After several straight very late nights, I'm able to finally say that the CodeKeep web site has undergone a major overhaul (again). I know it's been through that once or twice before, but I really feel that I got things *more right* this time around. Mass improvements abound, most notably the vastly improved UI to create a better user experience by making things even simpler than they were before (and oh yeah, it's been completely upgraded to .NET 3.5). I think most people will agree the site is so much more aesthetically pleasing now. It has a new logo, it feels softer with more rounded corners and soothing color tones, and I've added some geek humor to the site, which you'll find as you click around. Quite different from where it started and where its been.
As I was working on this upgrade, I realized that for all intents and purposes, CodeKeep is maturing. New users continue to register and code snippets continue to be saved. The last couple months have seen the interest in CodeKeep go up, as evident by the growing number of emails I've received asking where the add-in is for VS 2008 (more on that below). That's a sure sign developers aren't abandoning CodeKeep as they move forward with newer tools. In fact, that tells me they want CodeKeep by their side as they work because it adds value. It's because of this that I've sort of re-dedicated myself to the cause and have busted my butt to take it to the next level.
Aside from the site upgrade, the other big news is the immediate availability of the CodeKeep add-in for VS 2008. I know its a bit overdue, but it's finally done and ready to go. You can actually use the VS 2005 and VS 2008 add-ins on the same machine without any problems (that's what I do), so no matter which version of Visual Studio you're working in, CodeKeep will be there to keep you company.
For this version of the VS 2008 add-in, there is literally no difference between it and the VS 2005 add-in; it even has the old logo. The reason for this is simple: it allowed me to release it much faster than if I tried to revamp everything. I'm learning to release more often, and this is a step in that direction. Also, in the next few days will be another announcement that the add-ins will become open-source projects. I mentioned this several months ago, and now is the time to do that. Getting the developer community involved with the add-ins will allow the add-ins to grow at a much faster pace than my time can provide. Plus, I'm really hoping someone takes the initiative to build a CodeKeep add-in for Eclipse.
One other major piece of functionality released as part of the upgrade is the ability to export your snippets so that you can save them offline. That has consistently been one of the top most requested features, and I'm happy to report it's here. The export is pretty straightforward, as it dumps all your snippets into an XML file. I've already identified a couple things in the export process I want to make better, but this gets the job done. It's only available on the web site for now, but I've already created a task to implement the export process in the add-ins as well.
That's about it for now; more details and info on the horizon. In the meantime, check out the site and download the VS 2008 add-in. You won't be disappointed.