.

Performance

Download of shared JDK indexes enabled by default 

To boost the IDE’s startup speed, we’ve optimized the indexing process by making the download of shared JDK indexes the default. Now, IntelliJ IDEA will seamlessly connect to a dedicated resource in the background, fetching and applying shared indexes for your JDK automatically.

These are the most important updates for this week. For the full list of changes in this EAP build, read the release notes.

We’re dedicated to giving you the best possible experience, and your feedback is vital. If you find any bugs, please report them via our issue tracker. And if you have any questions or comments, feel free to share them in the comments below or get in touch with us on X (formerly Twitter).

Happy developing! 

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