[Leonardo Guizzetti]

One feature that I highly enjoy from other IDEs (e.g. VS Code) is the ability to highlight similar strings in my code with selection:
when I select a string within my code with mouse click-drag or double-click:
e.g. "variable_temperature" every other instance of that string "variable_temperature" gets highlighted too which is usefull to quckly navigate through my code or check if I used this somewhere already without losing my workflow. This can also be achived with already existing Str+F (find) which shows me other instances of that string but jumps around in the code, which I find rather distracting. I would very much welcome this feature when I edit my do files in the do-file Editor.

gen variable_temperature =. //highlighted when other, similar string is selected

(do other stuff)

rename variable_temperature temp //selected via double-click or mouse drag

INFO: please remark that here I don't refer to "string" as a datatype, but rather just a piece of text from my code.

I think this might be one of the new editor features in StataNow 18.5. Not having this version, I can’t confirm.

[Clyde Schechter]

@ 435/436. Yes, it is a new do-file-editor feature in StataNow 18.5. There has already been at least one post here on Statalist expressing dislike for it (I happen to agree)--but those of us who don't like it can turn it off by editing our do-editor preferences. Anyway, it's already there for those who want it.

[Martinо Cоmelli]

It would be nice to have something like sdmxuse integrated to download data directly from the source and adjusting it. Unfortunately sdmxuse is not maintained anymore.

[Nick Cox]

Not disputing #438 in any way, but there's a long history of loosely similar commands breaking because some body changed their protocol, or whatever. Sometimes the change is for good reason and sometimes there is a not so hidden agenda of preferring that users pay for non-trivial downloads and even of trying to frustrate work-arounds.

The implication of all that is that StataCorp are, and indeed in my view should be, reluctant to implement download commands unless there is every likelihood that a connection is free and simple and stable. Otherwise StataCorp get hassle and bad publicity for a command failing when it is not their fault.

User-programmers can more easily shrug their shoulders and say "It's broken because the protocol was changed".