If you currently build web pages from the ground up, then you’ve most likely began a cyber-trek through all sorts of different web development software. I started out with GoLive, then moved to Dreamweaver with the Adobe acquisition. After making the latest transition to the Coda/Transmit environment from Panic, I recently came across the latest MacHeist bundle and was introduced to the newest kid on the block… Espresso.
Having used Coda the past year and a half, I must say the features I like most are the way it handles CSS and PHP auto-scripting, the integrated FTP management system, the seamless integration of SVN, and the built-in help books for HTML, CSS, Javascript and PHP. The color coding for scripting is also a huge plus as I find the colors to fit perfectly with the code. Quite simply, it’s extremely fluid and somehow manages to make coding seem effortless and fun.
Espresso, on the other hand, is only a few months shy of being released from beta and I’m not sure it can win me over just yet. I’ve become quite comfortable with Coda and think it will take more than another code editor/FTP manager to get me to make the move. I do like CSSEdit, which is available from the same developer, MacRabbit, but I’m equally as happy with the built-in CSS editor in Coda (even though I find hand-coding CSS a bit more satisfying)
Text editors for writing code are very user sensitive and can make for quite a personal dilemma. But whatever your style is, feel free to give them both a shot as they are both VERY good at what they do.