What software is best to write JS?

[Raymond ZJH]

Hello,

I am a novice in illustrator script. I usually use VBA to do illustrator script (because VBA is well integrated with MS Office), but when I have to deal with a large amount of data, its execution efficiency is very slow, And I have to open VBE to debug AI script. After reading a lot of posts on this forum, I found that many of them use JavaScript to do illustrator scripts.

Now I also try to learn JavaScript, but I don't know what software is best to write JS. I hope it is the best to be simple and easy to use, with basic object attribute tips (because I'm not familiar with AI objects and attributes), syntax check, statement completion, and VBE similar to office. Of course, it's best if it can write VBA and VBS compatible.

Or whether Adobe Illustrator itself has the module function of providing script writing?

Any other suggestions, I am very grateful!

This basic feature is required:  object attribute tips in VBE

[CarlosCanto]

I also started with VBA and I loved the environment, but I moved to Javascript for one single reason, it works on both Win and Mac.

Javascript has a lot more resources and sample scripts available here (and everywhere else). Adobe provides an application to develop javascripts, it is called the ExtendScript Toolkit or ESTK. Unfortunately the ESTK is so old that it no longer works on Mac. It still runs on Windows for now, but since the Javascript version that Adobe products understand is also old you might as well use VSCode.

check this thread for more details, specifically @Inventsable posts

https://community.adobe.com/t5/illustrator-discussions/scripting-tutorials-for-beginners/m-p/1077114...

[Raymond ZJH]

Hey Carlos,

I'm very glad to see your quick reply! You are the great God and king of this forum!

I'm very excited to hear that you started illustrator script from VBA. The reason why I use VBA is that I have to deal with a lot of data on Excel.

I have collected @ inventable's “online code editor”, and there are also some learning resources and websites on its menu bar, but I still can't understand a large part of his posts, because I'm what you mentioned "a person without any programming skills and foundation". I'll come back and read this post again, I hope I can fully understand this post when I read it again in a few months.

When I see your following post, I admire you from my heart!

[CarlosCanto]

Hi Raymond, thanks for your comments. 

This is good place to start, if you have questions, there are many community members that are happy to help.

[m1b]

Hi @Raymond ZJH, I also suggest you learn JavaScript (I'm like Carlos, except on Mac; I started with AppleScript). JavaScript is also a language with much broader use. Currently Adobe apps, eg.  Illustrator, use an old-fashioned version of JavaScript, equivalent roughly to ECMAScript 3 but it has the basics to do pretty decent scripts.

I wholeheartedly recommend VSCode for your IDE using ExtendScript Debugger extension. (There will soon be a new version of the debugger that will have huge improvements.) VSCode in my opinion is an awesome development environment. 

-Mark

[Raymond ZJH]

Thanks your suggestion, Mark! This forum is really a good place to learn.