Get to know GitHub Copilot in VS Code and be productive IMMEDIATELY
TLDRGitHub Copilot is a powerful AI tool designed to enhance developers' productivity in Visual Studio Code. It offers a seamless integration that requires no special learning curve—just code as you normally would. The AI provides 'Ghost Text' suggestions that can be accepted with a Tab or partially with Control/Command keys. Copilot also allows direct code iteration via 'Inline Chat' and a dedicated chat area for problem-solving and brainstorming. It can even fix errors and provide explanations through the quick suggestion menu. With GitHub Copilot, developers can expect to increase their coding speed and efficiency almost immediately.
Takeaways
- 🎉 **Congratulations on getting GitHub Copilot**: It can significantly enhance your development skills in ways you might not have imagined.
- 🚀 **Start with the basics**: To use GitHub Copilot, simply code as you normally would. The AI will provide assistance through 'Ghost Text'.
- 🔍 **Check for the GitHub Copilot icon**: Verify that Copilot is active by looking for its icon in the status bar. You can disable it for specific files or languages.
- ✅ **Ghost Text**: This feature is automatically turned on and allows you to accept AI-generated code suggestions by pressing Tab.
- 📄 **Customize Ghost Text**: If you want to accept only part of the Ghost Text, use the Control or Command keys along with the right arrow.
- 🔮 **Anticipate your next move**: Copilot is adept at predicting your coding needs and can generate code accordingly.
- 🔄 **Alternative suggestions**: If Ghost Text doesn't provide the exact solution, use Control or Command and Enter to view more suggestions.
- 💬 **Inline Chat**: Use the Inline Chat feature for direct interaction with Copilot to iterate on your code within the editor.
- 📈 **Diff View**: Inline Chat provides a diff view, showing additions and changes, before you accept the suggestions.
- 🗨️ **Dedicated Chat Area**: Access a traditional chat area for problem-solving and decision-making, which is also customizable.
- 🔧 **Quick Fixes**: GitHub Copilot can help explain and fix errors through the light bulb or quick suggestion menu.
- ✨ **Sparkle Icon**: Keep an eye out for the sparkle icon, indicating where Copilot can offer assistance, including in the Terminal.
- 📚 **Continue Learning**: All your chats are saved in a history that you can access for future reference.
Q & A
What is GitHub Copilot?
-GitHub Copilot is an AI-powered code assistant that helps developers write code more efficiently by suggesting code completions, solving problems, and making decisions quicker.
How does GitHub Copilot enhance a developer's productivity?
-GitHub Copilot enhances productivity by providing code suggestions, anticipating the developer's next steps, offering solutions to coding problems, and enabling faster coding through features like Ghost Text and Inline Chat.
What is the 'Ghost Text' feature in GitHub Copilot?
-Ghost Text is a feature of GitHub Copilot that automatically suggests code as you type, based on the context of your code and comments. It helps in writing code faster and more accurately.
How can you verify if GitHub Copilot is active in your development environment?
-You can verify that GitHub Copilot is active by checking for the GitHub Copilot icon in the status bar of your development environment, such as Visual Studio Code.
How do you accept a Ghost Text completion in GitHub Copilot?
-To accept a Ghost Text completion, you press the Tab key. If you want to accept only part of the Ghost Text, hold down the Control or Command key and press the right arrow.
What is the purpose of the Inline Chat feature in GitHub Copilot?
-Inline Chat allows you to interact directly with GitHub Copilot to iterate on your code right in line, make changes, and see a diff view of what has been added or changed before accepting it.
How can you access the dedicated chat area in GitHub Copilot?
-You can access the dedicated chat area in GitHub Copilot by clicking on the chat icon in the sidebar of your development environment.
What is the benefit of using the chat feature in GitHub Copilot?
-The chat feature is beneficial for brainstorming, solving problems, making decisions, and getting help with implementation details. It provides a more traditional and interactive way to use AI assistance.
How can you customize the chat's position in your editor?
-You can customize the chat's position by clicking on the secondary sidebar icon and dragging the chat into the desired sidebar, allowing you to see both your code and project files simultaneously.
What does the light bulb or quick suggestion menu in GitHub Copilot offer?
-The light bulb or quick suggestion menu in GitHub Copilot offers explanations and potential fixes for errors in your code, helping you to understand and resolve issues more efficiently.
How do you know when GitHub Copilot can provide assistance in places like the Terminal?
-You can identify when GitHub Copilot can provide assistance by looking for the sparkle icon. Clicking on this icon will reveal what assistance Copilot can offer at that particular moment.
What should a developer do after learning the essentials of interacting with GitHub Copilot?
-After learning the essentials, a developer should start using GitHub Copilot in their coding workflow to experience the improvements in speed and productivity. They should also explore additional resources and videos for more advanced usage of the AI coding assistant.
Outlines
🚀 Introduction to GitHub Copilot
This paragraph introduces GitHub Copilot as a tool to enhance a developer's skills and productivity. It emphasizes that no special learning is required to use Copilot, as it works by simply coding as one normally would. The concept of 'Ghost Text' is introduced, which is an AI-generated code suggestion that appears as the user types. The paragraph explains how to verify Copilot's activation, how to disable it for specific files or languages, and how to accept or customize the Ghost Text suggestions. It also showcases how Copilot can predict and assist with coding tasks, such as creating variables and calling functions, and how to access alternative suggestions and use the Inline Chat feature for code iteration.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡GitHub Copilot
💡Ghost Text
💡Inline Chat
💡Dedicated Chat Area
💡Light Bulb or Quick Suggestion Menu
💡Sparkle Icon
💡Code Completion
💡AI Anticipation
💡Control or Command Keys
💡Status Bar Icon
💡Customization
Highlights
GitHub Copilot can significantly enhance a developer's skills and productivity in ways previously thought impossible.
Copilot is simple to use; just code as you normally would to see the AI's assistance.
The 'Ghost Text' feature is automatically enabled upon installation and login to GitHub Copilot.
You can verify Copilot's activity through its icon in the status bar and disable it for specific files or languages.
Ghost Text can be triggered by writing a comment that expresses your intentions.
Accept a Ghost text completion by pressing Tab, or partially accept it by holding Control or Command and pressing the right arrow.
Escape can be used to dismiss Ghost text at any time.
Copilot is adept at anticipating your next coding move and can do much of the work for you.
Alternative suggestions can be viewed by pressing Control or Command and Enter keys, opening a side panel.
Inline Chat allows direct interaction with Copilot for iterative code refinement.
Inline Chat provides a diff view to show additions and changes before acceptance.
A dedicated chat area in the sidebar is available for problem-solving and decision-making, accessible via the chat icon.
Chat history can be accessed at any time using the history icon at the top of the chat.
GitHub Copilot can explain and fix errors through the light bulb or quick suggestion menu.
The sparkle icon indicates where Copilot can offer assistance, such as in the Terminal.
Once you understand how to interact with Copilot, you can experience significant improvements in your development workflow.
Additional resources on GitHub Copilot for AI coding needs can be found in other videos.