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VS Code VS Okular

Compare VS Code VS Okular and see what are their differences

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Contents:
  1. ยป Base Details
  2. ยป Videos
  3. ยป Reviews
  4. ยป Alternatives

VS Code logo VS Code

Build and debug modern web and cloud applications, by Microsoft

Okular logo Okular

Okular is a universal document viewer based developed by KDE.
  • VS Code Landing page
    Landing page //
    2024-10-09
  • Okular Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-02

VS Code features and specs

  • Cross-platform
    VS Code works on Windows, macOS, and Linux, providing a consistent development experience across different operating systems.
  • Extensibility
    A vast library of extensions allows users to add functionalities like debuggers, linters, and themes, making it highly customizable.
  • Integrated Git
    Built-in Git integration makes it easy to manage version control tasks directly within the editor.
  • Performance
    Lightweight compared to full-fledged IDEs, ensuring good performance even on systems with limited resources.
  • IntelliSense
    Advanced code completion and refactoring tools help improve coding efficiency and reduce errors.
  • Community Support
    A strong and active community provides extensive support, tutorials, and third-party extensions.
  • Debugging
    Robust debugging tools for various languages and frameworks are available out of the box.
  • Free and Open-Source
    VS Code is completely free to use and open-source, which is beneficial for both individual developers and organizations.

Possible disadvantages of VS Code

  • Limited IDE Features
    While extensible, it may lack some advanced features found in dedicated IDEs out of the box.
  • Extension Management
    Managing and configuring a large number of extensions can become cumbersome and sometimes lead to performance issues.
  • Learning Curve
    Although user-friendly, it has a steeper learning curve for beginners due to its numerous features and customization options.
  • Memory Usage
    Despite being lightweight, it can consume a significant amount of memory when multiple extensions are installed.
  • Update Frequency
    Frequent updates may sometimes introduce bugs or require users to adapt to new changes quickly.
  • Internet Dependency
    Some features and extensions may require an internet connection to function optimally.
  • Telemetry
    By default, VS Code collects usage data, which might be a concern for users sensitive about data privacy. However, this can be disabled.

Okular features and specs

  • Open Source
    Okular is an open-source software, which means the source code is freely available. Users can modify and distribute it according to their needs.
  • Multi-Format Support
    Okular supports a wide array of document formats including PDF, PostScript, DjVu, CHM, XPS, ePub, and more, providing versatile document reading capabilities.
  • Cross-Platform
    Okular is available for multiple operating systems including Linux, Windows, and macOS, making it accessible to a wider range of users.
  • Annotation Tools
    It includes powerful annotation features allowing users to add notes, highlight text, and draw shapes directly on documents.
  • Customizable Interface
    The interface is highly customizable, enabling users to tweak the appearance and functionality to match their preferences.
  • Tabbed Browsing
    Okular supports tabbed browsing, allowing users to open multiple documents in a single window, enhancing multitasking.

Possible disadvantages of Okular

  • Limited Advanced PDF Editing
    While Okular provides basic annotation features, it lacks advanced PDF editing capabilities like modifying text and images within a PDF.
  • Learning Curve
    New users might find the extensive range of features and settings overwhelming, leading to a steeper learning curve compared to simpler document viewers.
  • Performance Issues
    Some users have reported performance issues when handling very large files, which can result in slower operation and responsiveness.
  • Dependency on KDE Libraries
    To get the best experience, Okular requires KDE libraries, which might not be ideal for users who prefer not to integrate KDE components into their system.
  • Mobile Support
    Okular does not have a dedicated app for mobile platforms like Android and iOS, limiting its usability on tablets and smartphones.

Analysis of VS Code

Overall verdict

  • Yes, VS Code is generally considered a good choice for developers due to its flexibility, efficiency, and strong community support. It is lightweight, fast, and user-friendly, catering to both novice and experienced developers.

Why this product is good

  • VS Code, developed by Microsoft, is a widely popular and versatile code editor. It offers a robust extension ecosystem, which allows developers to customize their workflow and coding environment extensively. Additionally, VS Code supports numerous programming languages right out of the box and provides features like IntelliSense, debugging, Git integration, and a built-in terminal, making it a powerful tool for developers.

Recommended for

  • Web developers looking for a comprehensive yet lightweight coding environment.
  • Software developers who need an editor with extensive language support and customization options.
  • Beginner programmers who would benefit from a feature-rich editor that can grow with their skills.
  • Developers interested in an open-source tool with continuous updates and community-driven enhancements.

Analysis of Okular

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Okular is generally regarded as a good document viewer due to its features, flexibility, and open-source nature, which ensures continual updates and community support.

Why this product is good

  • Okular is considered good for several reasons: it is a versatile open-source document viewer developed by the KDE community, supporting various file formats including PDF, PostScript, and ePub. It offers a range of features such as annotation tools, form filling, text extraction, and multimedia support. Additionally, it is cross-platform, available on different operating systems like Linux, Windows, and macOS, making it accessible for a wider range of users.

Recommended for

    Okular is recommended for students, educators, professionals, and any users who require a reliable and feature-rich document viewer capable of handling a wide range of file formats. It is particularly beneficial for those who value open-source software and need robust annotation and document management tools across different platforms.

VS Code videos

+ Add

My New Favorite Text Editor - Visual Studio Code

More videos:

  • Review - 7 reasons why I switched to Visual Studio Code from Sublime Text

Okular videos

+ Add

okular, program for annotating your books in linux

More videos:

  • Review - Review: Okular || Awesome PDF Viewer || Best PDF Viewer that I have tried yet.
  • Review - Okular Document Viewer vs Atril Document Viewer

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to VS Code and Okular)

VS Code

Okular

Text Editors
100 100%
Text Editors
0% 0
PDF Tools
0 0%
PDF Tools
100% 100
IDE
100 100%
IDE
0% 0
PDF Editor
0 0%
PDF Editor
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using VS Code and Okular. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare VS Code and Okular

VS Code Reviews

  1. dksinden
    ยท Working at SpeechKit ยท
Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
Visual Studio Code, commonly known as VS Code, is a powerful and extensible code editor developed by Microsoft. With its rich ecosystem of extensions and features like IntelliSense, debugging, and Git integration, VS Code enhances your coding productivity.
Source: convesio.com
13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
Finally, the Visual Studio Code website has numerous tabs for you to learn about the software. The documentation page walks you through steps like the setup and working with different languages. Youโ€™re also able to check out some tips and tricks and learn all of the Visual Studio Code keyboard shortcuts. Along with a blog, updates page, extensions library and API...
Source: kinsta.com
Jupyter Notebook & 10 Alternatives: Data Notebook Review [2023]
Previously, VS Code was more suited to developers or engineers due to its lack of data analysis capabilities, but since 2020, the VS Code team has collaborated with the Jupyter team to create an integrated notebook within VS Code. The end result is a fantastic IDE workbook for data analysis.
Source: lakefs.io
The Best IDEs for Java Development: A Comparative Analysis
Overview: Although not a traditional IDE, VS Code has gained popularity as a lightweight code editor.
Source: dev.to
20 Best Diff Tools to Compare File Contents on Linux
Visual studio code is a code editor made by Microsoft. It supports several development operations like debugging, task running, and version control. It works on Linux, macOS and Windows operating systems.
Source: linuxopsys.com

Okular Reviews

10 Best PDF Expert Alternatives for Various Tasks in 2022
Verdict: Okular is an open source and can be used free, which is probably its main advantage. At the same time, its basic functionality is meant to be not only highly competitive with PDF Expert but rather overcomes it because the letter can be used only under paid subscription. This PDF Expert alternative is one of the most all-in-one PDF readers, which is compatible not...
Source: fixthephoto.com
8 Best eBook Readers for Linux
Okular is another open-source and cross-platform document viewer developed by KDE and is shipped as part of the KDE Application release.
Source: itsfoss.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, VS Code seems to be a lot more popular than Okular. While we know about 1214 links to VS Code, we've tracked only 44 mentions of Okular. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

VS Code mentions (1214)

  • How to Get Your First Tool Online
    The step up from there is an editor with a built-in agent like Cursor, Google Antigravity, Windsurf, or VS Code with a coding extension. These are code editors with an AI agent living inside them, and the difference is the responsible party for getting things from place to place. Instead of the software creator shuttling code between windows, the AI agent edits the project files directly and runs the GitHub and... - Source: dev.to / 10 days ago
  • Agentic Engineering: What Does AI Coding Really Cost?
    For IDE-heavy teams, BYOK (bring your own key) can be interesting, no matter whether you live in WebStorm or VS Code. On the JetBrains side, the JetBrains AI plans and Junie BYOK docs allow it, and most VS Code AI extensions offer the same idea: keep the IDE, connect provider keys, pay the provider. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Best Markdown Editors for Developers
    Option 1: Raw editing in IDE. You open the .md file in VS Code or whatever you use. Syntax highlighting shows you the structure. Maybe you toggle a preview pane. This works for quick edits but becomes painful for anything involving tables, diagrams, or complex formatting. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Document Generation for Developers: Security, Compliance, and Build-vs-Buy Decisions for the Template-Plus-Data Pipeline
    You'll need Python 3.8+ and pip for the quickstart, with venv recommended for isolation. Install the requests library for HTTP calls. VS Code with the Python extension works well as an editor, though PyCharm or Sublime Text work equally well. You'll also need a free Foxit developer account. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Notes + Local AI: Simpler Than You Think
    For viewing and navigating, Obsidian handles large markdown libraries well: graph view, tag search, template plugins. VSCode works too if you'd rather stay in your dev environment. Both read the same folder with no conversion needed. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
View more

Okular mentions (44)

  • Signing PDFs
    If you mean signing as in "signing with your handwritten signature", you could use Okular () which easily allows you to do that. Filling out forms also works nicely. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Alexandria: A minimalistic cross-platform eBook reader
    I was in a similar position lately until I found Okular. Have you tried it? https://okular.kde.org/. - Source: Hacker News / almost 3 years ago
  • Help with PDF's
    I would try Okular first, though, which is free and open source: https://okular.kde.org/. Source: about 3 years ago
  • EPUB 3.3 becomes a W3C recommendation
    KDE's okular might be a good choice. I haven't personally used it for epub but I know it supports it. https://okular.kde.org/. - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • Are there any good PDF viewers for large (10Mb+) datasheets that can save search results in the actual PDF, and take notes on the PDF?
    I use okular, don't think it has web export though. Source: about 3 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing VS Code and Okular, you can also consider the following products

Sublime Text - Sublime Text is a sophisticated text editor for code, html and prose - any kind of text file. You'll love the slick user interface and extraordinary features. Fully customizable with macros, and syntax highlighting for most major languages.

Sumatra PDF - Sumatra PDF is a slim PDF/DjVu/EPUB/XPS/CHM/CBR/CBZ/MOBI viewer for Windows.

Vim - Highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing

Evince - Evince is a document viewer for multiple document formats: PDF, Postscript, djvu, tiff, dvi, XPS...

Node.js - Node.js is a platform built on Chrome's JavaScript runtime for easily building fast, scalable network applications

calibre - Ebook manager, viewer & converter

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