I'm new to JetBrains Rider and really like it. Like many new converts I am a long-time Visual Studio user - so I brought over those keymaps (plus a few added manually that I brought over from VSCode) and thought that would be that.
But recently I spent some time with a really great developer - @michaeloyer - 💡 who has a JetBrains first perspective. When we were reveiwing code that was new to both of us (:fire: hot on the trail of a pre-release bug :mosquito:) he talked me through using some of the Rider-original shortcuts - and I was sold. That experience told me it was time to make a fresh start. :sunrise: So I switched back to the JetBrains Rider keymap and got back to work.
JetBrains allows you to export the keymaps to a PDF file, so I decided to use that to become more acquainted with the Rider command set. Eventually I started bumping into the PDF reader as I was context switching between work apps and that got to be annoying. So I decided to create a desktop wallpaper.
I created two wallpapers, one for work and one for my laptop. I'll eventually build one for my 4K screen when it arrives, but this is a start. If these choices/form factors don't work for you - don't worry. It's relatively easy to build your own - and the only thing it costs you is time. ⏳
This ended up being a LOT of fun. And aside from whether you agree with my aesthetic choices (or OS version for keymaps, for that matter) you can certainly build your own - with a little bit of your own elbow grease - and a bit of magic from JetBrains. 🧙
So for my purposes I just exported the keymap from Rider using their keymap exporter plugin. That's where this began - with a PDF file. I wanted a "dark theme" background image so I simply did a screen grab of the PDF and then imported into a free image editor and inverted it. Simple! I did a bit of "rounded corner" editing of the image and done! So if you already have a favorite background image or just want to apply this cheat sheet to a solid background color - this is as far as you need to read.
[Narrator: the JetBrains Desktop Art tool is really fun. You should try it.]
The first thing - like always - was to perform a general search to see if anyone else had done something similar. That didn't yield any image results - but did show a really great resource - the JetBrains Desktop Art web tool. I don't have particularly strong opinions on what my desktop should look like, and with a giant keymap cheat sheet covering a fair percentage of the "real estate" many stock backgrounds just get covered up. So the geometric "mosaic" created by JetBrain's tool really fit the bill.
I played around with the settings on that page and it was really fun. They have color schemes and tile variations that correspond to each app, with a fair amount of mixing and matching that's available. But the thing that really caught my eye was the "magic" button, located to the far right of the controls. The randomization it provides really lets you "spin up something eye-catching" without having to spelunk through every control. That's how I landed on the provided design. But the light/dark variations you can create is really a kaliedescope that can be addictive.
Once you've landed on a design that suits your tastes/needs, the "Export" function allows you to write the result to an SVG file. This is really useful since the "footprint" of the image really doesn't match any pre-formatted desktop resolution. So I pulled the image into Inkscape and simply re-rendered it to an "oversize" fit for my QHD monitor in PNG format. I then opened it up in a free image editor and did some cropping/arranging the cheat sheet overlay and exported to a new image.
This was a gratifying exercise - not only does it smooth out the learning curve for JetBrains Rider but it also gratifies my creative side a bit. And you should try it too. The export of the keymap to PDF was just a matter of adding the plugin in the editor (you'll find it under the Help menu after install) and you can customize things further to suit your needs. I love an easy win. 🏆
