paste-as-string-array
Tired of having to convert command line arguments to an array of strings for use in launch.json in VSCode? You're not alone. This extension solves this issue by automatically converting arguments to fit VSCode expectations.
Features
Paste As String Array
Simply execute the Paste as String Array command in Ctrl+shift+P or use the following shortcuts
- Windows: Ctrl+Alt+V
- Linux: Ctrl+Alt+V
- MacOS: Cmd+Shift+V
It will convert an example cmdline from this:
--arg1 1 --arg2 2 --arg3 3 --args4 1 2 3 test --args5 test1 test2 test3 test4
To this
"--arg1","1","--arg2","2","--arg3","3","--args4","1","2","3","test","--args5","test1","test2","test3","test4"
Right-click and Editor Title
You can now access Paste as String Array from the editor's context (right-click) menu and from the editor title menu. Use the right-click menu when you want to paste directly into the editor without opening the command palette.
Icons and Marketplace Assets
This repository includes the extension icon in several sizes to make publishing to the VS Code Marketplace easier.
images/icon.png — original downloaded icon (used as the package icon).images/icon-128.png — 128×128 (recommended for Marketplace display).images/icon-256.png — 256×256 (higher-resolution asset).
When packaging the extension with vsce the icon field in package.json points to images/icon.png and will be included in the .vsix:
"icon": "images/icon.png"
Marketplace tips:
- When publishing on the Marketplace you can upload additional images (128×128 or 256×256) in the publisher portal — include
icon-128.png/icon-256.png there for best results.
- Keep the images in
images/ so contributors see the actual assets and you can easily regenerate or replace them.
If you want, I can also:
- Repackage a new
.vsix including these icons.
- Add a small
publish section to README.md with exact steps for vsce package and vsce publish.
Publishing
To package the extension locally and create a .vsix (includes the icon referenced in package.json):
# create the package (outputs e.g. advanced-paste-as-string-array-1.0.0.vsix)
npx vsce package
# or using yarn
yarn dlx vsce package
To publish the extension to the VS Code Marketplace you need a publisher and a Personal Access Token.
Basic publish steps:
- Install
vsce (optional if using npx/yarn dlx):
npm install -g vsce
- Create a Personal Access Token in your Azure DevOps account (PAT) and set it into an environment variable:
export VSCE_PAT="<your-personal-access-token>"
- Publish (example — publish a patch):
npx vsce publish --pat $VSCE_PAT --packagePath ./advanced-paste-as-string-array-1.0.0.vsix
# or increment and publish a patch version directly:
npx vsce publish patch --pat $VSCE_PAT
See the vsce docs for more publish options and authentication details: https://code.visualstudio.com/api/working-with-extensions/publishing-extension
