Installing Software
We assume in this course that you are generally capable of using a computer, including installing software.
For Windows: first download the software (usually as a .zip or .rar file). Double-click the downloaded file to extract it and start the installation process. You can usually accept the defaults in the installer.
For OSX: first download the software (usually as a .dmg file, but also possibly a .zip or other archive). Then double-click the downloaded file to mount the disk image or extract the archive. Finally, copy the application to your Applications folder.
For Linux: It is probably easiest to install software with your distribution's package manager: APT or YUM.
Web Browsers
The best choices for this course are Firefox or Chrome. Please use one of those.
Text Editors
All text editors do the same job: edit text files. You should find one that you can work with and does syntax highlighting that you like. Here are a few suggestions:
- NotePad++
- NotePad++ is a well-liked and free text editor for Windows. It's probably a good default choice for this course if you're using Windows.
- TextMate
- A good free editor for OSX.
- Sublime Text
- Many developers really like Sublime Text, and it works on Windows, OSX, and Linux. Not free, but you can download the trial version.
- Brackets
- A free editor for Windows, OSX, and Linux.
Secure File Transfer
You will need one of these to upload your work to the course web server.
- CyberDuck
- A nice free file transfer application for Windows and OSX.
- WinSCP
- A free file transfer application for Windows.
- Transmit
- Trial version only, for OSX
Graphics Editors
You may need to edit some images for your web pages as part of the assignments, or may want to experiment as you work through the Graphics section.
- GIMP
- A free bitmap (raster) image editor for Windows, OSX, or Linux.
- Inkscape
- A very nice free vector graphics editor (that works nicely with SVG specifically). It's also available for Windows, OSX, or Linux.