[](http://makeapullrequest.com)
[](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=merico.devchat)
[](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=merico.devchat)
[](https://github.com/covespace/devchat-vscode/blob/main/LICENSE)
[](https://discord.gg/9t3yrbBUXD)
👉 Install [Visual Studio Code extension](https://github.com/covespace/devchat-vscode) from [Visual Studio Marketplace](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=merico.devchat) and enjoy DevChat 👏
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## What is DevChat?
DevChat is the open-source solution to help you write prompts to generate code and documentation, going beyond simple code auto-completion.
It isn't limited to performing predefined operations on short code snippets.
DevChat is the way developers interact and collaborate with AI.
💬 Build the future with prompts, _not_ code.
## Why DevChat?
- Great output requires great input, to maximize the power of AI, DevChat assists you seamlessly to **provide the right context** to the AI.
Chat history, code, files, directory trees, `git diff --cached`, or the output of any command.
- Once you have generated code with AI, DevChat **streamlines the actions** to properly integrate and ship.
View diffs, copy or insert, commit & sync, or export to documentation, wikis, and more.
- To guide AI in your work, define **your own workflows** with DevChat.
Explore more prompt templates, iterative calls to AI, and program operations.
- To ensure the experience fits your preferences, customize **your own experiences** with DevChat.
Open-source, no waiting for opaque feature schedules. Access GPT-4 today and more models in the future.
## What is Prompt-Centric Software Development (PCSD)?
- The traditional code-centric paradigm is evolving.
- Write prompts to create code. Transform prompts into all the artifacts in software engineering.
(This image is licensed by devchat.ai under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.)
- We like to call it DevPromptOps
(This image is licensed by devchat.ai under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.)
***
## Quick Start
- Install [Visual Studio Code](https://code.visualstudio.com/download).
- Open the Extensions view (⇧⌘X), search for DevChat, and install the extension:
- Since DevChat is designed for developers, it requires a Git or SVN repository folder to store metadata. Therefore, be sure to open a Git or SVN project.
- Set your [OpenAI API Key](https://platform.openai.com/account/api-keys) by running `export OPENAI_API_KEY="[sk-...]"` (or set it to your DevChat access key instead).
- Click on the DevChat icon in the status bar. If the API key setting is not configured, it will prompt you to enter it. Simply input the key.
- We recommend dragging the DevChat logo from the left sidebar to **the right sidebar** to avoid overlapping with the Explorer.
## Community
- Join our [Discord](https://discord.gg/9t3yrbBUXD)!
- Participate in [discussions](https://github.com/covespace/devchat/discussions)!
- Chinese speaking users: 欢迎加入中文讨论组！
## Contributing
Issues and pull request are welcome: https://github.com/covespace/devchat-vscode/issues
## Automated Publishing Process
Check out our [Automated Publishing Process](./docs/publish.md) for a detailed walkthrough of how we manage the automated release of new versions for the DevChat VSCode Extension.
## Contact Information
hello@merico.dev
We are creators of [Apache DevLake](https://devlake.apache.org/).
