Note: The following applies to .NET managed code only.
IntelliSense is a feature of Visual Studio that provides easy access to language elements. It is also available when coding COBOL programs. IntelliSense shows lists of methods, fields, properties, parameters, classes and so on that are available when you type an object name followed by a double colon, an opening bracket or a double quote. You can choose an item from the list to complete the code rather than typing it yourself. Users of procedural COBOL can also gain IntelliSense on their programs.
The following are examples of where IntelliSense pops up:
- Type Listings - When you start declaring a type, such as
01 my-string type ", IntelliSense pops up a list of the namespaces and types available to your program, as soon as you type the
". These namespaces are obtained from each of the references you’ve added to your project. As you type a namespace, IntelliSense shows all the types within that namespace. For example, when you type:
- 01 my-string type " - all the available namespaces are listed
- 01 my-string type "System - all the types within the System namespace are listed
- 01 my-string type "System.IO - all the types within the System.IO namespace are listed.
- Member Listings - When you invoke an object, IntelliSense pops up a list of methods, fields, properties and events that are available for that object. This happens when you use inline style of invoke statements (with the double colons ::), such as:
invoke my-string::
- Parameter Listings - When you type either USING or an opening a bracket for the parameters of an inline invoke, IntelliSense pops up a list of the parameters available for the method you’re invoking. It also displays any overloaded methods which you can scroll through using the arrow keys.
