We learned in Working With Files that we need to edit code in a plain text editor.

And a plain text editor like "Notepad" (Windows) is a starting point.

However, coding will be more enjoyable and more efficient if we use an Integrated Development Environment (IDE). And "IDE" is a tool that is a plain text editor but also provides coding tools.

When starting coding, it is suggested to start with a minimal IDE, for Windows, something like Notepad++, TextPad, Brackets. For the MAC something like Brackets, Textmate, Sublime Text.

After gaining some coding experience, then it is suggested to move up to a more sophisticated IDE like Eclipse, Netbeans or IntelliJ.

Here are some tips for setting up Notepad++ as a minimal IDE: