Hey, is there a simple debugger out there, that will just listen to the built-in PHP debugger output and show it in a window?

My requirements are really simple:

  • must run in Windows (or MS-DOS, that's fine, I don't care about the GUI)

  • must NOT require IDE, I am quite attached to UltraEdit and don't want to dump it

any tips? DBG used to come with a free IDE, "SE" that apparently would have done this, but that stopping being available last August.

(related note: can anyone make a compelling argument for me to switch editors? I do a lot of PHP, are PHPEdit etc really that amazing?)

thank you all
Eric

http://themepark.com
http://ericmueller.org

    Hi Eric,

    In php4 there is no inbuilt debugger, however there are extensions available.

    http://dd.crom.ru/dbg - dbg used by phpedit and maguma studio

    http://www.activestate.com - their IDE, Komodo comes with a php debugging extension. Costs, but there is a free demo to try

    http://www.zend.com - zend ide contains debugging tools, but the IDE is written in java and runs like a snail on valium

    http://apd.communityconnect.com - haven't tried this one but it seems pretty cruddy

      John, thanks for the reply.

      I looked at dd.crom.ru's dbg; it requires a separate IDE ...it does support PHPEdit (buggy but decent, open source) and a couple of other (non-free) IDEs.

      I'll try the Komodo IDE. Zend's decision to go with Java kills it for me (LOL, snail on valium is about right). APD has a great looking site but the product is at v0.1 so that tells me to stay away.

      So far DBG seems to be the best choice for the debugger side-- it does interface with Microsoft's IDE, which for better or for worse, is a world-class tool that I trust. But I haaaate the idea of switching to Microsoft. :-(

      IMHO, what we really need:

      1. Existing editors like UltraEdit, TextPad, etc. to support debugging hooks. So DBG will work.

      2. More debuggers that easily run on Windows. I ultimately deploy to a Linux server but prefer to do my dev on a Win XP laptop. I don't want to get into doing my own compiles, though I recognize that this is part of the trade-off of using Open Source (or just plain free!) products. Just saying that getting these tools in a more Installer-friendly, ready-to-run form is probably a smart move for the evolution of PHP as a platform.

      3. Broadly speaking-- combining 1 and 2-- better PHP support in IDEs, whether that's existing IDEs (HomeSite) or new ones (PHPEdit). Everyone's working on this one, and it's heartening, and if I had more time right now I'd contribute to PHPEdit's development as it seems to be coming along well and have the most potential. But speaking as a USER now, I spend hours every day writing code, and for now can't switch away from my (mature, solid, stable, supported) UltraEdit. Alas.

      Anyhow, thanks for letting me rant for a sec, just some random thoughts on the state of PHP development environments. I'll check out those sites you mention.

      best,
      Eric

      http://ericmueller.org

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