Coder: Because I Wasn't Allowed to Bring My Laptop

This project was born out of desperation and determination. You see, my wife forbade me from taking my laptop on our four-week vacation to Japan. Fair enough - vacation is vacation. But I'm a hopeless nerd, and going four weeks without writing code? Yeah, no chance.

The compromise? I was allowed to bring my iPad.

The solution? Build something that lets me code properly on it.

Lately I've been playing around with Coder's code-server, which is essentially VS Code running in the browser - a great idea in theory, but... let's be honest: mobile Safari is not exactly a dream coding experience.

I also work a lot with Capacitor at my day job, so one late night I thought:

Why not wrap code-server inside a proper iPad app using Capacitor and fix everything that annoys me?

And that's exactly what this is.

💡 What It Does

• Wraps code-server in a native iPad app using Capacitor
• Supports Stage Manager with multiple windows (yes, you can open two projects side-by-side!)
• Handles keyboard shortcuts properly, so your usual VS Code muscle memory still works
• Supports external monitor setup - plug in a screen, grab your keyboard, and you're basically back in dev mode
• Sends keystrokes straight to the WebView - no remapping nonsense
• Works surprisingly well

🔧 Server Setup Notes

What I didn't mention yet: I already have a code-server instance up and running - it's hosted on AWS, proxied through Cloudflare, and secured with Cloudflare Access for authentication. So, yes, it's safe and sane. Proper TLS certificates are in place, so you won't run into any annoying security warnings or mixed content errors.

If you're reading the source and wondering "where do I plug in my server URL?", check the capacitor.config.ts file. You'll see the relevant environment variables and setup spots in there.

🚧 Why This Exists

I wanted something that felt like real VS Code on iPad - not just a WebView in disguise, but something that understood:

• Developers don't want to touch the screen every 5 seconds
• iPadOS can do real multitasking - if you help it
• Coding while traveling shouldn't be a pain

This is not a product. It's a proof of concept.

It might break. It might work perfectly. But it's here.