Re: Disturbing rumour

[Vern Hamberg <vhamberg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

iSphere has been mentioned a couple times in this thread. That is one of 
the great gifts to the community from Thomas and Frank and volunteers.

I've no knowledge of any plans to add iSphere tools to VS Code for i 
(not a bad direction to take, I might say) - for now, to do source 
searches, I'll go back to RDi and iSphere every time!

*Regards*

*Vern Hamberg*

IBM Champion 2025 <cid:part1.rSzOuqgC.8czggc8m@centurylink.net> CAAC 
(COMMON Americas Advisory Council) IBM Influencer 2023


On 3/26/2026 9:19 AM, Brian Parkins wrote:
> I'll second that! A comparison of features (and where to find them) 
> would be a great help.
>
> Like Peter, I have given VS Code 4i a test drive. I'm still a novice 
> learner, but I do miss the completeness and well-roundedness of RDi + 
> iSphere. I can see how Code 4i will appeal to a significant portion of 
> the IBM i community because a). it's free and b). it's new, exciting 
> and more "technical".
>
> However, I do wonder about long-term enhancements, (e.g. syntax 
> checking for future RPG IV features) when the support community is 
> relatively small. (Are we overly dependent on a small group of 
> dedicated enthusiasts who will inevitably leave the community over time?)
>
> Just a thought.
> Brian.
>
> On 26/03/2026 06:47, Peter Colpaert wrote:
> > Being the geek I am, I of course gave VSCode with the IBM i 
> > extensions a go.
> >
> > It works but it does miss some of the nicer things in RDi (*cough 
> > iSphere).
> >
> > Maybe someone with more insight in VSCode could write a side-by-side
> > comparison of all features of RDi and the counterpart in VSCode (or an
> > indication that it's not possible over there)?
> >
> > Peter