The LilyPond plugin provides automatic completion for typing commands, context names, other keywords, and even when overriding or setting object and context properties. It also provides instant help for context, properties and markup commands, so you don't have to browse the documentation for them.
You can get instant help on the commands, properties etc. if you leave your mouse for some time on the word.
This completion feature is based on LilyJHelp, which contains the documentation of LilyPond.
To get the most out of this feature you should set a shortcut for >>. The best choice for a shortcut may be Ctrl+Space.
You can select a word by typing a non-alphanumeric character or by clicking on it.
When you press the \ key, the completion popup automatically appears and you can choose the selected keyword by typing a non-word letter. If you continue typing with the completion window open, it automatically filters the words you can select from.
You can get a description of some commands (currently all markup commands) in a tooltip box if you leave the mouse for some time on it.
While writing your scores in LilyPond you often need to tweak some default values. For example if you would like to set the minimumVerticalExtent property of a Staff context you can use the following code:
\set Staff.minimumVerticalExtent = #'(-3 . 4)
Using
the automatic completion feature setting properties like this is much
easier. After typing the \set keyword, the completion
popup is shown (you can turn of the completion list by the shortcut
you set for
>>). Now you can see the contexts you can
choose from. Assume you chose Staff (e.g. by typing
St and pressing space), so you have \set
Staff now. Press ., and now you can choose a
property. If you chose the property, the completion automatically ends
the assignment, filling out the value with the default value or a
template value (if the default value is not set).
Overriding object properties works just like setting context properties. Type \override, activate the popup, choose a context, press ., choose a layout object, and finally choose a property.
You can get instant help of a context or a property, if you stay on it with your mouse before selecting it.