Web Development Tools for Mac OSX
Last updated November 1, 2015Code
These coding software fall into two categories: text editors and IDEs. I happen to prefer lightweight tools with an emphasis on ease of publishing.-
Coda
Coda is a web application development suite with support for every language under the sun, including html, php, and javascript. Code completion, one-click publishing, project view, and regular expression searching make Coda a primary tool for web developers. Panic, as the developer of Transmit, issues frequent updates to the software now version 2.x and they continue to make the product better each year. ★★★★★, $$
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DeltaWalker
This superb file comparison utility was recently updated in Cocoa with a more Mac-Like interface. For the time being, this is the Mac-users answer to the venerable Beyond Compare. ★★★★☆, $$
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Textmate
An aging and like abandoned product, Textmate is still the best Mac text editor. Textmate does it all: source code editing, regular expressions searching, emac keyboard shortcuts, and tons of bundles to support all your text needs. Textastic gets some use as well, but I never got into BBEdit despite having it installed for a decade. ★★★★★, $$
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Textastic
Arguably, the best lightweight plain text editor on the App Store right now. ★★★★☆, $
Graphics
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Pixelmator
This raster editing tool is much less resource intensive than Photoshop and the interface is beautiful. Good for light design tasks such as cropping and image adjustments. All the bitmap editing I need in a fast and affordable package. Regular, stable updates from the developers. Similar enough to Photoshop that it feels very familiar.
AND...the updates keep on coming. ★★★★★, $$ -
xScope
Best-in-Class screen measuring tools. Essential for layouts. Guides, rulers, and a color eyedropper make this an amazing little utility.. ★★★★★, $
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My Fontbook
My Fontbook is an online font viewer that provides some simple tools to scan and organize your font collection. It provides a really quick way to browse your installed fonts without shelling out cash or installing software.
AND...I made it. ★★★★★, Free -
Preview
Other than being the default Mac image viewer, Preview has a couple of other tricks. Open a PDF and select 'Print to PDF' to remove encryption. In Finder copy a program icon then Command+N in Preview to get the icon image. Save as... to the format of your choice. ★★★★☆, FREE
Organize
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Things
Things has replaced The Hit List for me as a task manager because it syncs between the MacBook, iPhone, and iPad. Most urgently, the developer of The Hit List stopped supporting the product, so I needed to find an alternative. I considered OmniFocus, but the UI was overly complicated for my tastes. ★★★★★, $$
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Billings
Billings lets me time my work, track accounts, and send invoices simply and hassle free. It gets the job done and has an iPhone version which is icing on the cake. ★★★★☆, $$
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Path Finder
It is like the Mac Finder - only way better. Split screen makes moving organizing files between directories simple. All manner of shortcuts and tabs add to the fun including a terminal window, recently accessed files list, preview, and in-depth file properties. ★★★★★, $
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MindNode Pro
Elegant mind mapping. MindNode Pro just gets out of the way and let's you organized your thoughts. I could write a lecture on UI design using MindNode Pro as a case study. Mobile version available. ★★★★★, $
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Voodoo Pad
No meaningful updates in a long time, so I would not switch to this product now, but a wiki is a great way to organize project files. ★★★★☆, $$
Browser
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Chrome
Chrome has great web development tools. Safari is now faster for browsing, but I prefer to browse the web on my Nexus 6 than my MacBook Air. ★★★★★, Free
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Firefox
Sure I check my web designs in IE and Safari,
but I employ Firefox as my primary web development browser. Why? Tons of awesome Add-ons aimed toward web professionals.
Add the Web Developer Toolbar for on screen pixel ruler, disable cache, resize window, show/hide form elements, much more.
UPDATE: 9/10 Switched primary development browser to Google Chrome. ★★★★☆, Free -
Firebug
Firebug saves me more time than all of the other design tools on this page. It is absolutely essential for AJAX development. Watch server requests, inspect css styles, debug javascript code with watchlists, check web page load times, and profile javascript performance. Firefox Add-on. ★★★★★, Free
Data
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Navicat
This Mac OS X database management tool is the only db tool I need. Solid import/export support and execution summaries. HTTP tunneling makes Navicat a winner for developers with shared web hosting.
I recently switched to the Essentials (read: cheapest) version from the App Store. ★★★★☆, $$ -
Numbers
A spreadsheet application included in iWork from Apple. Easy to use, full featured, hard to beat. ★★★★☆, $
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RegExSheet
Edit a spreadsheet using regular expressions. Combine, split, and replace columns using javascript-flavor of regex. ★★★★☆, FREE
Publishing
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Transmit
Transmit is the gold standard for file transfer protocol. Great for publishing web sites, or weekend migrations. ★★★★★, $
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MarsEdit
MarsEdit is a very stable blog authoring client. Syncs with all major blog platforms. The ability to edit entries in HTML gives users fine control over the design of their posts. ★★★★★, $
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Scrivener
Scrivener is designed for serious writers, and the organizational features of this tool are hard to beat for website content and marketing copy. Added bonus is that Scrivener is developed by a first-rate indie software house that offers frequent updates. ★★★★★, $$
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Pages
Pages is part of Apple's iWork suite. Pages easily bests MS Word by having an entirely pleasant user interface design. Great template collection, adjust image contrast/saturation inside the editor, great for proposal writing and professional invoices. ★★★★★, $
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Ulysses
Markdown support and all of my text files in one place. A focused text editor for writing. ★★★★☆, $
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Dropbox
Dropbox is the easiest way to get your files in the cloud for syncing, back-up, or sharing. Use the link on the left to register and we both get an extra 250MB for free. ★★★★★, Free
System
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Daisy Disk
A visual map of your disk usage. Helps identify and clear out the clutter. Very helpful on a 2009 MacBook Air with a 64GB harddrive. ★★★★★, $
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atMonitor
This is like Activity Monitor, but displays details about what the process is and what it is doing. And a bunch of other stuff I have not found a use for yet. ★★★★★, $
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Activity Monitor
The built in Mac OS X Activity Monitor is suitable for checking memory usage across browsers. Find it under Applications>Utilities. ★★★★★, Free
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Network Utility
Built in Mac network tools. Among other functions are Whois, Ping, Lookup. Great for troubleshooing your LAN or DNS transfers. Find it under Utilities. ★★★★★, Free
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Terminal
Did you forget that Mac OS X is built on Unix? Terminal is about as generic as it gets, but indispensable. ★★★★★, Free