I.

The best AI programming tool in the world, I don't know.

But, I know the most intense AI programming tool in the world, and that must be TRAE.

Why is that?

AI programming tools generally have three product forms.

(1) Plugins. The earliest AI programming tool, GitHub Copilot, is a plugin.

(2) IDEs. Plugins are constrained by the host software, and some companies are unwilling to be bound, so they started to create dedicated AI programming IDEs, such as Cursor, Amazon's Kiro, and Google's AntiGravity.

(3) Terminal. There are also some companies that specialize in tools based on terminal (i.e., command line), such as Claude Code, Codex CLI, Gemini CLI.

All AI programming tools basically belong to one of these three categories. But TRAE actually does all three product forms and belongs to all three categories!

It was originally a plugin, then it was made.Independent IDENow there is actually a third product form:SOLO mode.

From plugins to IDE (China version), I have always been a TRAE user. I didn't use the international version because the China version is free.

In July this year, the international version of TRAE started an internal beta for the SOLO mode, which received a warm response, and I was very excited. Now it's finally officially launched, with the international version officially launching SOLO mode on the 12th of this month, and the domestic version going live on the 25th. Even better, it's completely free.

Today, let's talk about what SOLO mode is and why it's important.

Or rather, what exactly is the reason that makes TRAE feel that one product form is not enough and keeps adding other forms?

For a programmer, how to choose among these three product forms, which one is better?

II.

Plugins don't have much to say. They call the internal interfaces of the IDE. If you have an existing IDE environment that needs to add AI functionality, choose it.

Compared to plugins, IDEs have stronger functions, better performance, and a higher degree of integration, making them suitable for users who prioritize functionality and performance.

As for IDEs and terminals, you can refer to myThe previous article_. They each have their own features and are not substitutes for each other, but rather complementary.

IDE excels in its integrated features, such as auto-completion and smart assistance (intellisense), which are not available in the terminal.

The terminal is strong in conveniently accessing various command-line tools, enabling integration into CI/CD pipelines, as well as the Subagent mentioned below, which IDE lacks.

This time, TRAE's released SOLO mode introduces many features that are unique to the terminal, hence the creation of a separate mode, as it is difficult to incorporate these features into the IDE format.

For those accustomed to IDEs or undecided between IDE and terminal, it's worth exploring the SOLO mode, as it may offer the features you need.

III.

Among the new features introduced this time,What is worth mentioning is Subagent.

In my impression, no other domestic manufacturers have done this feature. If you want to use AI programming well, you must know it.

As the name suggests, a Subagent is a lower-level agent (intelligence). It can be understood as,It is a subtask within an AI application.That is to say, it can break down a large AI programming task into several smaller tasks.

This is especially suitable for large projects, where you can create corresponding Subagents based on different tasks or subdirectories.

It has several significant advantages.

(1) Execute in parallel。Multiple Subagents can run simultaneously. You can put them in the background and do other things on the foreground, which greatly saves time. IDE cannot do this; it can only execute sequentially, which is a significant advantage unique to terminals.

(2) Saves context。Generally speaking, each AI task execution involves sending the entire repository as context to the model. Subagents can specify different contexts or limit the context to a specific directory, thus saving context and reducing costs.

(3) Reusability。Subtasks themselves are also intelligent agents, which can be used across projects or shared with others, simplifying workflows.

(4) Flexible permissions。Each subtask can have different access permissions, allowing the creation of Subagents suitable for members of different ranks.

In summary, Subagent is very practical. Many people don't want to use an IDE, partly because there is no Subagent.

Four,

TRAE This time's SOLO mode introduces Subagent as a major highlight, enabling multi-task parallel execution.

After entering SOLO mode, the entire workspace is divided into three columns, with an additional task bar on the far left (red box in the image above).

You can click the "+" sign in the task bar to create Subagent sub-tasks (image below).

In the image above, when creating a sub-task, you can choose from built-in agents or create new ones, with different agents responsible for executing sub-tasks.

Multiple sub-tasks can run in parallel. You can switch between them at any time in the task bar to see which step each task has reached.

The image above shows three sub-tasks created simultaneously, each with a Chinese title, making their purposes very clear.

this parallel execution taskbar, apart from TRAE's SOLO mode, I haven't seen it in other domestic AI programming tools. I hope to follow up.

Five,

The SOLO model also provides some functions that other IDE modes do not have.

(1) Plan function: First think about the task, generate an "execution plan," and only execute it after you approve (see the following figure).

(2) Context compression: Intelligently compress long contexts to prevent model performance degradation due to overly long contexts and significantly save AI usage costs.

(3) Code changes: Better code DiffView view, helping users quickly understand AI's changes to the code.

Six,

To sum up, TRAE's SOLO mode provides many functions that are not available in IDE modes, closer to the usage of a terminal.

Because it is close to the terminal, it can achieve multi-tasking in parallel and better real-time awareness during task execution.

TRAE In one software, it integrates IDE and SOLO modes, undoubtedly providing programmers with the greatest flexibility.

Adding to this, the domestic version is completely free with a huge context window, making it an ideal choice for those who want the convenience of an IDE while also desiring the multi-tasking capabilities of a terminal.

TRAE Both the domestic and international versions offer the SOLO mode, with the difference being that the domestic version is free while the international version provides foreign models, allowing users to choose and download based on their needs.

(End)