How to Make Code Highlighting-Friendly | The IntelliJ Scala Plugin Blog

The article by Pavel Fatin discusses the concept of highlighting complexity in Scala programming and provides strategies to make code more efficient for highlighting, which can lead to better system performance and responsiveness. It emphasizes that while algorithmic complexity is a common consideration in software development, developers often overlook the impact of highlighting complexity, which affects how quickly an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) can process code for features like syntax highlighting. To mitigate this, the article suggests several best practices, such as dividing code into modules, placing classes in separate files, defining classes within packages rather than objects, and using specific imports instead of wildcards. It also encourages programmers to consider highlighting complexity alongside cognitive and algorithmic complexities to enhance both the developer experience and system performance. These principles not only improve the efficiency of code highlighting but also contribute to cleaner, more maintainable code, and they apply to AI-generated code as well. The Scala team at JetBrains continues to improve the IntelliJ IDEA and Scala plugin performance, and they recommend developers balance various complexities for optimal results.