Hey 
,
I’m interested in the GSOC 2025 project on adding a tutorial mode for Swift in the VS Code extension because I remember thinking it needed a tutorial when I first used swift with VS code (I had to watch a getting started youtube video). The project mentions two possible approaches: VS Code Walkthrough (interactive onboarding) or CodeTour (guided steps through code). Since they offer very different experiences, I’d love to know which approach is preferred for Swift learners.
I also don't understand why Tutorial mode for Swift in the VS Code Extension and Tutorial mode for the VS Code Swift extension are considered 2 different projects when I believe they should be linked ?
Can't wait to connect with you all,
Eliot
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Hi @Eliot,
Thanks for your questions. The VS Code Walkthrough and CodeTour suggestions were just ideas to get started. The actual implementation can be either one, a combination or neither of those options if there are better ways of accomplishing the goal of helping the user get started.
I would think that a CodeTour type approach probably is a better starting point for a tutorial on Swift, with a little extra added on to help users with compiling, testing, debugging the code and working with documentation. The VS Code Walkthrough is probably better for a tutorial on how to use/configure the extension. The extension itself has a lot of features that new users may not know about. For example, it automatically adds tasks to the tasks.json file for building things. So it would be good to go over such details so that users can figure out how to modify these settings if they ever need to.
Initially, when we thought of ideas for tutorials they were one project (they are indeed linked like you pointed out) but then we decided to break them up into two to allow for more time to try out different ideas, iterate and pick the best one. They can certainly be combined as well to improve the overall experience if there is enough time. Also, there may be a possibility to collaborate with other projects such as the "Swiftly Integration with VS Code" project. For example, if you don't have a Swift toolchain already installed, the walkthrough can guide you with installing a Swift toolchain via Swiftly so that you can get started a lot faster.
Feel free to suggest any ideas, mockups and thoughts you may have as well as I think there is a lot of opportunity to improve the experience for new users.
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Hi @rbenegal,
Thanks for the clarification! I see how both approaches serve different purposes, and I think there's room to innovate by combining their strengths.
I am thinking of designing an adaptive tutorial mode that starts as a VS Code Walkthrough for setting up the environment (Swift toolchain, tasks, debugging setup) and then seamlessly transitions into an interactive CodeTour once the user is ready to write and run Swift code? This could create a smooth onboarding experience without overwhelming beginners with too much information at once.
I’ll see if I can draft a proposal around this idea to explore how it could work in practice.
Looking forward to discussing it further!
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Hi @Eliot
That sounds like a fantastic idea! Combining the VS Code Walkthrough for setup and then transitioning into an interactive CodeTour for hands-on learning would create a more structured and beginner-friendly onboarding experience. The adaptive approach ensures users don’t feel overwhelmed while still getting a comprehensive introduction to Swift in VS Code.
As you draft your proposal, you might also consider incorporating checkpoints or optional deep dives—so that users who need more details on specific topics (e.g., debugging, package management) can access them without disrupting the overall flow.
Looking forward to seeing how this develops!