Scite without "SciteConfig" = No good

[Angel]

Hi guys,

I tried the version of Scite that is included with AutoIt. I think that it is a great idea to include Scite as it is really very convenient. It is also nice that the included version is a "light version", whitout all the bells and whistles.

However I noticed that it does not include the Scite Config tool. Without it there is no easy way to change the default indentation settings (which use tabs! ). You need to change the indentation settings for _every_ file that you open. In my opinion this makes that version of editor unusable. Hopefully the Scite Config tool will be added on the next version!

Angel

[Jos]

Hi guys,

I tried the version of Scite that is included with AutoIt. I think that it is a great idea to include Scite as it is really very convenient. It is also nice that the included version is a "light version", whitout all the bells and whistles.

However I noticed that it does not include the Scite Config tool. Without it there is no easy way to change the default indentation settings (which use tabs! ). You need to change the indentation settings for _every_ file that you open. In my opinion this makes that version of editor unusable. Hopefully the Scite Config tool will be added on the next version!

Angel

The included version of SciTE in the AutoIt3 installer is intended to give you a start. Its soo much easier than to start with Notepad. There is no intent to add anything else to the version included in the AutoIt3 installer, so if you want any/all the goodies than you will have to use the full SciTE4AutoIt3 installer.

Edited August 15, 2006 by JdeB

[MHz]

Or if you wanted to stay light and would like to try an alternative, then TSCT may help. TSCT will add settings into your User,properties file. Otherwise, as JdeB confirms, you cannot have your cake and eat it too , so get full Scite4AutoIt3 for great goodies.

[Jos]

Some of the goodies are available as stand-alone downloads on the SciTE4AutoIt3 website and you are welcome to download them, BUT .... don't ask me for support on correct installation...

[Angel]

Some of the goodies are available as stand-alone downloads on the SciTE4AutoIt3 website and you are welcome to download them, BUT .... don't ask me for support on correct installation...

I understand the intent of giving you a head start, but, although the subject of default indentation settings is always controversial, I'd be surprised if using tabs by default is what most people would want. So at the very least the default indentation settings of the Scite that is shipped with AutoIt could be set to not use tabs. As now Scite is shipped with AutoIt, and the indentation settings cannot be changed in the current version, people are likelly to just use these default settings. Would you recommend using tabs as the default for all AutoIt development? I doesn't seem such a great idea.

And it seems that Scite is probably the only windows editor that does not come with an "Options menu". The Scite Config script solves that. To me Scite is basically incomplete without it. You need to change the indentation settings _every_ time!

I do not want you guys to add every existing scite tool to the basic scite version shipped with autoit, but a configuration window seems essential to me :">

I can of course download the full version, but the current version that is being shipped with AutoIt is almost unusable IMHO (unless you happen to use tabs and 4 space-width as your indentation settings).

Also,

[Jon]

unless you happen to use tabs and 4 space-width as your indentation settings

That's quite a normal programming setup actually. And anyway, notepad uses tabs so is it any worse than having notepad but with syntax highlighting?

[Angel]

That's quite a normal programming setup actually. And anyway, notepad uses tabs so is it any worse than having notepad but with syntax highlighting?

I always thought that most people recommend not using tabs. In my organization in particular they are very picky about this, given that there is a lot of Unix-Windows cross development (which obviously is not a problem for AutoIt).

I still think that the configuration tool should be included. After all, even Notepad can be configured (you can select the font and font size and the wrapping options ).

Don't get me wrong. I think that adding Scite is a great idea and a great improvement over notepad. But I hope you'll consider adding the Scite Config in the future.

And again, thanks a lot for the new version! Put some bold in the announcement in the AutoIt home page!

Angel

[herewasplato]

...Put some bold in the announcement in the AutoIt home page!...

before you do that, you might want to fix the download links...

This page:

http://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/downloads.php

has two links to 3.1.1:

http://www.autoitscript.com/cgi-bin/getfil...it-v3-setup.exe

(One link on the left and one in the table.)

I had to go to the archives to get 3.2.0.1

http://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/files/archive/autoit/

Edit: Nevermind - as soon as I submitted this post, I remembered having a problem getting files from this site from within the firewall of the company that I work for - clicking those same links via a dialup connection gets the correct file.

Thanks Jon and crew for all that you do...

Edited August 15, 2006 by herewasplato

[Valik]

Angel, please do not confuse "can't change..." with "no UI for changing...". SciTE does not and never has an official GUI supported method for changing it's settings, nor will there ever be one. However, SciTE always has had properties files where things can be changed. People have written tools that automatically adjust properties files for you but they are only doing what you can do yourself. IMO, the only possible thing that should be included with the basic version of SciTE is the SciTE documentation.

[JSThePatriot]

That's quite a normal programming setup actually. And anyway, notepad uses tabs so is it any worse than having notepad but with syntax highlighting?

I'm glad you said that because I was starting to wonder what the standard might have been since every IDE that I have installed has used that setup.

JS

[Angel]

Angel, please do not confuse "can't change..." with "no UI for changing...". SciTE does not and never has an official GUI supported method for changing it's settings, nor will there ever be one. However, SciTE always has had properties files where things can be changed. People have written tools that automatically adjust properties files for you but they are only doing what you can do yourself. IMO, the only possible thing that should be included with the basic version of SciTE is the SciTE documentation.

I imagined that it was possible to change it.

Did you know that notepad stores its configuration (almost 30 keys!) in the registry? I wonder why would anyone want to use the Format\Font... dialog to configure notepad, when they can easily change the settings by manually modifying the registry?

Sorry, I couldn't resist to make the stupid analogy... Still, I don't really understand why you'd rather have people dealing with changing config files (or registry keys) when the alternative is already available and so easy to use. If the intent is to distribute a tool to make it easier for people to create AutoIt3 files, why make it hard to configure the tool?

Anyway, I guess I will just continue installing the full version of Scite. And I will continue thinking that the "Scite Lite" that is distributed with AutoIt is too crippled to actually use it for any serious editing.

I really do not want to create any controversy. I agree that it is better to use Scite Lite than plain notepad, but not it is still not as good as it should be (IMO).

Cheers,

Angel

[MHz]

...IMO, the only possible thing that should be included with the basic version of SciTE is the SciTE documentation.

I agree, Valik.

The defaults should be enough. The user.properties file (User Options in the Options menu) can cater for customing with help of the Scite Html page.

@herewasplato

Try Ctrl + F5 to force a new refresh of the page as the browser cache is perhaps showing an old stored page.

Edited August 16, 2006 by MHz

[Jos]

IMO, the only possible thing that should be included with the basic version of SciTE is the SciTE documentation.

When people goto Help/SciTE4AutoIt3 Help or press Ctrl+F1, they will go the to Online version of the Helpfile which has the "SciTE Documentation" section in it.

[Valik]

Angel, I think the intent by JdeB/Jon with "SciTE Lite" is to say, "Look, here's something better than notepad, want more? Get the full package." Beyond that... you need the full package. If you start adding stuff to "SciTE Lite" based on weak arguments, then it will very quickly cease to be "SciTE Lite" and will be a second SciTE4AutoIt package. For example, is the configuration tool useful? Perhaps (I've never used it, I'm not afraid of the properties files). But so is Koda. So are the Lua scripts I don't see bundled. So is this tool and that tool. Where should it end?

[Jos]

Anybody doing regular scripting and the likes SciTE as their Editor of choice should use the full installer.

It has soooooo many advantages over the lite version.

Like Valik says... Just The LAU extensions that come with the Full version make it so much better to program. but also Tidy/AUtoIt3Wrapper etc are giving you much more options.

The Lite version was intended to be a single file Notepad replacement, but it had to be 2 : au3.api could not be left out, but other than that we do not intent to include anything more.

[Uten]

Hi,

I salute the decision to have a SciTe light version in the installation (and zip file). With the SciTe light version you can run AutoIt from a folder without any installation at all (as fare as I can see). Which makes a great tool even greater.

Thanks a lot to all of you whom has made it happen!

I also agree with @JdeB that a serious scripter should have SciTe4AutoIt installed. The Tidy/Au3Wrapper and the LUA extension will save you time again and again. And as @Valik sort of points out you should be prepared to get your hands dirty if you want a "dream setup". Searching the forum for +SciTe +configuration will give some helpful information in that regard.

Happy scripting ...