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Programming colours

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  • M Maximilien

    In VS2008, C++ coding. I use a slight off-white background and the default text coloring (including VisualAssist coloring). For the font, I started using the free Adobe Source Code Pro[^] font a couple of weeks ago, and it been great so far.

    Nihil obstat

    L Offline
    L Offline
    LloydA111
    wrote on last edited by
    #19

    Do you have a download link to the font? It looks good but all Adobe does is link you to sites with things like "Register now" links on it.

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    M 1 Reply Last reply
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    • L LloydA111

      It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

      =====
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      D Offline
      D Offline
      Dan Neely
      wrote on last edited by
      #20

      Whatever the IDE default is. With the possible exception of the Borland TurboPascal editor 15 years I don't think I ever fiddled with coloring settings; and TP is just too far in the past for me to remember if I tinkered with it or not.

      Did you ever see history portrayed as an old man with a wise brow and pulseless heart, waging all things in the balance of reason? Is not rather the genius of history like an eternal, imploring maiden, full of fire, with a burning heart and flaming soul, humanly warm and humanly beautiful? --Zachris Topelius Training a telescope on one’s own belly button will only reveal lint. You like that? You go right on staring at it. I prefer looking at galaxies. -- Sarah Hoyt

      1 Reply Last reply
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      • L LloydA111

        It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

        =====
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        |_ |
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        _) __/_
        _) ____
        | /|
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        ===

        P Offline
        P Offline
        PJ Arends
        wrote on last edited by
        #21

        I pretty much use the defaults for everything, except the background. There I prefer an off white (RGB 240, 240, 255). As for the font, my favorite is ProggyCleanTTSZ at 11 point size.

        Independent ACN Business Owner

        Need a new cell phone? We supply most of the major carriers. Telus in Canada. Flash, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint in the USA. O2, talkmobile, tmobile, orange, three, and vodafone in Europe. See my website for details.


        Within you lies the power for good - Use it!

        1 Reply Last reply
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        • L LloydA111

          Do you have a download link to the font? It looks good but all Adobe does is link you to sites with things like "Register now" links on it.

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          ===

          M Offline
          M Offline
          Maximilien
          wrote on last edited by
          #22

          There's a link to sourceforge somewhere down there... http://sourceforge.net/projects/sourcecodepro.adobe/[^]

          Nihil obstat

          1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • W W Balboos GHB

            We've been through color suggestions before.
            It's a matter of personal taste.

            "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein

            "As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error." - Weisert

            "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010

            B Offline
            B Offline
            Brisingr Aerowing
            wrote on last edited by
            #23

            AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGG GGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

            I think computer viruses should count as life. I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We've created life in our own image. Stephen Hawking

            1 Reply Last reply
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            • W W Balboos GHB

              We've been through color suggestions before.
              It's a matter of personal taste.

              "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein

              "As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error." - Weisert

              "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010

              F Offline
              F Offline
              fjdiewornncalwe
              wrote on last edited by
              #24

              I think my transitions lenses darkened when this post came up....

              I wasn't, now I am, then I won't be anymore.

              1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • W W Balboos GHB

                We've been through color suggestions before.
                It's a matter of personal taste.

                "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein

                "As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error." - Weisert

                "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010

                V Offline
                V Offline
                Vark111
                wrote on last edited by
                #25

                HEY! How did you guess my IDE color scheme so accurately? :~

                W 1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • M Maximilien

                  In VS2008, C++ coding. I use a slight off-white background and the default text coloring (including VisualAssist coloring). For the font, I started using the free Adobe Source Code Pro[^] font a couple of weeks ago, and it been great so far.

                  Nihil obstat

                  T Offline
                  T Offline
                  TheGreatAndPowerfulOz
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #26

                  I tried it when it was released, but I didn't particularly like it. I found Consolas to be better. It's a personal preference thing. Consolas was easier on my eyes.

                  If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.-John Q. Adams
                  You must accept one of two basic premises: Either we are alone in the universe, or we are not alone in the universe. And either way, the implications are staggering.-Wernher von Braun
                  Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.-Albert Einstein

                  1 Reply Last reply
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                  • L LloydA111

                    It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                    =====
                    \ | /
                    \|/
                    |
                    |-----|
                    | |
                    |_ |
                    _) | /
                    _) __/_
                    _) ____
                    | /|
                    | / |
                    | |
                    |-----|
                    |

                    ===

                    L Offline
                    L Offline
                    Lost User
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #27

                    I tend to use black on white but that isnmainly because I haven't found a good other color combination that works. Every dark setting I try has some illegible combination (like text highlighted in find that is also a keyword might be invisible) and I can't be elephanted to go through the palava of changing it. Given the. Choice, though, it's black or very near black background, with a grey or yellow text. The most legible text is yellow on blue, but it's a bit much over time

                    MVVM# - See how I did MVVM my way ___________________________________________ Man, you're a god. - walterhevedeich 26/05/2011 .\\axxx (That's an 'M')

                    B 1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • L LloydA111

                      It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                      =====
                      \ | /
                      \|/
                      |
                      |-----|
                      | |
                      |_ |
                      _) | /
                      _) __/_
                      _) ____
                      | /|
                      | / |
                      | |
                      |-----|
                      |

                      ===

                      N Offline
                      N Offline
                      Nemanja Trifunovic
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #28

                      Lloyd Atkinson wrote:

                      Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE?

                      Whatever comes as default.

                      Lloyd Atkinson wrote:

                      Oh and also, which fonts do you use?

                      Ditto.

                      utf8-cpp

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • L Lost User

                        I tend to use black on white but that isnmainly because I haven't found a good other color combination that works. Every dark setting I try has some illegible combination (like text highlighted in find that is also a keyword might be invisible) and I can't be elephanted to go through the palava of changing it. Given the. Choice, though, it's black or very near black background, with a grey or yellow text. The most legible text is yellow on blue, but it's a bit much over time

                        MVVM# - See how I did MVVM my way ___________________________________________ Man, you're a god. - walterhevedeich 26/05/2011 .\\axxx (That's an 'M')

                        B Offline
                        B Offline
                        Big Daddy Farang
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #29

                        _Maxxx_ wrote:

                        The most legible text is yellow on blue

                        Is that for monitors? I remember something different for printed on paper.

                        BDF I often make very large prints from unexposed film, and every one of them turns out to be a picture of myself as I once dreamed I would be. -- BillWoodruff

                        L 1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • A AspDotNetDev

                          Your question gave me an idea. I have some coworkers that like to keep code comments to a minimum, and I like to keep them to a maximum. Maybe I should recommend that they use a white background and white text for code comments. :-\

                          Thou mewling ill-breeding pignut!

                          L Offline
                          L Offline
                          Lost User
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #30

                          You do know that those are the colors of the french war banner?

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • W W Balboos GHB

                            We've been through color suggestions before.
                            It's a matter of personal taste.

                            "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein

                            "As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error." - Weisert

                            "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010

                            M Offline
                            M Offline
                            Mycroft Holmes
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #31

                            ow that hurt!

                            Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • L LloydA111

                              It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                              =====
                              \ | /
                              \|/
                              |
                              |-----|
                              | |
                              |_ |
                              _) | /
                              _) __/_
                              _) ____
                              | /|
                              | / |
                              | |
                              |-----|
                              |

                              ===

                              L Offline
                              L Offline
                              loctrice
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #32

                              I'm so used to using the defaults (and those defaults always changing) that I have no idea :D I always made it a point to be able to do anything without a ton of tools. I also don't get used to custom settings because I find that it's distracting if I end up using something without those settings. I always appreciate syntax highlighting, but I honestly couldn't tell you the color or font that even my current IDE uses. If it colors it , then I'm good with it. p.s. You can change the fonts? Wow...

                              If it moves, compile it

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • L LloydA111

                                It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                                =====
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                                |_ |
                                _) | /
                                _) __/_
                                _) ____
                                | /|
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                                |

                                ===

                                A Offline
                                A Offline
                                Alan Burkhart
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #33

                                For coding I like a white background and the typical color scheme (blue keywords, etc). I have my own plain text editor I wrote ages ago and while I generally use black on white, I sometimes get in a "dark" mood. One button click and it's green text on a black background, with selections dark blue on light goldenrod. I rarely use the dark theme for more than a day, though. Changing the backcolor to Whitesmoke instead of white can also provide some eye relief. As to fonts, I prefer Lucida Console 12pt.

                                XAlan Burkhart

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • B Big Daddy Farang

                                  _Maxxx_ wrote:

                                  The most legible text is yellow on blue

                                  Is that for monitors? I remember something different for printed on paper.

                                  BDF I often make very large prints from unexposed film, and every one of them turns out to be a picture of myself as I once dreamed I would be. -- BillWoodruff

                                  L Offline
                                  L Offline
                                  Lost User
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #34

                                  Yes, for monitors. I remember sme study back in the day testing which colors gave best results over long periods and yellow on blue won out. (this was back when 256 colors was a luxury, so different shades may be better in these days of 64k+ shades

                                  MVVM# - See how I did MVVM my way ___________________________________________ Man, you're a god. - walterhevedeich 26/05/2011 .\\axxx (That's an 'M')

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • L LloydA111

                                    It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                                    =====
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                                    |-----|
                                    | |
                                    |_ |
                                    _) | /
                                    _) __/_
                                    _) ____
                                    | /|
                                    | / |
                                    | |
                                    |-----|
                                    |

                                    ===

                                    P Offline
                                    P Offline
                                    pt1401
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #35

                                    Dark backgrounds, not too much contrast. Specifically, I use Sublime Text 2 editor, Soda Dark theme.

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • L LloydA111

                                      It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                                      =====
                                      \ | /
                                      \|/
                                      |
                                      |-----|
                                      | |
                                      |_ |
                                      _) | /
                                      _) __/_
                                      _) ____
                                      | /|
                                      | / |
                                      | |
                                      |-----|
                                      |

                                      ===

                                      B Offline
                                      B Offline
                                      BillWoodruff
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #36

                                      Hi Lloyd, Assuming you can specify your own color preferences/scheme in NotePad+, you might experiment with the incredible on-line "related colors" generator, Color Scheme Designer, which I've mentioned, before, on 'Free Tools,' here on CP: [^]. I remain in "awe" of the knowledge of "color spaces," and human vision problems related to various forms of eye impairment, or color blindness, expressed in that site's functionality, which I consider a work of "genius." Also, in "awe," that it's, imho, a true "web application:" I have examined its underlying JavaScript code to some degree, and it appears almost all client-side, to me ... so far. I personally have switched over to using the Consolas font, from using Arial, for my programming editing font in Visual Studio. My eyes like it. best, Bill

                                      ~ Confused by Windows 8 ? This may help: [^] !

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • L LloydA111

                                        It's been asked by others before, but I'm going to ask again. Which colours do you use for your editor/IDE? I normally use a white background with blue as the keyword colour and green for strings, and a shade of red for integers/hex values. But I've got a new editor (Notepad++) and I've been playing around with the various default themes it comes with and I quite like some of the "darker" themes. E.G. black or dark grey background and one theme even has a pale khaki green which surprisingly looks quite good. And then I started to think, perhaps certain colours are more better for programming than others. I know that some research was done a while ago which concluded that people doing maths are generally "better" or able to remember sequences of numbers better if they are written down/displayed on screen using different colours. Any thoughts on which colours to use? I'm thinking darker colours for at least the background are less strenuous on your eyes. Edit: Oh and also, which fonts do you use? I normally use things like Courier (Sometimes I can only use Courier, particularly when working on Linux with a terminal) but sometimes fonts that are "smooth" are much more pleasing on the eye.

                                        =====
                                        \ | /
                                        \|/
                                        |
                                        |-----|
                                        | |
                                        |_ |
                                        _) | /
                                        _) __/_
                                        _) ____
                                        | /|
                                        | / |
                                        | |
                                        |-----|
                                        |

                                        ===

                                        V Offline
                                        V Offline
                                        Vikram A Punathambekar
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #37

                                        I use modified versions of Zenburn everywhere - VS, Notepad++, the custom editor at work.... Font is always Consolas.

                                        Cheers, विक्रम "We have already been through this, I am not going to repeat myself." - fat_boy, in a global warming thread :doh:

                                        B 1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • V Vikram A Punathambekar

                                          I use modified versions of Zenburn everywhere - VS, Notepad++, the custom editor at work.... Font is always Consolas.

                                          Cheers, विक्रम "We have already been through this, I am not going to repeat myself." - fat_boy, in a global warming thread :doh:

                                          B Offline
                                          B Offline
                                          BillWoodruff
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #38

                                          fyi: Zenburn is available for Visual Studio here: [^]. best, Bill

                                          ~ Confused by Windows 8 ? This may help: [^] !

                                          1 Reply Last reply
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