Search code examples
phpstorm

How to get PHP manual references automatically in PHPStorm 8?


I'm a newbie and there is so much to learn. I would like to see PHP Manual reference if I type a function. Something like this:

    strlen()

    int strlen ( string $string )
    Returns the length of the given string.

    example:
    <?php
    $str = 'abcdef';
    echo strlen($str); // 6

    $str = ' ab cd ';
    echo strlen($str); // 7
    ?>

That would be nice to see somewhere in the IDE. "Show quick doc on mouse move" in version 8 is not available anymore under Edit menu. Ideally I would like to set phpStorm so that I can

1) see a pinned window somewhere that
2) updates automatically as I type new functions with appropriate
3) PHP Documentation reference


Solution

  • Two possible (different) ways:

    1. Enable Settings (Preferences on Mac) | Editor | General | Show quick documentation on mouse move

      enter image description here

    2. View | Quick Documentation -- you can pin it (so it's stays permanently on a screen) and enable auto-updating of docs for element under caret (available once it became pinned; a button next to "X" called Auto-update from source).

      enter image description here