What Is a Code Editor?
We cannot start talking about writing codes, without talking about the environment we want to use to process the information. These environment are called Code Editors.
First thing we need to know is that codes don’t run in air. Neither does it swim in water. We actually need an environment where we can make our thought proficient.
Just like germs needing dirty environment to survive, same thing goes for a developer. She or he needs an environment to express his thoughts. A Code Editor is a tool specifically designed for editing code so it’s the best tool for the job. There are so many types of Code Editors and they are all customized to fit a specific work situation, coding language, or practice. But they all have one crucial thing in common – they are used to write or develop the code that powers the web and since that code, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and so on, is open and uncompiled. It doesn’t matter which Code Editor you use and you can open the same source code files and work with them in any Code Editor at any time. even though some people prefer some Code Editors over the others.
Code Editors have features specifically designed to simplify and speed up typing of source code, such as syntax highlighting, indentation, autocomplete, and brace matching functionality. Compiler, interpreter, and debugger are provided in the editors in a convenient way. Syntax problems can easily be detected immediately a code is being entered by the editors. A few Code Editors compress source code, typically converting common keywords into single-byte tokens, removing unnecessary white-space, and converting numbers to a binary form.
Editors can be divided into two main types: IDEs and Lightweight Editors.
What Is an IDE?
IDE (Integrated Development Environment) refers to a powerful editor with many features that usually operates on a project. IDEs are not just editors, but a full-scale development environment.
An IDE loads the project (which can be many files), allows navigation between files, provides auto-completion based on the whole project (not just the open file), and integrates with a version management system (like Git), a testing environment, and other project-level stuff.
If you need an IDE yet, consider the following options:
- Visual Studio Code (VS Code) is a free IDE and can be used for any platform.
- WebStorm is a paid IDE and can be used for any platform.
What Is a Lightweight Editor?
Lightweight Editors are not as powerful as IDEs, but they’re simple and fast. They are mainly used to open and edit a singe file.
The main difference between a Lightweight Editor and an IDE is that an IDE works on a project-level. An IDE analyzes the project structure, loads much more data on start, etc. A Lightweight Editor works on a file-level. It is much faster than an IDE.
Lightweight Editors have lots of plugins: syntax analyzers, syntax highlighter, etc.
If you need a Lightweight Editor, consider the following options:
- Atom (cross-platform, free)
- Visual Studio Code (cross-platform, free)
- Sublime Text (cross-platform, free)
- Brackets (cross-platform, free)
