Umfeld for VS Code

Build, run, and manage Umfeld C++ creative-coding projects from VS Code.

Umfeld provides a Processing-style API for C++ with setup()/draw() sketches, graphics, audio, shaders, MIDI, and OSC. The extension supports macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi, and Windows (MSYS2 UCRT64).

Features

• Official setup: Choose an Umfeld release (or development branch) and run the upstream installer. The installer provides Umfeld, version-matched examples and libraries, and platform dependencies.
• Canonical projects: Create a project from the version-matched umfeld-examples/Basics/template, or copy any installed example as an independent project.
• CMake Tools integration: The Develop section keeps launch, debug, compile-only, and clean actions together while preserving CMake Tools presets, kits, variants, targets, toolchains, and File API state. Extension-created projects configure only when first built, and the last explicitly selected compiler kit is reused in new Umfeld workspaces.
• Setup check: Verify CMake Tools, the Umfeld library, and platform prerequisites; examples are optional unless creating or copying a project.

Getting Started

Existing Umfeld users

1. Keep using your existing UMFELD_PATH, or set Umfeld: Path in VS Code settings.
2. Run Umfeld: Check Setup. The extension validates the existing checkout and does not reinstall it.
3. Use Compile + Run for the normal creative-coding loop, or Compile without launching.

New users

1. Run Umfeld: Set Up Umfeld and choose a stable release.
2. After the official installer completes, restart VS Code so all tools inherit the installed environment.
3. Run Umfeld: New Project or Umfeld: Copy Example as Project.
4. Use Compile + Run for the normal creative-coding loop, or Compile without launching.

Build configuration and target selection are managed by the bundled CMake Tools extension. Compile performs an incremental build; ninja: no work to do simply means the project is already current. The launch label follows CMake Tools’ cmake.buildBeforeRun setting: Compile + Run by default, or Run when disabled.

CMake is the build system, not the compiler; on the first compile, choose [Unspecified] to use the system default or select the GCC, Clang, AppleClang, or MSYS2 compiler appropriate for your toolchain. The selection is cached locally for future Umfeld workspaces when Umfeld: Remember Compiler is enabled; CMake preset projects are never changed.

When creating a project, Add to Current Workspace keeps the current extension host and workspace context. A separately opened project includes extension recommendations, but VS Code still controls Workspace Trust and workspace-only extension enablement. Trust the new folder and enable the recommended extensions globally if VS Code opens it in Restricted Mode.