Comparison of 7 popular PHP integrated development tools (IDES)

This article explores all the uses of the integrated development environment (IDE) and compares the costs and benefits of 7 popular Ides.

Writing a series of articles about PHP gave me a deeper understanding of the world of PHP developers. I've talked to a lot of PHP programmers and it's amazing to me that only a few people use the IDE. Most programmers use a text editor, such as Notepad, Emacs, or Vim on Microsoft Windows.

The text editors I mentioned (and I didn't mention) are pretty good--I don't want to discuss which editor is better. However, I would like to emphasize that not using a text editor will give you a deeper insight into PHP code. Almost everyone treats the PHP project as just a file directory (a very partial view). Now let me take you to the IDE's world and show you what the IDE can--or should--bring to you and introduce you to the seven most popular Ides.

What is an IDE?

In short, the IDE provides a one-stop service for coding efforts. The IDE includes an editor in which you can edit code, debug code, view code in a browser (usually embedded), and check in and check out source control. To support these features, the IDE has a set of features that are not found in the basic Editor (such as Notepad or Vim). Of course, you can implement these features by extending the editor, but the IDE includes all of these features in a thin package-and is preconfigured:

Project

One of the key features of the IDE is that it sees a PHP application as a project, not just a set of files. The concept-project-maintains additional information, such as the configuration of source control, the database settings for debugging, and the location of a critical directory.

Debugging

Another convenient feature is integrated debugging. With this feature, you can set breakpoints in the editor and stop when the PHP interpreter executes the script. Starting at the breakpoint, you can examine the value of the local variable and diagnose the problem in your code. You can use the Echo statement in your code to examine the value, or you can use the error log to get the value of the variable.

Code Intelligence

PHP is a very regular programming language, which means it follows a simple pattern. These patterns not only make the code easy to write, but also make it easy for the IDE to examine the code in the project. In addition, they can help you write programs by displaying check results. For example, if you define a class named MyClass in your project, the IDE immediately provides a pop-up window that includes MyClass as an option when you type the keyword new. When you use an object of that type, the IDE displays its available methods and instance variables. When you start typing a function command, the IDE displays its available parameters. To be fair, this is the primary reason why you should use the IDE instead of the text editor. This code intelligence can effectively reduce the typing of the wrong class name, method name, and parameters.

Class View

Another role that the code intelligence engine in the IDE produces is that the IDE can produce a Class view of the project. Instead of displaying files, the system displays different classes that have already been defined, regardless of the file they reside in. When you click a class, the editor accesses the file and displays the appropriate class, method, or instance variable. This is a great way to navigate a large project.

Multi-lingual support

Each of the Ides mentioned here supports PHP and supports a set of related languages: JavaScript, structured Query Language (SQL), hypertext Markup Language (HTML), and cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Because HTML and CSS are relatively simple, the IDE supports them best. Support for Javascript often highlights syntax, but support is better than unsupported.

Source Control

All the Ides evaluated here support a number of connections to the source control system, allowing file versions to be maintained over time in the project. You can mark a special version of a file as a release version so that you can recover it if you need to undo the change. It is critical to use the source control system in a team environment, even for personal use. A good source control system can work when the disk is paralyzed or the customer suddenly wants the previous version instead of the current version. Most IDES support Concurrent Version System (CVS) and Subversion, both of which are open source control systems. One of the Ides supports perforce--a commercial source control system.

FTP/SFTP Integration

A feature associated with source control is the use of FTP on the server for the latest code. This is much easier than using an FTP client or packaging a file and sending it to the server and then unpacking it.

Database navigation

A non-basic but very useful feature is database navigation. With this feature, you can browse the database that the application accesses, find the table and field names, and return the query results. Some systems can even write some database access code automatically.

Integrated Web Browser

Some IDES support an integrated Web browser that allows you to navigate directly to a page that is being edited using the specified additional parameters, which can be hosted inside the IDE or externally. Honestly, I don't really like the integrated browser because I don't mind switching between the two separate applications that edit the code and view the results. But I know it does make a difference, but you don't have to use it.

Fragment

The last feature I found in all of these Ides was support for the entire segment and custom code snippets. A fragment is a small piece of code that completes a small task, such as running a regular expression in some inputs, connecting to a database, and querying a database.

The above summarizes the core features that are currently expected from the purchased or open source IDE. Next, you'll introduce some of the popular Ides, show some IDE pictures, and explain the features they support and their costs.
　　Eclipse

There are two plugins in the Eclipse development platform that support PHP. The first PHP IDE project is the Eclipse Foundation project, which means it is published within the Eclipse license and developed using Eclipse Foundation tools and methods.

The other is PHPEclipse, which is developed independently. Because Eclipse is used, both plug-ins can run on three operating systems: Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. You can download only the two plugins (if you already use Eclipse), or download the Pre-Fab version that contains all the content you need.

Both plug-ins support core IDE features. In particular, the Code intelligence feature, which is very powerful, can pop up and display all the required classes, methods, and parameter information when needed.

Figure 1 shows the phpeclipse running on Mac OS x. On the left is the project view of the file in the project. The following is a Class view that shows all classes that have already been defined. The middle is the code. You can open multiple files in several tabs at the same time. On the right is the debug and browse panel. This is a common PHPEclipse user interface.

Figure 1. PHPEclipse on OS X

Figure 2. PHP IDE Project on OS X

If you can't see the difference, it doesn't matter. The two plug-ins look really similar, because they all rely on the Eclipse platform to render code browsing and intelligence features. It's a good thing that the Eclipse plugin GUI is consistent.

I didn't find a plugin that could lock you into an Eclipse project. You can often replace one plugin with another. In my limited testing, I prefer the PHP IDE project plugin because I feel it integrates better, and the performance of the Code intelligence features seems to be faster. Try these two plugins to see which one you prefer.

The disadvantage of these two plugins is that the UI is not tailored to PHP, because Eclipse can be used in almost all programming languages. As a result, Eclipse's terminology was initially somewhat unorthodox. If you are just beginning to learn Eclipse, these plugins are more difficult to learn than other Ides. However, if you already know about Eclipse, you'll be familiar with phpeclipse or PHP IDE projects more quickly.

What are the biggest benefits of Eclipse and these plugins? They are free and stable and reliable. Oh, did I mention that they are free?

Komodo

The next one to introduce is the ActiveState Komodo IDE. The IDE runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux and supports common open source languages--perl, PHP, and Ruby. The Code intelligence engine is very reliable. It scans all language installations to find custom extensions, such as the PEAR module. On the project side, it supports integration with CVS, Subversion, and Perforce, and also allows code to be passed directly to the server FTP.

Figure 3 shows the Komodo running on Windows. On the left is the Class View and the project view on the right. The main part of the middle is the code view. The following are debugging breakpoints, command output, and so on. For all of these systems, you can customize the UI as needed.

Figure 3. Komodo running on Windows

Komodo is a commercial product. When I was writing this article, the IDE had a personal version (us$29.95) and a Professional edition (us$299.95) with two versions to choose from. A unique feature of this is the regular expression debugger. Whether you're new to regular expressions or have begun to get involved in advanced general expression features, this purchase is worth the effort.

Its disadvantage is that there is no database integration (at least I can't find it), and I've also encountered a little problem with code intelligence that doesn't always pop up when you want it. In general, however, Komodo is a robust, feature-rich, reliable PHP IDE.

PHP Designer

PHP Designer is not the same as other Ides. Of course, it supports limited code intelligence. However, it is more focused on the design aspects of PHP WEB applications. This is evident in its integrated browser, which specifically uses the pixel ruler to help locate elements on the page.

Figure 4 shows the PHP designer that is running.

Figure 4. PHP Designer on Windows

PHP's Code intelligence and debugging features in PHP Designer are not significant, and the code intelligence support for HTML, CSS, and JavaScript is relatively strong. The PHP designer is somewhere between the IDE that programmers use (primarily code-focused) and Adobe Dreamweaver (more focused on design). If you are looking for such intermediate products, then PHP Designer is worth considering because the IDE is free for personal use and the Professional Edition is only us$55.

phped

Nusphere's only Windows-only phped feature is the richest in all of the Ides introduced here. It has a good internal debugger and puts the debug toolbar inside Microsoft Internet Explorer for easier access to page debugging.

Figure 5 shows the development of PHP applications using phped in Windows. On the far left is the project's file view. Right next to the Class View, the rightmost is the code view. The following is the output status. You may have noticed that all of these Ides follow the same basic design style.

Figure 5. Phped in Windows

The salient features of phped include a great debugger, excellent database access, good code intelligence, and integrated PHP help. The price range for phped is from the base version of us$119 to the professional version of us$495. There is also a trial version available.

Phpedit

Phpedit from waterproof software feels like a Microsoft msdev environment for PHP-it's a good thing. Phpedit is a Windows-only IDE that is easy to set up. It even has the PHP version. It does well in terms of code intelligence for PHP, CSS, and HTML, but does not provide support for JavaScript code intelligence. Figure 6 shows the running Phpedit.

Figure 6. Phpedit in Windows

For ease of deployment, Phpedit can connect to CVS and Subversion, as well as FTP and its own proprietary ezdeployment system. In addition to the Code intelligence features, to speed up development, this IDE has an excellent code sample overall template library, you can also add content to the library. Phpedit Evaluation version can be used free of charge, to get the official version, need us$89.

Zend Studio

Finally, let's talk about Zend Studio, which was last listed just because it starts with Z. It should probably be the first one you think of. Why? Because it comes from the elite team behind the zend--php. And it's really good. It runs on three major systems: Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. and is absolutely able to provide everything you need: PHP V4, PHP V5, and so on. It takes a long time to download, but it's well worth it.

As Ide,zend Studio is the best. It provides all the code intelligence features that you want to have in your built-in libraries and custom code. It also has very good debugging capabilities and is extremely easy to set up. To put the code in the Repository (repository), Zend Studio connects to CVS and Subversion. To put the code on the server, there is an integrated FTP that can be used. Zend Studio is ideal for the Macintosh, shown in 7.

Figure 7. Zend Studio on Mac

In some other Ides, code snippets are built-in to make coding easier. The IDE also integrates directly with the database to give the tables and fields available.

Zend Studio's Standard Edition requires us$99, and the Pro version requires us$299. Some of the features I mentioned here are not included in the standard version. The Zend Studio Trial version is free to use.

Conclusion

There are a number of great ides to choose from-some of which are even free-you can choose a trial, especially if you're a professional. You may be required to pay a company or individual consultant fee, or you may have to spend money to purchase the necessary goods. If you consider using the Echo debug code to compare the time spent using the integrated debugger, the IDE's purchase price is definitely worth it.

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