12 Tips for Learning Python in VS Code

I recently had the pleasure of helping my favorite student (my daughter) debug some Python code in VS Code. Along the way it became clear that most beginner Python programmers could benefit greatly by learning a few of the best tools and shortcuts in VS Code. This resulted in the following 12 VS Code features I recommend for beginners:

1. Shortcuts Cheat Sheet
2. Accessing the Integrated Terminal
3. “code” from the Terminal
4. Shortcut for Commenting Code
5. F2 for Variable Renaming
6. F5 and Launcher File
7. Debugger Breakpoints and Shortcuts
8. Line Navigation
9. File Navigation
10. WSL & SSH Addons
11. Python Virtual Environments
12. Python Code Formatter and Linter

This article has a companion video available here:

1. Shortcuts Cheat Sheet

This first tip is kind of like the master key to unlock most of the other tips. VS Code includes a list of all the common shortcuts that is easily accessible from the menus. Simply go to Help->Keyboard Shortcuts…