RevSyntax enables an efficient workflow for RevBayes analysis in VS Code

Benjamin So, Chiara A. Smythies, Carrie M. Tribble

RevBayes—a phylogenetic probabilistic graphical modeling software—presents prospective users with a steep learning curve. RevBayes lacks a custom integrated development environment (IDE) to facilitate writing and executing code, and as a result many users end up copying and pasting individual lines of code from a text editor into a terminal window. This inefficient and error-prone process limits adoption of RevBayes for statistical phylogenetic analyses, impedes its adoption as a teaching tool, and creates unnecessary friction for existing users of the software. Here, we describe a user-friendly and efficient workflow for RevBayes analyses by leveraging VS Code, existing extensions, and our new development tool: RevSyntax. RevSyntax is a custom Visual Studio Code (VS Code) extension, developed to assist researchers in statistical phylogenetic probabilistic modeling using RevBayes software. Our workflow allows researchers to use VS Code as an IDE for drafting, editing, and executing Rev code, as well as for figure visualization and version control. By introducing simple additional features, RevSyntax smoothens the workflow for RevBayes users, demonstrating the value of customizing existing software for an improved user experience.