Software Development Tools

Having the right tools for the job is essential in software development. While most developers use "high end" software at work, the start-up company or homebrew developer can't afford such products. Luckily, the open source movement has resulted in the availability of world class software for FREE! Many open source products match or exceed software products that cost hundreds - or even thousands - of dollars.

On this page, I'll list free products I've used when developing software.

Content Managment

Not really a "development tool" but I must give a plug for the software that runs aiGuru.com - drupal. I looked into many, many CMS systems but went with drupal for it's "out of the box" functionality and abundance of add-in modules. 

Version Control

Any software project beyond a trivial "hello world" application requires version control. What starts off as a "small change" can quickly become a "major enhancement" and without the ability to roll back your changes, nothing but frustration can result. I've used many different version control packages ranging from the basic CVS to (in my opinion) the most infuriating piece of software ever: PVCS.

Server Side 

The version control software I recommend is Subversion. It's cross-platform, easy to use, provided incredible functionality if you want to get your hands dirty, and best of all - it just works without getting in your way. It can hook into any application that supports WebDAV.

Client Side 

To use Subversion without WebDAV, you simply need a subversion client. For a Windows side client I highly recommend Tortoise SVN. It's a windows shell extension and the ONLY shortcoming I can mention is its lack of a "flat mode" but that's a small price to pay for such a great FREE product.

Database Development

The Database

Well the first thing you need is a database - duh! I'm a fan of MySQL, another FREE product. It doesn't have all the bell and whistles of "high-end" products like Oracle, but with version 5.0 features such as triggers, cursors, and stored procedures were added.

The Web Server

For Windows development, the best way to get MySQL and PHP is to download EasyPHP. This will give you a FULL MySQL and PHP development environment - your very own server. 

The Design

I stumbled across a great product for database design: DBDesigner 4. It's a simple to use (free) database modeling and query tool. You can reverse engineer existing databases or design your own from scratch. It is built for MySQL but can be used with other RDBMS. It has a few 'quirks' to work around but nothing major. A wonderfull addition to EasyPHP.