Coda – Streamlined Dreamweaver
Posted by admin | Filed under Apps, Web
I’ve been coding in Dreamweaver for several years now, and while it worked fairly well, it always felt like I was using a sledgehammer when a screwdriver would do. I never use the database connections, and as a coder I rarely use design view. The built-in ftp is by no means advanced, and it was slow to boot.
Panic’s new app for the Mac called Coda is rapidly becoming my favorite environment for developing. I hate reading long paragraphs, so I’ll split this up…
Pros:
- Split a window up to 4 times horizontally or vertically, and different documents, previews, css files, terminals, and reference books in each pane.
- My newest favorite feature: a function index. Some php scripts can get very long, so it is great to have an index pane.
- Changes made to a site are tracked so you know which files were changed before uploading
- Edit remote files directly – great for fixing that typo before the client sees it
- The file browser is a real file browser where you can create folders, rename files, open with a specified app, etc.
- Its easy to forget all the possible css properties, so Coda organizes all the properties into groups and drop-downs. As a coder I prefer CSS Edit for CSS, and Coda even lets you right-click a file and edit in your favorite editor
- For the people who know *nix, there’s a built-in terminal for ssh connections
- The preview window uses WebKit and adds javascript and DOM inspectors
- Code hints as you type as well as syntax highlighting and code snippets – even shared editing over Bonjour.
- The trial only counts days you open the program – very nice!
Cons:
- Find and replace only works in the current document. There are times when I rename a folder and have to update all files with the new path, which currently cannot be done with Coda.
- The excellent reference manual requires an internet connection. Believe it or not, I don’t live online. I run a local web server to develop sometimes – the internet can be distracting.
- I’ve had issues with ftp uploading all files to the root folder of some web hosts, though a reply to my support request says this is fixed in 1.02 with a publish command.
Hints:
- If you’re used to coding in Dreamweaver like me, you may remember selecting a block of text and pressing tab to indent it all at once. In Coda, the shortcut is CMD-] to indent or CMD-[ to reverse it.
- Explore the menus and preferences for hidden options and features.
Take a look at the website for visuals and download.
Tags: Development, mac, Shareware
MaxiVista and Ultramon
Posted by admin | Filed under Random
If you have more than one computer lying around, you might want to take a look at Maxivista and turn another computer into a second monitor. I tried the demo very briefly and knew I had to buy it (yes, some people do pay for software still).
What does it do? Well you install a server program on the good machine and a viewer on the other machine. The server machine is then tricked into thinking it has a second monitor, which is displayed in the viewer on the second machine. It’s very easy to setup too, just install the server on one computer and the viewer on another and they find each other.
It doesn’t do video at all in my brief test, so you can’t have a widescreen dvd playing on 2 monitors. Personally, I use it for reference – looking at data I’m working from on the laptop screen while I code on the desktop.
If you need to use the other computer, just double click the mouse on that computer and regain control. When you’re done, click MaxiVista’s icon in the tray to resume. Plus if you pay a bit more, you can control both computers with the same mouse and keyboard, replacing kvm switches.
This program would work well with something like Ultramon, which gives you better control over multiple-monitor setups. I use ultramon at work where the taskbar on each monitor shows the windows on that screen, and I have better control over how the wallpaper displays.
