oreobowl.blogg.se - Convert prepros to grunt

Uglification - In order to say bytes of information, javascript can be not only minified but have variable and function names changed to smaller names. This reduces the number of requests a web browser must make, and thus (usually) speeds up the data transaction from the web server. This allows, for example, many javascript files to be combined into one JS file for distribution. When applied to file management, concatting means combining multiple files into one file. Since HTML/CSS/JS are the instructions that your browser needs to render the page, this will help aid page load speeds considerably.Ĭoncatenation - Concatenation (concat for short ) when programming means combining to two variables’ stored values.

This additional step is called uglification. Minification takes out unnecessary keystrokes from HTML/CSS/JS and creates a “minified” version of your code, With Javascript, even variable names are replaced with short names to save data. Minification - Every keystroke takes up minuscule amounts of data, measured in bytes.

Grunt - A command line utility built on node.js.

Codekit - A Mac-only utility with a graphical user interface.

Prepros - A cross-platform utility with a graphical user interface.

The most common task managers are (in no particular order): Tasks can be chained together such as to convert LESS to CSS and reload the web page on save. Task managers “listen” and automatically run a series of instructions based on a trigger event.įor front-end web development, this usually means when a file or directory has been modified. Task Manager - Programs that are configured to perform preconfigured tasks when trigger automatically. In order to run this code in a browser, it first must be processed before a web browser can consume the code properly. Preprocessor language - A programming language the compiles to another language. In this review, I’ll be referring to the simple act of converting a programming language to a browser readable language such as Sass to CSS or Markup to HTML. There are many types of compilers, such as ones that create executable applications for computers/phones. Seasoned devs can safely scroll past my quick glossary of terms.Ĭompiling - The process of converting programming into useable executable code. Task managers are complicated beasts as they are a swiss army knife of various utilities smashed together.įor those new to the world of preprocessors and task managers there’s quite a learning curve, and to review this product the reader needs a basic understanding of a few core terms. The most useful feedback Prepros provides is an error log that reports back when you write improper code. In fact, you’ll probably spend little directly time interacting with it.

Reviewing an application like Prepros comes with some difficulty, unlike most applications, Prepros is meant to run in the background. I’m sure the developers of CodeKit and Prepros would likely prefer being considered separate properties but its impossible to review one without mentioning the other.

I’ve meant to follow up my CodeKit 2 review with an equally ambitious Prepros 5 and just never found the time until now. Long before that, I wrote a cursory and problematic review of Prepros 4. Prepros, and even my inevitable transition away from GUI task managers. It was filled with the ups and downs of CodeKit 2 vs. Nearly a year ago, I wrote what I’d consider the definitive review of CodeKit 2, which spanned nine months of usage, several versions, and at least two major projects.