While investing in a website is a straightforward choice for some businesses, it can be a daunting task for others. If budgetary constraints are a primary concern for your organisation, fret not. There are numerous economical resources available to support developers in successfully executing their projects.
Examples of such tools include website frameworks, photo editors, HTML editors and time-saving utilities.
Let us take a look at some of these tools.
WordPress
When people mention ‘WordPress’, they are most likely referring to its hosted version, WordPress.com. Nevertheless, there is also a self-hosted, open-source version of the platform available.
To avoid incurring costs for upgrades on WordPress.com, you may select to host your website by downloading and installing the source code on your servers. Softaculous, for instance, offers a quick and easy installation process for WordPress on third-party hosting providers’ servers, provided that you have already purchased the domain and hosting (if required).
Choosing this option allows you to bypass any additional expenses for a separate hosting service while still enjoying the premium features of WordPress. Additionally, deploying WordPress in a container allows for easy scaling to meet varying demands.
GIMP
Visuals are crucial for successful website design. Photos play a vital role in attracting visitors to explore pages and make purchases. Neglecting to use visually appealing, high-quality images can result in missed revenue opportunities.
Fortunately, there are ways to avoid spending a significant sum on software such as Photoshop. GIMP, a free and open-source alternative, is an excellent option as it offers almost identical capabilities.
You can download GIMP from their website www.gimp.org.
GIMP is a free, open-source program that can be downloaded for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It is the perfect solution for those seeking a fast and affordable way to create high-quality graphics for their website.
Bluefish
Website developers can make use of Bluefish, a powerful editor that enables easy integration with various web technologies such as HTML, CSS, Java, JavaScript, Python, and Ruby. In addition, Bluefish supports a broad variety of other languages, making it an ideal open-source and free tool for website development.
You can download Bluefish from their website bluefish.openoffice.nl.
Bluefish can be used across different platforms, including Linux, macOS, and Windows. Its user-friendly interface makes it easy for developers to learn and take advantage of its features. In addition to the typical code editor functions, Bluefish also offers options such as an image dialogue, a wizard for creating thumbnails and links, and customizable toolbars.
Download Bluefish from their website bluefish.openoffice.nl.
Angular.js
Angular.js is a highly popular framework used for developing single-page web applications, which has become increasingly common due to the rise in mobile web usage as opposed to traditional web development.
Angular.js makes it effortless to develop a Single-Page Application (SPA) using HTML and JavaScript. Although basic HTML can suffice for certain tasks, when creating dynamic views in web applications, Angular.js provides greater flexibility.
Like the other resources mentioned below, Angular.js is available for free (and is also open-source).
Sass
Sass is a scripting language that gets compiled into Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Its name is a testament to its impressive capabilities. Developers who use Sass can enhance the functionalities of CSS with features like variables, nested rules and mixins, making it more efficient and adaptable.
To learn more about Vue 3 and other development insights visit our blog page.
Sass is acknowledged as the standard CSS extension by numerous big companies across the globe. With over a decade of existence, it has a vast development community.
Moreover, Sass is open-source and can be downloaded for free.
Chrome Dev Tools
Integrated within the Chrome browser, Chrome DevTools is an incredibly helpful tool for developers to view their work in real-time and make the required modifications, such as to the CSS. Moreover, Chrome DevTools make it easy to:
- Validate the animations
- Compile a list of probable CSS improvements
- Inspect the CSS layout grid.
- Print preview mode on demand
- Recorded comments
- Run JavaScript code in-console.
- Monitor the present values of JavaScript.
- Validate all network activity
- Cookies are visible, editable, and can be removed.
- Retrieve and modify local files
- Explore and modify your IndexDB records
- Analyze the data stored in the application’s cache
Chrome DevTools is an incredibly useful program for developers, and its numerous features that are already integrated with Chrome make it an indispensable tool. Furthermore, this tool is free and accessible on various platforms, in line with Chrome’s philosophy.
GitHub
GitHub is not only a code storage platform, but also serves as a version control system. It is crucial for developers who work in a team environment to fully leverage GitHub’s capabilities. To facilitate efficient collaboration, it is advisable to keep all website code in a GitHub repository that is accessible to all members of the team.
GitHub has become a widely utilized resource by engineers across the globe, with free access. However, extra features like Codespaces, Protected Branches, and Draft Pull Requests are available for a fee.
At some stage, you will require access to a code repository, and GitHub is the best place to begin.
Conclusion
Allocating resources towards acquiring the essential tools that enable your web developers to work efficiently should be cost-effective. With just one of these tools, you can enhance your team’s productivity without surpassing your budget. We recommend trying out any of these software programs to determine if they become an integral part of your development team.
