Making VS Code Hackable since 2022

Modify your editor while it is running by executing ClojureScript code via the Joyride REPL and/or run scripts via keyboard shortcuts you choose. The Visual Studio Code API, as well as the APIs of its extensions, are at your command! Joyride makes VS Code scriptable in a very similar way to how how Emacs users can hack their editor. Complete with Interactive Programming.

The video in much better quality on Youtube (CalvaTV)

Joyride is Powered by SCI (Small Clojure Interpreter).

You can use both JavaScript and ClojureScript with Joyride. You will only get to enjoy Interactive Programming using ClojureScript, because JavaScript does not support it. Also the JavaScript support in Joyride is new and not yet fully at par with the ClojureScript support.

See doc/api.md for documentation about the Joyride API.

Your feedback is highly welcome!

User and Workspace scripts

Joyride supports User and Workspace scripts:

• User scripts: <user home>/.config/joyride/scripts
• Workspace scripts: <workspace root>/.joyride/scripts

You can run or open the scripts using commands provided (search the command palette for Joyride):

• Joyride Run User Script..., default keybinding ctrl+alt+j u
• Joyride Open User Script...
• Joyride Run Workspace Script..., default keybinding ctrl+alt+j w
• Joyride Open Workspace Script...

Note, about Clojure namespaces: Used with ClojureScript, Joyride effectively has a classpath that is user/scripts:user/src:workspace/scripts:workspace/src. A file <User scripts dir>/foo_bar.cljs, will establish/use a namespace foo-bar. As will a file <Workspace scripts dir>/foo_bar.cljs. Any symbols in these files will be shared/overwritten, as the files are loaded and reloaded. There are probably ways to use this as a power. Please treat it as a super power, because you might also hurt yourself with it.

Quickest Start - Start Here - Install Joyride

Installing Joyride will also install, and run, a sample user_activate.cljs User script. You can use this script as a base for init/activation stuff of your VS Code environment.

Joyride installs two "regular” User scripts:

• <user-home>/.config/joyride/scripts/hello_joyride_user_script.cljs
• <user-home>/.config/joyride/scripts/hello_joyride_user_script.js

You can run these scripts with the commands mentioned above.

Also: In the Joyride: Run Workspace Script menu, there is a command for downloading and installing some default/example workspace scripts.

Quick Start - Start your Scripts Library

Joyride lets you bind keyboard shortcuts to its User and Workspace scripts.

• User Scripts: <user home>/.config/joyride/scripts
• Workspace scripts: <workspace root>/.joyride/scripts

Let's go with a Workspace script: Create a folder and open it in VS Code.

Both the scripts here do almost the same thing: They show an information message and writes to a file in the root of the workspace. Create both, why don't ya?

Using JavaScript

Create the file .joyride/scripts/example/write-a-file.js:

const fs = require("fs");
const path = require("path");
const vscode = require("vscode");

function info(...xs) {
  vscode.window.showInformationMessage(xs.join(" "));
}

const rootPath = vscode.workspace.workspaceFolders[0].uri.fsPath;
info("The root path of this workspace:", rootPath);
fs.writeFileSync(
  path.resolve(rootPath, "test-from-js-script.txt"),
  "Written from a Workspace JavaScript Script!"
);

Using ClojureScript

Create the file .joyride/scripts/example/write_a_file.cljs:

(ns example.write-a-file
  (:require ["fs" :as fs]
            ["path" :as path]
            ["vscode" :as vscode]
            [clojure.string :as str]))

(defn info [& xs]
  (vscode/window.showInformationMessage (str/join " " xs)))

(def root-path (-> (first vscode/workspace.workspaceFolders) .-uri .-fsPath))
(info "The root path of this workspace:" root-path)
(fs/writeFileSync (path/resolve root-path "test-from-cljs-script.txt") 
                  "Written from a Workspace ClojureScript Script!")

Bind the scripts to a keyboard shortcut.

You can run the scripts from the Joyride: Run Workspace Script.. menu. But for the exercise we'll create keyboard shortcuts too:

In your keyboard shortcuts JSON file, add:

 {
        "key": "shift+ctrl+alt+j 1",
        "command": "joyride.runWorkspaceScript",
        "args": "example/write-a-file.js"
 }
 {
        "key": "shift+ctrl+alt+j 2",
        "command": "joyride.runWorkspaceScript",
        "args": "example/write_a_file.cljs"
 }

Now you can run the scripts from the keyboard shortcuts!

Note: Because of how VS Code renders the command palette it is good to add the default joyride.runWorkspaceScript keybinding as the last bindings in the JSON file:

    {
        "command": "joyride.runWorkspaceScript",
        "key": "ctrl+alt+j w",
    }

See doc/configuration.md for full configuration options.

Quickest Start - Run some Code

This currently only works with ClojureScript code:

1. Bring up the VS Code Command Palette (cmd/ctrl+shift+p)
2. Execute Joyride: Run Clojure Code...
3. Type in some code into the prompt, e.g.

   (require '["vscode" :as vscode]) (vscode/window.showInformationMessage "Hello World!")

4. Submit

Quickest Start - Evaluate the selection

Only works with ClojureScript code:

1. Select some code (e.g. the code some lines above in this markdown file, even if in Preview.)
2. Execute Joyride: Evaluate Selection, (ctrl+alt+j, enter)

Quick Start - Start the REPL

While developing Joyride scripts you should of course do it leveraging Interactive Programming (see this video demonstrating it).

nREPL Server

Joyride has an nREPL server and commands for starting and stopping it. By default, the server will be bound to 127.0.0.1 on an available port. The host address can be configured via the setting joyride.nreplHostAddress. Then connect your nREPl client (Calva, Clojure CLI, or whatever.)

Speaking of Calva. It has a command for starting the Joyride nREPL server and connect to it in one go. This video demonstrates starting from scratch, including installing Joyride.

The demo ”project” used here is only a directory with this file hello_joyride.cljs. Here's the code, if you want to try it out yourself:

(ns hello-joyride
  (:require ["vscode" :as vscode]
            [promesa.core :as p]))

(comment
  (+ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 6)
  (-> (vscode/window.showInformationMessage
       "Come on, Join the Joyride!"
       "Be a Joyrider")
      (p/then
       (fn [choice]
         (println "You choose to:" choice)))))

"Hello World"

Examples

See the examples for examples including:

• Workspace activation script
• Creating an interactive Webview
• Using npm dependencies (The wonderful posthtml-parser in this case)
• Contribute a File Explorer tree view and commands (and anything) by creating a Joyride Sidecar extension on the fly.
• Terminal creation and control
• Calva Structural Editing enhancements
• Opening and showing project files
• Fontsize manipulation
• The Joyride Extension API
• The joyride.core namespace
• Using clojure.zip
• Using Hickory (well, hickory.select, at least)

Support and feedback

You'll find us in the #joyride channel on the Clojurians Slack

News

• Show HN: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31203024#31206003

Twitter

Follow the #vsjoyride hashtag on Twitter!