"DID YOU JUST BAN CURSOR?" https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-dotnettools/issues/1909
> The error seems very clear to me. Dev Kit is licensed only for use with VS Code, Cursor is not VS Code, ergo it is not licensed to use it.
>
> Not to mention that only VS Code can use the official plugin registry in the first place. Everything working as intended.
>> I know it works as intended. Just curios why Microsoft decided to enforce this all of a sudden.
Because they can. Also...
>> Did GitHub Copilot just give up on playing fair with Cursor, admitting it's winning?
The game wasn't 'fair' to begin with and it was rigged for Microsoft to win anyway. (Cursor being based on VS Code).
If you're competing against Microsoft, expect them to race you to zero for years (extinguish) at close to no cost for them.
It is all for Cursor to lose if they continue as they are and competitors like Microsoft catch up (and they will do so very quickly whilst lowering prices).
[0] https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-dotnettools/issues/1909#...
If all your peers are using a thing, it's really hard to convince entire industry to switch even if something better is available.
This is not a moat, the fact there are a bunch of companies hot on their heels proves this too.
Disclaimer: I'm one of the maintainers of Kilo.
Are you sure you don't have a very inflated idea about what Cursor is?
Vibe coding is letting the AI take the wheel for every decision, not verifying output, progress above all. Of course it’s possible to use it in a more subtle collaborative capacity with heavy oversight.
Another way of looking at it: Maker of "pricey electronic typewriter", Apple hits $9B valuation (FT 1984)
pretty reductive
I mean I tried C# integration and Cursor does not even fix all compilation errors before reporting it has "completed the task". Feels like that's the most basic integration you can have beyond reviewing diffs.
Things can change very quickly in 6 - 12 months.
I've been at a company that migrated from GitHub to GitLab and it was a substantial undertaking, and the company was a very small new startup - it would have been many orders of magnitude more difficult for a larger company with multiple dev teams to move.
- It can handle up to 2M tokens of context directly, and can index/work with/chat with projects up to 20M tokens (1M+ lines). Here's an example of chatting with with SQLite codebase to learn about how transactions are implemented: https://plandex.ai/_next/static/media/plandex-sqlite.0ee6cb2...
- All changes are committed to a version-controlled sandbox by default, preventing the problem of stray changes that you don't notice being left behind in the project.
- Being terminal-based allows for more seamless and powerful execution control and automated debugging. Here's an example of automatically debugging a browser app (via redirection of console logs/errors to the terminal): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-_76U_nK0Y&embeds_referring...
I don't see any similarities other than it uses AI and that is about it.
It's MIT-licensed and can be used for free, so yes I do mention it when relevant conversations come up, because I think can be useful to people, and I think that is well within the spirit of HN, which is supposed to be a maker community. Since I'm an HN addict, I read/post a lot, and so I notice when these topics come up.
[1]: https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/05/03/economy-jobs-layoff-w...
The entire workflow for "AI coding agents" boils down to:
1. You write a prompt
2. The agent wraps it in a system prompt and sends it to the LLM
3. The LLM sends back a response
4. The agent performs specific actions based on that response (editing files, creating new ones, etc.)
I don't see why anyone would ditch their current (non-AI) IDE for Cursor just to get this functionality (especially if you're getting hit with a monthly subscription fee on top of it.)
P.S. I maintain a VS Code extension that does the 4 steps above as a baseline[1]
1) Popularity. While there are plenty of die-on-a-hill users for ____ app, there are just as many people who will step away to try something and find they like it. Lots of devs use VScode, but its only been around for 10 years. Some people still swear by Notepad++
2) Demand from on-high: When the non-tech boss shows up and says "Everyone use this now". I don't know how much this happens, but it does happen. Technical dictates from someone who shouldn't be making the decision, probably for a non-technical reason.
3) I hesitate to bring this one up, but here we go: People don't know any better. There is a new generation of developers coming up who are leaning hard into vibe coding. And just when I was young, there are plenty of seasoned developers crying out about it's validity. The new generation will pick their own tools - in part to distance themselves from the current generation.
(It actually helps more, IMO).
Cursor has consistently felt faster and easier to use with better inline auto-complete and faster large edits in chat than VSCode ever did. The way suggestions and chat is shown is just a bit easier to read and more elegantly presented.
These things make a big difference.
One of biggest risks is Microsoft who can further lower prices with Copilot (and they can afford to do that for years) for longer and rapidly copy Cursor just like they destroyed Slack with Teams.
There really is no lock-in case for Cursor (unless they acquire something else) as users can easily cancel and switch back to VS Code and Cursor can lose that ARR very quickly and the cost is the entire company.
For Microsoft? Costs them nothing.
This $9B valuation is peak euphoria and this is the best time for Cursor to sell as they are getting very greedy after rejecting a buyout from OpenAI (twice).
There are already a few good VS Code extensions like Cline and Kilo Code which do 80/20 of the job.
Kilo is not "Vibe" coding, nor does it need to steal "Intellectual" "property" at the end of it's 5 hours shift.
I am about done with VSCode and it's claims of usefulness. I started long before the internet and PCs.
cline -> roo -> kilo
There's also things like goose, plandex, and aider.
The real problem is what to with all those bugs written by the AI, however you choose to vibe them.
That's what my latest effort, https://github.com/kristopolous/llmehelp is trying to address.
Augment does not have a model picker. It uses Claude 3.7 right now. The context engine is the magic sauce. It’s miles ahead of all the other tools, almost always gets it right where others fail.
If one has already set up Claude Code with metered API use, one toggles between plans using the /login command. Once to start using Max, then whenever one hits a five hour rate limit and wants to keep working.
I've tried many platforms. I kept Cursor long after Windsurf, but Claude Code is a clear winner, as most people report who don't bristle at the cost.
When Cursor or Windsurf forks VS Code, they have a reason. Their chat panes always felt like periscopes; one has better control over Claude Code in a terminal, and this frees up one's choice of editor. I now use Sublime Text, fast and lean.
I applaud anybody who jumps into Cursor (or other AI Assisted Coding Tools) to build a new product. I think that a way to express ideas is awesome, and allowing for these ideas to materialize is valuable for society and users will determine what is valuable/usable.
However, it's well documented that the expression of these tools is limited. I think that the bet here is that LLMs will continue to get better and better, paving the way for these tools to become more valuable: which I haven't been convinced with yet.
At it's core you can list out the primary functionality of an AI Assisted Coding platform and how these components interact. Their prompts have been dumped, and the tools have been replicated, plus the big LLM providers are in this space as well and understand more nuances around the models and how they interact with the different components.
$9B seems bonkers, but time will tell. There are a few outcomes here: pop, life changes incredibly, or this is the stagnation period that seems to happen with AI/ML. LLMs have changed the way I work already, the question is "what is next". I am hoping that I am ahead of others on the Hype cycle, but only time will tell (from heavy use of AI tools).
I don't think so. I think the way we use the same LLMs will continue to get better. Cursor is built on essentially the exact same LLM models as VSCode/Github Copilot, yet Cursor managed to wring a lot more usefulness out of them.
I think it's still early days in understanding how to use LLMs as a foundational technology to build out other products, and improving the models isn't all that necessary. In my view.
Casual or "vibe" coding is all about the output. Doesn't work? Roll back. Works well? Keep going. Feeling gutsy? Single shot.
Given Cursor's rising popularity, users should be aware of this gap in security updates. Until the Cursor team resolves the marketplace sync issue, caution is advised when using certain extensions.
I've flagged it here, apologies for the repost: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43609572
bookofjoe•4h ago