change visual studio 2019 themes with code examples

Visual Studio is a popular Integrated Development Environment (IDE) used by developers for coding and building applications. By default, Visual Studio comes with a light theme, which may not appeal to everyone. However, the good news is that Visual Studio 2019 supports a wide range of themes that you can choose from to customize the look and feel of your IDE. These themes can help enhance your workflow and improve your overall experience with the application.

In this article, we'll explore how to change Visual Studio 2019 themes using code examples.

Before we dive into the specific steps to change the theme, let's take a quick look at why it's important.

Why change the Visual Studio 2019 theme?

Customizing the theme of Visual Studio can not only improve your user experience but also reduce eye strain and fatigue that results from staring at a screen for extended periods of time. Using a color scheme that is easy on the eyes can make a big difference for developers who spend hours coding every day.

In addition, if you work with different machine configurations or your team members have different preferences, changing the theme can help you maintain consistency in the development environment.

How to change Visual Studio 2019 themes?

Visual Studio 2019 comes with a variety of theme options that you can choose from. Here's how you can change the theme:

1. Open Visual Studio 2019.

2. Navigate to Tools -> Options.

3. In the Options window, select Environment -> General.

4. Under the Color Theme section, choose the desired color scheme.

5. Click OK to save your changes. Visual Studio will automatically apply the new color scheme.

While this method is straightforward and easy, you might need to apply the same theme to several machines or create a custom theme. In these cases, using code examples can be a faster and efficient approach.

Changing the Visual Studio 2019 theme using code

Visual Studio 2019 provides a way to change the theme programmatically using code. Here's a sample code snippet that you can use:

public void SetVisualStudioTheme()
{
    // Dark theme
    var darkTheme = "de3dbbcd-f642-433c-8353-8f1df4370aba";
    // Light theme
    var lightTheme = "1ded0138-47ce-435e-84ef-9ec1f439b749";
    
    var dte = (DTE2)Marshal.GetActiveObject("VisualStudio.DTE.16.0");
    dte.MainWindow?.Activate();

    if (Guid.TryParse(darkTheme, out var guid) && dte != null)
    {
        dte.Properties["Environment", "General"].Item("ColorTheme").Value = guid.ToString();
    }
}

This code snippet uses the DTE object to set the theme programmatically. The code accepts two theme options; Dark theme ("de3dbbcd-f642-433c-8353-8f1df4370aba") and Light theme ("1ded0138-47ce-435e-84ef-9ec1f439b749"). You can change these GUIDs to set any other theme available in Visual Studio.

You can call this method in your code, or you can create an extension that triggers the method every time you open Visual Studio. Here's an example of how to create an extension that sets the theme when Visual Studio starts up:

1. Open Visual Studio 2019.

2. Navigate to File -> New -> Project.

3. Select Visual C# -> Extensibility -> VSIX Project.

4. Give your project a name and choose a location.

5. Select the VSIX Manifest editor.

6. In the VSIX Manifest editor, go to Assets -> MefComponent.

7. Add a new class that contains the code snippet that we shared above.

8. In the Solution Explorer, right-click on the project and choose Properties.

9. In the Debug tab, select the Start external program checkbox and provide the path to your Visual Studio 2019 executable.

10. Save your changes and run the extension by pressing F5.

Conclusion

Changing the Visual Studio 2019 theme can help improve your productivity and reduce eye strain. While it's easy to change the theme using the options menu, you can also set the theme programmatically using code. We hope that the code examples we shared in this article help you customize your Visual Studio environment and enhance your workflow.

Sorry, but I need you to clarify which topics you are referring to before I can provide additional content. Can you please specify?

Popular questions

Certainly! Here are 5 questions and answers related to changing Visual Studio 2019 themes with code examples:

1. What are some benefits of changing the Visual Studio 2019 theme?
   Answer: Changing the Visual Studio 2019 theme can help reduce eye strain and fatigue that results from staring at a screen for extended periods of time. You can also customize the theme to match your visual preferences or maintain consistency in the development environment.

2. How many theme options are available in Visual Studio 2019?
   Answer: Visual Studio 2019 provides a range of theme options that you can choose from. There are 9 built-in themes, including the default light theme and a variety of dark themes. Additionally, you can create custom themes that match your preferences.

3. Can you change the Visual Studio 2019 theme programmatically?
   Answer: Yes, Visual Studio 2019 provides a way to change the theme programmatically using code. You can create an extension or add a code snippet to your project to set the desired theme.

4. How do you set a custom theme in Visual Studio 2019?
   Answer: To set a custom theme in Visual Studio 2019, you can create a new extension or add a code snippet to your project that sets the GUID for the desired theme in the DTE Properties object. The GUID for the custom theme can be obtained using the Visual Studio Theme Editor.

5. What is the benefit of creating an extension to change the Visual Studio 2019 theme?
   Answer: Creating an extension to change the Visual Studio 2019 theme allows you to automate the process of setting the desired theme every time you open Visual Studio. This helps ensure that your preferred theme is always set, even if you work with multiple machines or team members.

Tag

"VisualStudioThemes".