Tagliner

Tagliner helps feature notes and TODOs from getting lost in larger projects. It designed to save METATAG: quoteService or TODO: billing directly in files and Tagliner maintains tags map in realtime!

Why use Tagliner?

• Instant signal – watches files as you save changes and keeps the tag index updated in a persistent storage, so the sidebar stays in sync even across reloads. Other extentions require periodic scans.
• Purpose-built tree – your tags (METATAG, TODO, BUG, or anything you configure) show up grouped by value with direct jumps to the exact line. Other extentions always group tags by file: which defeats the purpose of using metadata!
• Smart ignore rules – extention respects VS Code excludes, your custom glob list, and every .gitignore (nested ones too) before it performs scan
• Manual rebuild on tap – manually trigger a full rescan when you need it; the index stays lean the rest of the time

Configuration

Set the list of tags to track via Settings → Extensions → Tagliner: update the tagliner.tags array (default is METATAG, TODO, BUG). The first entry becomes the default view filter and you can switch tags at any time from the Tagliner view menu.

Use tagliner.ignoreGlobs to add any additional glob patterns (default .vscode/**) that should be skipped during a rebuild on top of workspace files.exclude, search.exclude, and .gitignore rules.

For fast tagging, use VS Code snippets. In the command pallet, select "Configure Snippets", add snippet file. Here's a sample to get started:

{
  "persistence": {
    "scope": "javascript,typescript",
    "prefix": "/persistence",
    "body": ["//METATAG: persistence"]
  },
  "settings": {
    "scope": "javascript,typescript",
    "prefix": "/settings",
    "body": ["//METATAG: ui"]
  },
  "header": {
    "scope": "javascript,typescript",
    "prefix": "/banner",
    "body": [
      "// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────",
      "// PURPOSE: $1",
      "// CONTEXT: $2",
      "// EXTRA_INFO: $3",
      "// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────"
    ],
    "description": "Insert AI agent documentation header"
  }
}

When you start typing in the editor /setti - it will show snippents list.

Settings for snippets to show them on top of Intellisense list:

Finally, settings of the extention:

Tagliner in Commands Pallete

• Tagliner: Select Tag Filter — choose which tag the tree should display.
• Tagliner: Rebuild Tag Index — rescan the entire workspace when you need to refresh the index.

Getting Started

1. Add a tag to any file, e.g. METATAG: quoteService or TODO: onboarding.
2. Pop open the Tagliner Activity Bar view — your tag appears instantly, grouped by value.
3. Click the file entry to land with the cursor on the tagged line, ready to ship the change.

Requirements

No additional tooling is required beyond VS Code 1.104 or newer.

Release Notes

0.0.4

• Update storeage version to prevent bypass of git ignore patterns.

0.0.3

• Initial preview with automatic tag indexing, Activity Bar view, rebuild command, and configurable tag list.

0.0.2

• Bugfixes and improvements.

0.0.1

• Initial idea and testing prototype

Tagliner is built for teams who track features, TODOs, and refactors directly in their codebase—and expect that context to be one click away.