If you work with JavaScript, you’re probably familiar with jQuery. It’s a JavaScript library for working with the Document Object Model (DOM), CSS and HTML that’s becoming a popular tool in web development because of its cross-browser capabilities.
In this article, I will be listing out the best Java softwares out there.
Visual Studio: an industry-standard software
Arguably, one of the best IDE for frontend development is Microsoft Visual Studio. It also has a very popular free open source derivative Visual Studio Code, which can be considered a lite version. However, don’t let this cliche fool you – it’s a powerful JavaScript editor in its own right. The research, conducted by the State of JS, indicates that this was the most widely used text editor in 2018.
Followed by VS Code, SublimeText, Vim, WebStorm, and Atom, it has over 14k users out of 20k survey participants. Apart from JS, it supports 30 programming languages such as Ruby, Python, C#, etc. If you are interested in Ruby development, we have this article for you.
Microsoft visual studio is a powerful IDE that is very resource-intensive and mainly used for serious software development in C, C++, .NET, and C#. It has excellent features like simultaneous editing planning and scaffolding. It spots industries best Code Intel and has inbuilt debuggers. In other words, it is a proper industry-grade IDE.
However, for applications like JavaScript, it is excessive to say the list, that is why its little brother exists.
NetBeans
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS, BSD, Solaris
Price: free
Another IDE for Java, but like Eclipse, you can extend it for additional languages. It supports Java, HTML5, JavaScript, PHP, Python, C / C ++ and CSS3. Netbeans can speed up the desktop application development process with its drag and drop builder. The downside is performance. Netbeans can slow down on large projects. This code editor is also open source.
Pros:
- Intuitive drag-and-drop interface.
- Dynamic and static libraries.
- Remote development capability.
- Qt support.
- Supports various compilers, including CLang/LLVM, Cygwin, GNU, MinGW, and Oracle Solaris Studio.
Cons:
- NetBeans requires a lot of memory, so that this environment can be slow on some machines.
Vim
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS
Price: free
Vim is a free and highly customizable code editor. It was the first text editor developed for Unix, and it was called Vi. Later, its functionality was significantly expanded. This is how Vim appeared. This Javascript editor is available on most Linux distributions.
Vim has search and syntax highlighting features and is super lightweight. Thus, it can handle even very large files well. But it will take some time to set up and prepare for work.
Vim also has a graphical interface, but not by default. Even enabling mouse support requires some manipulation. By default, Vim is controlled by keyboard and keyboard shortcuts.
Vim can be a great IDE if you customize it and become familiar with it inside and out. But if time is tight, this is probably not the best choice.Pros:
- It is possible to install on a very large number of operating systems, even those that you may have never heard of, for example, Amiga;
- Deep editor settings, you can customize it as you need and convenient;
- Not really fast.
Cons:
- Due to the fact that it is terminal, it is very fast but very difficult to learn.
Light Table
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS
Price: Free /Open Source
Light Table started as a Kickstarter campaign back in 2012 and has raised over $ 300,000. It works on all major operating systems. However, the installation process currently requires some additional steps for OS X users. Light Table has a sleek and streamlined user interface that saves clutter but still provides you with a command palette and fuzzy search. It is written in ClojureScript and currently supports HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python, Clojure, and ClojureScript.
With Light Table, you can easily do an inline evaluation in your code. This means you don’t need to use the console when you want to view your results. The Light Table also allows you to embed whatever your project needs, such as graphics, games, and visualizations. The Light Table has a built-in plugin manager (accessible from the View> Plugin Manager menu), as well as a pretty good selection of additional plugins.
Pros:
- inline score
- powerful plugin manager
- easy customizable
- fast, user-friendly interface
- free and open-source
Cons:
- Currently, there is no default PHP support, so a few extra steps are required for WordPress development (for example, you can use PHP plugin).
Webstorm. A premium JavaScript development environment
Webstorm is another excellent option when you need to develop something in JavaScript. It is made by a well known IDE developer JetBrains and is offered alongside other products, specialized for languages different than JavaScript.
This software is not free, and the price starts from 59 euros per year for an individual user and 129 euros per year for companies. However, don’t skip it because of a paywall yet. This software might be worth it, after all. Not in the least for its exceptional JavaScript IDE debugger functionality.
There are also discounts and free licenses for educational establishments and non-profit organizations. Webstorm is one of the best supported and updated offerings on the market at the moment. So new and vital features usually make its way to the Webstorm first. For instance, it was the only IDE with JSX support when it first came out in 2015.
It has functional integration with GitHub and other VCSs. It is a JavaScript and Typescript IDE at heart. It has excellent support for Cordova, Ionic, React, React Native, Angular, Node.js, Vue.js, and other popular JavaScript frameworks. By the way, we have already covered Vue.js in greater detail here. It also has necessary syntax support for over 20 other languages for the projects that include bits of code written in other languages.
Webstorm has many great features. For instance, on-the-go editing, refactoring, excellent navigation, and code completion. Many consider Webstorm’s auto debugging and code testing functionality best on the market. Webstorm also has an excellent smart template functionality.
Last but not least, it has a decent UI customization and themes. Yes, it is a seemingly unimportant feature if compared to other features. However, a software developer spends most of his life staring at the code in the editor, and there is nothing wrong with making his life more comfortable.
The IDE is customizable and allows you to keep the history of any changes done. So, you can go back and review the code at any time. It’s probably the best IDE for frontend development available at the moment.
Atom. A strong contender for the best free JavaScript IDE
Atom is an IDE built by GitHub and has a great deal of support from Facebook. It’s a simplistic yet mighty text editor. It’s free, open-source, and has the best GitHub integration. Atom has capabilities for easy editing and project browsing in one single window.
By default, the application has a right but somewhat excessive built-in package. Also, it is advised to remove unnecessary components to reduce slowdowns. Atom is good at its intended purpose – running big complicated projects that can utilize all of its modular features.
However, there is also a downside to it. Atom is resource-hungry and can be slow even on powerful machines, especially, if the packages are not appropriately managed.
You can download a lot of packages and templates for Atom, change them or make your own. The application is extremely customizable, which is both good and bad. It can be hard to set it up the way you need it, especially for a beginner. However, after you do a proper project set up, it helps the work immensely. It has the best UI customization features, and you can make it look the way you want.
After Microsoft’s acquisition of GitHub, many people were concerned about the future of Atom. After all, it directly competes with Visual Studio Code! However, there is no indication that the Atom has suffered from it as of now.
Atom also lacks user support and help section, increasing a barrier to entry. It has a real-time collab feature, which is excellent for such a powerful tool and is even better if you take into account that it is free. It makes it a unique proposition on the market.
At the moment, Atom looks like a strong contender for the best IDE for frontend development title.
Brackets. An Adobe JavaScript IDE for free. Impossible!
Brackets is a free JavaScript editor from Adobe. Surprisingly, Adobe is known for premium pretty software for creative professions. Well, it’s not as surprising if you consider that web development becomes less technical and more creative.
Brackets has been created by developers who know web design and frontend profoundly. This editor is light and quick. It has an excellently intuitive interface, so it is suitable for beginners. Beginners also don’t need a vast set of features that other IDEs provide. It is a perfect tool for web developers who prefer to code casually.
Brackets has focused on making visual tools and outstanding preprocessor support. Another advantage is that this software allows working on the code without opening multiple windows. UI is customizable to a certain degree but, overall, slick and intuitive. However, that’s what expected from Adobe products now.
By the way, Brackets supports syntax highlighting for an impressive list of languages and the most popular frameworks. However, some advanced features are only available for HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
Speaking of Live Preview, this is the most critical feature for this software. It allows seeing a result in a browser live while you edit, which is very useful in frontend.
Komodo IDE. Another one of the top JavaScript IDEs
Komodo IDE Is a relatively minimalistic and quick IDE for multilingual use. It has a full set of IDE functionality, like debugging, unit testing, and custom workspaces. Komodo has syntax correction for most coding languages and a live preview, which are welcome features for the frontend development.
Unfortunately, its Code Intel only works with Python, PHP, Perl, Tcl, Go, Ruby, Node.js, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS. Code Intel for C++ is also there, in a limited capacity. Another downside is pricing. It can range from $7 a month for personal use to $490 a month for an enterprise. However, if you need a multilingual work environment, that might be an option for you.
The software comes with a 21-day free trial to make sure that’s what you need. Nevertheless, with the vast number of features, Komodo can contend for the best editor for JavaScript.
Conclusion
The majority of software developers are looked down upon even today for not utilizing computer technology to its full potential. The advances in technology has made most programmers lazy. They often make unnecessary changes which brings more bugs into the system. Our goal is to make all our visitors aware of top free development tools, programming languages, and most importantly, the hottest tools to enhance your website’s performance.