Making VS Code Quiet Again

VS Code is a good editor, but its defaults no longer feel quiet to me. The editor has accumulated tabs, sidebars, breadcrumbs, minimaps, notifications, source-control indicators, language services, AI controls, chat panels, inline suggestions, and dozens of small visual prompts. Each feature is defensible on its own. Together, they make the tool feel as if it is constantly asking for attention. I wanted the opposite: a fast window for opening files, moving through text, and writing. Nothing else. The motivation I spend enough time thinking about code without also thinking about the editor. A good editing environment should disappear once the work begins. It should respond immediately, preserve muscle memory, and avoid presenting choices that have nothing to do with the current line of code. This is not minimalism as decoration. It is an attempt to reduce the distance between thought and action. I still use Git, terminals, debuggers, and AI tools. I simply do not need all of them…