by Matt McGee
One World Telecommunications
posted: October 31, 2005
Updated: July 6, 2006
It's no secret that more software exists for the
PC platform than for the Macintosh, but it's a
myth that PC developers can do things Mac developers
can't because the software doesn't exist. Apple
has always been a favorite of the creative industries,
and software developers have responded with a
variety of programs for doing creative activities
-- like designing and creating web pages -- on
the Mac.
Here are some recommendations for your Mac Web
Development toolkit.
HTML Editors
The leaders in HTML editing software are Macromedia's
Dreamweaver
and Adobe's GoLive,
both of which are available in Mac versions. Softpress'
Freeway
is another popular choice. Somewhat less expensive,
and preferred by many over Dreamweaver and Go
Live, is BBEdit
by Barebones Software. BBEdit is a code and
text editor so it offers a great way to learn
and stay knowledgeable about hand-coding web pages.
But if you're set on using a WYSIWYG page creator,
it may not be the one for you.
If you're looking for free or inexpensive HTML
editing software for your Mac, here are a couple
options:
CSS Authoring
There are several options for software to help
you write CSS, but maybe none as complete as HostM.com's
Simple
CSS.
Graphics Software
The unquestioned champ in image manipulation and
graphic design is Adobe's Photoshop,
but the price tends to scare away many freelancers
and new web developers. A less expensive option
is Photoshop
Elements, which may enough features to do
what you need. Less expensive still is GraphicConverter
from Lemke Software. It's not quite Photoshop,
but very powerful software that should let you
do just about anything you might want to do with
photos or graphics.
Image Watermarking
If you have high-quality, original photos that
you want to watermark (with your logo or company
name) as a way to deter people from stealing your
graphics, try Script Software's iWatermark.
(also available for Windows)
Animated Graphics
I hear you already: "What?! Animated GIFs?
Those are so 1990s!" Yes, they are, but oddly
enough I seem to need to create one for a client
every couple months or so, usually for graphical
banner ads or some such thing. And there's no
easier way than with GIFfun
from Stone Design.
Color Selection
ColorSchemer
is the first site I go to for ideas, inspiration,
and help with color selection. The site offers
an online
tool for basic color matching and selection,
as well as an OS X-compatible program that lets
you play with colors a lot more than the free
online tool. Some other options for working with
and choosing colors:
FTP Software
You have a lot of options for FTP software on the
Mac. Fetch
is probably the granddaddy of them all, having
started out as a project at Dartmouth College
in the late 1980s. Transmit,
by Panic Software, and Cyberduck
are others to consider.
Text Editors
If you're already using a Mac, the TextEdit program
is pre-installed and may offer everything you
need for basic text editing. Text
Wrangler, from the makers of BBEdit, is another
option.
Audio Recording & Editing
With the popularity of podcasts and other downloadable
audio soaring, you may find yourself needing some
audio tools for your toolkit. Audio
Hijack from Rogue Amoeba is an easy-to-use
tool that lets your record just about any audio
on your computer -- streaming radio, a CD or DVD,
sound effects from a game ... you name it. Audacity
is a great program for editing audio, and allows
you to easily record live audio (from a connected
microphone, for example).
Instant Messaging
Your Apple computer comes pre-installed with iChat,
which operates over AOL's Instant Messenger (AIM)
network to allow you to chat in real-time with
anyone else that has a AIM account. But you can
do better: Adium
lets you chat with users on AIM, Yahoo, MSN Messenger,
and several others. And it has a lot of neat configuration
options to boot.
Font Selection
Your Macintosh comes pre-installed with Apple's
Font Book, a neat tool that lets you organize
all your fonts into groups, turn fonts on or off
quickly, and lets you see any text you input in
the font of your choosing. But it only lets you
see your text in one font at a time. As a web
developer, you want to take your client's name
or slogan, and compare what it will look like
in ALL your fonts at the same time. That's where
Allen Smith's FontDoc
tool comes in handy. See sample text in all your
fonts at the same time, and it's pretty speedy,
too.
PC Testing
Sadly, the rest of the world has yet to catch on
to the joy of using a Mac, and you know that your
clients' web site visitors will largely be using
PCs. So you have to know what the web site will
look like and how it will work on the "other"
platform. Microsoft's Virtual
PC lets you run the Windows OS right on your
Mac, so you don't have to go out and buy a PC
to solve your cross-platform problems.
Additional Software
This is a basic list of tools and programs for
the Macintosh web developer, but there's a lot
more out there. The VersionTracker
web site is great place to start hunting for that
missing Mac app you need to complete the task
at hand.
If you're a Windows web developer looking for similar
information, you might read Brian Reindel's article,
"Web
Designer’s FREElance Toolbox for Windows",
which appeared recently in Digital Web Magazine.
Back
to Articles index |
