Visual Studio Code v1.90 Changelog

This update is all about making your coding workflow smoother and giving your AI assistant more context. It matters especially to developers who juggle a lot of open files, use AI tools like Copilot to write code, or use VS Code's Notebook feature for data projects.

What's new

• Multi-select editor tabs: You can now hold Ctrl (or Cmd on Mac) and click to select multiple file tabs at the top of your screen. Once selected, you can close, move, or pin them all at once, just like selecting multiple files on your desktop.
• VS Code Speech: The AI Copilot can now read its chat answers out loud to you using text-to-speech.
• Attach context to chat: When asking the AI a question, you can now easily attach specific files, code selections, or workspace symbols (definitions of functions and variables) by clicking a paperclip icon. This helps the AI understand exactly what you are working on.
• Web and enterprise search in Copilot: If you use Copilot Enterprise, you can now ask the AI to search the web (using #web) or your company's internal documentation (using #kb) to answer your questions.
• Custom profiles for new windows: A "profile" in VS Code is a saved setup of your settings and extensions. You can now choose exactly which profile you want to use automatically when you open a brand new window.
• Always show editor actions: There's a new setting to keep the menu buttons (like split screen or save) visible at the top of your editor, even if you aren't currently clicked into that specific file.

Improvements

• IntelliSense in chat: IntelliSense is VS Code's helpful auto-complete and code-hint system. It is now built directly into the code blocks that Copilot generates in the chat, making it easier to understand the AI's suggested code.
• Notebook search: In notebooks (documents that mix code, text, and outputs), you can now search for words only inside the specific cells you have highlighted, rather than the whole document.
• Terminal text rendering: The terminal now automatically fixes overlapping text characters (like certain Roman numerals) so they fit perfectly on the screen, making your console easier to read.
• Accessibility shortcuts: You can now set up custom keyboard shortcuts directly from the accessibility help menu, making it easier for people who rely on screen readers to navigate the app.
• Source control navigation: You can now use keyboard shortcuts to jump between different input fields and file groups in the Source Control panel (where you manage your code changes).

Fixes

• The release notes mention that updates 1.90.1 and 1.90.2 were released specifically to address and squish various bugs that popped up after the initial launch, keeping the editor stable.

Breaking changes

• The terminal's old "canvas renderer" (the old way the computer drew text on the screen) has been completely removed. If you have an older computer that doesn't support modern graphics (WebGL2), VS Code will now fall back to a basic web-style renderer instead.