Currently, What is the best JavaScript Debugger?

JavaScript
1

Nov. 29, 2013

Venkman?

Firebug?

FireFox Built-in JS Debugger?

Chrome Built-in JS Debugger?

others?

Thanks in advance.

2

Hi,
These are the other JavaScript Debugger.

  • Komodo Edit (Free) (Windows, Linux, Mac OS X)
  • Aptana Studio (Windows)
  • DragonFly
3

To some extent this is a matter of opinion.
Saying that however, there is no denying the power of Chrome Dev Tools.
They are the reason that I use Chrome as my primary browser.

Read this for enlightenment: https://developers.google.com/chrome-developer-tools/docs/javascript-debugging

4

I can only agree.

There is also brackets.io with Theseus, with some nice debugging, but still in its infancy.

I haven’t played as much with the new tools in IE11.
I’ll have to wait 'till later, when I get back home from work, but do they highlight closure variables in scope as nicely as Chrome Dev Tools?

5

So, I’ve been checking the IE11 tools.

It does kind of does, only not explicitly labeled. It creates a [Scope] sub-tree (object) for [Locals], with variables origin info.

You have to conclude it’s about closures because it’s outer scope.

6

Did you get any further in this? I’m using FF primarily now (its simply better on mobile than chrome) and I’m really not sure where to invest time - the built in debugger or firebug - on my debian system firebug looks awful . Very little info out there or my google fu is waning.

7

Given that you really need to test your script in all the different browsers you are going to use the built in debugger in all of them at some point.

Given that all browsers now have a built in debugger there’s no real need to go installing another one unless you already know one of the others really well and prefer using it to the one built into each browser.

8

I was specifically asking about firefox debugging and not for advice on approach for cross browser guidelines. Thanks anyway. Having done some research firebug seems a better investment in time due to its better network analyser: unfortunately it crashes or contributes to crashes on ff 26 quite regularly… Something that doesn’t happen using the built in development tools.

9

Save debugging Firefox for last - it is the one that is slowest when it comes to running JavaScript and often runs inefficient code slightly faster than efficient code due to somehow trying to do things backwards compared to how all the other browsers do it. It is generally better to put up with the slight inefficiencies of Firefox as the slight improvement you get in Firefox when you use slightly less efficient code results in comparatively huge inefficiencies in how the code runs in other browsers.

As the JavaScript will generally run identically in Firefox to the way it does in other browsers (even though it runs more slowly) you are best to optimize your code for Internet Explorer/Google Chrome/Opera first.

Most if not all of your debugging will then have been completed long before you open Firefox and actually needing to do any debugging in Firefox will be extremely rare - so installing any additional debuggers on top of the built in one is both unnecessary and will also make the browser even more inefficient than it already is.