MyScratchPad VS Code Extension

A powerful scratchpad extension for Visual Studio Code that provides both global and workspace-specific scratch files. Create, manage, and organize temporary files with support for multiple file types and custom extensions. Works seamlessly across VS Code, Cursor, and Windsurf editors - files created in one editor are instantly available in the others!

Features

🌍 Dual Scratchpad System

• Global Scratchpad: Files that persist across all workspaces and projects
• Workspace Scratchpad: Files that are specific to the current workspace/project

📁 File Type Support

• Predefined Types: JavaScript, TypeScript, HTML, CSS, JSON, Markdown, SQL, Plain Text
• Custom Extensions: Add any file extension (Python, Go, Java, Ruby, etc.) with smart comment detection
• Smart Icons: Automatic file type detection with appropriate VS Code theme icons

🛠️ File Management

• Create files with auto-generated timestamped names
• Rename and delete files with intuitive context menus
• Type-specific templates for quick starts
• Refresh views to sync file listings

💾 Intelligent Storage

• Global files stored in VS Code's global storage (persist across all projects)
• Workspace files organized by workspace folder name
• Cross-platform path handling for Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Cross-Editor Compatibility: Files sync between VS Code, Cursor, and Windsurf

How to Use

📋 Accessing Scratchpads

You'll find two scratchpad views in the Explorer sidebar:

• Scratchpad: For global files (available across all projects)
• Workspace Scratchpad: For project-specific files

✨ Creating Files

Multiple ways to create scratchpad files:

1. Direct Creation:

   • Click the "+" icon in either scratchpad view
   • Enter the filename with extension (e.g., notes.txt, script.py)
   • The file opens automatically with clipboard content as initial content

2. From Selected Text:

   • Select any text or code in VS Code
   • Right-click and choose "Create workspace/global scratchpad"
   • Creates a scratchpad with the selected content

3. From File Explorer:

   • Right-click on any file in the Explorer
   • Choose "Create scratchpad from file"
   • Creates a new scratchpad with smart naming (e.g., hello.txt → hello_scratch.txt)

4. Add to Cody AI:

   • Right-click any scratchpad file
   • Select "Add to Cody AI as context" to use the file with AI assistance

🔧 Managing Files

• Open: Click any file to open it in the editor
• Rename: Right-click → Rename, or hover and click the edit icon
• Delete: Right-click → Delete, or hover and click the trash icon
• Refresh: Click the refresh icon to update the file listing

🎯 Smart File Handling

The extension now provides streamlined file creation:

• Simple naming: Just enter the filename with extension (e.g., script.py, notes.md)
• Clipboard integration: New files automatically start with your clipboard content
• Smart naming: Files created from existing files get intelligent naming
• Cross-editor sync: Files sync seamlessly between VS Code, Cursor, and Windsurf

Supported File Types

🌟 Universal File Support

MyScratchPad supports any file extension you need:

• Programming Languages: .js, .ts, .py, .go, .java, .rb, .cpp, .cs, .php, .swift, .kt, .rs, .dart, .lua
• Web Technologies: .html, .css, .scss, .jsx, .tsx, .vue, .svelte
• Data & Config: .json, .yaml, .toml, .xml, .ini, .cfg, .env
• Documentation: .md, .txt, .rst, .adoc
• Scripts: .sh, .ps1, .bat, .cmd
• Database: .sql, .nosql
• And any other extension you need!

Files automatically start with your clipboard content and get appropriate icons based on their extension.

💡 Use Cases

Global Scratchpad Perfect For:

• Code snippets and templates you reuse across projects
• Personal notes and reminders
• Learning experiments and practice code
• Documentation drafts
• Configuration examples
• Content from your clipboard for quick access

Workspace Scratchpad Perfect For:

• Project-specific temporary files
• Quick prototypes and experiments
• Meeting notes for the current project
• Temporary data files and mock content
• Project-specific snippets
• Files derived from current project files

🔄 Cross-Editor Compatibility

MyScratchPad works seamlessly across multiple editors!

• VS Code: Full native support
• Cursor: Complete compatibility - all files sync automatically
• Windsurf: Perfect integration - create files in one, access in all

How It Works

MyScratchPad uses a shared storage system that all three editors can access. This means:

• Files created in VS Code appear instantly in Cursor and Windsurf
• Work on a file in Cursor, continue editing in VS Code
• Perfect for teams using different editors
• No manual file transfers or exports needed

Requirements

• Visual Studio Code 1.95.0 or higher (also works with Cursor and Windsurf)
• No additional dependencies required

Extension Settings

This extension does not contribute any VS Code settings. All configuration is handled through the intuitive UI.

Known Issues

None at this time. If you encounter any issues, please report them on GitHub.

Release Notes

Latest Release

🚀 Major Workflow Enhancement Update:

• ⚡ Simplified Creation: Single-step file creation - just enter name with extension
• 📋 Clipboard Integration: New files automatically start with clipboard content
• 🎯 Context Menu Creation: Create scratchpads from selected text or existing files
• 🧠 Smart Naming: Intelligent file naming when creating from existing files
• 🤖 Cody AI Integration: Add scratchpad files directly to Cody AI as context
• 🔄 Cross-Editor Persistence: Full compatibility between VS Code, Cursor, and Windsurf
• 🌟 Universal File Support: Support for any file extension with appropriate icons
• 💼 Dual Scratchpad System: Global and workspace-specific file management

🚀 Getting Started

1. Install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace.
2. Check the releases folder for all versions of the extension.
3. Reload VS Code if prompted
4. Open the Explorer sidebar (Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + E)
5. Find the "Scratchpad" and "Workspace Scratchpad" views
6. Click the "+" icon to create your first scratch file!

🛠️ Development

Building the Extension

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/IDAN-DEVS/myscratchpad-vscode-extension

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Compile in watch mode
npm run watch

# Launch extension in new VS Code window
# Press F5 in VS Code

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please feel free to submit issues and pull requests on GitHub.

Enjoy using MyScratchPad! 🎉

Make your VS Code workflow more efficient with organized, persistent scratch files.