What is Aptana Studio used for?
on December 3, 2007, 10:35 AM PST The Aptana Studio IDE allows a developer to easily organize the many disparate files in a Web application. The many features of the IDE allow you to easily build and debug your JavaScript code to ensure proper functionality. A Web developer’s choice of tools is often driven by the needs of the client and the project, but a developer’s IDE is often a personal matter; after all, they spend the bulk of their
time using this tool to build their applications. While .NET developers have limited choices, Web developers have a variety of options. This article focuses on one such offering: Aptana Studio. FeaturesThe Aptana Studio IDE is based on the Eclipse code base, but it focuses on Web development via JavaScript (vs. Eclipse’s focus on Java). Like the Eclipse IDE, Aptana Studio organizes development work around a project. Once a new project is created, you may add one or more files. The default installation of Aptana Studio supports JavaScript, HTML, CSS, ScriptDoc, XML and plain text as well as others. Plug-ins are available for working with other file types including PHP, Ruby on Rails, Adobe AIR, and iPhone/iPod. The Aptana Studio IDE includes standard features that most developers expect in their development tool. It provides a powerful interface for building Web applications. The following list provides a peek at some of these features:
VersionsAptana Studio is developed and supported by the California-based company Aptana. The current version 1.0.0 is available as an Eclipse plug-in, as well as two standalone versions:
The edition you choose depends on your project needs and whether you want full product support. I find that the Community Edition meets most of the needs of my Web development projects. How to get itThe Aptana Web site makes it easy to purchase a license for the Professional Edition of Aptana or download the freely available Community Edition of Aptana. The download is available as an executable or via a compressed file. The current version requires version 1.5 or later of the Java Runtime Environment. Downloads are available for Windows, OS X, and Linux. Installation of the Aptana Studio IDE is as simple as running the executable or running the setup in the compression file. Once it is installed, you can get a closer look at the IDE and its many features. LicensingAptana Studio 1.0.0 is available via a dual licensing agreement. The two licenses are open source GNU General Public License (GPL) and the Aptana Public License (APL). The GPL license offers the Aptana IDE free of charge, as long as usage adheres to the terms of the GPL license. The APL license is available for organizations that want to use the product for free and modify, integrate, and distribute it for personal or internal use only, without any redistribution requirements. An impressive development optionOver the years, the market for Web development tools has exploded. Some of these tools are for particular development platforms like Visual Studio .NET for .NET development, but others like Aptana Studio 1.0.0 target more general Web development using standard technologies as well as others like PHP. I would recommend the IDE to fellow Web developers. The Aptana Studio IDE allows a developer to easily organize the many disparate files in a Web application. The many features of the IDE allow you to easily build and debug your JavaScript code to ensure proper functionality. It provides all features that I’d expect from an IDE. What tools do you use in your day-to-day Web development projects? Share your thoughts and experiences with the community by posting to the article discussion. Tony Patton began his professional career as an application developer earning Java, VB, Lotus, and XML certifications to bolster his knowledge. ————————————————————————————— Get weekly development
tips in your inbox
|