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Tools

Discover essential tools and utilities that enhance your VitePress development workflow.

Development Tools

Code Editors

Visual Studio Code

The most popular editor for VitePress development with excellent Vue and Markdown support.

Recommended Extensions:

  • Vetur or Volar - Vue.js language support
  • Markdown All in One - Enhanced Markdown editing
  • ESLint - Code linting and formatting
  • Prettier - Code formatting
  • Auto Rename Tag - Automatically rename paired HTML tags
  • Bracket Pair Colorizer - Colorize matching brackets

VS Code Settings:

json
{
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "editor.codeActionsOnSave": {
    "source.fixAll.eslint": true
  },
  "files.associations": {
    "*.md": "markdown"
  },
  "markdown.preview.breaks": true
}

WebStorm/IntelliJ IDEA

Professional IDE with built-in Vue and Markdown support.

Key Features:

  • Intelligent code completion
  • Built-in version control
  • Advanced refactoring tools
  • Integrated terminal and debugger

Command Line Tools

Node.js Version Managers

nvm (Node Version Manager)

bash
# Install nvm
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.39.0/install.sh | bash

# Install and use Node.js 18
nvm install 18
nvm use 18
nvm alias default 18

fnm (Fast Node Manager)

bash
# Install fnm
curl -fsSL https://fnm.vercel.app/install | bash

# Install and use Node.js 18
fnm install 18
fnm use 18
fnm default 18

Package Managers

npm (Default)

bash
# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run scripts
npm run dev
npm run build

yarn

bash
# Install yarn
npm install -g yarn

# Install dependencies
yarn install

# Run scripts
yarn dev
yarn build

pnpm (Fast and efficient)

bash
# Install pnpm
npm install -g pnpm

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Run scripts
pnpm dev
pnpm build

Content Creation Tools

Markdown Editors

Typora

Beautiful WYSIWYG Markdown editor with live preview.

Features:

  • Real-time preview
  • Math equation support
  • Diagram support (Mermaid, Flowchart)
  • Export to multiple formats

Mark Text

Real-time preview Markdown editor with a clean interface.

Features:

  • Live preview
  • Focus mode
  • Typewriter mode
  • Export options

Obsidian

Knowledge management tool with powerful linking features.

Features:

  • Bi-directional linking
  • Graph view
  • Plugin ecosystem
  • Vault synchronization

Image Tools

TinyPNG

Online image compression tool for optimizing images.

bash
# CLI tool for batch compression
npm install -g tinypng-cli

# Compress images
tinypng input/*.png --key YOUR_API_KEY

ImageOptim (macOS)

Drag-and-drop image optimization tool.

Squoosh (Web)

Google's web-based image compression tool with advanced options.

Screenshot Tools

CleanShot X (macOS)

Professional screenshot and screen recording tool.

Greenshot (Windows/Linux)

Free screenshot tool with annotation features.

Flameshot (Linux)

Powerful screenshot tool with built-in editor.

Design Tools

UI/UX Design

Figma

Collaborative design tool for creating mockups and prototypes.

VitePress Resources:

  • Component libraries
  • Design systems
  • Wireframe templates

Sketch (macOS)

Vector-based design tool for UI/UX design.

Adobe XD

Design and prototyping tool with collaboration features.

Icon Libraries

Lucide Icons

Beautiful, customizable SVG icons used by VitePress.

bash
# Install for Vue
npm install lucide-vue-next

# Usage in components
<template>
  <Search :size="24" />
</template>

<script setup>
import { Search } from 'lucide-vue-next'
</script>

Heroicons

Beautiful hand-crafted SVG icons by the makers of Tailwind CSS.

Feather Icons

Simply beautiful open source icons.

Color Tools

Coolors

Color palette generator and color scheme explorer.

Adobe Color

Color wheel and palette creation tool.

Contrast Checker

Ensure your color combinations meet accessibility standards.

Development Utilities

Git Tools

GitHub Desktop

Visual Git client for managing repositories.

GitKraken

Cross-platform Git GUI with advanced features.

Sourcetree

Free Git client for Windows and macOS.

Terminal Enhancements

Oh My Zsh

Framework for managing Zsh configuration.

bash
# Install Oh My Zsh
sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.github.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

# Useful plugins for development
plugins=(git node npm yarn vscode)

Starship

Cross-shell prompt with customizable themes.

bash
# Install Starship
curl -sS https://starship.rs/install.sh | sh

# Add to shell config
echo 'eval "$(starship init zsh)"' >> ~/.zshrc

Browser Extensions

Vue.js Devtools

Essential for debugging Vue components in VitePress.

Lighthouse

Performance, accessibility, and SEO auditing.

Web Developer

Comprehensive web development tools.

ColorZilla

Color picker and gradient generator.

Testing Tools

Performance Testing

Lighthouse CI

Automated Lighthouse testing for CI/CD pipelines.

bash
# Install Lighthouse CI
npm install -g @lhci/cli

# Run Lighthouse CI
lhci autorun

WebPageTest

Comprehensive web performance testing tool.

GTmetrix

Website speed and performance optimization tool.

Accessibility Testing

axe DevTools

Accessibility testing browser extension.

WAVE

Web accessibility evaluation tool.

Colour Contrast Analyser

Desktop tool for checking color contrast ratios.

Command-line tool for finding broken links.

bash
# Install broken-link-checker
npm install -g broken-link-checker

# Check links
blc http://localhost:5173 -ro

Online tool for checking website links.

Deployment Tools

CI/CD Platforms

GitHub Actions

Automated workflows for building and deploying VitePress sites.

yaml
# Example workflow
name: Deploy VitePress
on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: 18
      - run: npm ci
      - run: npm run build
      - uses: actions/deploy-pages@v4

GitLab CI/CD

Integrated CI/CD platform for GitLab repositories.

Netlify

Continuous deployment platform with Git integration.

Vercel

Frontend deployment platform with automatic deployments.

Hosting Platforms

GitHub Pages

Free static site hosting for GitHub repositories.

Netlify

Modern web development platform with global CDN.

Vercel

Platform for frontend frameworks and static sites.

Cloudflare Pages

JAMstack platform with edge computing capabilities.

Monitoring Tools

Analytics

Google Analytics

Comprehensive web analytics platform.

js
// Google Analytics 4 integration
export default {
  head: [
    ['script', { 
      async: true, 
      src: 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=GA_MEASUREMENT_ID' 
    }],
    ['script', {}, `
      window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
      function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
      gtag('js', new Date());
      gtag('config', 'GA_MEASUREMENT_ID');
    `]
  ]
}

Plausible Analytics

Privacy-focused web analytics alternative.

Fathom Analytics

Simple, privacy-focused website analytics.

Error Tracking

Sentry

Application monitoring and error tracking platform.

js
// Sentry integration
import * as Sentry from '@sentry/vue'

export default {
  enhanceApp({ app }) {
    Sentry.init({
      app,
      dsn: 'YOUR_SENTRY_DSN'
    })
  }
}

LogRocket

Session replay and performance monitoring.

Uptime Monitoring

UptimeRobot

Website uptime monitoring service.

Pingdom

Website performance and uptime monitoring.

Automation Tools

Content Generation

OpenAI GPT

AI-powered content generation and editing assistance.

Grammarly

Writing assistant for grammar and style checking.

Hemingway Editor

Writing tool for improving readability and clarity.

Image Processing

Sharp

High-performance image processing library for Node.js.

js
// Automated image optimization
const sharp = require('sharp')

sharp('input.jpg')
  .resize(800, 600)
  .webp({ quality: 80 })
  .toFile('output.webp')

ImageMagick

Command-line image manipulation tool.

bash
# Batch resize images
mogrify -resize 800x600 *.jpg

# Convert to WebP
mogrify -format webp *.jpg

Build Automation

Gulp

Task runner for automating development workflows.

Webpack

Module bundler with extensive plugin ecosystem.

Rollup

Module bundler optimized for libraries.

Documentation Tools

API Documentation

Swagger/OpenAPI

API documentation specification and tools.

Postman

API development and documentation platform.

Insomnia

REST and GraphQL client with documentation features.

Diagramming

Mermaid

Markdown-based diagramming and charting tool.

markdown
```mermaid
graph TD
    A[Start] --> B{Is it working?}
    B -->|Yes| C[Great!]
    B -->|No| D[Debug]
    D --> B

#### Draw.io
Free online diagramming tool.

#### Lucidchart
Professional diagramming and visualization tool.

## Recommended Tool Stack

### Beginner Setup
- **Editor**: Visual Studio Code with Vue extensions
- **Package Manager**: npm (comes with Node.js)
- **Version Control**: GitHub Desktop
- **Image Optimization**: TinyPNG online tool
- **Deployment**: Netlify with Git integration

### Intermediate Setup
- **Editor**: VS Code with advanced extensions
- **Package Manager**: yarn or pnpm
- **Terminal**: Oh My Zsh with useful plugins
- **Version Control**: Git command line + VS Code integration
- **Image Tools**: Local optimization tools
- **Testing**: Lighthouse for performance auditing
- **Deployment**: GitHub Actions + multiple platforms

### Advanced Setup
- **Editor**: WebStorm or VS Code with full extension suite
- **Package Manager**: pnpm with workspace support
- **Terminal**: Starship prompt with custom configuration
- **Version Control**: Advanced Git workflows
- **Automation**: Custom scripts and CI/CD pipelines
- **Monitoring**: Analytics, error tracking, uptime monitoring
- **Testing**: Comprehensive testing suite with automation

## Tool Configuration Examples

### ESLint Configuration
```js
// .eslintrc.js
module.exports = {
  extends: [
    'eslint:recommended',
    '@vue/eslint-config-typescript'
  ],
  rules: {
    'vue/multi-word-component-names': 'off',
    '@typescript-eslint/no-unused-vars': 'warn'
  }
}

Prettier Configuration

json
{
  "semi": false,
  "singleQuote": true,
  "tabWidth": 2,
  "trailingComma": "es5",
  "printWidth": 80
}

Package.json Scripts

json
{
  "scripts": {
    "dev": "vitepress dev docs",
    "build": "vitepress build docs",
    "preview": "vitepress preview docs",
    "lint": "eslint . --ext .vue,.js,.ts,.md",
    "lint:fix": "eslint . --ext .vue,.js,.ts,.md --fix",
    "format": "prettier --write .",
    "check-links": "blc http://localhost:5173 -ro"
  }
}

Getting Help

Official Resources

Community

Learning Resources


This tools guide is regularly updated with new tools and best practices. Contribute your favorite tools and configurations!

VitePress Development Guide