10 Useful Tools and Libraries for Programmer and IT Professionals

Every trade has their tools and software development is no different. A good programmer knows his tools better than others and also have access to more powerful and advanced tools than an average programmer, but, there are certain tools which you expect every software developer should know and this list is all about such tools.

In this list, I am going to share 10 essential tools, which I believe every programmer or software developer should know and know well.

10 Tools Every Programmer Should Know

Some of you may think 10 tools are nothing but, to be honest, if every programmer knows these truly well, he can accomplish a lot in his day to day job.

Anyway, without any further ado, let’s see my list of 10 tools every software developer should know and know well.

1. Git and Github

A good knowledge of any source control repository is mandatory for any programmer or software developer because you need to do check-in, checkout of code every day.

And, to become a better developer you should also know advanced concepts like branching and merging.

In today’s world, Git and Github have become synonymous with source control repository and version control tool.

This is the single most important tool for a programmer now and that’s why I suggest every programmer learn Git and Github truly well.

If you are a beginner or a programmer who wants to improve his Git knowledge, I suggest you to go check out Git Complete: The definitive, step-by-step guide to Git course from Udemy. One of the best course to learn Git in depth.

2. SQL

This is another essential tool or programming language every programmer should learn. SQL is actually standards Standard Query language and used to work with the database. By using SQL you can read, update, and delete data from tables.

Since we use database everywhere in the real world, a programmer should have a good understanding of SQL.

Apart from knowing basic commands e.g. SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE, a programmer should also know how to write complex queries using joins, aggregate functions, subqueries and other advanced functionalities.

If you are new to SQL or want to take your SQL skills to next level then The Complete SQL Bootcamp is a good place to start with.

3. Python

You might be surprised that as a Java developer, why I am suggesting every programmer learn Python? Well, there is a reason for it. Python is a powerful high-level, object-oriented programming language which is very versatile.

You can not only create big applications like you do in Java but also you can use Python to create useful scripts to automate stuff.

It also has numerous modules which make almost anything possible, starting from accessing the file system, developing web applications to machine learning.

I can’t say more but to show you this picture which clearly explains why every programmer should learn Python.

It also has simple easy-to-use syntax, making it the perfect language for someone trying to learn computer programming for the first time. If you want to learn Python then The Complete Python Bootcamp course is a great place to start with.

4. Excel or any SpreadSheet

The Microsoft Excel is another essential tool for programmers and software developers. Don’t mistake it just for a spreadsheet application, you can do a lot more using Excel then you can ever imagine.

The biggest reason to learn Microsoft Excel is that you will find it everywhere. Everybody uses it, starting from business to BA, QA and project managers. You can use it generate reports, automate and reconcile stuff and a lot more.

If you want to go beyond just copy pasting stuff into excel to learn functions like VLOOKUP, I suggest you join the Microsoft Excel — Excel from Beginner to the Advanced course on Udemy. One of the best course to learn Excel in depth.

5. Word or Similar

Microsoft Word is not as popular as Microsoft Excel but still its one of the essential tool for programmers and software engineers.

As a developer, you often need to create documents e.g. software design documents, requirement documents etc and Microsoft Word is the best tool for that.

It provides sophisticated formatting options to create really good looking documentation.

If you are a beginner or an intermediate developer who wants to improve your knowledge of Microsoft world then I suggest you go through Master Microsoft Word Beginner to the Advanced course on Udemy.

6. PowerPoint

Along with Microsoft Excel and Word, Powerpoint forms the trilogy of essential office tools and that’s why they are also essential for Software engineers and IT professionals including developer, QA, BA, and project manager.

Microsoft PowerPoint is the most popular tool to create presentations and as a programmer, many times you need to do presentations e.g. presenting your ideas to business, your plans to managers and doing many knowledge sharing sessions between teams and that’s why you just can’t ignore powerpoint.

If you want to learn Powerpoint or improve your knowledge then Master Powerpoint presentations course on Udemy is a good place to start with.

7. Text Editors (SubLime)

Every programmer should know one text editor pretty well. Software developer do a lot of text processing job and knowing a text editor will always help.

Apart from NotePad, which is a very good, omnipresent basic text editor, I encourage the programmer to learn some advanced text editors e.g. Sublime or NotePad++.

They support regular expression search and replace and Macros which will help you a lot with your everyday work. If you want to learn more about a sublime text editor, Sublime Text for Rapid Web Development is a good place to start with.

8. Linux commands

Just like SQL, Linux commands is another essential tool for programmers. Every programmer has to work on UNIX sometime and many of us spend most of our day on Linux machine.

A good knowledge of Linux commands means you can find what you want, you can know what’s going on with the machine and you can troubleshoot any issues with your application running on Linux.

This is a must-have skill for every programmer and if you are not comfortable with Linux commands you must spend some time to learn it, especially if you have some exploring to Linux. For beginners, Linux Command Line Basics is a good place to start with.

9. SVN

Even though Git has taken almost 70% market share in terms of version control system, there are still projects where SVN (also known as subversion) is used.

Not just on the property but also on open source and that’s why knowing tortoise SVN is good for programmers.

It’s the same tool, I have started with SVN 12 years back and it’s still around. If you are a beginner or someone who want to improve his SVN knowledge and learn some advanced concepts like branching and merging in SVN then Introduction to SVN by John Sonmez on Pluarlsight is a good course to start with.

10. Powershell or Cygwin

Once you worked in Linux, you feel constraint while working in Windows because there is nothing like Linux commands in Windows and Powershell just solves that problem for once and all.

Windows PowerShell is a shell developed by Microsoft for the purposes of task automation and configuration management.

This powerful shell is based on the .NET framework and it includes a command-line shell and a scripting language so that you can automate stuff and create a script as you do in Linux.

If you want to start with PowerShell then I suggest you look at Learning Windows PowerShell course on Udemy, I have bought it recently to improve my Powershell skills.

That’s all about essential tools for every programmer. These are some of the basic tools which everyone need be it a web developer working in JavaScript, a Java developer working on server-side code, or a mobile developer working on Android or iOS apps.

A good knowledge of these tools goes a long way in your software development career because you will use these tools each and every day and appreciate the time and effort you put initially to learn them.

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Closing Notes

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P.S. — If you need some FREE resources, you can check out this list of free data structure and algorithm courses to start your preparation.