Angular JS IDEs
Angular JS is one of the most popular frontend frameworks. First released by Google in 2009, it has maintained its relevance and grown its audience. Its first spike of popularity happened with the release of an SPA (single-page application) with a great interactive interface that was developed with Angular JS. This project upended the software development industry and gave birth to a new type of online platform.
Angular JS ensures the responsiveness of client-side features and uses the traditional HTML, CSS, and JS trio to build web app UI. Its Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) enables double-side data binding and allows developers and designers to work simultaneously and independently. Opportunities for integration with third-party libraries and extensions make Angular JS highly customizable. In particular, the use of a special IDE is a common way to empower the framework.
What is an Angular JS IDE?
An Integrated Development Environment (IDE) is a virtual platform that includes at least one source code editor, build automation functionality and a debugger. It can also provide a compiler, an interpreter, a version control system, class and object browsers, and a class hierarchy diagram.
While the Angular JS framework has template functionality that can be changed according to project requirements, Angular JS IDE provides a platform upon which the template is analyzed and adjusted. In other words, an IDE is a virtual workplace where programmers have all the conditions and tools necessary to quickly and effectively refine a particular framework.
All software development stages can be executed in a single IDE. You can author, modify, compile, deploy, and debug the app without shifting codebase to a new environment each time you want to perform a certain operation.
Below we list the best IDEs for Angular JS and briefly outline their characteristics. Each has robust advantages, and the technology you choose depends on your individual requirements.
1. Angular IDE
- Released by Webclipse
- Tailored specifically to Angular and supports versions up to 7
- Angular CLI integration
- Can be used as a standalone solution or in combination with the Eclipse plugin
- A simple interface and a rich toolkit make it a good option for both novice and experienced programmers
- Conveniently highlighted syntax
- Formatting can be performed for separate blocks or an entire file
- Errors are detected and displayed in the process of coding
- Validation and auto-complete functions for HTML templates
2. Visual Studio Code
- Released by Microsoft, which means reliability
- Cross-platform – can be used on Windows, Linux, and OS X
- TypeScript coding
- Code auto-completion and debugging ensure maximum accuracy and speed of coding
- Seamless import of third-party modules and functionality
- Codebase refactoring
- Snippets
- Conveniently highlighted syntax
- Git commands
- The development environment can be customized and extended based on project needs, which allows for the launch of unique products
3. Webstorm
- Released by Jetbrains
- Uses TypeScript and offers many language-specific built-in features
- Integration with Visual Studio Code
- Smart coding
- Complete plugin configuration
- Version control system
- Local history
- Seamless integration of third-party tools
- Easy testing and debugging
- Frequent releases ensure compliance with modern web requirements
- Built-in terminal
4. Sublime Text
- Upscale performance
- Cross-platform
- Supports TypeScript
- Offers many original tools and features
- Flexible customization
- Intuitive controls
- Allows for editing markup, code, and text
- Goto anything
- Plugin programming interface
- Command palette
- Instant project switch
- Split edits
5. Brackets
- Open-source
- Compact and nimble
- A rich set of visual tools
- Cross-platform – can be used for Mac, Windows and Linux
- A great choice for unusual, highly customized projects
- Live preview
- Inline edits
- Preprocessor support
6. Atom
- Released by Github
- Cross-platform – can be used for Android, Mac, Linux and some other OSs
- Enjoys high popularity and support of an extensive community that constantly supplies new extensions, contributing to the development and renovation of Atom technology
- A flexible programming environment that can be easily customized based on programmers’ goals and workstyle
- Built-in syntax themes and package manager
- Four user interface options
- A broad range of packages
- Auto-completion
- Easy browsing
- File system browser
7. Aptana Studio
- Available for free
- A special extension customizes Aptana to Angular JS
- Universal – can be used for a variety of other frameworks and libraries
- Robust testing toolkit
- Flexible customization
- Deployment wizard
- Supports HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
- In-built terminal
8. ALM IDE
- TypeScript support
- npm command installation
- Cloud-ready
- Lightweight
Other Tools to Enhance Angular JS Development
For smooth and time-efficient web app development, we recommend using the following tools in addition to an IDE:
- Automated testing programs for detecting bugs without tedious manual work, which is especially challenging due to the scale and rich functionality of modern apps. Good examples include Karma, Protractor, Jasmine and Mocha.js.
- Text editors like Angular GetText (translates browser text into a local language) and Code Orchestra (live-style coding and automatic edit implementation).
- Speed drivers. Speed of work is one of the key performance factors for software development agencies. To attract and retain clients in today’s competitive environment, they need to quickly assemble digital products without loss of quality. Angular Kickstart, Angular Seed, and AngularJS UI are good examples of extensions that help speed up the development process.
- Development optimization tools. There are many other things apart from speed that need to be optimized to ensure cost-effective software development. Ment.io, Dj Angular, AngularFire, Rest-Angular, Generator Angular, NG-Inspector, Mean, Angular Deckgrid, and Videogular are great tools to consider for your Angular JS development stack.
Wrapping It Up
An effective toolkit is half the battle in software development. The success and demand for Angular JS services depends largely on whether the technologies and approaches used comply with modern development and project requirements. It is important to monitor updates by software vendors and leverage new products. Since many popular tools are open-source and enjoy active community support, you can acquire all the necessary code and tips free of charge. All you have to invest are time, effort and dedication to your professional growth.
It’s up to you to decide on the most suitable integrated development environment to create great apps on a convenient platform equipped with all the necessary functionality. And be sure to try some of the other helpful tools listed in this article.