Code Editors: Advantages and Types + Best Code Editors for Windows OS, Mac, Linux, Android, Unix

Code Editors: Advantages and Types + Best Code Editors for Popular OS - Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Unix, Android

Code editors are used for writing and editing computer source codes hence, they are also referred to as source code editors. A source code editor which may be a standalone program, or a program built into an IDE (Integrated Development Environment) is a program used for writing and editing computer source codes.

It is also possible to code on the inbuilt Notepad in Windows or the MacOS Notes, but they do not give us the flexibility and ease of coding available in a dedicated code editing program.

The following are some of the advantages of using code editors to write your codes.

Advantages of Using Dedicated Code Editors Text Editors Like Notepad

1. They Offer Colorized Markup: Code editors can colorize your markups, showing variables, and other important parts of your source code for greater understanding of the coding and debugging process.
2. They Provide Easy Search and Replace Functionality: Dedicated code editors have easy search and replace functionalities that help you to easily find and replace texts, and lines of codes. As your codes get bigger, this functionality will be greatly helpful.
3. They Offer Line and/or Column Numbers: Provision of line/column numbers in code editors make it possible to easily navigate through your code, and see at a glance how far you've coded. They also help to easily visualize specific positions and locations in your codes also.

Other advantages of code editors include:

• Syntax Highlighting
• Auto Indentation
• Auto Completion
• Brace Matching

These editors immediately warn you of any syntax errors, thereby, removing the necessity for worry about code syntax from the developer.

Now lets look at the best code editors available today

Best Code Editors in 2021

1. Sublime Text: Sublime Text is available for Windows, MacOS and Linux. This editor is written and C++ and Python, and supports many programming languages. Sublime Text also supports switching between different programming languages as you write your code.
2. Atom: Atom supports cross platform editing, and has a built-in package manager. A free program for writing and editing your source codes, Atom is built using web technologies, and is available for Windows, Mac and Linux. This code editor also supports many languages.
3. Notepad ++: This editor was built using C++ and uses win 32 STL. Notepad ++ supports HTML, CSS, PHP and JavaScript, and offers syntax highlighting, auto completion and auto indentation. It is available for Windows, Linux, Unix, and Mac.
4. Brackets: It is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. This editor is written in HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, and it supports HTML, JavaScript and CSS.
5. Ultra Edit: This code editor supports HTML, CSS, C++ HTML,PHP, SAS code, PL/SQL, UNIX Shell Scripts and Visual Basic. It runs on Windows, Mac OS, and Linux. It special features include multi-caret editing, supports column editing, FTP, Telnet, and integrated SSH.
   
6. Visual Studio Code: This code editor supports several languages including Java, C++ Typescript, JSON, and many more. It was written in JavaScript, Typescript, and CSS, and is available for Windows, Mac and Linux. Its special features include auto completion, and editing with break points.
7. Vim: Vim is written with Vim script and C, and is available for Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Unix and Android. Its special features include compressed files editing capability, and mouse interaction. Vim supports many programming languages.
8. Bluefish: Written in C, bluefish supports C, C++, Go, Java, HTML, JSP. It is a cross-platform program, and supports code navigation and auto completion.
9. Textmate: This free program is available for the Mac platform, and supports many languages. Textmate supports auto pairing for brackets, and can record macros without programming.
10. Text Wrangler: It supports many languages including ANSI C, C++, Java, Perl, Python, Ruby, PHP. Its special features include support for column editing, telnet, Integrated SSH, multi-caret editing, and FTP. It is available for Windows, Mac and Linux.