Web ServicesCodio: A Cloud-Based IDE for Web Development

Codio: A Cloud-Based IDE for Web Development

Developer.com content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

If you’re looking for an integrated development environment (IDE) for HTML5 development, you might want to give Codio a try.

Codio is a Web-based front-end IDE that addresses all aspects of the HTML5 development lifecycle—from prototype to deployment, the company said.

It is a development platform with the features and power of a desktop IDE but with the simplicity and usability that developers have come to expect from modern browser-based applications.

Launched in a public beta in March, Codio provides developers of all skill levels with access to a Web-based visual IDE for HTML5, CSS and JavaScript development. And while it offers novice developers a way to learn how to build Web applications, it is also targeted at professional Web developers.

“There is a lot of stuff to install, set up and configure before you can write a single line of code. We feel that there is no good reason for this, and even developers, who deal with complexity on a daily basis, don’t like to waste time,” Freddy May, CEO of Application Craft, which developed Codio, said in a statement. “Modern web applications have raised expectations significantly with respect to usability and a web based approach to web development opens up lots of exciting new possibilities. Ultimately, coding should be fun, and a happy developer produces happy code.”

Codio is a very large-scale cloud-based IDE and Web platform that allows developers to create front-end applications written in HTML+CSS+JavaScript, as well as Node.js back-end applications, the company said. Codio is also developing support for cloud-based SalesForce.com development.

In a blog post from March, Joel Moss, chief technology officer and developer evangelist at Application Craft, said, “We’re building an IDE that any developer will want and enjoy using every single day, because there is currently no such thing.”

The demand and popularity of Web app development have secured places for HTML5, CSS and JavaScript among the most popular development languages. As a large number of modern applications now run in browsers, these technologies have become an integral part of most software development projects.

“By concentrating specifically on HTML5, CSS and JavaScript we can focus on the largest part of the developer ecosystem,” May said. “This allows us constantly to add significant value that would otherwise not be possible if we were to try to cater for all languages.”

Moreover, in the era of the cloud, it is logical that Web applications should not just run on the Web, but also be built on the Web. Codio offers developers a modern, secure IDE whose code is accessible anywhere online via Codio workspaces and shareable with others in a similar way to GitHub.

Codio makes getting started very simple by allowing developers to use it without even signing up. It offers a comfortable environment not just for code editing but also deployment, collaboration, Git and Mercurial integration, as well as support for derivative languages such as CoffeeScript, SCSS and LESS, all without the need to install, configure and maintain hardware and software stacks.

Codio also brings enhanced collaboration to developers. Traditionally, developers collaborate using Web-based code repositories such as GitHub and Bitbucket. Codio supports Source Control Management (SCM) but also adds real-time code editing by multiple developers similar to Google Docs. Text chat, voice chat and video are also planned for later this year.

Other Codio features currently in place or soon to be implemented include multi-pane code editing; development, staging and production deployment targets; a WYSIWYG GUI editor; interactive code documentation for teaching; instant preview; and version control.

Get the Free Newsletter!

Subscribe to Developer Insider for top news, trends & analysis

Latest Posts

Related Stories