When I recently got back into web design full time I was overwhelmed by all the different programs, frameworks and online tools available. It took me a few months to find the right combination to get all the different aspects of the job done most efficiently. I am designing and coding on Windows 7 with a dual screen setup. If you think you know a program that does the job better than those listed let me know and I will review it and update the list if I find in useful.

Design

960 Grid System

For a streamlined web design and development process I use the 960 Grid System. It allows you to work off a 12 or 16 grid template in your chosen design program. Once designed you can quickly build your website with the included CSS files. It is definitely worth getting your head around.

Photoshop CS4 64bit

A program that needs no introduction. Like the majority of web designers I find Photoshop the quickest way to prototype and polish off my design. I have trialled Fireworks and some people say good things but I find the amount of Photoshop tutorials on the web and my existing skills make a change over unlikely.

Coding

Notepad++

Lightweight with great syntax highlighting you can’t go past this one. Handy features like opening the files you were last working on make it even faster to simply get the job done. It also supports plugins and Macro’s although I have yet to use these features. Get Notepad++ today.

Aptana Studio

If you want an open source editor that supports code completion for HTML, CSS and Javascript you can’t go past Aptana Studio. It also has support for Ruby on Rails, Python and PHP although I have not used that part of the program. I mainly code in Notepad++ having no code completion lets you learn a language more thoroughly.

Firebug

An industry standard firebug has saved me countless days debugging code. It is a plugin for firefox and with it you can edit code in the browser without saving the changes. Perfect for debugging or seeing how changing several different CSS properties will look without coding and saving your CSS.

Wordpress

I choose to base my sites that need content management on Wordpress because of its clean user interface, community support and open license. Two significant offshoots of Wordpress are Buddypress and Wordpress MU.

Communication

Seesmic Desktop

This program lets you manage and post from several different Facebook and Twitter accounts. All your accounts a consolidated into the one screen to make keeping on top of all yours accounts easy. There is also a web version of Seesmic available.

Mozilla Thunderbird

To manage my email accounts I choose Thunderbird. It has great community support, is open source and a solid amount of plugins available. It will be interesting to see what Google Wave will do but for now Thunderbird is my choice. It’s an easy swap from Microsoft Outlook as well.

Misc

Dropbox

For my backup and syncing needs I use Dropbox. You start of with a basic 2GB (2.25 if you use a referral code to signup) and get +250MB every time you refer someone up to a maximum of 5GB. If you pass that mark you can upgrade your plan but 5GB should be enough for all your web work.

Windows Live Writer

I tried around five blog editors before I got to this one. It blows the rest out of the water. Makes posting on Wordpress and other blog platforms a cinch. Easy image editing and post formatting as well as account management makes it the best choice out there. Windows Live Writer is completely free!

Open Office

Why fork out for the Microsoft suite of office programs when you can get Open Office for free. Cross platform and open source.

Opera

While I use Firefox and Firebug for all my coding needs, I use Opera to browse the web. Its super fast and supports mouse gestures and a speed dial which I use to manage all my sites. Hint: you can setup your speed dial with more than 9 sites (I use 24). Opera have also done excellent work on their web standards curriculum.

Websites

Stock.xchng

My favourite site for downloading stock images for use on the web. Visit Stock.XCHNG as of July 2009 a subsidiary of Getty Images.

Tutorial 9

One of the best known tutorial sites, Tutorial 9 gets props because it’s all available free. Writers can get paid to write articles which are funded by the sites advertising.

Abduzeedo

For design inspiration look no further. A strong community site it is updated daily and also features a community news section. Visit Abduzeedo.