Every web developer has a collection of apps that s/he can’t do without because they are reliable, convenient to use, and provide a solution to accomplishing significant tasks in their development process and workflow.
In today’s article, I present you with the starter-pack list of applications in my web developer artillery. They are Mac applications that, as a web dev, you definitely want to be installed. Know the coolest part? They are all free and beautifully designed.
1. Automator
Automator is a preinstalled app that allows macOS users to automate tasks and just like any tool, in the hands of ane expert, it will work wonders. Automation tasks include anything from batch renaming files, batch cropping images, and creating thumbnails to running time-specific scripts.
2. Devdocs
Devdocs is an open-source human-friendly database of multiple API documentations organized into a minimalist-style searchable user interface. It gives developers the avenue to locate code snippets, programming examples, and tips in a reliable and efficient manner using fuzzy matching.
3. Icons8
Icons8 enables you to globally add over 2800 icons directly from the icon in your menu bar. All the icons are created by a single team so their design is consistent. They are also editable vectors with support for pasting into HTML, Photoshop, Finder, Xcode, etc.
4. iPhone Emulator
The iPhone Emulator is an excellent alternative to testing websites and applications on physical mobile phones or tablets. It comes bundled with Xcode (free on the AppStore) but you don’t need to always run Xcode, firs launch it from your Application folder with this command:
# ln -s /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Applications/Simulator.app ~/Applications
If you need to test your websites for the mobile platform, you can either use a physical mobile phone or tablet or simply use a simulator application like iPhone Simulator. However, to get the iPhone Simulator, you first need to install Xcode from the AppStore.
The iPhone Simulator is deeply buried within the Xcode application. So, for easy access, you can run the above command to launch it right from the Application folder.
5. Keka
Keka is a free open-source file archiver designed for compression and extraction into/from several formats including zip, rar, tar , 7z, DMG, ISO, 7z, PAX, CAB, EXE, and ZIP.
Its features include applying password restrictions to compressed files, using AES-256 and Zip 2.0 legacy encryption specifications, splitting them into multiple parts with a customizable threshold, desktop notifications, and the option to automatically source files after extraction or compression.
My favourite feature in Keka is one doesn’t need to launch the app at all. Simply drag files and folders into the Keka icon in your dock and interact with it from context menus.
6. Koala
Koala is a GUI too for compiling SaSS, Less, Compass, and CoffeeScript into browser-compliant format. It is open-source and available on all platforms for free with features including multilanguage support and real-time compilation.
7. Poedit
Poedit is a powerful intuitive translation editor for conveniently translating applications and websites into other languages using gettext (PO) -an internationalization and localization system used by most PHP, Django, and virtually anything running on Linux.
8. SourceTree
SourceTree is a free Git client that enables users to interact easily and faster with Git repositories as they visualize their work processes through its beautiful UI. Its features include Git-flow out of the box, local Git commits search, an interactive base, submodules, large file support, etc.
9. Sequel Pro
Sequel Pro is a responsive easy-to-use DBMS designed for working with MySQL databases. It provides users with direct access to creating, removing, importing, and filtering MySQL databases as well as running MySQL queries on remote and local servers. To top it off, Sequel Pro uses a streamlined UI/UX native to macOS that will make you feel at home.
10. VirtualHostX
VirtualHostX is an easy-to-install local server environment that enables you to build and test web apps on your macOS. With it, you can build WordPress software and host a production web server locally. It has a userbase of over 50,000 and has been active since 2007.
Its features include backup and restore, cloud integration, free automatic SSL certificates, website sharing, AppleScript automation, browser controls. All these are physicalized through a beautiful modern user interface designed specifically for macOS using. Its look and feel employ native macOS specs down to desktop notifications.
What are the essential applications you have developed a dependence on throughout your years of web development experience on Mac? When you add suggestions, add supporting features, and share your experiences with us remember that you can format your comments nicely in HTML.
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