Productivity Sauce

I'm not a programmer, but when I need to cobble together a Python script, I find a dedicated IDE (integrated development environment) a better tool for the job than a regular text editor. After I've tried several existing IDEs, I settled for a relatively new software called NINJA-IDE, which stands for Ninja-IDE Is Not Just Another IDE.

For starters, NINJA-IDE allows you to work with single scripts as well as manage complex projects consisting of multiple files and libraries. As you would expect, NINJA-IDE features a number of creature comforts that make coding more efficient. This includes code completion and syntax coloring as well as error warnings. The latter is a rather clever feature which detects and highlights common formatting problems like excessive or missing white spaces, incorrect indentation, long lines, etc. Hover the mouse over a highlighted code, and you will see a pop-up with a brief description of the problem. NINJA-IDE comes with an embedded Python console, so you can run and troubleshoot your scripts from within the application. The main window can be split in two, so you can work with two files side-by-side. NINJA-IDE also sports a so-called Follow Mode, which lets you view the same file in two panes and scroll them simultaneously. Finally, NINJA-IDE's default functionality can be extended with plugins. The current version of the IDE comes with only three plugins -- including the one that allows you to post code to Pastebin -- but expect this to change as the application matures. All in all, NINJA-IDE is a rather likable IDE for casual coders and serious programmers alike.

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