cocoaforge

what different programs can i use to edit the code of an extra?

The only extras that really require code are message styles. Message styles are webkit based, and minly done with CSS, so you can do that with pretty much any text editor. I would recommend Smultron (http://smultron.sourceforge.net/). Most everything else (dock icons, status icons, etc.) can be created with an image editor like Photoshop. Contact list styles and layouts can be created within the Adium Appearance prefs.

Also see: http://trac.adiumx.com/wiki/AdiumXtras

what about editing adium scripts? i can't open them in my text editor...

Right-click the script and choose Show package contents. Then look for a file with extension .scpt inside the package and double-click to open it in Script Editor.