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Code-GUI bidirectional editing via LSP

(jamesbvaughan.com)
238 points jamesbvaughan | 2 comments | 01 Jul 25 16:43 UTC | HN request time: 0.527s | source
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jesse__ ◴[02 Jul 25 04:14 UTC] No.44440194[source]▶
It's concerning to me that the LSP idea is .. a thing. Casey Muratori observed years ago that it's just a way worse way of doing libraries. Like, you're introducing HTTP where there could just be a function call into a DLL/SO. What's the benefit there? Just make vim/emacs/$editor speak some native protocol and be done with it. Then you GUI is just welded directly into the running editor process.. right??

There's no security risk there that wasn't present before as far as I can tell because you were already planning on running the LSP on your local machine..

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1. chamomeal ◴[02 Jul 25 04:24 UTC] No.44440245[source]▶
I’ve definitely wondered about this. Like why does the language-understanding standard have to be a server specifically? Just cause it’s a good architecture to build around?

I think I’ve heard that vscode has benefitted hugely from it starting out with a client-server architecture from the start, since it started as a browser based editor. Things like editing code directly on servers via ssh or in containers is easy for vscode cause its client-server all the way down.

Vscode and LSP are both Microsoft products, maybe Microsoft has been pushing the client server thing?

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2. jesse__ ◴[02 Jul 25 21:05 UTC] No.44448826[source]▶
> I’ve definitely wondered about this. Like why does the language-understanding standard have to be a server specifically?

I don't think it does. I think it's a bad architectural decision that web bros thought sounded cute.

> Things like editing code directly on servers via ssh or in containers

I mean, vim and emacs have supported editing over ssh for like .. longer than I've been alive probably.

> I think I’ve heard that vscode has benefitted hugely from [clinet-server architecture]

IMO VSCode is a giant steaming pile; I'm not sure what the huge benefits could have been. It's intolerably slow, uses an insane amount of system resources, and the debugger barely works most of the time.