Torque IDE
by Sam Bacsa · in Torque Game Engine · 07/18/2005 (5:12 am) · 75 replies
So I bought Torque a while back, then bought TSE, and I've found myself growing increasingly frustrated due to the severe lack of GUI available in Torque.
I've set out to design an IDE which I will gladly make available to everyone (free of charge, obviously) if people are interested. I am posting this here because I'd like some feedback from you guys ... as in, what would you like to see in an IDE? Would an IDE make your lives easier?
Here are some screenshots that I whipped together really fast, of what I have currently. Click on the thumbnails for a larger view.
This is the main interface. You can see the project explorer on the left, a rudimentary toolbar at the top, open file listing at the bottom, and the editor in the center. The editor is currently displaying an on-demand helper tip, which can be obtained whenever you press CTRL+SHIFT+SPACE, just like in visual studio. It will display help for the current function, so long as you're in its parentheses or right next to them.
Identifier tokens can also be moused-over to get brief information in a nice tooltip.
You can right-click on any identifier and have the editor take you straight to the definition of the function (so long as it's user-defined. Built-in functions can't be jumped to, of course).
Here's a view of the project explorer and the file properties dialog (which can be obtained by right-clicking on a file and selecting properties). The project system in the IDE is all "virtual". In other words, directories aren't really there, and files can take on different names from what they really are. You can even have two files of the same name if you wanted to. The paths are also all relative allow you to easily ZIP up your project definitions and distribute them if necessary, without breaking the links. Files can be dragged & dropped into individual folders. Deleting a file from the list won't delete it completely.
Custom functions have their own special tooltips on mouseover and quickinfo.
There is also a useful export feature for exporting formatted source code to either RTF or HTML.
Here's an exported block of code formatted to HTML.
Now that you've seen most of the features of this IDE, is there anything you'd like to see specifically? Please let me know and I'll do my best to code it in.
I'm already planning to have auto-complete for built-in events, interfacing with the Torque debugger, and other minor UI changes.
Let me know :)
Update :: July 19th
Added intellisense support and tidied-up the sidebar interface.
I've set out to design an IDE which I will gladly make available to everyone (free of charge, obviously) if people are interested. I am posting this here because I'd like some feedback from you guys ... as in, what would you like to see in an IDE? Would an IDE make your lives easier?
Here are some screenshots that I whipped together really fast, of what I have currently. Click on the thumbnails for a larger view.
This is the main interface. You can see the project explorer on the left, a rudimentary toolbar at the top, open file listing at the bottom, and the editor in the center. The editor is currently displaying an on-demand helper tip, which can be obtained whenever you press CTRL+SHIFT+SPACE, just like in visual studio. It will display help for the current function, so long as you're in its parentheses or right next to them.
Identifier tokens can also be moused-over to get brief information in a nice tooltip.
You can right-click on any identifier and have the editor take you straight to the definition of the function (so long as it's user-defined. Built-in functions can't be jumped to, of course).
Here's a view of the project explorer and the file properties dialog (which can be obtained by right-clicking on a file and selecting properties). The project system in the IDE is all "virtual". In other words, directories aren't really there, and files can take on different names from what they really are. You can even have two files of the same name if you wanted to. The paths are also all relative allow you to easily ZIP up your project definitions and distribute them if necessary, without breaking the links. Files can be dragged & dropped into individual folders. Deleting a file from the list won't delete it completely.
Custom functions have their own special tooltips on mouseover and quickinfo.
There is also a useful export feature for exporting formatted source code to either RTF or HTML.
Here's an exported block of code formatted to HTML.
Now that you've seen most of the features of this IDE, is there anything you'd like to see specifically? Please let me know and I'll do my best to code it in.
I'm already planning to have auto-complete for built-in events, interfacing with the Torque debugger, and other minor UI changes.
Let me know :)
Update :: July 19th
Added intellisense support and tidied-up the sidebar interface.
About the author
#2
http://www.garagegames.com/blogs/11919/8276
07/18/2005 (6:30 am)
Not to rain on your parade Sam, but good old Top Spilman as came up with a Torque Script IDE that should be released soon. I doubt it will be free, but I am sure it will work well. Check out the link to his .Plan.http://www.garagegames.com/blogs/11919/8276
#4
Steven
07/18/2005 (8:11 am)
Personally, I think the auto-complete feature is the most important to me. So glad that you already plan to do that! Steven
#5
07/18/2005 (9:40 am)
Cool, sounds great :D Ummm...need a beta tester?*cough*me*/cough*
#6
- Smart home (press once, acts like normal home; press a second time, goes to the first typed character).
- Smart tab (when more than one line is selected, it indents all selected lines; Shift-Tab unindents)
Things that would be nice:
- Tabs above the editor instead of buttons
I wrote a simple editor that handles these things for me because I hate most editors. It looks like this:
I had considered making it more full featured and giving it away or something, but I just don't have the time to spend on it.
[Edited because I just stopped mid sentence. :-)]
07/18/2005 (9:53 am)
The two things I'd like:- Smart home (press once, acts like normal home; press a second time, goes to the first typed character).
- Smart tab (when more than one line is selected, it indents all selected lines; Shift-Tab unindents)
Things that would be nice:
- Tabs above the editor instead of buttons
I wrote a simple editor that handles these things for me because I hate most editors. It looks like this:
I had considered making it more full featured and giving it away or something, but I just don't have the time to spend on it.
[Edited because I just stopped mid sentence. :-)]
#7
Anyway. Don't let our stuff slow you down by any means.
07/18/2005 (10:00 am)
@Sam - That looks great. I really like the GUI layout style. How long have you been working on it? I've yet to dive into autocompletion and code browser stuff... how difficult was it? We decided against virtual folders as we felt it would just confuse people (the Torque file structure is confusing enough as it is). Anyway. Don't let our stuff slow you down by any means.
#8
07/18/2005 (12:15 pm)
Sorry Sam, I didn't see the screenshots. That is some pretty amazing stuff you are working on! I will go back to my corner now. 
#9
Brain Editor Pro from Twinno Software.
mCode from Lars Boldt. This was originally called Torque Explorer and looked very promising.
-Dan
07/18/2005 (12:31 pm)
There are two other IDE's that I've come across on these forums:Brain Editor Pro from Twinno Software.
mCode from Lars Boldt. This was originally called Torque Explorer and looked very promising.
-Dan
#10
07/18/2005 (12:43 pm)
Has anyone tried out the Brain Editor Pro? 
#11
Definitely check out Brain Editor Pro -- this editor has Torque support already and is very nice. It's missing some features that I think are necessary, but you might not miss them. I'd switch to Brain Editor if they add these features.
@ Pat Wilson: Here's another reason you're not seeing any games...everyone is making a custom IDE. =P
07/18/2005 (12:54 pm)
Right now I'm using Textpad, which is a basic editor (no IDE-type features), but a very powerful editor, nonetheless.Definitely check out Brain Editor Pro -- this editor has Torque support already and is very nice. It's missing some features that I think are necessary, but you might not miss them. I'd switch to Brain Editor if they add these features.
@ Pat Wilson: Here's another reason you're not seeing any games...everyone is making a custom IDE. =P
#12
- Smart Cut and Copy: if no text is selected, pressing Ctrl+C will select the current word, then copy to the clipboard; Ctrl+X selects the current word then cuts to the clipboard.
- Replace-Paste: Pressing, say, Ctrl+B replaces the current word with the contents of the clipboard.
- Code "autocorrect": The ability to type short codes and have them replaced with things. For example, pressing { and then the space bar would do this:
{
|
}
(the | indicates where the cursor is). Feel free to email me if you want details about this. Add in drop markers and the ability to have it paste from the clipboard and you've got a /very/ powerful coding tool.
In case you're wondering, I'm looking for something that reminds me of Delphi + CodeRush (from http://www.devexpress.com).
07/18/2005 (1:50 pm)
Oops, other things that I'd like to see:- Smart Cut and Copy: if no text is selected, pressing Ctrl+C will select the current word, then copy to the clipboard; Ctrl+X selects the current word then cuts to the clipboard.
- Replace-Paste: Pressing, say, Ctrl+B replaces the current word with the contents of the clipboard.
- Code "autocorrect": The ability to type short codes and have them replaced with things. For example, pressing { and then the space bar would do this:
{
|
}
(the | indicates where the cursor is). Feel free to email me if you want details about this. Add in drop markers and the ability to have it paste from the clipboard and you've got a /very/ powerful coding tool.
In case you're wondering, I'm looking for something that reminds me of Delphi + CodeRush (from http://www.devexpress.com).
#13
@Tim: Already supported :)
@Tom: I've only been working on it for about a day and a half. I saw yours and WOW needless to say. I'd like to know how you got your interfacing with the debugger down. If you can send any hints my way, I'd *really* appreciate it :)
@Ray: I use EditPlus, mainly, with Torque formatting which I've *manually* added; however, EditPlus is mainly a webscript editor and not a very good TorqueScript interface.
I'm hesitant to continue after I saw Tom's stuff, but as Ray said, it will probably not be free, and I'd like to have a free utility available for the general Torque developers who already spent too much money on the engine :)
I'll roll out the beta later today after some tweaking and stuff.
Thanks again for all your feedback. As always, more comments are appreciated.
Best,
Sam
Edit: Didn't see your last post till now, Tim.
> Smart Cut and Copy: if no text is selected, pressing Ctrl+C will select the current word, then copy to the clipboard; Ctrl+X selects the current word then cuts to the clipboard.
That's already done.
> Replace-Paste: Pressing, say, Ctrl+B replaces the current word with the contents of the clipboard.
That's not done, but can be easily implemented; so consider it done :)
> Code "autocorrect": The ability to type short codes and have them replaced with things. For
> example, pressing { and then the space bar [...]
I thought about that, but I've never really liked that feature... but I'll stick it in there under a toggle.
07/18/2005 (2:03 pm)
Hey guys, thanks for the feedback.@Tim: Already supported :)
@Tom: I've only been working on it for about a day and a half. I saw yours and WOW needless to say. I'd like to know how you got your interfacing with the debugger down. If you can send any hints my way, I'd *really* appreciate it :)
@Ray: I use EditPlus, mainly, with Torque formatting which I've *manually* added; however, EditPlus is mainly a webscript editor and not a very good TorqueScript interface.
I'm hesitant to continue after I saw Tom's stuff, but as Ray said, it will probably not be free, and I'd like to have a free utility available for the general Torque developers who already spent too much money on the engine :)
I'll roll out the beta later today after some tweaking and stuff.
Thanks again for all your feedback. As always, more comments are appreciated.
Best,
Sam
Edit: Didn't see your last post till now, Tim.
> Smart Cut and Copy: if no text is selected, pressing Ctrl+C will select the current word, then copy to the clipboard; Ctrl+X selects the current word then cuts to the clipboard.
That's already done.
> Replace-Paste: Pressing, say, Ctrl+B replaces the current word with the contents of the clipboard.
That's not done, but can be easily implemented; so consider it done :)
> Code "autocorrect": The ability to type short codes and have them replaced with things. For
> example, pressing { and then the space bar [...]
I thought about that, but I've never really liked that feature... but I'll stick it in there under a toggle.
#14
I recall being very hesitant about code templates until I started using them. To get an idea of how powerful they really can be, check out this link:
www.devexpress.com/Products/VCL/CodeRushDelphi/CodeRush_TemplateExpansion.xml
The ability to turn it off is great for those who don't want to use it (as is the ability to changet he "trigger" from space to shift+space. However, once you've used templates for awhile it's very hard to go back. :-)
Oh, the ability to drop "markers" (which are like quick-bookmarks)... Press Alt+Home and it drops a marker, press ESC and it goes to the last marker set.
I could go on for hours, probably!
07/18/2005 (2:23 pm)
@Sam: Mighty!I recall being very hesitant about code templates until I started using them. To get an idea of how powerful they really can be, check out this link:
www.devexpress.com/Products/VCL/CodeRushDelphi/CodeRush_TemplateExpansion.xml
The ability to turn it off is great for those who don't want to use it (as is the ability to changet he "trigger" from space to shift+space. However, once you've used templates for awhile it's very hard to go back. :-)
Oh, the ability to drop "markers" (which are like quick-bookmarks)... Press Alt+Home and it drops a marker, press ESC and it goes to the last marker set.
I could go on for hours, probably!
#15
Bookmark feature has been added, as requested :)
I'm going to be rolling out a beta version today, once I finish converting the console-exported function list into usable format.
As usual, any other comments are appreciated :)
Edit -- I almost forgot to add that it has a handy search(/replace) dialog, which I know is pretty sought-after. It supports regular expression searching/replacing as well.
07/19/2005 (5:31 am)
Just wanted to keep you guys up-to-date ... I've added the dropdown auto-complete intellisense feature that Visual Studio has. You can see below the updated interface:Bookmark feature has been added, as requested :)
I'm going to be rolling out a beta version today, once I finish converting the console-exported function list into usable format.
As usual, any other comments are appreciated :)
Edit -- I almost forgot to add that it has a handy search(/replace) dialog, which I know is pretty sought-after. It supports regular expression searching/replacing as well.
#16
EDIT: Wait...you are releasing a public beta. Once again Sam, awesome work.
07/19/2005 (7:19 am)
Wow Sam, you are really kicking some butt there. If you want me to beta test for you, send me an email. You can look up my email in my profile.EDIT: Wait...you are releasing a public beta. Once again Sam, awesome work.
#17
The more options available to the community the better.
07/19/2005 (7:26 am)
Also listen to Tom... Don't let theirs stop you...The more options available to the community the better.
#18
Recently, someone reminded me that the torque-ide (what I called my editor) site exists, and was still using the design I borrowed from the TIDE website (torqueide.sourceforge.net). Since I had quite a bit of free time, I updated the site. You can find the torque-ide site at torque-ide.sourceforge.net.
Just to state, you should not confuse my editor, torque-ide, with TIDE. They are two different beasts that are simiar in their goal.
I should also say, that due to time constraints, I stopped development on this in March/April. I do plan on starting development on the program again soon.
I should also also say, the version released through the SourceForge.net release system is somewhat old. Since then I added icons to a toolbar, hehe.
Robert
07/19/2005 (9:01 am)
Back in January, I started an open-source TorqueSCRIPT editor. The way it was coded, it was meant to easily be portable to Mac and Linux (Since I coded it on Windoze, ugh). Since I used wxWidgets, like what Torsion uses, all I need is a nice makefile for those platforms (and remove the need to use VC6 on Windoze, how much I hate that program).Recently, someone reminded me that the torque-ide (what I called my editor) site exists, and was still using the design I borrowed from the TIDE website (torqueide.sourceforge.net). Since I had quite a bit of free time, I updated the site. You can find the torque-ide site at torque-ide.sourceforge.net.
Just to state, you should not confuse my editor, torque-ide, with TIDE. They are two different beasts that are simiar in their goal.
I should also say, that due to time constraints, I stopped development on this in March/April. I do plan on starting development on the program again soon.
I should also also say, the version released through the SourceForge.net release system is somewhat old. Since then I added icons to a toolbar, hehe.
Robert
#19
That short time and you got so much done?
Wow... keep going Sam... what you are doing is nothing short of fantastic
07/19/2005 (9:08 am)
Sam: I've only been working on it for about a day and a half. That short time and you got so much done?
Wow... keep going Sam... what you are doing is nothing short of fantastic
#20
The ability to record and playback macros would be great if you havent already built it in. It really takes the tedium out of some editing tasks when you can just whip up a macro and have it run through your file(s).
07/19/2005 (11:08 am)
@SamThe ability to record and playback macros would be great if you havent already built it in. It really takes the tedium out of some editing tasks when you can just whip up a macro and have it run through your file(s).
Torque Owner Scott Coursey
Yellow Duck Software