TideSDK is an open source platform for building desktop apps using web technologies (HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript).

The apps can be created for all major operating systems (Windows, Mac OS X, Linux) and server-side languages like PHP, Python and Ruby are supported as well.

This is actually not a new project, it was previously known as Titanium Desktop, re-branded recently and is going through a major change/improvements (which we thought it is worth re-sharing).

Apps built with TideSDK can make use of the filesystem, have an integrated database, display notifications and much more.

And, the platform has a well-documented API and an active developer community which is great for getting support.

TileMill is an application (with Windows, Mac and Linux versions) for creating totally-customized and beautiful maps.

Normally, working with GIS data is complicated but TileMill simplifies that as much as possible by sharing data between projects, downloading and unzipping shapefiles, autodetecting projections, indexing SQLite databases, etc. to help us focus on the output.

It can read from multiple popular data sources and enables us to use any patterns/textures, fonts and images on maps.

As web designers/developers, the part that eases the usage of TileMill is its design language: CartoCSS, which is very similar to CSS and has support for mixins, variables and functions.

Also, interactions like hover tooltips or clickable pop-ups can be added to the maps.

Nitro is a simple, good looking, free and open source task management application to get things done.

It comes in multiple versions where all of them are free:

• hosted
• Chrome web app
• open source web app
• Linux and Ubuntu desktop packages

The open source web app is makes use of modern web technologies, doesn't require any server-side setup and built with only HTML, CSS + JS.

Once downloaded, it is ready-to-use by simply loading the index.html file and any actions made are stored using HTML5 localstorage. There is an option for syncing data with Dropbox or Ubuntu One.

Nitro allows us to add tasks, write notes to the tasks and define due dates for them. For any tasks with sub-tasks, there is "lists"feature.

The app is multilingual (there is already support for several languages) and it is themable.

Desktop apps definitely have their own advantages over web apps like speed, ability to reach the filesystem, working in the background, notifications, etc.

However, for us (the web developers), it is a challenge to create one as they need  to be coded in a non-web programming language (yes, there are exceptions).

AppJS is an exciting resource that allows us to develop desktop apps using web technologies (HTML, CSS and JavaScript).

The project uses Chromium as the core (so that the latest HTML5 APIs are supported) and Node.js as the backbone.

P.S. It is in the early stages of development, Linux and Windows ports are functional and Mac part is not available yet.

Subversion, the open source and popular version control system, is a great tool for an organized coding environment where multiple users can work on the same files and tracking the changes/versions is possible.

uberSVN is a free application which transforms a standard Subversion setup into the next level by adding social features and more to it.

With the application, teams get a homepage that profiles the team members, lists the projects they’re working on, repositories they’re using and their latest activity and status.

Team members can see each other’s real-time progress by simply subscribing to Twitter-like feeds that managers can also monitor.

Besides managing Subversion, 3rd party applications can be integrated into the system (like Trac, Jenkins, etc.) so that the development team uses only a single login for managing projects.

uberSVN comes with installers for Windows and Linux.

Hub List is an open source to-do list application that works on the desktop.

It has versions for Windows, Mac OS X + Linux and a mobile one that mostly targets the iOS platform.

The application supports creating folders>sub-folders and tasks>sub-tasks for an unlimited hierarchy.

Hub List is currently in beta status and working on impressive features like auto-synchronize data to any private cloud, collaboration and importing-exporting data.

Bowline is an open source framework (not a platform like Adobe AIR or Titanium) for creating desktop applications with Ruby, HTML and JavaScript.

It respects MVC, views can be designed in HTML5/CSS3 and then you can bind them to your Ruby models.

There's no request/response cycle. Any changes in models automatically get reflected in the view.

Applications built with Bowline currently works in Mac OS X + Linux and Windows support is on the way.

This article includes applications that can be installed on the impressive and instantly-scalable VPS cloud: VPS.net.

Most of the web designers/developers, within time, begin to manage too many websites, build resource-consuming applications and require more than a standard web hosting package.

Then it comes to deciding a hosted/ready-to-use platform or own a VPS/dedicated server and host the websites yourself.

Both have cons and pros, the first one requires no technical knowledge but has a limited flexibility (you can't install a custom extension onto the server, etc). For the VPS/dedicated option, exactly the vice-versa.

If you decide to go with the VPS/dedicated option and will be hosting multiple websites, then using a control panel application is a good idea.

Once installed, it will save you too much time on creating new websites, databases, e-mails, etc.

And if there will be client sites on that server, then that's a much better decision (as you can give the control to them).

Here are 10 open source and free web hosting control panels (which are categorized with operating systems) for managing servers easier.

Linux

Kloxo HostinABox

It is a fully scriptable, distributed and a 100% object oriented hosting platform which supports Apache/Lighttpd, djbdns/bind and pure-ftpd.

The platform enables the end user to manage every aspect of a web hosting account while providing the admin the ability to manage the whole system.

Kloxo has a built-in messaging and ticket system, a backup-restore module and much more.

VHCS

It is written in PHP, Perl and C. The system provides full control over the server, resellers and end users.

The application can communicate with database, email, web and DNS servers, monitor traffic or diskspace used and more.

Read the rest of this entry »

Paymo, a multilanguage & web-based time-tracking / invoicing application is giving away "20 Lifetime Invoice Accounts" (normally $9.99/month) to WebResourcesDepot users. Before any more details on that:

What is Paymo?

Paymo is a very functional application for anyone (whether you're a "one-man-army" or a "team that works on same/different projects") for tracking the time that is worked on projects>tasks, analyze that time & bill your clients accordingly.

How does it work?

Users:

First thing to do is creating users (the application is totally free for up to 3 users). Considering every user may have different conditions, it is possible to set variables like workday length, timezone, week start day, etc for every user.

Clients:

It is necessary to define clients (this can be yourself for your own projects) in order to create the projects. This info is also used in the invoices.

Projects > Tasks:

That's the heart of the application, yet very simple to define & use.

Projects can be created by defining the details like: the client, budget hours, price per hour & users that will work in the project. After that, tasks can be created which are the main things that the application tracks the time of.

Read the rest of this entry »

Last week, a post at WRD was announcing the giveaway of 5 Fanurio time tracking & billing software licenses ($59 value / license). The winners are selected & can be found at the bottom of the post. But before that, to remind:

What is Fanurio?

Fanurio is a beautiful software with an intuitive interface for easily tracking time that is spent on projects & billing them accordingly.

It is possible to define projects & sub-tasks. Then, the time worked on the projects can be tracked manually or with the help of a timer.

For teams, everyone can install Fanurio to their computers, track the time and export/import reports easily.

Create the invoices

From the moment you get a new contract until you are paid in full, Fanurio offers you the right tools to manage and bill all your work down to the penny.

It covers almost any billing feature you may need like rounding time "up, down or to the nearest specified interval" or applying discounts & more.

Analyze the performance

Fanurio helps analyzing the perfomance with the reports it generates:

• payments: see all your open, un-paid invoices
• timesheet: time recorded on a certain period, by project or client
• project reports: howmuch money you made, howmuch money is unpaid, etc.

Also, reports can be exported to CSV or Excel for further analysis.

Fanurio works on Windows, Mac or Linux & doesn’t require purchasing new licenses when switching OSs.

And, the winners:

Here they are:

• Matt (comment #75715)
• Pritish Nandi (comment #75810)
• christian (comment #77066)
• GeeniUss (comment #75715)
• paul rostorp (comment #76381)

Congratulations to the winners and thanks to everyone for joining this giveaway.