While Apple’s included PHP configuration included with Apache is getting better and better, it is still far from complete.
First thing that it’s missing is support for GD library, which, if you are looking to manipulate images via PHP, is simply essential.
While there are a bunch of other ways to run PHP (XAMPP, MAMP and others), I like using the Apache and PHP that come with Leo and build on top of that (like a true geek).
Here’s how to compile GD for your PHP…
As a web developer/designer I do a lot of CSS almost every single day. If you are a pro or just starting with CSS you may have noticed it takes a bit of time going back to the file, making a change, refreshing to see the results, etc.
Mac users were taken care of earlier than PC users with the program called CSSEdit. It introduced Live Preview, where you see the changes to your site immediately while modifying the style sheet properties on the side. It also has a tool called “X-Ray” which lets you mouse-over the elements on the page in order to quickly identify it’s counterpart in the CSS file.
If you are looking for great CSS editing on a Mac, look no further. CSSEdit is it!
Web site: http://macrabbit.com/cssedit/
Download: http://macrabbit.com/cssedit/get/
Price: ~ $44 USD
When it comes to PCs, things were not the same until recently when I discovered Stylizer! It’s developers claim it’s “The only Visual CSS Editor Done Right“, and I can attest - IT IS! Sincerely, it’s even better than CSSEdit and it finally allowed me to move from Mac for my CSS editing back onto a PC where I do all my web development.
It’s easy to use, comes with a WONDERFUL tutorial which teaches you EVERYTHING there is to know about the software right out of the box, you can do almost anything just by using your keyboard, it has options similar to CSSEdit’s X-Ray which let you identify the elements within the page and assign CSS Classes to them instantly, and the best of all: It has a drop-down which lets you choose between FireFox and IE on the fly, so you can immediately know how your site behaves on these two browsers.
Sincerely, it has become an invaluable tool to my web development.
The best feature of all: it lets me save the Style Sheets straight from the application onto a local file, and onto a server via FTP or SFTP.
It has even a built in support for “CSS Hacks”, letting you easily specify different behaviours for different browsers, right in the CSS, without need to know much about it.
While pricier at $69.99, I’d get it twice if I had to.
Site: http://www.skybound.ca/stylizer/
Download: http://www.skybound.ca/stylizer/doDownload
With these two - you will be set, I promise (especially with Stylizer!).
