🔧 Development Tools - Master Your Tech Stack

🎯 Learning Objectives

Master essential development tools to boost productivity and streamline workflows:

📝 Code Editors & IDEs

Choose the right environment for coding efficiency.

  • Visual Studio Code: Free, extensible ecosystem
  • IntelliJ IDEA: Powerful Java ecosystem
  • PyCharm: Python development excellence
  • Vim/Emacs: Command-line mastery

🔄 Version Control

Manage code changes and collaborate effectively.

  • Git: Industry-standard VCS
  • GitHub/GitLab: Platform collaboration
  • Bitbucket: Enterprise solutions
  • SourceTree: Visual Git client

Step-by-Step VS Code Installation

1. Download

Visit code.visualstudio.com/download

2. Installation

# Windows Download and run VSCodeUserSetup.exe # macOS Download and install VSCode-darwin-universal.zip # Linux cd ~/Downloads wget 'https://code.visualstudio.com/sha/download?build=stable&os=linux-deb-x64' sudo dpkg -i code_*.deb

3. Essential Extensions

  • Python (Microsoft)
  • Prettier (Formatting)
  • ESLint (JavaScript)
  • GitLens (Version control)
  • Live Server (Web development)
  • Docker (Container support)

🔄 Development Workflow

📋 Standard Development Process

A structured approach to efficient software development:

1. Planning & Requirements

Define project scope, gather requirements, and create specifications.

2. Development Environment Setup

Install tools, configure IDEs, and set up local development server.

3. Code Implementation

Write clean, maintainable code following best practices and standards.

4. Version Control

Use Git for tracking changes and collaborating with team members.

5. Testing

Write unit tests, integration tests, and perform quality assurance.

6. Deployment

Package and deploy application to production environment.

7. Monitoring & Maintenance

Monitor performance, fix bugs, and implement feature improvements.

🐳 Containerization Tools

Docker

Container platform for consistent application deployment.

# Images docker build -t my-app . # Build image docker images # List images docker rmi image_id # Remove image # Containers docker run -d -p 8080:80 my-app # Run container docker ps # List running containers docker stop container_id # Stop container docker rm container_id # Remove container # Volumes docker volume create my-volume # Create volume docker run -v my-volume:/app/data my-app # Attach volume # Networks docker network create my-network # Create network docker run --network my-network my-app # Connect container

Kubernetes

Orchestrate containerized applications at scale.

# Pods kubectl get pods # List pods kubectl describe pod pod-name # Pod details kubectl logs pod-name # View logs # Deployments kubectl create deployment my-app --image=my-app:v1 kubectl scale deployment my-app --replicas=3 kubectl set image deployment/my-app my-app=my-app:v2 # Services kubectl expose deployment my-app --type=LoadBalancer --port=8080 kubectl get services

⚖️ Tool Comparison

Tool Purpose Difficulty Best For Alternatives
VS Code Code Editor Beginner All Languages Atom, Sublime
Git Version Control Intermediate Collaboration SVN, Mercurial
Docker Containerization Advanced Deployment LXC, Podman
Jenkins CI/CD Advanced Automation GitLab CI, Travis
Postman API Testing Beginner Web APIs Insomnia, cURL

🔧 Common Tool Issues & Solutions

Stuck in a Detached HEAD State

git checkout main # Or your default branch

Dropped Stash Changes

git reflog # Find the lost commit git cherry-pick

Merge Conflicts

  1. Open conflicting files
  2. Remove conflict markers (<<<<<<, =======, >>>>>>>)
  3. Keep desired changes
  4. Stage and commit

Port Already in Use

docker ps # Find container using port docker stop

Disk Space Full

docker system prune -a --volumes # Remove unused data docker system df # Check disk usage

Container Won't Start

docker logs # Check logs docker inspect # Get detailed info

🚀 Career Toolkit: Essential Tools for IT Roles

Core Tools:

  • VS Code: Primary editor
  • Node.js: Runtime environment
  • React/Vue: Frontend frameworks
  • Express/Django: Backend frameworks
  • PostgreSQL: Database
  • Docker: Containerization
  • Git/GitHub: Version control

Essential Toolkit:

  • Jupyter: Notebook environment
  • Anaconda: Package management
  • Python: Programming language
  • Pandas/NumPy: Data manipulation
  • Scikit-learn: Machine learning
  • Tableau: Data visualization
  • Git: Version control

Critical Tools:

  • Terraform: Infrastructure as code
  • Ansible: Configuration management
  • Jenkins/GitLab CI: CI/CD pipelines
  • Docker/Kubernetes: Container orchestration
  • Prometheus: Monitoring
  • AWS/Azure: Cloud platforms
  • Git: Version control

📄 Learn More

🎯 Level Up

  • Practice regularly: Build projects with new tools
  • Join communities: Share and learn from others
  • Certify skills: Validate expertise
  • Stay updated: Follow industry trends
  • Teach others: Solidify your knowledge