Issue
When the cursor's positioned in the middle of an argument list (making a method call), is there a way to bring up the method's signature with the parameter that that the cursor is on highlighted? Ctrl-space (sort of) brings up the signature, but it includes the huge search list of everything else I can legally type right there, and it's up to me to count through the arguments and the parameters to figure out which one I'm lined up on. (that popup also disappears if I try to move to the next or previous argument).
I've had this struggle with compiled code, and worse with code as I type it in. I typically type the name of the object, then a dot, and then I wait for the signature list to pop up (that filters down as I type). When I see the signature I'm after, I auto-complete with tab or Enter, and then I always end up in a struggle. NB pastes in variable names that are usually about 99% wrong, and I try to navigate the little red, comma-triggered edit boxes, hoping the signature popup will stay in view while I struggle to edit, delete (and stop thinking about) all the (semantic) errors. I usually end up botching it and loose the precious signature window that highlights each parameter as I moved through the argument list.
Any way to get that thing back (with the parameter highlighting)? And/or make the red editing boxes go away? And/or block NB from populating with all the errors?
Super thankful for any help or tips!
Solution
Netbeans show popup with method signatures and popup with method documentation only when your cursor is placed at the name of a method. Popup is displayed automatically when writing method name or on demand if you press Ctrl+Space.
When your cursor is placed at the argument list, only parameter names from method signature are displayed in form of a small tooltip. You can force display of this tooltip by Ctrl+P. Unfortunately there is no way how to invoke popup with method documentation in this phase. Instead you will see documentation popups related to arguments which you will type into the method argument list. The only way to display method documentation again is to place the cursor back at the method name and press Ctrl+Space.
When you start writing a method name, popup with method signatures will emerge. When you select one of proposed method signatures by pressing Enter, Netbeans will autocomplete method name as well as its arguments. You find this uncomfortable, because names of autocompleted arguments are usually wrong. You can however easily navigate between autocompleted arguments using Tab and Shift+Tab and overwrite them as you like. Alternatively, you can use Tab instead of Enter when selecting method from method signatures popup. This way Netbeans will autocomplete only the name of the function, not its arguments.
Described Netbeans behavior applies to editing PHP code, and may differ slightly for other languages.
Answered By - user14967413
