Waitso

Stop wasting your AI wait time. Waitso turns the idle moments while your AI agent codes into micro-learning sessions — surfacing quizzes and bite-sized lessons directly inside your editor.

Features

• Quiz Mode — Multiple-choice questions streamed live, with options revealed once the question fully loads. Pick an answer and get instant feedback with an explanation.
• Bite Mode — Short, focused lessons with a typewriter streaming effect. Read at your pace, tap Next when ready.
• Random Mode — Each session independently picks a quiz or a bite, so every load feels fresh.
• Fully configurable — Set your topic (e.g. React hooks, system design, Rust), skill level, and preferred format from VS Code settings.
• AI-powered content — High-quality, on-demand content generated for your exact topic and level.
• Content flagging — Flag anything you find incorrect or unhelpful.

Installation

1. Install from the VS Code Marketplace.
2. Open the command palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P) and run Waitso: Open Learning Panel.
3. Add your Gemini API key when prompted — it is mandatory before any content loads (see Fresh Install Behavior below).

Fresh Install Behavior

On a brand-new install, opening the panel for the first time always shows the API key step first, before onboarding preferences and before any learning content:

1. API key step — the panel cannot generate content without a Gemini key, so this step is not skippable. Paste a key (get one free at aistudio.google.com) and continue.
2. Welcome / preferences — choose format, skill level, and topic, or tap Use Defaults to skip straight to learning with the defaults in Extension Settings.
3. Learning panel — quizzes and bites start streaming.

On every subsequent open, if a key and preferences are already stored, the panel skips straight to learning content. If the key is ever cleared (e.g. manually removed from Settings), the panel falls back to the API key step again rather than silently failing.

Installing from a local .vsix (not via Marketplace)

If you're testing a build that hasn't been published yet:

yarn install --frozen-lockfile
npx @vscode/vsce package --out /tmp/waitso.vsix
code --install-extension /tmp/waitso.vsix

Then run Waitso: Open Learning Panel from the Command Palette as above. See scripts/smoke-test.sh for an isolated, non-destructive way to verify a packaged build installs cleanly without touching your real VS Code profile.

Setup: API Key

Waitso requires a free Gemini API key to generate content — the panel will prompt for it on first launch and will not show learning content without one.

1. Get a key at aistudio.google.com.
2. Open Settings → search waitso.geminiApiKey → paste your key.

Your key is stored locally in VS Code settings and is only used to generate your learning content.

Usage

Extension Settings

Requirements

• VS Code ^1.90.0
• A free Gemini API key

Local verification

Install the repository dependencies with yarn install, then run the repeatable verification harness:

yarn verify

This runs the TypeScript compile check and the Node unit-test suite for preference defaults and merging, content request construction and validation, retry/error handling, flagging, repeat prevention, counters, week helpers, and storage keys. Use yarn test when only the unit tests are needed.

Known Issues

• Content is generated on-demand — a slow network or API rate limit may delay the first load.
• Requires an active internet connection.

Release Notes

See CHANGELOG.md. Maintainers preparing a release should follow RELEASE_CHECKLIST.md and DEVELOPER.md.

Contributing

Issues and PRs welcome at github.com/Assessmentr/waitso.

License

MIT