Chapter 3

Customizing Visual Studio

IN THIS CHAPTER

check Setting environment options

check Changing menus and commands

check Making and accessing snippets

check Modifying project templates

In Chapters 1 and 2 of Book 4, you see how to install Visual Studio and make a new project. You also see the bits that the user interface gives you. The fun's over. Now you get to make it work for you.

Visual Studio offers a dizzying array of options for customization. Used poorly, these options have the real potential to make the lives of you and your coworkers miserable. Used correctly, they have the potential to double your productivity.

At its most basic, customization involves setting options to better match your environment, style, and work patterns. These options include everything from your code visibility to source control. The idea is to configure Visual Studio’s options to your exact specifications.

The next step is to improve the usability of the application to match your day-to-day operations. One of the best overall ways to accomplish this is to change the button toolbar and the menus to make what you use ...

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