New to Mac Coding? Here's a Quick Step-By-Step Guide For Installing Visual Studio Code on macOS

So, what is VSCode?

Visual Studio Code (VSCode) is a popular, free, and open-source code editor that offers a multitude of features to enhance your coding experience. If you're new to the Mac ecosystem and looking to set up a reliable development environment, installing VSCode should be your first move.

Prerequisites

• macOS version 10.10 or later
• An Internet connection
• Administrative privileges for software installation

Downloading the Installer

Step 1: Visit the Official Website

Open your web browser and navigate to the Visual Studio Code website.

Step 2: Download for macOS

You'll see a prominent "Download for Mac" button on the homepage. Click it, and a .zip file will start downloading automatically.

Step 3: Locate the File

Once the download completes, navigate to your 'Downloads' folder to locate the .zip file.

Extracting and Installing the Application

Step 4: Unzip the File

Double-click the .zip file to extract it. macOS will automatically create a new folder containing the VSCode application. This process may take a few seconds to a minute, depending on your system's performance.

Step 5: Drag and Drop to Applications Folder

1. Open a new Finder window.
2. Navigate to the Applications folder, which is where installed applications reside.
3. Drag and drop the VSCode application from the new folder to the Applications folder.

Verifying the Installation

Step 6: Launch VSCode

After installing, you can launch VSCode in several ways:

• Method 1: Open the Applications folder and double-click on Visual Studio Code.
• Method 2: Use Spotlight Search by pressing Cmd + Space and then typing 'Visual Studio Code'.

Step 7: First Run Verification

The first time you run the application, macOS will ask you to confirm that you want to open it. Click Open to proceed.

Step 8: Welcome Screen

Upon successful installation and verification, you will be greeted by VSCode's Welcome screen, indicating that the application is ready for use.

Setting Up the Integrated Terminal

Step 9: Open the Terminal Inside VSCode

You can either navigate to View > Terminal from the top menu or press `Ctrl + `` to pull up the terminal panel at the bottom of the VSCode window.

Step 10: Choose Your Preferred Shell

macOS typically uses Bash or Zsh as the default shell. If you wish to change this, execute the following terminal command:

chsh -s /bin/zsh

Replace /bin/zshwith the path to your preferred shell if it's different.

Step 11: Verify Terminal Functionality

To make sure the terminal is functioning as expected, type and execute a simple command like:

echo "Hello, World!"

If you see "Hello, World!" printed in the terminal, it's working correctly.

Installing Extensions

Step 12: Navigate to the Extensions Marketplace

Click on the square Extensions icon on the sidebar or press Cmd + Shift + X to open the Extensions Marketplace inside VSCode.

Step 13: Search and Install Extensions

Type the name of the extension you wish to install in the search bar. Click Install next to the desired extension. For instance, if you work with Python, you might want to install Microsoft's Python extension. To do this from the terminal, execute:

code --install-extension ms-python.python

You've successfully installed Visual Studio Code on your Mac and configured its integrated terminal.