Whether you are a web developer working on someone else’s projects or you run a business yourself, utilizing the right tools of the trade is essential.
The market of software development tools is an ever-changing one and increasingly competitive. It’s very easy to let things fall through the cracks if you take your finger off this field’s pulse for a second.
This is where we come to the rescue!
In this article, we have compiled a list of 11 best software development tools and utilities. They all belong to a range of diverse industries and profiles. We have done a little bit of full-scope research and came up with the definitive collection of programs that will make your work easier and way more productive.
Not only will using these add more value to your business and/or projects…
…but you will stay well ahead of competitors who may be too scooped up to keep up with the most recent trends.
Read on for the full breakdown of the best tools that software development experts use in their work in 2021.
Simply put – any utilities or computer programs that focus on a certain aspect of software development work and facilitate the conception and realization of a final product.
A bewildering variety of these tools that have hit the market this year point to one thing only: the rise of demand for more versatile solutions depending on business requirements, processes and deployment.
These programs will debug apps, maintain code, test frameworks and databases, engineer best co-op practices…and everything in-between! And they’re all out there with a single purpose: to give their users and, subsequently, clients a technological advantage over all others.
In other words, with optimal usage – they will bring multiple benefits to your business, too!
So, without further ado…on to the software development tool list that defined businesses in 2021!
1. Microsoft Azure
The IT giant Microsoft has a long-standing history of being at the vanguard of software development.
Their pivotal tool for building and managing apps, Azure, can be downloaded for free from their official website. It’s a fairly simple utility that makes developing of web applications quick and reliable.
It is held in very high regard by developers and app designers for its ability to detect threats on the go, thus preventing potential fatal outcomes even before the testing phase begins.
Users can upgrade from free to a full-fledged version of the tool at any point. The upgrade itself comes with extra perks and numerous add-ons such as Windows and Linux Virtual Machines, Managed Disks and so on. However, it is useful to note that over 25 Azure services are always free.
In a nutshell, the list of things developers can do with free account is as follows:
2. Cloud9
A formerly open-source development environment, Cloud9 justifies its name by making a software development tool market breakthrough in some style. Acquired by Amazon Web Services in 2016, this cloud-based program is every language programmer’s dream.
Not only does it support Python, Ruby, JavaScript, PHP, C, Perl and numerous other languages, it can be also used for scripting and debugging the code in the very cloud. Moreover, its power is of a reliable, confident kind as it even completes code suggestions for quickness of use.
One major obstacles most developers face when creating software environment is alternating between remote and local testing and getting authentic results. Cloud9 clears that hurdle out of the way via serverless applications that make this a very reachable reality.
3. Atom
A versatile open-source text editor, Atom’s stylish appearance and interface are completely free to download. Software tool developers love it due to its flexible character and the fact that it can be easily modified to suit everyone’s needs (as in it’s hackable).
Atom is available for all operating systems including Windows, Linux and OS X. It takes a certain pride in that its config file doesn’t even need to be altered in order to adjust the user interface.
Much like the previous item in our list, it lets developers finish their pieces of code quickly and easily through autocomplete featurette.
Users can even:
1. GitHub
Although going it alone is never strictly ruled out, the honest trade of software development yields best results in collaborations. However, due to obvious human-factor reasons, that isn’t always easy to attain.
But there’s at least one project management tool that makes group effort…well, effortless!
GitHub is an open-source development platform that users can utilize to review and manage their code and entire projects. Building software with a 40 million strong base of developers has turned from mere fantasy into reality.
This handy tool has the bragging rights of being used by over 2.1 million business organizations.
2. Zend
One of the success factors that is constantly on everyone’s minds is: productivity. Zend is a tool designed specifically to boost this particular aspect of one’s work.
This PHP-based IDE is one of the very best software development tools to come out this year used by programmers, designers and devs worldwide to code, test, debug and test their creations in desktop and mobile environments.
There is substance behind creators’ bold claim that Zend is “the fastest way to enterprise PHP”. Built for scalability as well as security, it points out to these key abilities:
…Zend works in unison with Xdebug, Z-Ray and other tools enhancing debugging capabilities. It can even work with GitHub’s GitFlow and other development tools for which it has support capabilities. Likewise, Microsoft Azure and Amazon AWS can deploy PHP apps made with Zend.
Depending on one’s (or team’s) needs, Zend comes in two variants: Developer Edition and Production Edition. Their portfolio of clients boasts over 40,000 internationally recognized names across various industries.
3. Trello
Trello is commonly used by software development teams because of its ability to make workflow easier.
It offers boards, lists and cards that allow you to organize yourself and your team in a flexible way. Among its features, there are also adding comments, setting due dates and uploading attachments that make collaboration between team members smooth.
This tool also makes it possible to prioritize actions and monitor progress while boosting software developers’ productivity.
What’s great about Trello is that it integrates with several online platforms such as GitHub, Google Drive, JIRA Cloud, Slack and Bitbucket.
1. X-Cart
If there is one branch of web-based industry that can look forward to a bright and shiny future, it is e-commerce. Shopping will never go out of style or become superfluous, and e-shopping is its 21st-century facet.
With online shops popping up left and right, it’s vital for developers to equip themselves with e-commerce development tools. They need to meet the standards of building responsive, light-weight, effective and secure shops.
One such tool is X-Cart – an open-source coding high-hitter of a program that has given Magento a run for its money. X-Cart can integrate seamlessly with WordPress, but it really ups its game when used with their own hosting service.
Take a closer look at X-Cart and you’ll notice that it also has:
1. Jira
Part of the widely recognized Atlassian Suite, Jira Software has two main purposes: planning and managing projects and tracking of issues. And for both reasons, it is much loved in the software development community and its agile teams.
Jira’s main use is for planning, tracking and releasing software that is ready to take on the world from the get to. It can help developers create stories on issues and delegate tasks across the entire team. It also makes for a visible environment in which the entire team’s work gets fully contextualized. That way, it’s much easier to discuss and prioritize tasks.
Ensuring complete privacy, data encryption and compliance, this up-and-coming development tool knows its safety ABCs. It can also be further expanded with countless apps and other Atlassian-native services. Potential users are presented with three distinctive cloud-hosted plans: Starter, Standard and Premium.
2. Perforce Helix Core
Perforce is a company that specializes in streamlining software developer teams’ processes. Through their many products, they demonstrate deep understanding of multi-faceted nature and complexity of bringing apps to reality.
One of their cornerstone products that stands out from the crowd in 2021 is Helix Core. This super-capable tool protects users most valuable assets, can scale work at great lengths and enables effortless collaboration.
In a nutshell:
Helix Core keeps track of changes in source code and helps you manage them. This, in turn, makes your teamwork much faster, no matter the complexity of the project. It’s robust and built to endure: this tool can contain thousands and thousands of users and software developers, millions of transactions on a daily basis and huge quantities of data.
It will automate workflows, integrate with your toolset and deliver continuous high performances.
HelixCore can come with a suite of Helix products that include:
1. qTest Manager
Quality assurance testing is a must for any self-respecting enterprise that wishes to keep its integrity and spare themselves blushes. In that regard, qTest Manager secures a robust, reliable and lightning-fast interface.
This software development tool enables its users to organize their tests in a facile manner thanks to its flexible configuration and real-time tracking of executions.
Its creators take some pride in that qTest Manager is:
This awesome software development tool’s real-time QA metrics and reporting can deliver data necessary for improving a team’s productivity rate. It can also increase visibility through simple and complex reports. A multitude of filtering options can be used to custom-tailor the report right to measure.
1. ModSecurity
Finally, as a proverbial icing on a cake, comes the question of safety and security. There can’t be enough talk of this when it comes to software development. There is just too many rogue individuals and organizations just waiting for you to make that final slip up.
Thankfully, there’s strength in numbers – and expertise! Hundreds if not thousands of brands out there are working diligently on coming up with security tools so we don’t lose any of that precious sleep.
One such do-good company is the one behind ModSecurity, an open-source program that uses firewall applicable on dozens of different servers.
What it then does is:
ModSecurity’s creators like to point out the four guiding principles they are basing their brainchild on:
To recap, there are some truly inventive software development tools breaking through to the mainstream public. Some of the talking points presented above are:
It’s of vital importance for businesses, their executive decisionmakers and managers to recognize and define their need for a certain product and reach out to its respective parent company. Having a clear idea about your business’ direction and putting these software development tools to that use can make all the difference.
Luckily, we can help there, too!
Browse through our site’s directory of top software development companies to find the exact match for your needs! And in order to capitalize on software projects by making them as successful as possible, you can skim through their portfolio, services and clients.
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