There are a lot of Web Developers all around the world, and everyone plays and works by his own rules. Everyone has personal working style and flow. However, many of them often face a lack of discipline problem. Usually, this lack leads to an extraordinary results, such as deadline extension, stress and client’s displeasure.
Therefore, I would like to note some tools, which could help you to take everything under control!
1. Task Managers
They will assist in short task lists building before each new working day starts. For example, I collect all the necessary tasks together to build a comfortable list to follow during a day. Then I print it and start my usual working day. When I complete any, I cross them out.
There is an opportunity to use good online tools:
2. Ideas and thoughts capturing tool
Every freelance web developer spends a lot of time surfing the net everyday. There he study, get new necessary knowledge and has fun. Moreover, many of web developers collaborate with each other. And sometime it’s necessary to save some information, to get down to it later. Storing this stuff in one place, helps to keep in mind every note, to be in a trend of growing technologies and to keep everything on eye. There are the most popular:
3. Screen capture tools
If we want to share our screen (and we often want it) we have an opportunity to capture screen image by using special soft to do that. I offer these tools: Snipping tool (Vista only) and Mac’s Capture Me.
4. Furious Code Editor
Very often I meet developers asking about what code editor do I use?! Truly speaking, it depends on every person needs, because we should deal with coding languages we use, platform we work on and gadgets that could really help to accelerate our working process. But I suggest to use not more that 2 code editors to do programming. There are a lot of editors which support different languages (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, ASP, VB, JAVA, C#, RoR and other). On Windows I use Notepad++ and Eclipse, but playing on Mac I prefer Coda, TextMate, Dreamweaver. I request from editor two the most important details, such as code highlighting (coloring) and FTP environment to work directly online. Here’s the list:
5. Subversion client
If freelancers work as a team with many members, it is necessary to use any Subversion client. This one would keep all the updates up to date and will never miss any code. You can look for different SVN clients on Google, but I can’t suggest any this time, because haven’t got strong experience using them.
6. Project Managers
Working as a freelancer each of us faced with a lot of projects. Some of this completes one by one, some have got long terms. Therefore, to keep all the freelance projects in one stable place we are able to use comfortable projects manager tools:
7. Raster designing tool
Even if you’re a web designer or front end player, you will be in need of complete and easy-to-use graphics software to design, slice and work with graphical elements. Without this tool you’ll not be able to make lovely, handsome and modern websites, play with JQuery animation tools and optimize logo to output it as .png image, for example. I personally play only with Photoshop to complete such a tasks. Photoshop is familiar to me and it provide users with a casual graphic environment, I think so. But there are many other editors: Gimp, Krita, PS Express, Fireworks.
8. Website testing tools
I’m a front end web developer and my trumps are usability and UI. Of course, I like to test completed webpages in all major browsers, because I stand for the same display everywhere, for cross-browsing. It’s not important which browser does my client or his visitors use, website should be the same in every browser – there’s a point. Firstly, I test my websites locally, because I’ve got all the browsers installed. Moreover, I’ve got very smart software named IETester, which gives me an amazing opportunity to test website in all IE browsers, starting from version 5 and up to 8. And secondly, I try to re-pass each website’s page by using online trackers: Browsershot and Screenshots.jp.
Short summary
This eight ultimate tools, help me to be mobile and fast in projects building and studying day by day. I think it’s very important to keep everything under control and to avoid stress by the way.
Share your thoughts about this cool tools. And maybe I’ve forget something to add to my list?
13 February, 2010
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