Apple

Programmer, these are your tools on Mac

The main features of these apps

For anyone who is going to start developing, or is already a veteran in this field, the Mac is an incredible device. On many occasions, you can think that Windows is the best operating system to program an application, but the truth is that macOS is also ideal. There are many applications that are available on the internet to be able to perform this task satisfactorily. But you always have to take into account different points to choose those apps that are most recommended. In this case, what you should take into account is the following:

  • Design: to be able to work in a comfortable way it is important to always have an interface that is beautiful. This is something that is associated with the development of the application by a large company. In general, those apps that are open source do not have a pretty interface. And as we say in some cases it can become a real priority.
  • Programming language: Depending on which platform you are going to program for, you probably need a specific language. Not all the applications or programs that exist are universal, so you should inform yourself in advance which languages ​​it supports or if additional scripts can be installed.
  • Price: most applications that developers use are open source. One of the advantages they have is that they are free and can also be conveniently edited to adapt them to the way you work.

Design of applications for iPhone and Mac

The developments use the macOS environment to be able to create interesting applications for both iOS and macOS. This requires a series of tools that are essential to be able to work with the Apple code.

xCode

Swifttify for Xcode

Open source package manager that can be found in the App Store for free. It allows to have all the UNIX tools as well as the Mac terminal utilities and graphical applications in macOS. You can install them quickly by compiling them from the case itself. It is undoubtedly recommended for all developers thanks to the ease of use with an interface that is really intuitive.

In the event that you are an application developer for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch or Mac, this is the tool that you must have installed. The code editor is compatible with many programming languages ​​but it stands out above all Swift and Objective-C, which is what you will require in this programming environment.

Xcode
Xcode

Homebrew

homebrew

The options that Apple offers in the App Store may be limited in terms of the packages that are downloaded. Homebrew covers this lack by installing everything you need that is not installed by Apple as standard. Install each package in its own directory by creating symbolic links in all your files. In addition, all the installation will be carried out where you want, avoiding installation outside its prefix.

You can even create your own Homebrew packages in a very simple way. All this is done from the Mac terminal without having applications with their own interface. This has the negative part that obviously you must know how to program well and know the different formulas that are typical to be able to use this program. The installation is also done in the terminal through a line of code that you will find on the developers’ website.

Flexihub

Flexihub

One of the most efficient macOS apps for developers trying to build software solutions for iOS devices. It is not an application to compile code as such, but it will allow iPhone and iPad to be shared over the network, allowing access to them from any remote machine. In this way, any developer can connect to their iPhone or iPad without having to be physically connected.

Although it may seem like something really simple, these tools are ideal for testing and debugging applications on iOS. For this, this application is designed to work with all types of connection such as Ethernet, LAN, WiFi or any other network. In addition, all connections are protected with an encryption system. The only problem is that the aesthetics can be improved.

Visual Studio Code

visual-studio-code

Tool that is free and lightweight that every developer should have installed on their Mac computer. Its main objective is to edit and debug web applications. But if the proper configuration is carried out, it is possible to be able to develop applications on Macs. This is achieved since each part of the editor, the user interface and the functional behavior can be modified at any time.

The application includes supports for TypeScript, JavaScript and other programming games including Swift. Aesthetically it is quite simple with a large space dedicated to all the commands and instructions that are necessary to be able to create your application. You can also watch the development of the application at all times, compiling the code and also debugging all the bugs present.

To program on any platform

Beyond the Apple ecosystem, on a Mac you can find the necessary tools to be able to program on any platform. This is because the programs that are available have a wide range of programming languages ​​that can be viewed on Windows or Android. Next, we show you these more general programs.

NetBeans

netbeans

Mac program that has many functions that are intended to help developers write code correctly without errors. It integrates perfectly with the rest of the standard tools to be able to analyze all the code that you have written yourself. That is why it stands out for having a system to inspect the speed of applications and memory use.

In addition, you can also find a visual debugger that allows you to easily debug the graphical user interface. This is a tool that has great compatibility with all systems on the market, and if you are a developer who is just starting out, it may be the best option. It offers different plugins to be able to a wide range of languages ​​at your fingertips such as C ++, XML, HTML, PHP, JSP or Javascript.

Sublime Text

SublimeText

A programmer cannot forget to use a text editor. Although this seems very simple, there are editors that are intended for developers. In particular, Sublime Text has many really interesting functions for code and markup. In this way, you will be able to have all the tools that are necessary to be able to write documents in numerous places, achieving the highlighting of those most important parts.

When highlighting, the developers will be thought of at all times. This will highlight syntax and code snippets for a large number of languages. The program will be able to recognize all these types of fragments. Among the main languages ​​that are PHP, CSS, HTML, Python or C ++, among others.

Apps that will help you

Beyond the applications whose mission is to compile the code in a comfortable way, we must also take into account those that try to combine all the programming knowledge. We show them below.

SourceTree

SourceTree

When developing applications and programs it is important to always have access to a number of repositories. These are really useful information banks that will simplify your development on a day-to-day basis. It has a simple free interface to be able to interact with your Git repositories so that you can always focus on coding.

It is designed for all types of users. From beginner to expert developers, everyone will end up using this Git login tool. Keep in mind that it is compatible with Git LFS that allows teams to keep track of large assets in one place and you can also manage the repository remotely.

Dash

Dash

One of the great problems that programming can have is memorizing the syntax of the necessary codes. It can be said that Dash is a browser for all the necessary documentation of the different programming languages, being grouped in an API and a code fragment manager. It must be taken into account that the documentation that is grouped is that of HTML5, CSS3, Jquery, Sass or LESS.

All this documentation is important to have it accessible in any situation since when you are compiling code it may throw you some doubts about a code. But the most interesting thing is that you will not need any type of internet connection to access the 200 documentation API what is available.

The best for us

It can be seen in this article that there are many applications available to be able to program on the Mac. We in particular should recommend Xcode since it is developed by Apple itself and has the necessary tools to be able to develop in this ecosystem. It is totally free, this being an important plus, but it is hindered by the aesthetic section since it is not too visually pleasing, as it is open source. But this does not mean that you cannot work in a comfortable and fluid way. Although, to make it much better it is important to combine this program with another such as HomeBrew that will install a greater number of tools that are not installed natively in Xcode and that you may end up needing to develop your applications.

Another recommended app is NeatBeans since it is very open to all programming languages. But its star feature is the fact of reviewing all the work that you are doing while you are working. This is great for both newbies and veterans as a simple mistake in the code can end up causing you to spend hours searching. In this way you will have an ally by your side to identify these flaws in the code that will cause bugs in the operation or in the user interface.

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