First Alpha Of Node.js For Visual Studio Released By Microsoft

I’m sure there are plenty of developers out there that would love to develop for Javascript and node.js in Visual Studio, but haven’t been able to due to the IDE’s lack of language and debugging support. Well, that’s no longer the case, with Microsoft releasing a freshly-minted alpha of Node.js Tools for Visual Studio.

Abbreviated NTVS by Microsoft, the plug-in, which can be downloaded from Codeplex, provides developers with Intellisense, profiling and debugging support for node.js-based applications.

As Microsoft’s Scott Handselman explains, rather than reinvent the wheel and build its own external tools, NTVS uses the V8 debugger and node.exe.

Being an alpha, there’s room for improvement — if you’re working on a big project, you might find Intellisense dying as you work, due to the Javascript Language Service timing out. That said, current feedback suggests it’s very good for an initial release, so don’t be afraid to give it a go.

Node.js Tools for Visual Studio [YouTube, via TechCrunch]