Linux users have more text editors, IDEs, and command-line tools than a programmer can shake a stick at. If you're looking for a good programming text editor, we recommend Kate. It's super easy to get started with, but is quite powerful and has lots of great plugins to beef it up.

Note: Moreso than other categories, this is an area in which everyone has different needs, and it's hard to pick a "best". We wanted to focus on text editors rather than full IDEs and command line tools here, but we'll discuss all your options in the competition section below.

Kate

Platform: Linux
Price: Free
Download Page

• Syntax highlighting support for more than 180 languages with bracket matching (to make sure you don't forget to close anything)
• Code folding/collapsing
• On-the-fly spell checking
• Show multiple documents at once with window splitting
• Session support
• Bookmarking system with scroll bar marks
• Code autocompletion with argument hints
• Vi input mode (for your vim junkies out there)
• Search & replace for multiple opened files or files on the disk
• Version control
• Extensible through plugins and scripting

Kate hits the sweet spot in terms of features (high), learning curve (low), and price (free). You can use it as a simple text editor with syntax highlighting or, between all its features and plugins, make it do almost anything a full IDE could do. It's the perfect editor for those just getting into the world of programming, as you'll quickly discover all the awesome features an advanced editor has to offer without feeling overwhelmed and confused.

The biggest downside with Kate is that, as a KDE application, it's not going to integrate well with a GNOME system. It's also going to seriously eat away at your system resources if it isn't running in its native KDE environment, but we'd argue it's well worth it—editors like gedit just don't match up in terms of programming features. That said, if you're a bit more experienced, you may also find a full IDE to be more up your alley, in which case you can try one of the alternatives below.

There are more programming tools for Linux that we could possibly name here, but here are some of the most popular.

Eclipse is, unlike Kate, a full integrated development environment, which means it can do things like compile code. If you need something beyond a "programming text editor", Eclipse is one of the most popular IDEs, and probably a good place to start. It has a steeper learning curve, so you may need to do a little reading before you get started.

Vim is undoubtedly one of the most popular editors, with a very fervent fanbase—and with good reason. While it easily has the steepest learning curve of the editors presented here, it also has the potential to make you insanely fast. Vim is a command-line editor that's completely keyboard-based, and once you learn your way around, it's blazing fast—plus you can use it in any OS, on any desktop environment, and it won't take up a lot of system resources. If you really want to get serious about editing your code, you should take a look at Vim. You can also find it in GUI flavors if you don't want to do all your editing in the command line.

Emacs is similar to Vim in the sense that it's very shortcut based. It's also available as a command-line editor, though you can grab GUI versions as well. Emacs' biggest strength is its large library of extensions that can do just about anything, from browsing the filesystem to reading RSS feeds. It's learning curve is steep, but not quite as steep as Vim's. That said, it's also not quite as fast either—you may want to try both and see which you like better.

Lastly, if all you need is some very basic syntax highlighting and simple coding features, the trusty gedit is a good text editor to use. It's incredibly simple to use, comes with most GNOME-based distros, and even has some handy plugins to beef it up. It's not nearly as powerful as the other editors mentioned here, but it'll get the job done in a pinch if all you're editing is a quick config file or other piece of code.

Like we said before, there are a ton of editors out there, and we've barely scratched the surface here. Many of you likely have your own favorites, so if we didn't mention yours, be sure to share it with us in the comments below.

Lifehacker's App Directory is a new and growing directory of recommendations for the best applications and tools in a number of given categories.

You can make a lot of cool DIY electronics with an Arduino board, but you can actually make your own Arduino for a fraction of the cost—with a bit of room for customizability, too.

Obviously, it's easier to just buy an Arduino, but if you feel like doing a bit of extra tinkering—and saving a few bucks—Instructables user Higgs Boson has you covered with a step-by-step tutorial for creating your own Arduino. It's about half the price of the Arduino Uno ($15 compared to $30), and you have room to do away with any stuff you don't need on the board for space savings. Check out the link below for the full how-to, and be sure to check out all of our favorite Arduino hacks if you're short on inspiration.

How to Make Your Own Arduino Board | Instructables

On countless occasions, you've likely said to yourself "I wish I knew how to do ______." Then, of course, life got in the way and you put it off until you could find the time. Maybe you wanted to become fluent in a language, learn a new instrument, start performing your house repairs, or a master a myriad of other skills. With the vast amount of knowledge online, you're now your only excuse. Here are the top ten most highly desired skills that you can teach yourself—and should.

10. Repair Just About Anything

Sure, you don't need to repair anything anymore. You can just pay someone else to do it. But where's the ingenuity in that? Plus, who wants to waste a bunch of money on simple tasks you can handle on your own? If you've adopted the DIY spirit, learning to repair your own stuff is one of the easiest and more rewarding skills you can acquire. It's especially fruitful because as you learn new things, you can put them to use right away. So how do you teach yourself? We've outlined tons of repairs you can learn on your own to get you started, but if you're looking for something specific there is no shortage of how-to videos available on YouTube and VideoJug. There will be occasions when you do need to call a professional, as you're not going to be a master repairman (or woman) instantly, but do remember that there is an opportunity when things break: you can learn how to fix them.

9. Pick Up an Artistic Skill Like Illustration, Painting, or Photography

Although it often won't earn you the big bucks, artistic skills are highly desired because they provide you with the technical abilities required to create something beautiful. You're going to have to find your own inspiration and subject matter, but the skill you'll need is really just a matter of technical aptitude and practice. Picking up a book of anatomy and drawing different bones and muscles will teach you how to draw people. Drawing grids over photographs can show you basic perspective. Obviously it isn't as simple as that, but focusing on learning to draw one simple thing, like the petals of a flower or the human hand, will help you learn how it works and get in a reasonable amount of practice. When you're ready to move on from the basics and start illustrating on your computer, check out our digital painting lessons. For those of you interested in photography, we have lessons for you, too.

Whatever you're looking to learn, just set aside 15-30 minutes every day to practice a very small part of that skill. It'll take awhile to teach yourself how to draw, paint, take better photos, make hamburger sculptures out of clay, or whatever it is you want to do, but breaking the daunting task into pieces and practicing each part slowly will do the trick. Plus, it's a really nice way to unwind at the end of the day.

8. Learn to Defend Yourself

Who likes getting their ass kicked? Probably a very small majority. If that's what you're into, it doesn't require much skill—just endurance. If you'd prefer to not end up hurt or injured as the result of an unexpected attack, perhaps it's time to pick up some self-defense skills. While you'll probably want to have a partner around to help you out—at least when you want to test your skill—we've outlined several self-defense moves that you can learn on your own. Although you will hopefully never need to actually employ the techniques you acquire, if you do you'll increase your chances of coming out of a fight unharmed. Plus, it's pretty cool to walk around with the confidence of being able to take on most anyone in a fight.

7. Improve Your Design Skills (or At Least Acquire a Sense of Style)

Design and style aren't an exact science, as tastes differ and change as time goes on, but there are a few principles you can pick up that'll make your work, home, or whatever needs an aesthetic boost looking better than average. If we're talking traditional design, you'll first want to learn the basics of type and layout. These are skills you can employ in your everyday work to make it look a lot more attractive. This may seem like a nearly-useless skill, because spreadsheets aren't getting entered in any beauty contests, but when something looks good it can have a greater impact. That's always a plus in your work. If you want to take things a bit further, you can bump those skills up a notch and apply them to web site design in Photoshop. Your sense of style is even a useful thing when choosing a great wallpaper and creating a clean and organized desktop on your computer. If your home is boring, just follow these guidelines for awesome interior design. You don't have to be a pro, but learning the basics of design can make your life a lot brighter.

6. Pick Up Just About Any Subject You Missed In College

Whether it's science, finance, math, humanities, law, or anything else, if there's a course you wish you took in college you're not out of luck—you can probably find it online. To help you out, we've rounded up every great source of online education so you can gain that knowledge you missed. What's great about learning online is that you can take it at your own pace and put in as much time as you can spare each day. You don't necessarily have to master a subject, either, but learn as much as you need or want to know. While you won't end up with a degree for your hard work, you will be a little bit smarter—and that's the most important part.

5. Build and Hack Electronic Hardware

We love technology, and we love it more when we can make it do pretty much whatever we want. There is almost no end to what you can hack, but getting started does require teaching yourself a few skills. Learning to build a computer is a good place to start. Soldering is especially helpful, and understanding the basics of arduino can help you build some really neat stuff. One of the best ways to get started is to pick a project and learn by doing. If you're not sure where to start, our DIY tag page can offer a few ideas.

4. Play a (New) Instrument

Whether you already know how to play an instrument and want to learn something new or are musically inept, you'll find plenty of resources online to help you teach yourself to play just about anything. If guitar is your thing, you're in luck as you'd be hard-pressed to not find online lessons. JustinGuitar.com offers over 500, and we've rounded up plenty more. The internet can also teach you piano, drums, and even orchestral instruments like the flute and violin. Just like with repair skills, you can find a lot of how-to videos on both YouTube and VideoJug.

In addition to the instrument, you're also going to want to learn a little music theory. Ricci Adams' musictheory.net offers a bunch of free lessons to get you started. When you're starting to get good, you can put together a home recording studio on the cheap to start capturing your talent and sharing it with others.

3. Cook Like a Pro

With so many recipe sites and cooking skill how-to videos online, it's a surprise that everyone isn't a master chef at this point. There are so many simple things you can learn that can vastly improve your culinary skill set really quickly, many of which we've covered. We've written so much on the subject of learning to cook better that this little paragraph isn't enough to cover it all, but there are a few posts in particular that you'll want to read to get started. First, these tips and tricks for budding foodies will make your learning process easier. Second, follow this station-by-station kitchen guide to stay organized and efficient when cooking. Finally, these must-know recipes will help you round out your arsenal of cooking knowledge. For more, we like recipe and how-to sites Epicurious and How2Heroes. And, of course, you can always check our how to and kitchen tag pages for more great tips.

2. Become Fluent in a New Language

When we asked you which skills you really wanted to learn, language was at, or close to the top of many peoples' lists. Fortunately for you, this clever technique offers a way to all but master a new language in a short period of time by teaching yourself. You'll still have to work hard and put in the minutes every day, but you can come out speaking fluently in about half of a year. Pretty cool.

1. Make a Web Site, Create an App, or Just Learn to Code

Learning to code is something most of us Lifehackers aspire to do at one point or another, as it's not only a great way to create cool apps and tools that we want to use but it's also an incredibly marketable skill when trying to get a job. To get you started, we've put together two helpful sets of lessons: the basics of programming and making a web site.

Both sets include further resources, but there are plenty of others that we've learned about or have cropped up since. For starters, commenter mistermocha suggests using the "learn ___ the hard way" series. For example, if you wanted to learn Python, you could visit learnpythonthehardway.org. If you just fill in the blank with the language you want to learn and put that into a web search, you'll likely find what you're looking for. (You can also find most of the series here.) If you prefer more interactive lessons, you'll want to check out one of our favorites: Codecademy. I learned by subscribing to online learning site Lynda.com (and through a few basic classes back in college), which is still excellent, but I'd probably have gone with Code Academy at this point since it's in the free category. Regardless of how you decide to learn, programming skills are becoming more and more useful as time goes on. Code is not as complicated as you think, so go get started!

Photos by Mister Wilson, Alex Indigo, Andy Mangold

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Windows/Mac/Linux: If you've ever hacked around in your computer's terminal or command prompt, you've had moments where there's way too much text to fit on your screen. ProFont, made especially for terminals and programming, is meant to be tiny, so you can read lots of data all at once.

Coders are more than a little particular about their comfortable setup, so ProFont may not be a new default setting in editors of choice. But for those want to give it a go, or for casual users who'd like something that's very readable at any size, ProFont is a nifty little font that lets you fit more text onto a screen and scan it for what you're looking for. I learned about ProFont from a programmer who said it was his first post-installation step on any Mac he uses, and I've found a small but dedicated set of fans for ProFont on the web.

Installing ProFont isn't always obvious. Here's a good how-to for Ubuntu, and an easily installed version for Windows. The Mac version from Tobias Jung's site should be straightforward to plug in.

ProFont for Windows, for Macintosh, for Linux | Tobias Jung