Bookmarks are still USELESS in VS 2015

Question

The most requested feature that developers WANT BACK (it worked in VS 2008) is still being completely ignored in VS 2015.

Let me repeat ... Bookmarks attached to line NUMBERS and NOT CODE is USELESS!!!  100% USELESS ... everyone edits code so the bookmark is going to stick with the line number and not the actual code???  How is this useful to anyone???

It's almost as if this is being done on purpose to allow JetBrains or some other 3rd party tool to justify their existence rather than Microsoft RETURNING bookmarks back to the way they used to work which was attached to the line of CODE not the line number.

This is why no developers care about Microsoft any more ... why should we, when you consistently ignore the highest requested basic feature.  If you don't listen to developers then we'll simply use different platforms ... you have NO leverage any more Microsoft, listen or be left behind.

Rob.

Answer 1

>The most requested feature that developers WANT BACK (it worked in VS 2008) is still being completely ignored in VS 2015.

Hi Rob,

Can you explain what's not working for you?

As far as I'm aware, the issue with bookmarks with a previous version
of VS has been fixed. If there are other regressive issues from VS2008
and you have a repro example I'd hope MS would look into fixing it.

Dave

Answer 2

Hi Dave,

Per MSDN documentation regarding Bookmarks:  VS 2015 Bookmarks

Quote "The bookmark is set to the line number, not to the code. If you modify the code, the bookmark is retained at the line number, and does not move with the code."

If I place a bookmark at line 2134 and then I edit some code that is 1000 lines above my bookmark my code will shift down as I edit (add lines of code) and the bookmark will remain at line 2134 which will NOT be the line of code I wanted to return to when I select the bookmark.

Myself and many other developers have opened numerous case tickets regarding this problem and every single opened case has been closed by Microsoft as "by design".  Yes, we know it's "by design" ... that's not the issue, the issue is the designed offers NO USEFUL help to a developer so "change the design".

Rob.

Answer 3

>If I place a bookmark at line 2134 and then I edit some code that is 1000 lines above my bookmark my code will shift down as I edit (add lines of code) and the bookmark will remain at line 2134 which will NOT be the line of code I wanted to return to when I select the bookmark.

Hi Rob,

I agree that some interim versions of VS (I can't remember which now)
used to have that issue, but it seems to work as I'd expect with
VS2015.

I think the old problem was that a bookmark once set appeared to move
as you add/delete lines before it, but when you closed/re-opened the
solution, it was still at the original line number. That's not
happening for me with VS2015.

Does the behaviour depend on which language you're working in? I've
tried it in C# and native C++ projects.

Let me know if you're doing something different to expose another flaw
that I'm not aware of.

Dave

Answer 4

Dave,

Are you saying that it's NOT happening as defined in the VS 2015 documentation?  The documentation is very clear about how it works and how it works is useless for any developer that edits code (which we all do).  So either you aren't understanding the problem or the documentation is wrong?

I WANT my bookmarks to be attached to the code NOT line number.  

Cheers, Rob.

Answer 5

>Are you saying that it's NOT happening as defined in the VS 2015 documentation?

No, the documentation is strictly correct.

In your request you say a bookmark should be "attached to the code".
How would that be implemented?

The old problem (to the best of my memory) was how I described it:

"I think the old problem was that a bookmark once set appeared to move
as you add/delete lines before it, but when you closed/re-opened the
solution, it was still at the original line number.
"

If you're expecting bookmarks to be embedded in the source file so
that they track your code even if you edit it outside of the solution,
then that's something else and I can't see how that could be
accomplished given the constraints of a plain text source file.

Dave

Answer 6

Dave,

What you are saying and what the documentation is saying is diametrically opposite ... it can only be one or the other, not both ways.

For example if you place a bookmark on a method say "DoSomething" which is currently at line 1000.  You modify/edit another method that is physically above "DoSomething" ... lets call this method "DoAnything" on line 500.  You add 5 lines of code in method "DoAnything" ... this shifts the "DoSomething" method down 5 lines also, so "DoSomething" method (code) is now line 1005.  My bookmark will still be at line 1000 which now has NO useful purpose because it's no longer pointing to the method "DoSomething" ... line 1000 is now pointing at some code that has NO relevance to the very reason for my adding the bookmark.

Implementation is easy, any bookmark in a file that is being editing will SHIFT with the the number of lines added or deleted.  If I add 5 lines of code the bookmark moves down 5 lines ... it "STAYS with the code" NOT with the line number ... hence a Bookmark.

If you want a good real world analogy ... think of a real book in binder form.  If I place a "bookmark" at chapter 5 and then type up 5 new pages for Chapter 2, my bookmark in chapter 5 stays there where I left it, it doesn't move 5 pages back into chapter 4 (which would be useless).

I don't know how to be any more clear about this -- I must admit it puzzles me why Microsoft seem to be having such a hard time grasping a VERY simple concept that used to work well in VS 2008/VS 2005.  In VS 2008/VS 2005 this is how "bookmarks" worked, just like their real world counterparts in books.  Microsoft decided to lock them to line number which is absolutely useless if anyone does any editing of the same file the bookmark is in.

Cheers, Rob.

Answer 7

>What you are saying and what the documentation is saying is diametrically opposite ... it can only be one or the other, not both ways.

Hi Rob,

When you edit the source in VS, VS tracks the position of the bookmark
- just as you assume it ought to do.

I presume the old bug was that if failed to save the updated line
number to disk when the solution was closed.

Rather than take my word for it working, why don't you give it a try.
If you do find it doesn't work for you, tell MS how to reproduce it.

Dave

Answer 8

Thanks for Dave's help.

Hi Rob,

I just test it using a simple app in my VS2015 Enterprise version. I add the bookmark in the 1666 line.

And then I add a new line code in the 1000 line.

And then I will get the result like this screen shot:

If I restart the VS, re-open this project, the Bookmark still is in the line 1667.

If it shared the different result in your side, please reset your VS settings, re-add a new one, check the result.

Best Regards,

Jack

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