Programming with Rules

06 Feb 2019

Using IntelliJ IDEA as an IDE

IntelliJ IDEA is main a Java integrated development environment. This IDE can also be used to create computer software and developed by JetBrains. As a computer engineer who rarely take ICS courses, I was only introduced to beginner IDEs like JGrasp and CodeBlocks. Before taking this class, I began to use IntelliJ IDEA and CLion for my Java, C, and C++ online courses. CLion is also developed by JetBrains which made the user interface very similar but solely used for C/C++ programming. Personally, IntelliJ is an IDE that I can comfortably use while coding. The interface appears aesthetically pleasing and any beginner can learn how to use it proficiently. Creating projects and running code has been quick and straightforward for me. I would highly recommend this IDE to anyone who is trying to learn how to program and create software.

Coding with ESLint

ESLint is an open source code linter. Code linting is basically a type of tool that analyzes code with a certain guideline. To be specific, ESLint was made for JavaScript and allows programmers to code at ease while knowing the crucial errors of his or her program. I personally have never used a specific tool that identifies coding errors for me. I thought using the default tools for IDEs have been enough for me. Well, I thought wrong. I see ESLint as a guide to help make my code look appealing and assist me with any code errors. The ICS code style has also helped with my programming. I never have to press tab after creating a function and I never have to keep my spacings even. This is why an IDE that allows these tools to be used and settings to be customized would always be a benefit for an upcoming or experienced software engineer.

Being Efficient

Taking all these tools and using it to my advantage will allow me to code better and understand my errors quicker. I will never spend hours on a missing close/open bracket error or a missing semicolon error while using IntelliJ with ESLint and the ICS coding style enabled. Honestly, I’ve used IntelliJ before, but I have never used it this optimized. Removing the unwanted plugins allowed the startup of IntelliJ to improve substantially. Excluding the default settings for coding style and only including ESLint has made coding more efficient and allows programmers to focus on their logic and algorithm of their program. If the green check mark is not visible or red, identifying the errors should be simple. Most of the errors are probably just spacing errors which in the end would make your code cleaner.