Which is the best IDE for PHP lanuage?

by 72 replies
84
Hello,

According to you which the best IDE for php programming.
#programming #ide #lanuage #php
  • PHP Designer is a good one - MPSOFTWARE - phpDesigner 2008 ยป Powerful PHP IDE & PHP Editor!
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    • Eclipse... nevertheless, I prefer Dreamweaver CS3 for some odd reason. I don't know CS4 yet.

      Gaby
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  • I'm currently doing some research to find a possible alternative to Dreamweaver.

    From the research I did, I found that WeBuilder or Rapid PHP Editor (from the same company) seems to be very good and have also good reviews. WeBuilder has some more features than Rapid PHP Editor that you might not need - Check the Feature comparison page to see the differences.

    I didn't test it yet, but from what I read it seems a good choice.

    Oh... and the price is very attractive

    Carlos
  • I think Zend Studio is the best one
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  • Komodo Edit is free open source editor for languages like Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, JavaScript, CSS, HTML, and XML.
  • I've tried PHP Designer, Maguma, Eclipse, and a whole lot more but the best IMHO is Zend Studio.
  • I don't have "the best", just my suggestions of the ones I've tried.

    I did like Zend Studio when I used it on Windows.

    Working in Linux only now I use KDeveloper in the Script mode, which is absolutely great for large projects and has nice highlighting. Note, I don't mix HTML and PHP in the same files, I abstract logic and presentation, so this may not be for you if you escape frequently. In that case, on Linux there is Bluefish, Quanta and the old NVU which has been integrated to the KDE project but I forget the new name.
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    • It's good to hear of other marketers using Linux as their primary operating system. I'll vouch for KDeveloper and Quanta. I mostly use Quanta - it does everything I ever required of Dreamweaver, a great WYSIWYG interface, code highlighting, blah, blah, blah...

      I don't know of any integration of NVU into KDE. Could you be thinking of Kompozer?
  • For MAC OS X I use SkEdit and Adobe Dreamweaver CS3 mostly SkEdit now.

    Textmate is also good.
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  • at Incansoft we use VS.PHP we use it because we work with visual studio for the windows programming and VS.PHP give us the ability to work in the IDE both languages
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    • I would recommend NetBeans. It has a great interface and allows for multiple programming languages to be added based upon what you want to program. And the php version is like only a 30 MB download vs. the other IDE's at their 100+ MB downloads.
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  • Aptana is great. It's based of the open-source Eclipse and has some default features missing in Eclipse like FTP.
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    • I use DreamWeaver CS3 ! its enough !
  • I also use Aptana, which is just a souped up version of Eclipse. It has really good PHP tools, the best I've every found. It is kind of slow for huge files, however, like large CSS files, over 1000 lines. It is better to use it on a computer with lots of memory. I sometimes fall back to a faster editor, like Dreamweaver, for doing simple edits, since its sytax highlighting is good enough.
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    • We're talking about PHP here, not all of those things. As far as I'm concerned, Dreamweaver doesn't even come close to being as good of an IDE as many free products, like Eclipse. I've also heard good things about Netbeans,which was mentioned above.

      When I switched from Dreamweaver to Aptana, I was amazed how much more helpful it was for my PHP coding than Dreamweaver's. Not only does it have a thorough PHP function reference that is instantly activated any time you start to type any function name, the JavaScript code tools are far superior to Dreamweaver's. Dreamweaver's JavaScript framework is very limited (Spry), and from what I can tell, not very good at all. In fact, I'd say it is horrible compared to any other mainstream framework (jQuery, Prototype, Dojo, ExtJS, etc...). Aptana has plugins for all of those main frameworks, which pretty much blows Dreamweaver out of the water.
  • I didn't know that, I thought it was only for Java development. Thanks for the heads up.

    Regards,
    Allen
  • What about Microsoft's Expression Web 2? It's supposed to be decent for PHP and there's a really nice Visual Studio plugin called vs.php from jcxsoftware though that if you're a Visual Studio user looks really nice.
  • I'll add a vote for VS.php. I like the way that it integrates with VS, so I can use a common IDE for thick client and web development. Support for php intellisense and integrated testing is very good. It helps that it's got a built in web server for debugging, so you don't have to maintain a full installation of server, etc for quick and dirty scripts is also very nice. With some of the other editors, this is a feature that's lacking.
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  • I use vim for quick editing jobs and Eclipse as my "universal" development platform.

    Tyrus
  • If you're serious about debugging PHP - check Active State Komodo.
    It has IDE, all right, but it has local and remote debugging capacities that no other IDE could compare to.
    I actually use other editor - but when i need to tackle an PHP code issue - I launch Komodo and do serious debugging work over there.

    Gleb
  • I am using eclipse PDT. It's free and very good editor.
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    • PHP Designer is a good one - haven't ever experienced any problems with it

      Aptana is a really nice one, though it does have problems at times with updating or trying to open large files

      Or if your really hard core - Notepad :-D

      Adi
    • Eclipse PDT and NetBeans are 2 IDEs that I will recommend. Recently, PDT has been improved and run faster.
  • I like scite and notepad++
  • Aptana & Active State Komodo
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    • In topics like this it's always relatively difficult to get a fair opinion ... and unfortunately I can't provide one either, since I haven't tested every product on the market.

      In my opinion Eclipse is a solid choice for larger projects, because you can really make a great use of the built-in SVN support. For smaller projects Macromedia Dreamweaver totally suffices - PHP is well supported, the editor shows you arguments of various functions and so on ...
  • I vote Aptana for open source development like php
  • i find dreamweaver the best. its really very easy with great gui
  • if you have the money, dreamweaver is good and will recommend that too ... if not you can stick to open source editors, which is not too bad
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    • I've tried out several.

      Those of you using dreamweaver - for actual code development well its like having a nice looking car on the outside with a small engine inside.. it just doesn't have everything a nice IDE needs for code development. Web pages, yes, CSS yes, now some ajax stuff. But not coding... hmmm.

      I was a long time Eclipse user until Netbeans 6.5 came out with PHP support. Code completion works great for native php (has to be coerced for frameworks like cake, ci, yii, symfony etc..). It's a bit heavy for my needs but it does the job... until.... netbeans.

      So look at Netbeans as a potential tool.
      For the actual web design side then Aptana is ok although its a pain to keep swapping windows.

      Quanta seems good but I'm a mac user (so I'm trying it out using the fink repository version as well as on ubuntu).

      Perhaps you should ask yourself what is it I really need.
      Features such as svn/cvs/mercurial/git code management, running external progs, ftp transfers, code diffing, syntax highlighting, code completion, code tidy tools, docman or similar comment documentation tools..

      Kind regards, Spencer
  • Dreamweaver or just a good text editor for sure.
  • I personally like PHPed. DevPHP is ok too but there are better ones for sure.
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    I have mainly used dreamweaver, just love this tool it gives me enough features to give a adequate support on php,css,html editing.And code also looks good through a Dreamweaver interface.I have worked with microsoft IDEs so my evaluation of a good IDE is based on that and no php IDE even come close to it.
  • just got turned on to netbeans and i see others are giving it the thumbs up too... excellent!
  • I ve used Rapid PHP and its really great. Simple and light software, easy to use.
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  • Too bad no one mentioned PHPDesigner. It's really the best IDE i've came across (and i believe i've tried them all).
    PHPDesigner Website.
    The main pro of this one is that it's NOT Java based. This keeps the whole thing quick.

    Features:
    Intelligent Syntax Highlighter - automatic switch between PHP, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript depending on your position!
    PHP (both version 4 and 5 are supported)
    SQL (MySQL, MSSQL 2000, MSSQL 7, Ingres, Interbase 6, Oracle, Sybase)
    HTML/XHTML
    CSS (both version 1 and 2.1 are supported)
    JavaScript
    VBScript
    Java
    C#
    Perl
    Python
    Ruby
    Smarty

    PHP:
    Support for both PHP 4 and PHP 5
    Code Explorer for PHP (includes, classes, extended classes, interfaces, properties, functions, constants and variables)
    Code Completion (intellisense) for PHP - code assist as you type
    Code Tip (code hint) for PHP - code assist as you type
    Work with any PHP frameworks (access classes, functions, variables etc. on the fly)
    PHP object oriented programming (OOP) including nested objects
    Support for PHP heredoc
    Enclose strings with single- or double quotes, linefeed, carriage return or tabs
    PHP server variables
    PHP statement templates (if, else, then, while...)
    Powerful PHP Code Beautifier with many configurations and profile support
    phpDocumentor wizard
    Add phpDocumentor documentation to functions and classes with one click!
    phpDocumentor tags
    Comment or uncomment with one click!
    Jump to any declaration with filtering by classes, interfaces, functions, variables or constants
    Debug (PHP):
    Debug with Xdebug
    Breakpoints
    Step by step debugging
    Step into
    Step over
    Run to cursor
    Run until return
    Call stack
    Watches
    Context variables
    Evaluate
    Profiling
    Multiple sessions
    Evaluation Tip
    Catch errors
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    • Errr.....I did in post #44 on this thread, although I only gave it a passing mention and you sold it beautifully!
  • I've tried most of the above and Webuilder is exceptional. But for my money (or not) the BEST is Aptana - Aptana. PHP hints, classes, outlines, the works.
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    • There's lot's to choose from and some might say that the free ones are the best, but I use one called PHP Designer. It's full featured and it has built in debugger, code highlighting, code hinting, manuals, and tons of other stuff.
  • Dreamweaver is a good multi-purpose IDE. I Love it. But Zend Studio is specifically good for PHP development.
  • I use Aptana (Eclipse based), but the new version of NetBeans is pretty cool. I have to use Dreamweaver at my day job, but I prefer open source software myself.
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    • For simple stuff I use Notepad++.

      When things get more complex and I need interactive debugging I reach for NetBeans.

      I can't say that NetBeans is better than any other 'cause I haven't really tried anything else. I don't do enough serious PHP development to concern myself with it.

      For the most part, NetBeans does what I need so I've stuck with it.

      Ralph
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  • I use KomodoEdit and sometimes Netbeans IDE.
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  • I've also started experimenting with NetBeans lately. I used it to make several edits to my new plugin, and like it alot. Although I think some of its features need to grow, It is much faster than Aptana for editing large files. Aptana (Eclipse) has some serious problems with its syntax highlighter that happens when a single quote is open, and there's a huge file ahead. Also, it just seems to have a lot of trouble in general when editing huge files. Anything over 1000 lines it seems to have trouble with. So far I haven't had any trouble with Netbeans in this area at all.

    Part of the reason I've been learning Netbeans is also because I'm interested in learning more about Java. It has a really good Java platform...
  • netbeans is written in Java isn't it? any UI using Java is slow slow slow and a big no no for me!
  • I've tried Eclipse PDT, with some success. Aptana is also pretty good, or if you are doing a lot of AJAX stuff, it's great. Your mileage may vary, however, depending on what additional plugins you want to use with them
  • i love notepad ++ it works the best for me
  • Eclipse is the best for hard coders, eclipse PDT completes classes functions and variables for Object oriented frameworks and programming . .
  • Zend Studio is getting better with its version 7.0 i am using that to track classes and functions. ( its a wow feature for opensource / code which you didnt create )

    its a bit saggy on memory, but worth it. Dreamweaver lacks that feature but wins on WYSIWYG and sql interactions.

    Notepad++ is a quickee and it does its job well

    Codelobster for php is a free program now and it has wordpress, smarty and joomla . a plugins.. a wow for those into these stuff
  • I use NetNeans and Notepad++

    Rudolf
  • I am not a full time programmer but I like codecharge studio...especially for someone who likes to build web applications mainly using components and not coding. It's great for that.

    It reminds me of Visual Basic when I used it years ago to make Windows applications
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  • Definitely Netbeans if you are going for a free editor. Eclipse and Aptana are just too slow and bloated.
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    • and netbeans isn't? runs like a lame dog.
    • Eclipse is great if you want to have something extremely extensible. For instance, if you want to make a bloated enterprise level email/collaboration client or a bloated eticketing client. I guarantee there's a few corporate or ex-corporate warriors grinning about those.

      It's also a great IDE, but I just feel that Netbeans outshines it as an IDE. Others may disagree but they may not have taken a close look at Netbeans either.
  • Netbeans and jEdit and I've tried all mentioned here. Netbeans is by far the most feature-rich and it's free.
  • i love netbeans
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    • I'd just about marry Netbeans, if I wasn't already married.
  • Adobe Dreamweaver is the BEST!
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    • jEdit is great for javascript, especially when dealing with frameworks and nesting about a deep as the ocean. It' difficult to keep the code looking nice, jEdit has great folding and an auto-indent feature that's amazing. Get candyfolds plugin for it as well. When I work with PHP, it's usually in NetBeans. When I have Javascript to edit, I usually go to jEdit.
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  • i use netbeans just because its free!
  • Hello, Eclips tool, the PHP IDE Project is a planned open-source project under the Eclipse Tools Project. This document explains the content and the scope of the anticipated project.
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  • For multiple programming languages to be added based upon what you want to program. And the php version is like only a 30 MB download vs. the other IDE's at their 100+ MB downloads.
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    • I'm currently using WeBuilder 2008 and DreamWeaver CS4. I tend to lean more on WeBuilder; I was taught to hand code and it has stuck ever since. However, DreamWeaver has a great deal to offer; it's a heavy program first and foremost, takes a while to load but has a ton of features. WeBuilder is far more impressive on code hinting, syntax highlight and has an easy project manager. Unlike other editors it does not require a new project to simply open a new page. The downside is that once a project is loaded, it stays in the explorer view until you switch to another or delete it. It does not have an option to unload (knit picking).
      DreamWeaver has a ton of plugins for Javascript libraries some PHP and many more, but it does not keep you honest. You can implement Javascript widgets quite easily, but editing that code to make it just right is a pain in the - you know what. For some it's great and can save time, for me it's a distraction sometimes. Getting knee deep in the code can only improve your skill set besides killing some brain cells. For some reason I've been searching like crazy to find an editor that is equal or better than WeBuilder; I've tried Komodo, Aptana, Eclipse and even Zend Studio. Some provide more features but were lacking in other areas that I've grown accustom to. Aptana 3 seems very promising, but is still in Beta stage and might have gotten more complexed instead of being easier to use. WeBuilder is my program of choice, I'm not saying that it's the best for others but it works for me. DreamWeaver has a lot of Wow factors, if you are only going to use it for coding, it has a huge price tag. The wysiwyg part of it perhaps the best on the market if you take the time to learn all of its features. In the end it's easier to just roll up your sleeves and go in the code (at least for me and I'm just doing XHTML & CSS).
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  • I originally used Aptana with there PHP plug-in until the dropped in house PHP support.

    Then I switched to NetBeans which is heavy especially if you are like me with large projects and a lot of them going. It does run alright on a Work Station.

    Then I started checking into a new one on the block a few months back phpStorm.
    I played with there demo for a while and it is now my main IDE. It does have a few issues like framework support but they are very active and push out a lot of builds.

    One of the features that I fell in love with is it's live templates. It allows a few key strokes to spit out commonly used code chunks. Very effective and really speeds up development. I have gotten to the point with phpStorm that I have all of my favorite shortcuts from the other IDE's that I used built into live templates.
    It isn't free, but it is affordable, not like ZendStudio.

    Aptana3 beta is bringing back in house PHP support but is a ways out yet. I have been following the builds though.
  • I personally would love to code in PHP with Expression Web 4.0 as I have been coding in it for ASP.NET and I think it would be robust for PHP too
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