OK, I can see the point of view. Still, they shouldn't make it so difficult to find the options. I think most of my issues are due to the fact that I cannot afford anything more than the Express version. If I had an extra $500, I'd buy the Professional version in a heartbeat! They really gimp the Express version.

Everything is available from tools -> options. If you're interested in the full versions, have you looked into DreamSpark or BizSpark? It doesn't take all that much to qualify for BizSpark and it will get you the Ultimate edition.

OK, I can see the point of view. Still, they shouldn't make it so difficult to find the options. I think most of my issues are due to the fact that I cannot afford anything more than the Express version. If I had an extra $500, I'd buy the Professional version in a heartbeat! They really gimp the Express version.

Everything is available from tools -> options. If you're interested in the full versions, have you looked into DreamSpark or BizSpark? It doesn't take all that much to qualify for BizSpark and it will get you the Ultimate edition.

Not everything is available in the Express edition, and I'm not just talking about interface issues. The Express version is severally restricted. Speaking of the interface issue, there are only two themes in the Express edition, light and dark. Both were causing me a great amount of eye strain. All of the other versions have a theme editor, but that is lacking in the Express version. Even the registry entries where the theme information would be stored is missing. Just to change the theme required an amazing amount of digging on Google.

I do this as a hobby. I seriously doubt that I would qualify for either of those two programs. I would have to stretch the truth to the point of breaking it and that just isn't me.

Auto-complete can be both annoying and useful, but it is also quite configurable. It's worth playing with the options.

I turn off the more aggressive completion options. That way it only provides a list of members when I need it and doesn't interrupt me while I am typing names and keywords.

After much cajoling, I got it to work like it did in 2010.

It would be nice to share your method, in case another poor googler comes across this thread ;)

Method to what? Finding the solution? That involved using logical guesses in the Options dialog and much trial and error. There is little to no documentation with the Express versions, so I really do not know what it is that I did. I just looked for things that sounded like it might have something to do with the issue I was having and then turned the options on and off until it worked. Basically, throwing darts blindfolded.

Yeah, bad, I know...

Microsoft's support of the Express versions irks me. They treat it like a demo version, all the while saying it is not. It really is the only version that most hobby developers can afford. I keep sticking with the Visual Studio because it is built by the maker of the OS, but since Microsoft doesn't support it, I might as well try Eclipse or something else.