I realize that top 10 lists are all the rage, and that is all fine and good. Typically this is not the type of post I would write, but after purchasing a new application called CSSEdit this afternoon and playing with it this evening, I am inspired, so here we go:
Invisible Window’s Top 10 Mac Applications for building standards compliant web sites.
TextMate (macromates.com) The opening sentence on TextMate’s site puts it pretty perfectly “TextMate brings Apple’s approach to operating systems into the world of text editors.” One of the hardest things about Switching to a Mac was finding a good editor for writing (X)HTML and PHP code. TextMate has all of the features I was looking for, including custom color coding and a project viewer. At €39 (~$50) it’s not the cheapest editor out there, but In my opinion is one of the best.
Photoshop (adobe.com/products/photoshop/) From creating designs to cutting up design comps to optimizing and editing images - I am really un-aware of any application that competes with Photoshop. It is the industry standard, has been for years, and doesn’t have a real competitor. At $650 it is not cheap, but most developers will agree, bite the bullet - this is one application you’re going to use.
CSSEdit (macrabbit.com/cssedit/) This application inspired this post. Traditionally the job of editing CSS (or most any file type) fell to the text editor - developers have successfully edited CSS with text editors like TextMate for years. CSSEdit takes a different approach in that it was designed with one thing in mind - to edit CSS. CSSEdit does this perfectly and has many features that make building standards driven web sites much easier. One of the most helpful features is the ability to preview the page you are editing and see which declarations affect a highlighted area. Go buy CSSEdit, it will be one of the best $29.00 you’ve ever spent.
Transmit (panic.com/transmit/) The nature of building web sites is that eventually, you’ll have to move files to a server (otherwise it’s really hard for the world to view your work). In order to do that, you’ll have to have a FTP application. Transmit has a slick user interface and works flawlessly. You can buy Transmit for $29.95.
Firefox (mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/) Truth be told, in order to build a proper site, you’re going to have to look at your work in quite a few browsers (on at least 2 OSs). Through use and surfing, you’ll pick a favorite to use for your “normal” browsing, for me, that browser is Firefox, although I also have Camino, Flock, and Safari loaded on the Mac - and have a PC so that I can view sites in IE. One of the nicest things about browsers (other than bringing us the web) is that they can be downloaded for free!
Adium (adiumx.com/) Web developers tends to be a collaborative lot - email works - but IM works faster. The problem with IM is that every different service has a different application and everyone I need to stay in contact with tends to be on a different service from everyone else. In the past, this meant many different clients all open - all taking up valuable desktop space. By supporting all major IM services (aside from Skype) in one handy application, Adium simply rules. Oh yeah, and it’s free.
Terminal (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app) I am old-school, I’ve been developing websites since Vi was standard. Sometimes it’s just quicker to do something on the server rather than mess with FTP, edit, re-FTP etc. Terminal is built right into the Mac framework (and rumor has it that Leopard’s terminal will feature tabbed sessions).
Flash (adobe.com/products/flash/flashpro/) Being a fan of standards compliant web development, full on flash sites are not my cup of tea, but often times using flash as a supplement really enhances a site. Originally developed by Macromedia, Adobe now distributes Flash. Adobe is synonymous with two things, excellent quality and big price tags - Flash will set you back nearly $700 - yikes!
HyperEdit (tumultco.com/HyperEdit/) HyperEdit is a great text editor and could easily satisfy all the needs of a savy web developer. I stumbled upon HyperEdit after using TextMate for quite a while and was un-willing to switch. So what puts this ap on the list? HyperEdit has a PHP compiler which allows testing and de-bugging of PHP code without the need to transfer a file to the server. HyperEdit is a great time saver. You’ll quickly recover the $19.95 it sets ya back.
iTunes (apple.com/itunes/) So strictly speaking iTunes won’t help you build a website. But who wants to develop in silence? iTunes is a great ap, and we all know that.
