# Tools Needed

Before we go into what Koding Apps are and how to create them, lets go over
required and/or useful knowledge and tools. Don't forget to checkout the 
[Useful Tools][5] page after you get through Getting Started.

## Knowledge

### CoffeeScript or JavaScript

Koding Applications are primarily programmed in [CoffeeScript][1]. While you
can technically use any language, as long as the final output is a single
javascript file named `index.js` within the root of your App directory.

### Pistachio

[Pistachio][2] is a templating language that is used by [JView][3]

## Tools

### KDC, The Koding Compiler

The [Koding Compiler][4], otherwise known as `kdc` is a small utility to 
compile Koding apps to a single `index.js` file.

This tool comes with your Koding VM, you do not need to install it.





[0]: https://koding.com
[1]: http://coffeescript.org
[2]: https://github.com/pipobscure/pistachio
[3]: ../api/core/jview
[4]: https://github.com/koding/kdc
[0]: ../useful-tools.md