So I am using Visual Studio 2008 for developing WPF and Silverlight applications.  The one thing that really annoys me is when I open a .XAML file and then Visual Studio automatically opens the file in split view mode.  I am sure you are well aware of how VS 2008 support for the preview pane blows.  So now I have to sit and wait for VS to render my view in the preview pane, and sometimes it can take a while, if it doesn’t just completely crash.  Sometimes I take the extra time to go grab a snack and beverage of my choice. 

So here is a hidden performance increasing jewel you might find useful.  We can set the default open mode to be in full XAML view.

First thing you need to do is in Visual Studio go to your Tools ==> Options ==> Text Editor ==> XAML ==> Miscellaneous.  There you will see an option for “Always open documents in full XAML view”.  Check that box.

xaml options for opening in full xaml view

Now every time you open a XAML file it will open in full XAML view and give you one less thing to gripe about.

Brian Lagunas

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