What is the best IDE for low-latency work on Linux?

Questions
1

From this topic I learned that graphics updates in scide provoke xruns when running Jack at a small blocksize like 64. Graphics updates always can provoke xruns, but scide seems particularly bad, compared for instance to Pd. This may also be a problem at larger block sizes, especially when printing a lot to the post window of scide.

From this topic I learned that many of the users of this forum use vim. I have been using scide so far but I would be happy to switch to vim or emacs if I got a better low-latency performance on Linux.

What are your experiences with other IDEs?

2

I have been using neovim with scnvim for a long time now, and am extremely happy with this setup!

K

3

Thank you! How is the post window handled in neovim? Do updates provoke xruns? Are you using small Jack buffer sizes in your work?

4

I also use scnvim.
The post window is displayed in a regular vim buffer, so is as light as can be in terms of computational draw.

5

I can only make it provoke xruns if posting at extremely high rates (like from within the sound block calculation when I write plugins in C++).

6

The post window is just another text buffer, so there is basically no overhead whatsoever. I’m generally running jack at a buffer size of 256, just to make sure I never get xruns during performance. 64 has never really happened for me, but I chalk that up to the usb drivers on my fireface ucx, which are nowhere near as stellar as their proprietary mac/windows counterparts.

7

And, of course: if you do take the time to learn nvim properly, your entire computer experience will be enhanced exponentially. Before you know it you want to use it to write prose, do your shopping list, write emails, fill in forms, dip your toes into all kinds of other code writing as well… The list is endless, as is the depth of possible learning :wink:

2 Likes
8

I just got scnvim working on Windows last night. I can say that there is a significant learning curve, at least for me.

9

No worries. The vim learning curve is famously steep, but give it some time, take it step by step, learn one command a day and use it until it becomes second nature. If you find yourself thinking “there must be a better way to accomplish this”, then usually there is. Follow along with vim-tutor (type :Tutor in normal mode) and go from there… Before you know it you will be a master :wink:

10

No worries. The vim learning curve is famously steep, but give it some time, take it step by step, learn one command a day and use it until it becomes second nature. If you find yourself thinking “there must be a better way to accomplish this”, then usually there is. Follow along with vim-tutor (type :Tutor in normal mode) and go from there… Before you know it you will be a master :wink:
The best thing from now on is that you will be using vim as your
favourite editor for everything™, latex, csound, email (mutt), python
etc.

11

I used to think that, about emacs… Now I use emacs only for org-mode (which is frankly life-changing in itself).

I think, if there’s a performance issue with the IDE, that there are two courses of action: 1/ file a bug for future improvement to the IDE (I’d expect that the dev team would be disturbed by the findings – I certainly am) and 2/ find something else to use in the meantime. It seems nobody has yet done the first so I guess I’ll do it today.

hjh