I use Dreamweaver CS3 although the functionality has been the same pretty much since Dreamweaver MX. Anyway in that you can select a folder on the right, and in your search dialog, chose 'Search selected files' and that will search (or replace) whatever you want. So I use that to search for variables or functions whatever (that I know what they are), and to discover what I have access to I use the tech docs.

You only really need to look at the tech docs once, find the function whatever, copy it's documentation from it's source file into your plugin or skin whatever, and you are set cruising along easy street.

I've found source similar to Zend Studio - Codelobster Php Edition 1.3. (www.codelobster.com). Free.
Convinient interface. Possible to handle windows. All functions of text editor for work with code.

- Hightlights paired tags and brackets.
And useful detail here - all unclosed paired elements are marked with red color - helps to find minor errors in code quickly.

- Find & Replace - for searching variables, functions, classes within the whole project.

Also it's possible to find declaration for function, class with short key.

- intelligent autocomplete for php and html, context and dynamic php, Mysql, HTML help.

- Debugger

gvim+grep rules!

Yeah, I even write my love letters in vim :-)

Austriaco wrote:

gvim+grep rules!

Yeah, I even write my love letters in vim :-)

I'm using bluefish on Linux and vi too ;-)

I'm using NuSphere phpED. It's not perfect, but it parses all the project definitions + associated phpDoc in the code automatically and can generally jump to any declaration in a matter of a right click.

I think Zend Studio does the basically the same but I can't stand it's narrow line spacing.

I'm using Quanta Plus on Debian GNU/Linux. Quanta Plus is a fantastic web development editor that has PHP function autocomplete and also tooltips.

A must-have.
http://quanta.kdewebdev.org/

I am trying now in [url=http://www.eclipse.org/pdt/index.php]Eclipse PDT[/url] and although I am "experiencing a steep learning curve" what I have seen so fas looks promising. It's got debug from Zend, preview through WAMP server (a project is located at the www directory from WAMP) and I have access to all functions and variables.

Once I have sorted things out I will write a manual type of guide for the community.

Hmm not again.. lolz. You reminded me of the software I used a year or two ago that searches the insides of the files and find what you are looking for, even programming codes.

I will try to search for this application again, though it'll be hard. When I last searched for that application, I wasn't able to find it. Usually my search string is "Search inside file download". Search results really changes great these past years, and I wasn't keeping centralized bookmarks when I first found that great tool.

Sigh... I used to use that when I'm adding add-ons for IPB before they started charging...