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StackBlitz vs WebStorm: What are the differences?
Introduction:
In this Markdown document, we will compare the key differences between StackBlitz and WebStorm, two popular development environments for web development.
Key Differences between StackBlitz and WebStorm:
Intuitive Browser-based Environment: StackBlitz provides a browser-based coding environment that allows developers to write and test their code directly in the browser. On the other hand, WebStorm is a standalone Integrated Development Environment (IDE) that needs to be installed on the developer's machine. This difference allows StackBlitz to be easily accessible from anywhere without the need for installation, making it more convenient for quick prototyping and collaboration.
Features and Functionality: WebStorm offers a wide range of advanced features, such as code refactoring, static analysis, and debugging tools, that can enhance developer productivity. StackBlitz, while not as feature-rich as WebStorm, provides a simplified and streamlined development experience with essential tools like code editing, code completion, and live preview capabilities. This simplicity makes StackBlitz more beginner-friendly and suitable for small projects or learning purposes.
Local Development Environment: WebStorm supports local development by allowing developers to work with their preferred code editors, version control systems, and local development servers. StackBlitz, being browser-based, primarily focuses on cloud-based development and might have limitations when it comes to working with local files, running local servers, or integrating with specific development tools or libraries.
Project Structure and Management: WebStorm provides robust project management features, including support for multiple projects, easy navigation between files, and powerful search capabilities. StackBlitz, on the other hand, is designed to work with a single project at a time and provides a simplified project structure. While this simplicity can be advantageous for small projects, it might be limiting for larger applications that require complex project organization.
Integration with External Tools: WebStorm offers seamless integration with various external tools and plugins, allowing developers to customize their development workflow and leverage third-party tools like build systems, task runners, and linters. StackBlitz, being a cloud-based platform, may have limitations in terms of integrating with external tools and might not provide the same level of flexibility and customization as WebStorm.
Pricing and Licensing: StackBlitz offers a free tier with limited features, but also provides paid plans for more advanced usage or enterprise requirements. WebStorm, being a commercial IDE, requires a paid license for full access to all features. This difference in pricing models makes StackBlitz a more affordable option for individual developers or small teams, while WebStorm might be preferred by larger organizations with specific compliance or support requirements.
In Summary, StackBlitz offers an intuitive browser-based coding environment with essential features, while WebStorm provides a more feature-rich standalone IDE with advanced tools and robust project management capabilities. StackBlitz is suitable for quick prototyping and collaboration, while WebStorm is preferred for professional development projects, especially those involving complex project structures and extensive customization.
When I switched to Visual Studio Code 12 months ago from PhpStorm I was in love, it was great. However after using VS Code for a year, I see myself switching back and forth between WebStorm and VS Code. The VS Code plugins are great however I notice Prettier, auto importing of components and linking to the definitions often break, and I have to restart VS Code multiple times a week and sometimes a day.
We use Ruby here so I do like that Visual Studio Code highlights that for me out of the box, with WebStorm I'd need to probably also install RubyMine and have 2 IDE's going at the same time.
Should I stick with Visual Studio Code, or switch to something else? #help
If you're working with both Ruby and JavaScript, buy RubyMine and shut down the other two. It's much better for Ruby than Visual Studio Code is. It can also do everything WebStorm does, if you install the plugins you need from JetBrains, and they all work together nicely.
If you install RubyMine, you shouldn't need WebStorm, as all the functionality of WebStorm appears to be included in RubyMine. (See here: https://softwareengineering.stackexchange.com/a/132950).
I've used PhpStorm for several years and have never needed to open (or even download) WebStorm for anything front-end or JavaScript related.
I work at the same company as you and I use WebStorm for 99% of my tasks. I also have RubyMine installed and use that when I have to tweak some backend code. I tried using RubyMine for JavaScript but was unhappy with how it felt and I believe that WebStorm is faster because it has less plugins and language extensions running. Summary: Buy and use WebStorm for primary development and keep VS Code around for when you have to touch Ruby.
JetBrains all the way - my entire team uses PhpStorm and none of us would even consider switching.
The availability of IDEs for other languages along with consistency in environment and keyboard shortcuts is also a godsend, which is the reason I'd also choose Rider over Visual Studio (but also VS for Mac is trash, but I digress...)
I've never had much issue running multiple IDEs and generally pick them based on the languages they best support. For front end work where I mainly use TypeScript, I stick heavily with Visual Studio Code. However, for backend work which we do primarily in Python, PyCharm is my go-to editor. The one thing that I do however is I do remap keyboard shortcuts so I get consistent keyboard ability even when I switch IDEs.
If I have to choose one I would go with VS Code; it’s become pretty mature and keeps getting better. If those plugins are creating problems for you then just uninstall them, find an alternative, or make a PR to fix. But at the end of the day these are IDE’s and they are meant to save you time. I would go with whatever helps you develop code faster. If restarting VS code slows you down then make a switch, that personally would annoying the crap out of me. Else maybe it’s a quick restart, not the end of the word, hopefully someone will fix at some point.
Visual Studio Code is a text editor. And this is best option in my opinion. For Ruby, I cannot say how VS Code is good. If you wanna choose IDE, RubyMine should fit your needs. Because IDEs are more compatible with major needs. But text editors are just text editor. You can do same things with also text editors. I recommend to try both VS Code and RubyMine. And you will be able to find which fits better for your needs
So here is the deal man, bottom line you want to write code. All of these tools are built in a mouse-driven world, they are designed not for engineers, but office monkeys. If you want a real workflow that gives you ultimate performance, customization and speed you need to use a modal editor, I suggest NeoVim. Start using it 20% of the time on single file edits, watch youtube videos about it and teach yourself vim gestures. It will infuriate you for 6 weeks, make you cry for another 2 months. But as you use it more, as long as your usage goes over 40% of the time, in 6 months you will understand why most of the world's too engineers use it. Settling on lesser editors out of laziness is exactly the attitude that results in shitty the engineering. Yeah it's hard. You're smart. You do hard things. Once it isn't hard anymore you will blow yourself away at how much more efficiently you edit files.
Also vim keybindings in a mouse driven editor does not cut it. Managing files, buffers and workflow is half of the value of vim/neovim. It is OK if you have to use an IDE (currently I only use an IDE for java development, so I have little choice)
So use VSCode while you teach yourself vim.
Well you can try for a while MacVim because it is already configured with tons of plugins. My favourite text editors are Sublime Text and TextMate which are lightweight and speedy. My feeling is that JetBrains IDEs are making you brainless.
If you find something that works and are comfortable with it, stay with it. Changing IDE's and learning their idiosyncrasies takes valuable time away from programming while learning setups and keyboard short cuts. I personally use VS Code for cost and decent multiple language support. I've had issues occasionally with it locking up, but it is under heavy development and continually improving. I have also found it more intuitive for new programmers. ** Having profiles for different languages can reduce the amount of plugins running and issues they can cause.
I usually have both running but do the bulk of my language work in the appropriate JetBrains flavor. One thing to watch out for in VS is that under the hood it is running the tools needed for whatever language you are working with. This is where tools like JetBrains shine. While I am sure you can tune the heck out of what you use in VS, the provides context and clarity...
I'm personally a Visual Studio Code fan. I've used it for both Go and Java. It really depends on the quality and support of the plugins. Typically VS Code doesn't crash as much as a bad plugin causes an unforeseen error. Make sure you stay up to date and look at alternative plugins.
An integrated development environment software with huge potential in the future is VS Code. So I would personally say you can use VS code.
Are you using the prettier-vscode
VSCode extension or prettier
via prettier-eslint
?
The prettier-vscode
extension recommends you...
Use prettier-eslint
instead of prettier
. Other settings will only be fallbacks in case they could not be inferred from ESLint rules.
Pros of StackBlitz
- It just works9
- Fast loading5
- Can sign-in with third-party account. E.g. Github4
- Full terminal2
Pros of WebStorm
- Intelligent ide187
- Smart development environment128
- Easy js debugging108
- Code inspection97
- Support for the Latest Technologies95
- Created by jetbrains55
- Cross-platform ide53
- Integration36
- Spellchecker30
- Language Mixing/Injection24
- Debugger11
- Local History10
- Web developer can't live without this8
- Fast search7
- Git support7
- Angular.js support6
- Sass autocompletion6
- Better refactoring options5
- FTP5
- There is no need to setup plugins (all from the box)5
- Show color on the border next to hex string in CSS5
- Smart autocompletion5
- JSON Schema5
- Awesome5
- Built-in js debugger5
- Running and debugging Node.js apps remotely5
- Easy to use4
- A modern IDE stuck in the 90s4
- TypeScript support4
- Smart coding assistance for React4
- Node.js integration4
- 1114
- Protractor support out of the box4
- Intelligent4
- Paid but easy to crack4
- Dart support3
- Solid intelligent features3
- Great app3
- Integrated terminal3
- Vagrant and SSH Console3
- Free for students3
- Unused imports inspection3
- Docker intergration3
- Remote Files Syncronization2
- Grate debug tools for React Apps2
- Easier to keep running than eclipse2
- Auto imports1
- Vim support1
- Rename helpers1
- Auto refactoring helpers1
- Less autocompletion1
- GIT partial commits1
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Cons of StackBlitz
- Cannot upload Images1
- Not able to upload Images1
- Only support projects scaffolded with @angular/cli1
Cons of WebStorm
- Paid4
- Expensive1