I’m a bit confused here about all this.
I was using PlatformIO with VS Code to compile firmware from my 3D printers but recently got VS Studio Community as I want to start writing my own software n C++. I also programming PIC controllers using MPLabX.
#1: Can I use PlatformIO with VS Studio Community or do I also need to install VS Code?
#2: I mainly use PlatformIO to configure firmware for 3D printers but I was wondering if it can be used to program PIC controllers via a Pickit3 or 4?
I just installed VS Community - and among the extensions on the markeplace, there is PlatformIO being offered at the moment. So I assume the answer to your question is “no”.
PlatformIO supports Visual Studio by being able to export a Visual Studio solution file (.sln). I don’t think it matters whether you have the community edition or not.
That being said, VSCode is the intended development environment with the most features and support. VisualStudio has inherent architectural problems that make working with PlatformIO slightly difficult, especially the IntelliSense, as mentioned in the documentation.