COBOL Editor

The COBOL editor includes the following enhancements and new features:

• Improved Intellisense writing assistance for COBOL in both native and managed COBOL:
  • Context sensitive suggestions - IntelliSense only shows suggestions that are relevant for the position of the cursor in the code or for the type of project.
  • Enhanced completion lists - lists include any relevant COBOL verbs, clauses and words, copybooks, code templates, data items and section and paragraph names.
  • Intelligent assistance with completing statements - when you have entered a COBOL verb, IntelliSense shows suggestions for the relevant clauses and identifiers that you can use to complete the statement.
  • Automatic completion for single items - IntelliSense automatically inserts single suggestions in the code.
  • Qualifying non-unique names - IntelliSense qualifies data items whose names are not unique.
  • Configuration preferences for IntelliSense - enable you to configure what suggestions appear in the completion lists, whether suggestions are added in insert or overwrite mode, and the case of the inserted words.
  • Snippets - code snippets are now included in the IntelliSense suggestions.
• $IF-$ELSE-$END statement colorization - parts of a $IF Compiler-control statement that are not executed are now colored in grey.
• $REGION statement - support is provided for the $REGION Compiler-control statement. You can use $REGION - $END-REGION to surround blocks of code that you want to folded or expand in the editor.
• Copybook glyphs () in the left-hand margin on a copy line - indicate that a copybook can be expanded inline.
• Creating copybooks from selection of code - a new context menu command, Extract to Copybook in the editor enables you to move a selection of COBOL code into a new copybook file. The file is added to the project and the code in the original program is replaced with a COPY statement that refers the new copybook.
• Expanded copybook view - provides indicators for read-only copybooks
• Outlining - outlining is now available on comment blocks, paragraphs and on $REGION and $IF statements.
• Task List comments - the COBOL editor now provides support for Visual Studio-style Task List comments in COBOL. Typing TODO, HACK or UNDONE in the code immediately after the declaration of the COBOL comment (*>, *>> or * in column 7) creates a task that appears in the Task List window.