Noah Frederick

Software for Web Development

Development/Reviews 05/04/2010

For the most part, I design and develop on Mac OS X and Unix. I thought I might give out a few tips on building your own arsenal of Mac software for Web development.

Apache HTTP Server 2

As noted in a previous post, I use Apache, which comes bundled with Mac OS X, to develop locally. That way, I can write dynamic pages and preview them without uploading anything to an external development server or the production server. In order to do so, I usually set up virtual hosts for each site I am working on:

VirtualHostX

VirtualHostX is a free application that offers a GUI for editing the Apache virtual hosts configuration file. You can pay to unlock the application if you need more than three virtual hosts configured at one time (which I haven’t as of yet).

Sequel Pro

Sequel Pro provides a clean, Apple-style GUI for managing MySQL databases. You can create, drop, and modify databases and tables, create stored procedures and functions, and easily build and test queries in the query editor. The only major functionality that is missing is user management. I’m still relying on MySQL’s command line utility for setting up database permissions. The Sequel Pro website promises these features in the next major release, though I don’t see any sign of further development online, and I have not seen a software update in a while.

Coda

For almost everything else, I use Coda. Coda is, as far as I am concerned, the ideal editor and FTP client. Each project you work on can be saved with stored FTP and/or SSH connection details and code snippets. The editor is very flexible with syntax highlighting for many markup and programming languages and extensible via third-party plugins. The application also features a GUI CSS editor, which I have never used, opting instead to hand code my style sheets. You can easily switch from code view to a preview of your document in Webkit and any Web browser you have installed. The list of features goes on, but they are all laid out on Panic’s website. Despite the long list of features, the software does not feel in the least bit bloated. The interface is clean and stays true in every detail to the OS, and I have never run into a bug.

Billings 3

For the business side of my work, I use Billings to keep my projects organized, track my hours, and of course, bill for my time. Billings lets you keep it simple or keep very detailed records. I like erring on the side of logging too much information during the course of my jobs, which allows me to generate fairly detailed invoices with minimal effort when the time comes. The interface is mostly to my liking, though several features that should be front and center (such as project notes) seem to be buried in odd places. I have run into some bugs, but for the most part they are fixed in frequent software updates, and unfortunately, I have also seen a bug introduced in an update. Overall, Billings’ utility outweighs its annoyances.

Do you have anything to add about these applications? Have you found better software for the job? I’d like to hear about it.