How do I enable a "contextual" editor in Visual Studio?

Question

A number of IDEs and editors are offering "contextual" editing tools:

• A simple example is the Assistant Editor In XCode. A secondary edit windows automatically loads a relevant secondary file depending on which context you are in. For instance, if you open a header (foo.h) in the primary window, it automatically opens the implementation (foo.m) in the assistant window, and so on.

• Brackets has Quick Edit where pressing Ctrl+E allows you to edit the CSS selector that points to your current HTML element.

  

• Light Table has inline documentation and drafting tables:

  

  

• Microsoft has a Debugger Canvas project that is similar to what I want, but it's debug mode only and limited to Visual Studio Ultimate. The tool I am looking for is a tool for coding, not debugging.

  

I would like a normal editor, and a secondary editor that shows me the context of what I am currently editing.

• If I am on a class that implements an interface, I would like the secondary editor to show the interface

• If I am on a class member that is an instance of another class, I would like the secondary editor to switch to the class source

• If I am on a method, I would like the secondary editor to point to the method body

and so on…

Is there a way^(*) to have a similar experience in Visual Studio 2012?

^{(*) some hidden trick, an extension feature, a quick hack, a solution that works for you…}

Answer 1

You can use a Code Definition window.

You enable it by going to View > Code Definition Window. You can then dock it on the middle right. It works like so: