VSCode

VS Code for Writing (Markdown Workflow)

Intro and my editor landscape

Although Visual Studio Code is primarily known as a code editor, it works extremely well for structured writing - especially Markdown-based documentation. Sadly, support for AsciiDoc (possible through the asciidoctor extension) is nowhere near as seamless and complete.

For me, it effectively replaced Atom (now discontinued) which in turn replaced Sublime Text (still in active development), mainly thanks to:

• fast file navigation (Ctrl + P)

• excellent Markdown preview

• extensions ecosystem

• integrated Git workflows

More recently, I’ve been keeping an eye on Zed - built by the original Atom team - as a potential next step, especially for performance and collaboration features.

At the same time, I’ve never really been able to settle the classic vi vs emacs question - despite spending quite a bit of time in Org mode. I’ve also briefly explored more modern takes like Neovim and Helix, which feel closer to what I’d want today.

For a while, I had high hopes for Writerside, especially when I was writing alongside dev teams using JetBrains IDEs, but I didn't cry when it got sunset as a standalone app and folded back into a plugin.

Keyboard shortcuts for writing (focus: navigation, structure, flow)

When using VS Code as a writing tool, efficiency comes less from "coding features" and more from fast navigation, layout control, and text manipulation.

Below is a curated set of high-value shortcuts (Windows / Linux) for documentation workflows.

Reference

Opening & switching context

• Quick open file → Ctrl + P

• Switch between open editors → Ctrl + Tab

• Reopen last closed file → Ctrl + Shift + T

• Open command palette → Ctrl + Shift + P

Editor layout (critical for writing)

• Split editor (side-by-side) → Ctrl + \

• Focus next editor group → Ctrl + K Ctrl + →

• Focus previous editor group → Ctrl + K Ctrl + ←

• Move file to another group → Ctrl + K, then arrow key

• Close current editor → Ctrl + W

Tip: Use split view for source vs preview or notes vs reference.

Markdown preview

• Open preview (side-by-side) → Ctrl + K V

• Toggle preview → Ctrl + Shift + V

Navigation within files

• Go to line → Ctrl + G

• Go to symbol (headings in Markdown) → Ctrl + Shift + O

• Go back / forward → Alt + ← / →

• Scroll without moving cursor → Ctrl + ↑ / ↓

Searching (single file vs project)

• Find in file → Ctrl + F

• Replace in file → Ctrl + H

• Find in project → Ctrl + Shift + F

• Replace in project → Ctrl + Shift + H

Multi-cursor & structured edits

• Add cursor (mouse-free) → Ctrl + Alt + ↑ / ↓

• Select next occurrence → Ctrl + D

• Select all occurrences → Ctrl + Shift + L

• Column (block) selection → Shift + Alt + drag

Extremely useful for editing lists, tables, repeated structures.

Line operations (fast restructuring)

• Move line up/down → Alt + ↑ / ↓

• Copy line up/down → Shift + Alt + ↑ / ↓

• Delete line → Ctrl + Shift + K

• Insert line below / above → Ctrl + Enter / Ctrl + Shift + Enter

Folding & structure

• Fold region → Ctrl + Shift + [

• Unfold region → Ctrl + Shift + ]

• Fold all → Ctrl + K Ctrl + 0

• Unfold all → Ctrl + K Ctrl + J

Great for collapsing sections in long documents.

Terminal & panels (context switching)

• Toggle terminal → Ctrl + `

• Focus editor from terminal → Ctrl + 1

• Toggle sidebar (file tree) → Ctrl + B

Formatting & cleanup

• Format document → Shift + Alt + F

• Trim trailing whitespace (manual via command palette)

• Toggle word wrap → Alt + Z

How to use these effectively

1. Think in "panes", not files

• Left: file tree

• Center: editor(s)

• Bottom: terminal / search

Move between them without touching the mouse.

2. Prefer search over browsing

• Ctrl + P → files

• Ctrl + Shift + O → headings

• Ctrl + Shift + F → content

This replaces manual navigation almost entirely.

3. Combine with snippets

• Use snippets for structure

• Use shortcuts for movement and editing

4. Optimize for flow, not memorization

Start with:

• Ctrl + P

• Ctrl + \

• Ctrl + Shift + F

• Ctrl + D

• Alt + ↑ / ↓

Then expand gradually.

Notes

• VS Code rewards keyboard-first workflows

• Command palette (Ctrl + Shift + P) → discover everything

• Most "writing friction" comes from navigation, not typing

• The goal is to reduce:

  • context switching

  • mouse usage

  • repetitive edits