0. Know your Keybindings! All these are in the General Development Settings.
Searching
1. How to behold the power of incremental search
Command: Edit.IncrementalSearch
Shortcut: Ctrl+i
2. Ctrl+F3 to search for currently-selected word
Command: Edit.FindNextStatement
3. F3 to search for last thing you searched for
Command: Edit.FindNext
4. Customize what files to find in
Find In Files – Look in – Choose Search Folders
5. You can use a reg hack for customizing search results
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\VisualStudio\9.0\Find String Find=$f$e($l,$c):$t\r\n
Editing
6. How not to accidentally copy a blank line
Tools – Options – Text Editor – All Languages – General, Uncheck Apply cut or copy to blank lines
7. How to cycle through the Clipboard ring
Command: Edit.CycleClipboardRing
Shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+v
8. How to use box/column selection in the editor
Command: Edit.LineUpColumnExtend, Edit.LineDownColumnExtend, Edit.CharRightColumnExtend, Edit.CharLeftColumnExtend
Shortcut: Shift+Alt+Arrow
9. You can copy a file’s full path / open windows explorer from the file tab channel
Command: File.CopyFullPath
10. Drag and drop code onto the toolbox’s general tab
11. You can use Ctrl+. to show a smart tag
http://blogs.msdn.com/saraford/archive/2008/11/18/did-you-know-ctrl-shows-a-smart-tag-359.aspx
Command: View.ShowSmartTag
12. You can insert a snippet by pressing Tab Tab
Type in snippet shortcut, then press Tab Tab
Customizing
13. You can create temp or throw away projects
Tools - Options - Projects and Solutions - General, uncheck Save new projects when created
14. Change text editor font size via keyboard (Accessibility macros)
Command: Macros.Samples.Accessibility.DecreaseTextEditorFontSize
Command: Macros.Samples.Accessibility.IncreaseTextEditorFontSize
15. How to open a file without any UI
Ctrl+/ (or whatever Tools.GoToCommandLine is bound to)
alias fo file.openfile
fo <filename>
16. Guidelines in the editor registry key hack
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VisualStudio\9.0\Text Editor String RBG(128,0,0) 5, 20
17. You can create a macro for your import/export settings – see http://blog.jeffhandley.com/archive/2009/03/31/vs-profiles.aspx
18. How to not show the start page (or have the last loaded solution open)
Tools - Options - Environment - Startup, At Startup
19. File tab channel registry hack
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VisualStudio\9.0 key, you can create a DWORD UseMRUDocOrdering = 1
20. How to show Misc Files Project to keep your files around
tools - options - environment – documents, show miscellaneous files in Solution Explorer
21. Edit project file from within IDE (unload project)
http://blogs.msdn.com/saraford/archive/2008/10/10/did-you-know-how-to-edit-a-csproj-or-vbproj-project-file-within-the-ide-332.aspx
Unload project, edit project, reload project
Debugging
22. You can use tracepoints to log stuff in your code
Right-click in indicator margin, select breakpoints, select Insert Tracepoint
23. How to get the find source dialog back
Solution Properties, under Common Properties - Debug Source Files, Delete Do no look for these source files edit box contents
24. You can disable the exception assistant
Tools – Options – Debugging – General, uncheck Enable the Exception Assistant
25. You can use the XML Visualizer
Drop down the little down arrow on the data tip or in the watch window.