Local Comments

"Commenting code doesn't have to be public"

Store comments on code locally instead of in the repository. Perfect for personal notes, TODOs, and observations that shouldn't be committed to the codebase.

✨ Features

🎯 Comment Types

• Line Comments: Comment entire lines of code
• Text Selection Comments: Comment specific text selections within lines
• Timestamp Tracking: Automatic timestamps for when comments are created

🎨 Rich Sidebar Interface

• Dedicated Panel: Beautiful comments sidebar in VS Code's native panel layout
• Real-time Search: Find comments instantly with highlighting
• Smart Sorting: Timestamped comments first, then intelligently mixed to prevent file grouping
• Inline Actions: Edit and delete comments directly from the sidebar

⚙️ Extensive Configuration

• Flexible Save Locations: Home directory, workspace root, or custom path
• Custom File Names: Choose your own comments file name
• Visual Customization: Configurable highlight colors and status bar appearance
• Behavior Settings: Auto-save, notifications, backups, and stale comment detection

🚀 Advanced Features

• Stale Comment Detection: Automatically detect when commented code has changed
• Backward Compatibility: Seamlessly handles both old line-only and new selection comments
• Cross-platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux with platform-specific UI adaptations

🎮 Usage

Quick Start

1. Add a comment: Press Alt+C (⌥+C on Mac) while your cursor is on any line or select text first
2. View comments: Open the Local Comments panel on the right sidebar
3. Search: Use the search box in the sidebar to find specific comments
4. Manage: Click Edit/Delete buttons on any comment in the sidebar

Detailed Workflow

Adding Comments

• Line Comment: Place cursor on any line → Alt+C → Type comment → Enter
• Selection Comment: Select text → Alt+C → Type comment → Enter

Managing Comments

• Edit: Click the edit button in the sidebar
• Delete: Click the delete button in the sidebar or clear the text when editing
• Navigate: Click any comment in the sidebar to jump to that location

Organization

• Comments are automatically sorted with timestamped ones first
• Search instantly filters comments across all files
• Each comment shows file location, timestamp (if available), and code snippet

⚙️ Configuration

Access settings and customize keybindings for Local Comments in VS Code:

• Settings: Command Palette → "Local Comments: Open Settings" or click the gear icon in the sidebar
• Keybindings: File → Preferences → Keyboard Shortcuts → Search for "Local Comments"

Storage Options

{
  "localComments.saveLocation": "home",  // "home" | "workspace" | "custom"
  "localComments.customFilePath": "",    // When using "custom"
  "localComments.fileName": "local-comments.json"
}

Visual Customization

{
  "localComments.highlightColor": "rgba(255, 255, 0, 0.3)",
  "localComments.showStatusBarButton": true,
  "localComments.statusBarButtonText": "💭"  // Can use emoji or codicons like "$(comment)"
}

Behavior Settings

{
  "localComments.autoSave": true,
  "localComments.showNotifications": true, 
  "localComments.backupEnabled": false,
  "localComments.hideStaleComments": true
}

🗂️ File Format

Comments are stored as JSON with full metadata:

{
  "/path/to/file.js": [
    {
      "id": "unique-id",
      "text": "This needs refactoring",
      "timestamp": 1755698292758,
      "range": {
        "startLine": 42,
        "startCharacter": 0,
        "endLine": 42,
        "endCharacter": 9007199254740991,
        "selectedText": "function complexLogic() {"  // Only for selection comments
      }
    }
  ]
}

📝 Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for detailed release notes.

📄 License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Enjoy coding with your personal comment system! 🎉