IntelliSense - Example

Example

Assume a C++ application being edited in Visual Studio has a class Foo with some member functions:

class Foo { public: void bar; void foo_bar(char c, int n); };

When the developer references this class in source code, e.g.:

Foo foo; foo.

as soon as the user types the period after foo, IntelliSense automatically lists all the available member functions (i.e. bar and foo_bar) and all the available member attributes (private and protected members can be identified by a padlock picture besides its name). The user can then select one by using the arrow keys and hitting a completion character when the correct member function is highlighted. When available, IntelliSense displays a short description of the member function as given in the source code documentation.

IntelliSense goes further by indicating the required parameters in another pop-up window as the user fills in the parameters. As the user types a variable name, the feature also makes suggestions to complete the variable as they are typed. IntelliSense continues to show parameters, highlighting the pertinent one, as the user types.

The user can "force" IntelliSense to show its pop-up list without context by using Ctrl+J or Ctrl+Space. In Visual Studio this displays the entire application domain object model available to the developer.