Switching Between Portal 2 and Editor Faster?
Is there an easier way to switch between the Portal 2 Map Editor and the actual Portal 2 application itself? If all I need to do is change something very quickly when I test it, it is a pain to wait for it to start every single time. If there is an easier way, please help, if not, than I will be mad......
don't close portal? just make sure you leave your map, go back to editor, edit and compile, and go back into portal and launch your map again, also on startup of portal hit esc to skip. There is no way to change something in the map without compiling first and loading your map again, sorry 
You could leave Portal 2 running on your map in a seperate window while working in Hammer, and once you compile pull the window with your map up. Typing kill into the console will automaticly update the map when you respawnalthoguh a few textures may have some cubemap problems. This should be fixible with buildcubemaps command in the console.
Use the "windowed (no border)" graphics mode that makes alt+tabbing easy.
And all this time I've been using Portal 2 and the other games in full screen while testing. Someone punch me.
Anyways, I use this method:
Have Hammer and Portal 2 (or some other Source game) open
1. Compile in Hammer
2. Load map in Portal 2
3. Test
4. Change map in Hammer and compile
5. Type "restart" in console in Portal 2 and test
6. Repeat steps 4, 5 and 6
Personally I always disconnect from a map before going back into Hammer. I figure that way the game isn't using up resources doing nothing in the background and slowing down Hammer while I try to do things.
Please do not Private Message me for assistance. Post a thread if you have questions or concerns.
If you need to contact the staff privately, contact the Global Moderators via Discord.
If you add the "-hijack" flag to your $game_exe command (in Advanced compile mode), it will automatically restart the level in Portal2 as soon as it's done compiling
Parameters:
-hijack -dev -game $gamedir +map $file +sv_lan 1
Parameters:
-hijack -dev -game $gamedir +map $file +sv_lan 1
So that's what hijack does. I'd been wondering about that, thanks.